Not too long ago, we sat down with one of our long-time clients, Patrick Theismann. We wanted to get his perspective on what it’s really like to work with us, and how we were able to help him and his team consistently reduce waste expenses.
Read part 1 of the full interview below!
What is Beacon Management?
Beacon Management was founded in 1979, by my father in law. We manage and develop affordable housing for families and seniors. That’s the bulk of our portfolio. We do commercial as well as market rate development, but the company was really founded on affordable housing.
We have 32 properties throughout the country from Connecticut to South Carolina. The bulk of them are in North Carolina from Winston to Wilmington. And we have three in South Carolina and one in Connecticut.
How did you initially find out about our services?
I think you (Tyler Brunson, WCI’s CEO) came to my office! We talked a little bit. I think you were just getting started when we first did it. As business moves on a day to day basis, there are only certain things you have time for. One of which is negotiating contracts. I found myself negotiating more and more contracts for hauling as they were coming up or trying to save properties money.
Operating costs for an affordable community are extremely important. Our margins are pretty thin, so anything we can do to help operations is always helpful.
Taking something that I don’t necessarily like to do and working with someone who has a lot more knowledge in the industry has made things a lot easier for me.
Were you aware that you needed waste solutions or had waste disposal problems?
Not really! I knew there was ways to cut costs. I knew that we could cut costs. But without the intrinsic knowledge of the industry, I had no way to know. I could haggle with people with the best of them, but if I don’t have the knowledge of the industry, it doesn’t do me much good. That’s where I found the most value in working not only our friendship, but in working with someone who has the knowledge in the industry that I had none in as well as saving my companies and my properties more money.
What had you tried previously to reign in waste expenses?
I was haggling with hauler and they would say “this is what it is” and I didn’t have any recourse to go after them with. I found myself going to hauler to hauler trying to find competitive pricing, but I wasn’t getting any real traction because you don’t really know who to contact.
As I think as we mature in our professional careers, what you know is very important. But who you know is also very important! Me calling a customer service line, and you calling someone you actually know? Much different outcomes.
What was most surprising to you about our audit process?
It wasn’t difficult! Half of our time is spend doing due diligence to close deals. Obviously getting you the service agreements and contracts are not the most difficult thing to do! There are alot more arduous tasks you have do!
I found it easy to send you the stuff — it was actually more difficult for me to find the documents. We’re trying to move to more digital records, so sending you the invoices and service contracts has helped me manage that process because we have to keep them electronically. Now every agreement that we’ve negotiated or renegotiated I have electronically, so the access makes that a little bit easier.
Was there anything that surprised you about our initial savings recommendations?
Well, it actually goes back further than that. When you and I talked, I was intrigued by your model because there’s a lot of services that will say, “If you pay me ‘x’, I will be able to find you this.” I liked your model because similar to a developer, you get what you get. If you’re able to save money, then you make some money, and you save some money.
So really, that was the biggest aspect of our meeting and why I wanted to do business with you. I knew that if you didn’t do your job effectively, I didn’t have to pay you. If you did do your job effectively, you earned it, you made the agreed amount that we had determined according to your agreement, and we also saved.
I really liked that because I wasn’t coming out of pocket right away. I found the savings, and you money that you agreed upon. It was a win-win because it wasn’t out of pocket! Liquidity as a developer is not something we have a lot of! As a management firm, we have a lot of cash that goes out for proposals and so me not having to put money up front for a hopeful savings on the back end made me rest a lot easier.