Imagine being able to save an entire industry from hundreds of billions of dollars in losses. That’s Tommy Stanek’s mission.
Stanek, the CEO and founder of Madison-based Graceful Management System (GMS), is addressing the $177 billion in annual preventable losses in the construction industry through the development of a groundbreaking service.
GMS is a cloud-based enterprise resource planning service that utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze contractors’ project operations data, company financials, and real-time feeds. It autonomously optimizes and adjusts project costs, schedules, and estimates, resulting in a potential reduction of up to 20% in labor and material costs.
According to the New York Times, construction workers in 2020 produced less than those back in 1970. “In contrast, labor productivity rose by 290% in the manufacturing sector,” Stanek explains. “So, that kind of shows you we’re falling way behind. And because other businesses are excelling, that gap is getting even bigger. And man, I’m excited to bring some fun, joy, and solutions to that.”
Stanek’s inspiration for GMS began with his experience owning a mortgage franchise, where he sought ways to duplicate his efforts and streamline processes. “I started getting feedback from employees telling me that they were struggling,” he recalls. Stanek took their concerns and found a solution that improved both the employee and customer experiences. “It really was fantastic because it allowed the employees to know that, hey, we’re at a roundtable. If you’re having a problem with something or if something is inefficient, let’s figure it out. If you don’t have the information you need to successfully execute what you’re trying to accomplish, then let’s figure out how to get it, and let’s make it efficient.”
Stanek spent another 11 years at A-Team Construction Unlimited Inc. in Madison, where he designed and maintained marketing systems and processes and where the idea for GMS continued to grow. Clients voiced their dissatisfaction, citing concerns about communication lapses, missed appointments, and discrepancies between quoted prices and actual charges, leading to a number of unmet expectations.
It was in his efforts to address these problems that GMS was finally born. Without any prior coding experience, Stanek created a sophisticated customer relationship management (CRM) system on Google Sheets that factored in historical data and provided accurate job quotes.
A now fully evolved GMS optimizes schedules by assigning tasks to individuals based on their proficiency. In case of unavailability, the system seamlessly finds alternative workers or subcontractors, ensuring projects stay on track. GMS also prioritizes communication, keeping customers informed about expectations.
“GMS will navigate construction chaos into a graceful experience,” Stanek declares. “I’m proud of it and intrinsically motivated to stop at nothing short of that.”
The $177 billion lost annually is attributed to a lack of communication and technology, and contrary to assumptions about resistance to technology adoption, Stanek’s market research indicates a strong interest among contractors. “Nine out of every 10 contractors that I’ve spoken to have applied to use our BETA release. They are shocked to learn there is a software solution that doesn’t just store their data conveniently in the cloud accessible by the appropriate parties but one that captures their data to make autonomous adjustments in real-time to optimize schedules and pricing — as your GPS does as you’re traveling.”
According to Stanek, GMS has the potential to reduce labor and material costs by up to 20% with AI-optimized project costs, schedules, and estimates. “I’m proud of creating something that will improve the quality of life for so many.”
Graceful Management System
821 E. Washington Ave.
StartingBlock/MadWorks Suite, 2nd Floor
Madison, WI 53703
