Custom Full Stack Enterprise Software

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Randy Shepard & Associates is a consulting company whose sole focus is to provide quality claims processing for car dealerships. Their main selling point is daily claims processing. In order to become more efficient and more accurate, they hired SlideWave's David Daeschler.

Initrack: The “Soup to Nuts” Solution

RS&A needed to solve one big problem: errors due to manual entry. Before SlideWave, manual claim entry, tracking, and shipping was tedious, expensive, and error-prone. David’s job was to build software that would automate RS&A’s existing workflow and allow for checks and balances that kept RS&A’s claim data as accurate as possible.

David’s solution was to build an all-in-one software product that includes:

• Automation of claim data entry
• Claims lifecycle tracking
• Accounting & Invoicing
• Marketing & CRM
• Shipping tracking and billing
• Payroll and time tracking
• Paperless integration
• Document scanning integration
• Web based client claim viewer

According to CTO, Randy Shepard Jr:

“The whole program, if I told you, ‘Oh we have this program that he designed,’ you’d go, ‘oh, that sounds interesting.’ But if I told you everything that it does, you’d be like, ‘how the hell did he do that?’ ”

Why Custom Software?

While off-the-shelf software existed that would perform each the functions RS&A needed, implementing them would require separate licenses, development, and management of each component as well as continuous work to integrate the APIs of each piece. It would also mean employees would have to jump from application to application to get work done. The non-custom alternative would have forced the company to move from established, efficient internal processes to new processes that were tailored to the software’s user interface. By working with SlideWave, RS&A received software that was designed with only RS&A’s existing business processes, goals, and customers in mind. A single solution that continues to evolve alongside the company.

Why David Daeschler and SlideWave, LLC?

“The biggest thing is his knowledge and everything that he knows.

So, obviously when he came in he didn’t know how our business worked. But he learned how it worked and he’s seen the process and seen how it works, and he came up with ideas to improve it.

Not just to say, ‘well you should do this, because…’ Instead it’s, ‘Well this will save you here. You should do this and do this. So for all intents and purposes, when we come up with a problem he figures out a solution for it.

…So you get something working and later something changes and you just figure it out. You can get pissy about it or you can either be a part of the problem or you can be a part of the solution.

He likes to be a part of the solution, so that’s really good for us.”

Learn more about Randy Shepard and Associates (RS&A)

Randy Shepard and Associates has delivered warranty claims processing for automotive dealerships since 1979. Their software automation combined with a steady focus on quality, accuracy, and efficiency allows dealers to maintain consistent cash flow and see a quick claim turnaround. Learn more about Randy’s company at http://www.randyshepard.com/

Backend Development

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One Man Down

When you create a software startup, you never imagine that you’ll be left with a stalled project. You think that the idea, and even the funding, will win the day for your new venture. But that’s not what happened to MilTribe. Flash back to December 2015, when MilTribe learns that their lead developer had just quit. He left the company without so much as documenting code or providing future direction. While the other members could code, none knew C# or databases well enough to complete the project.

“The original developer left the company, actually, and that was what triggered it. So we didn’t have anybody to maintain or add to the original code base back-end in C# or manage the databases or manage the servers. So the, I guess the entire back half of the code base in the system was broken.”

Limited Timeline

To worsen the situation, the company’s initial investment only allowed for a six-month runway... at the most.

“The company probably would have gone under. The timetable to turn it around, especially for myself to turn it around, probably would be more like six months. And we didn’t have six months in the bank.”

Developer Wanted

The MilTribe team now knows that they need an experienced software architect who can jump in quick. That developer needs to know C#, databases, and mobile application development. That developer also needs to understand the unpredictable nature of startups. Being able to help direct the project next steps and provide software architecture support are also ideal characteristics.

“The main thing was the experience in the C#. So knowing that the original code base was over-engineered, it couldn’t have been an easy project to jump into with the timeframes. A lot of it came down to how quickly can you learn and then adapt to someone else’s product.”

Choosing SlideWave

At this point, MilTribe turns to David Daeschler at SlideWave. They choose David because he has extensive experience in C# and backend architecture. David also excels in rescuing stalled projects.

“Especially as a young company knowing that SlideWave has experience with startups, is big. There’s a big difference between corporations, and government, and startups. Especially when it comes to the timeframe and getting things done in a certain amount of time with a certain amount of resources. There’s more constraint.”

Agile Roadmapping

Together, SlideWave and MilTribe developed a plan to keep MilTribe on track.
First, SlideWave evaluated the codebase and determined what had already been done.
Then, SlideWave worked code sprints into the existing six month deadlines that MilTribe approved.
SlideWave fixed old features and delivered new features on a weekly basis, maintaining constant communication.
Through it all, SlideWave worked directly with the team to resolve technical issues and meet deployment deadlines.

“With all the insights and the knowledge the most important thing is a clear path forward. It’s knowing what the next steps are. With this company being so young, everything is done one month at a time pretty much. And being able to know what’s being done next month and what’s capable three months down the road. “

By April 2016, SlideWave’s involvement in moving the application forward contributed to MilTribe’s securement of a second round of funding in 2016. The project went from stalled to on schedule in under six months.

Expert Insights

Finally, SlideWave discovered and revealed data integrity and code issues that were not immediately apparent to MilTribe. This allows MilTribe to continue to develop a superior product for its customers and investors.

“So a couple of confirmations that we kind of guessed and assumed which were confirmed once David came in. That our site wasn’t actually scalable like we were told it was. Server reliability wasn’t there. On the technical aspect, the data management and the data integrity wasn’t really in place. So those were some of the main issues that were concerns that were confirmed.”

Why SlideWave?

“I speak for myself but definitely the integrity. That’s always [the CEO’s] biggest thing. Reliability. And the fact that [SlideWave] actually overcame all of the obstacles that were there. That was something that I was worried about from the very beginning. Yeah, the most important things are execution and honesty. And we’re fully satisfied with both.”

Learn More about MilTribe

MilTribe provides a safe, trusted, and community-driven marketplace for our U.S. Military Community. Visit their webpage for more information and to get involved.