NOVO Uses Clearstory to Build Rock Solid Relationships

Watch how the team from this leading California-based General Contractor uses Clearstory's digital T&M Tags and real-time COR Logs to build rock solid relationships based on trust and transparency.

Prior to our onsite video with a project team at NOVO, we sat down with Jacob White, Senior Project Manager, to learn how Clearstory streamlined Change Order Communication for NOVO, boosting their teams productivity and reducing risk for themselves, their Subcontractors and Clients.

Challenges with Change Order Processes and Transparency

NOVO prides itself on executing projects on time, within budget, with no surprises. The company and its project managers were already using cloud-based, online tools to ensure “top-shelf results in high-pressure circumstances” across all of their construction projects. But the missing piece was a clean, easy to-use portal for tracking Subcontractor Change Order Requests (CORs) and Time and Material (T&M) Tags.

On any given project, there could be hundreds of Sub CORs and Tickets tracked on paper, email and in excel before being forecasted in the company’s financial system. To ensure Novo had accounted for each COR emailed to them, they would monthly ask their Subcontractors to provide an updated COR log. NOVO needed a tool where Subcontractors could uniformly and easily upload CORs and Tags in a systematic way giving them confidence they have the full financial picture.

Why Did You Choose Clearstory?

A Subcontractor invited me to their project within Clearstory, and I started asking questions only to discover this program is the exact thing I needed years ago. It's simple, easy to implement, and keeps everything tracked in one location.

What is the ROI of Using Clearstory?

For 2-3 years I was either spending (1) a Saturday each month catching up on change order paperwork or (2) working until 10 or 11 pm a few nights a week to avoid working on the weekend. I know you can look at it from a financial standpoint, but the ROI on getting my entire weekend back is priceless.

What made Clearstory a Good Fit for NOVO Construction?

The interface and flexibility within the software to modify it to our exact needs. It's simple, powerful, and effective. The other products on the market have layers and layers of features, but why over complicate something that is already so time consuming? Our projects are fast paced and we need something our subs can adopt quickly without much training.

How Do You Use Clearstory?

We make Clearstory a project requirement that all Subcontractor CORs are uploaded through the system. We have seen great adoption from Subcontractors because it also helps them track their outstanding cost exposure keeping us all on the same page and eliminating surprises.

What Results Have You Seen By Using Clearstory?

We gained the ability to realize cost exposures from T&M Tags immediately while maintaining an organized file of Subcontractor Change Orders. This completely eliminated the manual process of requesting a Subcontractor COR log for each company to see our financial exposure. Our clients love it because we are able to report costs in near real-time.

Would You Recommend Clearstory to Others?

Since I was the first to introduce Clearstory to NOVO, it is a joke around the office that I’m the Clearstory guy. I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve recommended it to whether in the office, Subcontractors, or other GCs.