Meet the Team | Rusty Pelt

MarkSystems' Senior Consultants are not only software experts, they also bring valuable experience in the residential home construction industry to each implementation. In this blog, we feature Rusty Pelt, senior consultant with MarkSystems home builder software. We sat down with Rusty to learn more about his experience in the home building industry, what makes an implementation successful, and get his advice on what builders need to look for in a new system.

Tell us a little bit about your background. How long have you worked in the new home construction industry?

I’ve been in construction for over 25 years, starting off as a general contractor, Realtor, and I had a company that built spec homes for six years, all on paper. It was a one man show. Later with my computer software knowledge, I was offered a position with a tech company in the late 90s as an implementation specialist. I worked directly with builders to implement construction software packages into their business and managing their business processes directly.

How have you seen the home building industry change in the last few years?

The key area I’ve seen change in the industry is the lack of available lots. Land is at a premium, increasing the overall cost to build and making it more challenging for builders to find the land they need. Over the next few years, this is going to be a big issue for smaller to mid-range builders. Larger builders are now having to develop their own land positions to maintain volume.

What are some of the most successful implementations you've seen?

I’ve implemented several different software packages. The most successful was at a company I worked for directly out of Texas. They were a production builder who focused on scattered lot houses. They needed someone who could implement their processes while operating the business. Having experience on both the software side and the operations side, I was able to really understand the builder's day-to-day operations needs during implementation. This company was working on purchase orders and work orders, with a build time of 45 – 60-day schedules. The system was so tight that I alone, with a fully implemented software package, produced 160 starts in one year with less than a 3% variance.

What's your advice to builders looking for a new system?

When looking for a new system, it’s important people are open to change. If you’re implementing a new solution in your business, you need to realize your current processes won’t necessarily fit. You will need to embrace the idea of needing to do things differently.

Once you’ve accepted the change, commit to the new way of doing things. This means ensuring everyone in your organization is on board and ready to work with the new processes and systems. It will improve the way you do business.

Looking for home builder software? Learn how MarkSystems helps builders manage their business more efficiently and profitably.