Sliding Scale Technologies

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing director of Western USI, an advertising installation company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Sliding Scale Technologies?

We needed to develop a custom field operations app for our advertising installation business. Our main goal was to simplify and automate the process of managing a large number of advertising sites and installation jobs.We wanted our installers to have a simple mobile interface where they could see their allocated jobs, access site information and photos, manage stock, update job status, and submit completion photos from the field.
On the management side, the objective was to reduce manual administration, improve visibility over jobs and stock, standardize our installation workflow, and create a more reliable flow of information between our office and installation teams.A major requirement throughout the project was simplicity. Our installers needed to be able to use the system quickly in the field without unnecessary steps or complexity.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Sliding Scale Technologies has handled the design and development of our InstallFlow platform from our initial specifications and workflows through to a working production application.
The scope has included building the installer-facing mobile application and the management/admin system used by our office. Key deliverables have included our advertising site database, job allocation and scheduling, installer job lists, stock and material tracking, installation status updates, site information and location details, photo management, completion photo submissions, and automated completion reporting.
They’ve also developed the backend infrastructure required to manage our sites, installers, and installation data, along with user authentication, cloud photo storage, mapping/location functionality, and automated email notifications. An important part of the project has been taking what had previously been a fairly manual process involving spreadsheets, emails, photos, and separate systems and bringing the core installation workflow into one purpose-built platform.
Sliding Scale Technologies has also worked with us throughout development to refine the workflows and make the system as simple as possible for installers working in the field while still giving management the information and control we need.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 2–5 teammates from Sliding Scale Technologies.

How did you come to work with Sliding Scale Technologies?

We found them on Upwork. We chose them because they had high ratings, their pricing fit our budget, and they were a great culture fit.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in August 2026, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The biggest measure of success for us has been the improvement in how efficiently we can manage our installation operations. The project has actually exceeded our original expectations and has become much more valuable to the business than we initially anticipated.
We now have much better visibility over our advertising sites, allocated work, stock, installation progress, and completion records. Information that previously required checking spreadsheets, emails, photos, and communication between the office and installers can now be managed through one central system.
It has significantly reduced manual administration, reduced the opportunity for information to be missed, improved accountability, and made it much easier for our installers to access exactly what they need in the field. Another important outcome has been the quality and consistency of the information coming back from completed installations.
Management has a much clearer picture of what has been completed, and the supporting records and photos are far easier to manage. We originally engaged Sliding Scale Technologies to solve a specific operational problem, but the finished platform has exceeded our expectations to the point where we now see InstallFlow as a foundation for further digitizing and automating other areas of Western USI's operations.
While we haven’t formally measured the time savings as a percentage, the efficiency improvement looks to be substantial. Western USI manages approximately 800 advertising sites across multiple installation teams, so even small improvements in each job have a significant cumulative impact.
Prior to InstallFlow, a large amount of administration involved manually allocating work, communicating site information, checking job progress, locating completion photos, and reconciling information from installers. InstallFlow has consolidated much of this into a single workflow.
Jobs can now be allocated directly to installers, who have immediate access to the relevant site information and can update the job and submit completion photos from the field. This has removed a significant amount of back-and-forth communication and manual handling by our office.
We estimate that InstallFlow saves several hours of administration each week while also substantially reducing errors and missing information. Just as importantly, management now has real-time visibility across our installation work rather than having to manually establish the status of individual jobs.
We expect the measurable savings to increase further as we move additional operational processes into InstallFlow.One of the biggest improvements has been our installation completion and photo reporting process. Previously, completion photos and installation information would come back to the office through different channels and then had to be manually checked, identified, and matched to the correct job and advertising site.
With a large number of installations being completed across multiple teams, this could be very time-consuming and created opportunities for photos or information to be missed or incorrectly allocated. With InstallFlow, the installer completes the job directly against the allocated site and uploads the required completion photos as part of that process. The photos and job information are therefore already associated with the correct installation when they reach the office.
This has significantly reduced the amount of administration involved in closing out jobs and, more importantly, reduced the potential for an error. It has also made it much easier for management to immediately see what has been completed, what information has been provided, and what is still outstanding. This is probably the clearest example of where InstallFlow has taken a previously manual and sometimes fragmented process and turned it into a simple, reliable workflow.

How did Sliding Scale Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Sliding Scale Technologies’ project management has been exceptional. They’ve exceeded our expectations throughout the entire project, including delivering everything within the agreed timeframe. Communication has been excellent, and we always have a clear understanding of where the project is at.
They’re responsive to questions, changes, and feedback. As the project has developed, they’ve also been proactive in suggesting improvements rather than simply building exactly what was originally specified.
What has impressed us most is their ability to understand our business and the way our installers actually work in the field. This has allowed them to identify better ways of achieving some of our objectives while still keeping the application simple and practical. Despite the scope and complexity of the project, development has remained on schedule, and the final product has exceeded what we originally expected InstallFlow to be capable of.
Overall, their project management, communication, and ability to deliver have been outstanding. We couldn’t have asked for a better result.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What has impressed us most about Sliding Scale Technologies is their ability to understand our business and translate our operational requirements into a system that’s actually better than what we had originally envisioned.
They haven’t simply taken our specification and built it. They’ve taken the time to understand how our advertising installation business operates, how our installers work in the field, and what management needs from the system. Throughout development, they’ve suggested improvements and better ways of handling processes, many of which have made InstallFlow considerably more effective.
Their communication and responsiveness have also been exceptional. Changes and feedback have been dealt with quickly, and we’ve always felt they were genuinely invested in getting the best possible outcome rather than simply completing the agreed scope of work.
The combination of technical ability, understanding of our business, and willingness to improve on our original ideas has probably been the most impressive aspect of working with them. The finished product has exceeded our expectations in virtually every area.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s very little we can identify that Sliding Scale Technologies could have done better. The project has been delivered on time, communication has been excellent throughout, and the finished product has exceeded our expectations. As with any custom software project, there have been changes and refinements along the way, but these have been handled quickly and professionally and ultimately improved the final product.
If anything, our experience has shown us that we could probably have involved Sliding Scale Technologies even earlier in some of the initial planning and workflow design, as their understanding of our business and the suggestions they’ve made throughout development have added considerable value.
Overall, we’ve been extremely happy with both the development process and the end result, and there’s nothing significant we would change about the way the project has been handled.