Back-office systems for service businesses
Put your people back on the work you hired them for. Starting with you.
Work gets stuck in email, spreadsheets, and one person's head. Jobs slip, invoices go out late, and hours go to retyping and chasing. I find where work stops moving and build simple systems, starting with the tools you already use.
Book a free callFree, 30 minutes. You'll leave knowing if there's something worth fixing.
Curious about AI? We'll find out if it's the right fix for you.
Example: a property management office ran maintenance requests like a game of telephone. After I rebuilt the system, requests closed in 1 day instead of 4, and the team got 10-15 hours a week back for other work. See how →
You can see a messy van.
You can't see a messy back office.
A messy van costs 15 minutes a job. That never shows up on a report. It shows up as one less job a day. The same thing is happening in your office. You just can't see it. None of it is anybody's fault. It's what happens when the only system is people remembering to tell each other things.
It happens in trades, construction, property management, real estate, accounting, and just about any other service business, whether you're a solo operator or a team of 50. Here's how to tell if it's happening in yours.
This is you if
- Leads and requests get jotted on a sticky note or dumped into a spreadsheet
- The same information gets entered over and over, in different places
- "Where are we on that?" means asking someone
- Invoices, work orders, and approvals sit until you follow up
- Half the know-how lives in one person's head. Then they go on vacation
This is not you if
- You're shopping for AI, not solving a problem
- You're not open to changing how the work gets done
- You won't let me talk to the people who do the work
What it looks like when it's fixed.
In-house project
Maintenance requests at a 50-person property management company, before and after.
- 4 days → 1 to close a request
- 10-15 hours/week freed from data entry
- Tenants stopped calling for updates
- Under $30/mo in new software
A form, a shared spreadsheet, and a simple app, all inside the Google tools they already used.
Client project, accounting firm60-80 hours a year freed from keying
Weekly journal entries at an accounting firm, before and after.
- 15-20 entries → 1 upload each week
- 60-80 hours/year freed from keying
What I build for construction teamsProject setup and bidding for small builders
Project setup and bidding: how most small builders run it today, and what I build instead.
Built on the Gmail, Drive, and Sheets you already use, plus one simple app for the team.
What is one manual task costing you?
Pick one task that gets done by hand, over and over: sending invoices, entering work orders, chasing bids. Plug in your numbers.
If that person is you, use what your own hour is worth.
This one task takes
6.7 hours a week
- 333 hours a year
- About $10,000 a year in paid time
The call is where we find out how much of that you can get back.
Book a free callEstimate. Based on 50 working weeks a year, with a conservative 25% added to pay for benefits and payroll taxes. Your true cost is likely higher. Nothing you type here is saved or sent anywhere.
How we work together.
Step 1 Free call · 30 min · $0
Tell me where work gets stuck. We'll figure out if it's worth a deeper look.
Step 2 Back-office assessment · $1,000
90 minutes with you and the people who do the work. You get:
- A one-page map of how the work runs today
- 3-5 fixes, ranked by effort and payoff
- A recommended first fix
- A 30-minute walkthrough of the findings within 7 business days
Credited in full toward a build or monthly plan if you start within 60 days.
Then choose.
Fixed-fee build
Best if you have one clear problem and want it solved.
- I build it, test it, train the team
- 50% at signing, 50% at launch
- 30 days of support included
- Larger builds quoted from the assessment
Monthly advisor
Best if your team will do the building and you want an expert steering it.
- Two 60-minute sessions a month
- I guide, your team builds
- Direct message, one‑business‑day reply
- Work the list one process at a time
Monthly partner
Best if you want a running list of fixes built for you.
- Weekly sessions
- Up to 8 hours/month built for you
Optional Ongoing care · $500/mo · cancel with 30 days' notice
Monitoring, small changes, up to 3 hours/month. Extra work $150/hr, confirmed before it starts.
Sometimes the answer isn't software. If changing how you work fixes the problem, I'll tell you, and it will cost less than a build.
Book a free callNot sure which path fits? That's what the call is for.
I've been on your side of this.
Before I fixed back offices, I worked in them.
I ran a rental operation, from the leasing desk to the units themselves: leasing, maintenance, turnovers. I'd often jump in and knock out work orders myself. Then I rebuilt how that company handled maintenance requests. That's the first example above.
I spent the next six years in process engineering and automation, mostly at Wells Fargo. I found and assessed hundreds of automation opportunities, and saw many of them through to a finished build.
Most recently, a year as project manager on four twin homes, from the job site to the books: coordinating subs, reviewing invoices, and managing costs. Same problem as the rental office. Work sat still until someone, usually me, carried it to the next person.
I start with the simplest fix, usually without adding new software. Based in Central Iowa. I'll come to you if you're close.
Fair questions.
Should we be using AI?
Maybe. It's powerful for some jobs and overkill for others. I start with the simplest fix that works, often using tools you already have. If AI is the better answer, we'll use it and I'll explain exactly what it's doing. If it isn't, I'll tell you, and you won't pay for something you don't need.
What does this mean for my team?
Mostly it means their day gets less tedious. The retyping and the chasing go away, and the work you actually hired them for gets more of their time. This isn't about running the same business with fewer people. For most businesses it's about taking on more work without adding people.
What happens after you leave?
You get documentation a normal person can read, training for the people using it, and 30 days of support after launch. After that, ongoing care is there if you want it.
How long does this take?
Call, 30 minutes. Assessment findings in 7 business days. First build usually running within a month after that.
Do we have to replace our software?
Usually not. Most of the time it's building on what you already have, or adding one light tool alongside it to cover a gap. Sometimes replacing something is genuinely the right move, and I'll say so if I think it is, but that's not where I start.
Couldn't I just do this myself?
Probably. Plenty of owners could. The real question is whether you're going to. It's been on the list since March and you've never had a free Saturday. That's most of what you're paying for: somebody who's done this for years, and whose entire week is this.
If your back office is quietly eating a job a day,
start with the call.
30 minutes. No cost, no pressure. Rather text first? (515) 745-8035