MAVENTRI

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a risk advisory and insurance brokerage firm operating across the US and internationally. I am the CEO and co-founder of the firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire MAVENTRI?

As a start up, when we founded the firm we had limited resources. Maventri helped us not only to augment our financing and bookkeeping capabilities, but also provided valuable advice on how best to navigate key financial and tax issues.

What were your goals for this engagement?

Our goals were to find reliable, trustworthy partners to help augment our capabilities and streamline our operations. Maventri helped us to do just that by providing a suite of solutions ranging from finance functions to HR.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We conducted an extensive review of potential providers, including interviews. After an exhaustive search, we determined that Maventri was the best suited to meet our needs in terms of experience, resources and cultural alignment.

Describe the engagement in detail.

When we first met with them, we discussed the needs of our business for where we were at the time, as well as our vision and growth plan. After providing these details, Maventri was able to put together an action plan for us that was able to scale up as our firm did. This allowed us to not only manage expenses, but as we grew, added layers of services which helped better manage the firm, and our staff needs. They continue to provide ongoing strategic support and are basically an extension of our team.

Describe their billing or cost structure.

The pricing is very flexible and tailored to the services being consumed. We have set up a monthly recurring agreement that helps us better manage our bottom line.

What was the team composition?

Maventri provides a collaborative team approach, leveraging their entire team as needed. We have our key point of contacts for managing the overall relationship, and a range of folks we work with on a day to day basis for select tasks.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

We have been extremely happy with the engagement. Maventri has been able to provide us with a range of solutions to help manage our business. Whenever we have needed a customized solution, their team has been able to deliver without incident.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The teams have worked seamlessly well. Maventri is basically an extension of our team, always on call and willing to assist.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their dedication and willingness to help solve any issues at hand were their team's most impressive qualities. They are very capable and knowledgeable.

Are there any areas for improvement?

We have been very happy with their services thus far. They are always exploring new solutions and present any opportunities to us for review as they come up.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Director of Data and Technology at a city focused think-tank. I run our operations and finance side of the organization as well.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire MAVENTRI?

We wanted to make sure there was an organization who was helping us through our initial HR set up and oversee our bookkeeping.

What were your goals for this engagement?

Our goals were to set up on a new payroll and HR system, set up a new financial system, and go through our first tax and audit process with a new company.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We started looking on line and reached out to around 10 companies.

Describe the engagement in detail.

Once we engaged with them, they quickly reached out to us. We had a few phone calls to nail down the services we need. They sent out proposals quickly. Once we signed they on boarded us. Within a month they came out and met with us to make sure everything was working out.

Describe their billing or cost structure.

We pay monthly. They seem to have different packages that they will build for you depending on how intensive your work is.

What was the team composition?

We worked with three people. One was the account executive to transition us, one handles our accounting, and one handles our HR.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

They onboarded us quickly and had our accounts up and running within a month.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They worked smoothly with us, if we had an issue they worked with us quickly to fix any problems.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

How hands on and quick they are with helping us.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not at the moment, everything is working smoothly.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the executive director of Golden Eagle Group, a real estate investment and development group.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVENTRI?

We engaged MAVENTRI to provide more modern payroll and bookkeeping solutions compared to the way we were managing our accounting needs in house.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

MAVENTRI runs our financial statements each month, assisting us in getting invoices paid, backing them up digitally and manually, and applying technologies that help organize our accounting needs. They're in the process of setting up a fully digitized system, using QuickBooks and Gusto.

What is the team composition?

We work with a bookkeeper, who visits our office to scan our invoices and enter them into our system for approval. We also work closely with Wanda (Managing Partner, MAVENTRI), who's been very supportive in terms of overseeing our financial statements, as well as someone in HR, who ensures our payroll standards are consistent and in line with current laws and regulations.

How did you come to work with MAVENTRI?

We saw that they had good reviews on Clutch and liked the fact that they were partners of Gusto, which is the platform we were using. We were also very impressed by their commitment and flexibility, accommodating our needs to continue filing paperwork manually, for example. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in September 2018 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

MAVENTRI significantly improved our internal accounting efficiencies and processes, giving us more control over the information we're now able to see and access more easily thanks to their efforts. The systems they've implemented have made our processes more transparent and sped up the time it takes us to approve and process invoices.

How did MAVENTRI perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very hands on and responsive whenever we need anything. In addition to meeting us in person quite frequently, we've had no issues reaching them through Slack, phone, or by email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their responsiveness and accommodating approach sets them apart. They're also highly skilled in applying the latest technologies to improve HR and accounting efficiencies.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open and honest from the start of the engagement, so they can provide the best guidance to help overcome any specific challenges.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the COO and one of the founders of Risk Cooperative, which is an insurance brokerage and risk management consulting firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVENTRI?

We originally contracted with them for accounting and bookkeeping services, but we have since added outsourced human resources support, as well.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They have an online bookkeeping tool, called Xero, that we use to track all of the incoming and outgoing movement of our bank accounts. They also provide an invoicing system that we are able to use with each of our clients to streamline our business processes.

On the HR side, they have helped design an employee handbook. Further, they have made sure we are complying with all state-specific HR rules and regulations as it pertains to employee onboarding or terminations.

What is the team composition?

Our team consists of about three people, including the managing partner.

How did you come to work with MAVENTRI?

Our CEO was referred to them, and we arranged a meeting. We appreciated their approach and the online tools and capabilities they could provide us to better manage our books and processes.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in 2016 and continue to utilize their services.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The biggest value to us is the ability to manage and have more oversight of our accounts while having someone as a backup to make sure we are compliant with all regulations. The invoicing features and the Xero system make it easier for us to bring on new clients, have full control of the invoicing, and keep our books up to date. We haven’t leveraged their HR support as much to this point, but they have been skilled problem-solvers when issues arise, and I wouldn’t hesitate to keep them on as we continue to grow.

How did MAVENTRI perform from a project management standpoint?

The CPA we worked with prior to them was not prepared to support a full company. MAVENTRI has been the opposite. They have been a tremendous resource for us as we continue to grow. They are responsive to all questions, and we have regular calls to address any concerns or changes. They have offered sound direction, and we’ve followed everything they’ve advised.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their responsiveness and their modern software capabilities set them apart.

Any advice for potential customers?

With the technology they have available, they are well-suited to serve small and growing companies.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CEO and co-founder of Roadmap, a service that pulls data from all of your project execution tools into one place in order to better track a large portfolio of projects and people.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVENTRI?

We have a CPA but needed someone to manage the books for us. In particular, we needed help to better understand the details of our burn rate, which is critical for startups. We were also acquired by another company so had to manage the merger while still operating as a standalone and managing our books as such.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

MAVENTRI provides bookkeeping and strategic reporting services for us. We review things with them on a quarterly basis to track our burn rate. We also check-in monthly if they have any questions about reconciling the books. We had a lot of adjustments and other needs leading up to our merger so required more support at that time. They’ve also helped us to automate our investor and other reporting.

What is the team composition?

We primarily interface with two team members.

How did you come to work with MAVENTRI?

We were using a different service at the time. MAVENTRI was recommended to us by one of our investors. One of the other companies in that investor's portfolio used them. My co-founder was using another service but I felt more comfortable with MAVENTRI. They were familiar with the accounting software we use.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together for four years and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

In general, they have increased my business financial literacy so that I understand what I need to, like how to properly characterize transactions and understand what the impacts will be. In particular, they helped us get through our merger, which was critical. We needed a lot of support then and they did a fantastic job.

How did MAVENTRI perform from a project management standpoint?

We use two shared tools—Gusto, an online payroll service, and Xero, an accounting software. We generally have ad hoc meetings when things come up. They’re always very responsive and timely, which is essential for us. That ad hoc nature can be more difficult for MAVENTRI to deal with but it’s where they shine given their responsiveness and flexibility. That was particularly important during the period leading up to the merger.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their responsiveness. They’re always quick to respond to us.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

MAVENTRI also does forensic accounting or bookkeeping. I would suggest that clients take advantage of that because there can be circumstances when you don't know what you don't know.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the director of business operations for a government contractor. We're a small company that's been in business since 2002.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVENTRI?

We were looking for an accounting services provider that was familiar with the ins and outs of federal regulations relating to our business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

MAVENTRI handles our monthly banking reconciliations and quarterly and annual financial compilations, using Unanet and QuickBooks. They work with another accountant on our taxes, and do a lot of budgeting and forecasting work alongside our team.

What is the team composition?

Due to the idiosyncrasies of our budget and bookkeeping needs, Wanda (Managing Partner, MAVENTRI) is our primary account manager. We really appreciate her help—it's not often you see the head of a company get that involved.

How did you come to work with MAVENTRI?

Our bank referred MAVENTRI to us. We wanted to work with them based on their relationship with our bank and knowledge of various federal regulations.

How much have you invested with them?

We pay MAVENTRI about $900 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working with them for three years and counting.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

MAVENTRI's team has been able to quickly understand the details of our work, from contracts to revenue and expenses to how those elements affect our benefits and everything in between. It's clear that they're experts in what they do, because we never have to catch them up to speed on anything. They've taken over our accounting systems flawlessly, which has been a huge help.

How did MAVENTRI perform from a project management standpoint?

They're a small company, so there are times when they've been a little delayed at getting back to us. However, they've never missed an important deadline. After I requested that they be more responsive, they made adjustments and were willing to work around our needs.

They're great at using certain tools, including an online portal for contracts and other shared documents that makes it easy to interact with their team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I'm most impressed by the level of personal attention they give to their clients. It feels like we're more of a partner than just another client to them. They're good at making sure we're thinking of things to help our business, as well as jumping in when we need their help.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would help them to have additional administrative support as they grow to ensure client communications are more swift. It can be challenging to find staff that can perform the same level of work that Wanda can, so as long as they plan for that and have the infrastructure in place, it would help them a lot as they take on more clients.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Their team is very skilled at handling budgets and forecasts and they have a lot of different tools at their fingertips. It's definitely worth hiring them for those types of services.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the President of a content data management and data analytics company. We serve the legislative and political media space with a strong focus on content and how we can provide content to support our customers’ workflow and proprietary products.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVENTRI?

We went through a sale in 2010, and then we bought the business back in 2015. In doing that, we had to migrate off of the previous owner’s HR platform, accounting platform, and reporting platform. We were looking to support those services on our own so we had to select a provider, migrate to all new platforms, bring over data from the acquisition and integrate that into the new platforms, and get our books and records set up. We were also looking for oversight and thought leadership on how to set up our HR policies, handbooks, and documentation.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Regarding HR, they certainly helped with policy creation. We had the overarching policies of the parent company (our previous owner) but they were a much larger organization, so MAVENTRI walked us through this transition, providing policy recommendations and helping us understand what we were legally required to do to be in compliance. We also utilize them for onboarding and help with job descriptions – looking at salaries when we’re getting ready to post a new job – and background checks. They also help with employee off-boarding.

They really handle the majority of the accounting work, so we’re left with reviewing financials. We manage all the AR/AP tasks, but they tackle all of the control and reporting functions. At the end of each month, the owner and her team will review the accounting and publish our income statement balance sheet, cash flow statements. We’ll look at those and identify anything that may stick out – that we notice on our side – and then they'll prepare them for submission to banks and our private equity investors.

We'd done a pretty good job of putting our website together, but we hadn't had much success getting traffic to the site. They sat down with us and analyzed our services – looking for keywords – and really helped us establish a presence. They helped us come up with a strategy on how we, as a small business, could get a bigger presence and cast a greater shadow as people were searching for services that were similar to ours.

What is the team composition?

On the accounting side, we work with the CEO and small team she has supporting her. For HR, we worked through their HR and Operational Director. Their Managing Partner is our point of contact on the web presence side.

How did you come to work with MAVENTRI?

As a small business, we were worried about being a small part of a very large organization and not getting the attention and focus we’d want. Therefore, we were looking for somebody who had a good grasp of the struggles facing small businesses, stemming from wearing many hats at once. MAVENTRI was referred to us and we found a really good comfort level with the CEO and her staff. We also had a chance to talk to some of their current clients who were a similar size to us.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $200,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together for the last three years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

From the accounting standpoint, the best result is that I don't have to worry about it. I trust that everything is being done, and I have a high level of confidence that if there are any issues, they’ll raise them quickly. They developed a good grasp of our business and our clients and the vendor relationships quickly, so they're pretty quick to point out anything unusual. They've gotten a really good feel for our business which has taken a lot of the pressure off of me to be a CFO and Controller.

They’ve provided us great HR guidance and confidence, since we don’t have a dedicated HR person on staff. They’re also giving us good best-practices for small businesses for staff communication. The confidence level we feel always having someone we can call directly to help with questions or challenges is invaluable.

We obviously picked up a lot more traffic and a lot of additional likes from our presence on the web. We didn't really have a presence on social media before, so that too picked up tremendously. I think people are just much more aware - we're a small business, so the goal is always to cast a bigger shadow, and I think we're very successful in doing that. They helped us move ourselves up a couple of pages when people are looking for services similar to ours.

How did MAVENTRI perform from a project management standpoint?

I’m sure we’re one their smaller clients, but the CEO is always there to take my calls. I always feel like I can get access to her on anyone on that team at a moment’s notice. They're very responsive and very helpful with new things that we bring up, and even if they're not completely aware or knowledgeable about a certain thing, they’re able to find resources and get some background on it. They've also been very helpful with other referrals and business in terms of potential partners for us. Communication wise, we do a little bit of everything: we text, we phone call, we email, and we use Slack. There's a lot of different ways for us to have touchpoints. We also do in-person visits.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Because of the level of communication, we don’t feel like any other account, which I think is special. Going with a large company means calling into a large center where people have idea about your specific type of work or your staff. MAVENTRI does a fantastic job of integrating themselves into our business and getting a good feel for your people, the way you operate, and the culture you’ve created. I have a good comfort level with them that has developed into a family-type and personal-rapport that’s deeper than the traditional vendor-client relationship.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They're going to run into the challenge of – as they grow – how do they maintain that rapport and appeal to small businesses like myself? How do they maintain that personal touch as they continue to grow and have success in building their business and their brand?

Any advice for potential customers?

I would challenge anybody that's new and looking for a service provider in this space to really think about what's important and if they value relationships. If they want to develop that rapport with an outsourced solution – so that it's not just a vendor – then they need to dedicate the time to really sharing their business and working closely with MAVENTRI’S team.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CFO of a family-owned moving and storage company in northern Virginia. We’ve been in business for over 30 years, and we handle packing and storage for local or long-distance moves.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVENTRI?

Our business has historically come from referrals and direct mail campaigns, but the moving and storage market has grown more competitive in the past five years. We were behind the times with regard to online presence, so we approached MAVENTRI to revamp our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We abandoned our existing website entirely. They redesigned and developed a new one for us. The site is primarily informational, but users can also submit quote requests. There’s a blog and a new FAQ section, and they’re also in the process of developing a customer portal that will integrate with our systems, but it isn’t finished yet.

In terms of marketing, they’ve redesigned our brochure, our sales folders and inserts, as well as other print collateral. They also handle our social media accounts, help us with our pay-per-click advertising campaigns, and perform market research to make sure we’re on par with our competitors.

What is the team composition?

We work with two account managers.

How did you come to work with MAVENTRI?

We initially hired them to help us with accounting. When we started discussing expanding the business, they offered good advice, so we asked them to start by redesigning our print material. After that, we moved into working with them on our digital marketing and online presence.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent at least $200,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We first started working with them in 2015 and we’re still working together.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Lead generation from the website and our blog has been steadily increasing every month since the new site went live. They also help us monitor where we turn up in search results and how well we’re ranking so that we can strategize how to maintain or increase our visibility.

How did MAVENTRI perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re great about managing everything. We stay in touch via email, phone, and Slack. We also share documents through Google to do reviews and have periodic face-to-face meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re honest, hard-working, and good at creating a collaborative work environment, which can sometimes be hard to find in the world of marketing. When I first started with them, they felt like a service provider, but now their approach is much more comprehensive and they manage all aspects of our projects. They excel at brainstorming, but they’re also willing to listen and they’ve done a great job of translating our non-technical ideas into solutions. And, since we’re a seasonal business, they’ve been a godsend in terms of using their expertise to help us stay relevant year-round.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

We wasted a lot of time initially because we didn’t know what we wanted, so try to go in with a sense of what your goal is. Ask a lot of questions throughout the process. Do research on your own and use them as a sounding board to validate the accuracy of your findings. They’ve been really good about answering my questions and offering advice about what kinds of strategies work or don’t, or identifying the most effective ways to prioritize our spending.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the CEO of a digital media company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire MAVENTRI?

I needed to better integrate digital HR and finance tools into my business.

What were your goals for this engagement?

I wanted to streamline back-office operations through more productive tool integrations.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Their a recommended partner by Xero, a public software that my company uses.

Describe the engagement in detail.

In addition to working with Xero, MANVENTRI is providing back-office bookkeeping and accounting. They’re incredibly professional and responsive.

Describe their billing or cost structure.

We’ve agreed on a monthly retainer.

What was the team composition?

We’re engaged at all levels of the business.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

We are more efficient in using Xero and our other internal accounting tools than we were previously.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We communicate via Slack and meet in person every other week.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I appreciate their attention to detail, responsiveness, and professionalism.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There are no areas that they could improve on; I’m pleased with their services.