Cornerstone Landscape and Maintenance Success Story  In business since 1999, Cornerstone Landscape and Maintenance in Bettendorf, Iowa has specialized in five different areas: hardscape, lawn maintenance, irrigation maintenance, snow removal and outdoor lighting. Owners Robert Lowder and Mark Johnson and their six-man crew focus on providing Cornerstone’s clients with first class service and quality landscaping.
Although they were running a successful business, Lowder and Johnson realized they weren’t using their time wisely in 2009. They were still relying on handwritten timecards from their workers, who worked at 30 different jobsites each week. The process was inefficient, ineffective and a hassle.
 That winter, Johnson read a trade show magazine and found the solution he was looking for in Exaktime’s products. In January 2010, Lowder and Johnson ordered two JobClocks to automate their timekeeping. It’s a purchase they haven’t regretted.
“We were definitely struggling with time accuracy and getting the timecards done,” Johnson said. “One of the great things is we really phased the system in with our guys. We had meetings to discuss it and let them know it was a tool for us as management… not a device that’s a micromanager.”
Almost immediately, Lowder and Johnson noticed a difference in their business. Workers were getting jobs done faster, and workers’ time cards were now accurate down to the very minute they clocked in and clocked out. Johnson estimates Cornerstone saves $200 to $300 each week with the system, and his company’s original investment with Exaktime paid for itself in a matter of weeks.
Another major benefit to Cornerstone has been in the office. Johnson said it used to take him two to three hours every week to process payroll for his company. Now, the bookkeeping is much more efficient.
“From what I see, it’s cut my time dealing with that specific issue in half,” he said.
Lowder knows his workers are getting more jobs done in fewer hours. And after using the system, he’s not sure how any contractor or landscaper can process payroll any other way.
 “It’s too easy to pass up,” he said.
Lowder and Johnson have also been keeping track of their cost codes and plan on using this accurate, organized data for insurance purposes, such as workman’s compensation, and future bidding estimates. They’re glad that they no longer have to dig through piles of inaccurate, illegible timesheets and can use TimeSummit – Exaktime’s automated reporting software - instead to find the numbers they need.
Since their original investment, Lowder and Johnson have added two more JobClocks to their system.
“Exaktime’s staff is absolutely outstanding,” Johnson said of the company, whose headquarters is located in Calabasas, California. “They have always been there or called me right back when I needed them.”
As Cornerstone continues to grow their landscaping business, Lowder and Johnson will always rely on The JobClock System to make sure one aspect of their business is a constant success: payroll.
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