The Edge June/July/August 2026

î COVER STORY

Prokopchak says they conduct random audits on timesheets and job costing to make sure the team is doing it properly and identify any issues. “Those meetings are actually becoming shorter because the information is actually right,” Prokopchak says. “If the information is not right, you’re not going to trust it, so then you’re not going to do it. Everybody’s got to do their part so we can trust what the information is telling us.” McDuff says they drive accountability through their dashboards and reports. “Build the right dashboards and reports to give managers the information quickly and accurately so they can drive account ability throughout the team,”McDuff says. “If you are entering data accurately throughout the ranks, you should be able to build processes that help your team make decisions, build plans, and adjust quickly when necessary.” THE PAYOFF Once you have strong processes in place working hand in hand with your software, your company can experience benefits such as efficiency gains, increased customer satisfaction, boosted margins and improved decision making. Malmberg notes companies can in crease their efficiency anywhere from five to 20%, depending on the technology. “If I can save 15 minutes a day, I got 20 crews, I’ve already saved them thousands of hours a year, and then I’m turning around and replacing that with not only cost savings, but I can incorporate addi tional revenue there,”Malmberg says. Prokopchak says one process they implemented requires their production managers to approve timesheets in LMN by 8 a.m. the following morning, before they leave the office. “Payroll can do what they need to do,”Prokopchak says. “In the past, when timesheets weren’t right, we would get errors and it would get sent back to production, and it’s just a great big circle of not being productive. We put a stop to that by making sure that the time is set aside for my production people to sit in the office.” McIrvin says a process they implement ed was a standardized, mobile-friendly ordering system where team members can request items like tools, equipment and consumables through a simple app-based form, complete with photos and descrip tions in both English and Spanish. Previous ly, operations managers purchased what they needed on a yard-by-yard basis. Now all the requests go through their Allied

part of the process. Gordon says one instance of this was when they were trying to track drivers and collect mileage and hours off their assets. At the time, the driver would have to scan a QR code and log the hours and mileage from the truck. However, they were unable to foster these behaviors. “We did not keep fighting that fight,” Gordon says. “We took a step back, and we’re looking for other solutions. Through some integration with GPS and hopefully facial recognition, we’re going to get the same data we wanted automatically. I think it’s going to push us to a better long-term solution, which is everything is automated.” PREVENTING PROCESS DRIFT Gordon warns that the implementation period of a new technology is not finished until it becomes systemic in how you operate as a company. “Most of the time they treat implemen tation and launch as they’ve reached the finish line and they’re done, but really, that’s where they need to start at go-live and really do hyper care with the team,” Malmberg says. “They need to be there with their processes and their training and support to work on this feedback loop with their crew members, to keep them on task. If they’re left alone to their own devices at go-live, that’s where things start to drift out of control.” Newman says people getting off course throughout the year is inevitable, but the important thing is to try to address drift early on. McIrvin says at key times of the year they will revisit processes and reinforce expectations. “Our Allied Support Center also conducts‘show me’sessions, where team members walk through how they actually perform a process,”McIrvin says. “This helps identify gaps between what’s designed and what’s happening. That continuous validation keeps processes aligned and relevant.” McIrvin says they also track adoption daily through their Allied Support Center, which reviews inputs and measures perfor mance using a red, yellow, green system by individual and by manager group. “If we’re not seeing strong participation or the data coming in isn’t accurate, that’s a clear sign the process and technology are not aligned,” McIrvin says. “At that point, we don’t push harder — we pivot. Misalign ment isn’t solved by enforcement; it’s solved by refining the process so it actually works in the field.”

Photos: (Top) Focal Pointe (Right) Landscape America

with your staff and reminding them of past success stories. “If you go in and baby them and let them run with this idea that they’re not capable, then they’re never going to do it,” Gordon says. “Believe in them and tell them they’re capable. The majority of people are fearful that they’re not going to be able to learn it.” Prokopchak stresses to employees that he expects them to make mistakes, but the important thing is that they try and take the time to understand the technology. Newman notes that it’s better to fail fast, as mistakes allow them to identify where tweaks need to be made to their process. “My first reaction is always, ‘Do we need to change the process?’before I move on to pointing the finger and blaming a specific person,”Newman says. Another key to successful implementa tion is to listen to employee complaints. In some cases, these frustrations may high light a valid concern and indicate a need to pivot from a specific software or change

24 The Edge // June/July/August 2026