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G.M. Petroleum
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 G.M. Petroleum Company, founded by Rollie Grunstead, is located in Billings, MT and has been in business for 42 years. In January of 2004, Rollie sold the company to Bill Grunstead and Dennis Whitmore. They operate primarily in Montana, but have dealer locations in Wyoming and South Dakota. G.M. Petroleum delivers to a total of fifty-four dealer owned locations. Of these locations, forty-two are branded Conoco or Sinclair and twelve are unbranded. Conoco is their primary brand for both fuel and lubricant distribution. G.M. Petroleum also operates three proprietary cardlocks in the Billings area. They provide home heating oil and propane for their residential customers. In addition, they supply farmers and construction companies. Prior to 1991, G.M. Petroleum employed nine people at their home office. That is how many people it took to manage the accounting because they were doing it all manually. And now G.M. Petroleum’s General Manager, Jay Brookie, can’t imagine not having their COMPAS system in place. "A critical problem that resulted from doing all of our accounting manually was not having accurate in-formation when we needed it in order to make important business decisions," Jay comments. They did not realize how much that affected their business and their bottom line. "Since we implemented COMPAS fifteen years ago, we have been able to run our operation, as well as incorporate slow expansion, with an office staff of only five employees." According to Jay, automating their home office with COMPAS has made a tremendous impact on their profitability. "We found that we were able to increase our cash flow by a sizeable amount simply by reducing the amount we spent on labor. In addition to scaling back our staff, we have been able to reduce the amount we spend on using a CPA. Before COMPAS, we relied heavily on our accountants to do our monthly financials and year end taxes. Now, we only utilize the accountants for year end tax preparation." When G.M. Petroleum began researching accounting systems, they had specific goals in mind. "We wanted to streamline our payables and receivables. Our objectives were to save time, save money, reduce expenses and, in turn, become more profitable. With COMPAS, we’ve accomplished them all," says Jay. They experience other benefits, as well. "There are fewer errors in our excise tax reporting and we experience a |
quick A/R turnover. And when we have needed them, AIMS’ support staff has been great. With a full fledgedaccounting system like COMPAS that is designed specifically for marketers, our financials are completed much more quickly. We make more accurate and timely business decisions." Fortunately, G.M. Petroleum experiences minimal employee turnover. Among their five office employees, there is a total of twenty-eight years of experience. But when they do hire a new employee, they realize there is no substitute for proper training. They give new employees some time to get acclimated, then turn to AIMS to teach them how to get the most out of COMPAS. And because their staff has been cross trained, they have virtually eliminated overtime. Through the acquisition of dealer accounts, G.M. Petroleum has been able to grow their business at a comfortable pace, without increasing the size of their staff. Automation continues to help pave the road for G.M. Petroleum’s success. Due to the streamlining and efficiencies from their COMPAS system, they can focus their sights on the future. Their time and effort now is spent on growth opportunities instead of devoting so much time and manpower to the day-to-day operations of the business. Jay recognizes the importance of laying a solid foundation. "If you aren’t as happy with your system and software vendor as we are, my advice is to take a look at AIMS and COMPAS. COMPAS allows you to streamline your business: from downloading bills of lading and invoices, to timely invoicing of cardlocks, accurate receivables and aging, and keeping your vendors paid on-time. To make sure that you make the most of the opportunity, really take the time to plan the implementation. I recommend that you thoroughly think the process all the way through, then consult with AIMS while still on the ground level. I also suggest looking to AIMS for recommendations on processes and daily procedures. Put their experience to work for you." |
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