We greatly appreciate the long working relationship we have with Denice and Raven Golf Services where she oversees all operations. We caught up with her for a conversation.
Tell me a little about Raven Golf Services.
We manage golf courses. The company was founded in 2009 and we’ve been responsible for many different courses during that time. Currently, we manage the River Birch Golf Course.
Our business is seasonal so our employee count fluctuates. Right now, we have 59 employees on the payroll, although in the winter, it drops to about 25. In the past, we’ve managed up to five courses at the same time so had many more employees.
What has been your experience with QTS?
We’ve worked with QTS for a long time; I believe we started in about 2013. We use payroll plus the time and attendance services. Our experience has been really positive overall. As with anything, sometimes there have been hiccups, but customer service is there is help. When we were managing five courses, logistics sometimes got complicated. In addition, Breck and Rick have always been available and helped take care of things right away, such as making sure time clocks were up and running for our multiple courses. That’s been very valuable to me. Now that I have only one course, it’s a breeze.
I also figured out how to build custom reports which is really nice. Although there are a bajillion reports available on the QTS system, I wasn’t sure which provided the specific information I wanted. In the past, I asked customer service and they would send me the report. I thought, “Why not save time for everyone and do it myself?” I did it on my own as I had experience with a similar system, but suggest that training may be helpful for other companies that want to set up custom reports themselves. It’s really simple when you know what to do. This has been very helpful.
Why do you stay with QTS?
It works. Data is very important to me. If someone asks me for historical information, I want to be able to go back and find that information easily. I can do that now.
During our time with QTS, I’ve been approached by many other payroll companies that have asked me to switch. They say they’ll do this and they’ll do that, and will match pricing. Before QTS, I worked with two other payroll companies. One was the largest payroll company in the nation. I did that for a year and was so frustrated I had to get out. They couldn’t get my reports correct. I had to do it all manually.
What are some of the most important considerations in working with a provider?
Accuracy. Plus trust. Trust that my provider will take care of it. That was the problem with another payroll company I used in the past, also a national company. I paid our taxes to them and somehow those tax payments didn’t make it to the state. It was extremely frustrating. I need to be able to trust that things like this will get taken care of. It does with QTS.
I also like that QTS handles garnishments so I don’t have to wrack my brain over it. I’m very good at the things I do everyday, but I don’t want to figure out those which happen only once in a while. At QTS, it gets done.
What about cost versus service when working with a provider?
That’s always a tough question. I’ve done the entire job myself in the past. I know how to do it, but I don’t like to do it. Just for the tax purposes and related tasks alone, it’s peace of mind for me. I know it’s getting taken care of. It’s worth what we pay.
Is there anything you’d like to say to other golf courses?
Things are clicking along fine. Customer service at QTS is great and there are no concerns with things like accuracy. They do a great job.