Client Story: Hacking & Paterson

“Good afternoon. It’s a pleasure to be able to say to you, welcome to Channel Four.”

Could you imagine only having three TV channels? Until Tuesday the 2^nd of November 1982, when Channel 4 started airing, it was reality. Paul Coia was the first voiceover heard, a Scottish DJ who began his career at Radio Clyde.

This was also the era of DOS. The basic operations system that offices all over the UK would have been using.

Hacking and Paterson

This was also around the same time, (1985), that H&P first ventured in the factoring of modern developments. “With a surge in new building construction in the 1980’s, Hacking and Paterson diversified into what is now modern property factoring.”

“We used a completely different system back when I started with H&P in early 2000”. Chris, IT Director at Hacking and Paterson tells us more. “It was mainly terminals that used SAGE Line 100, operated by keyboard only.”  With a business that had grown exponentially, a DOS based Property Factoring and Accounts package was no longer cutting it. “There were so many things we wanted to do to advance the business. We had used this system for a considerable amount of time. This served us well and although systems had moved onto the Windows operating platform, we needed something that suited our specific business needs.”

Upgrading to CPL Software

When the decision to upgrade their systems and processes was made, Chris points out that they knew there would be some mountains to climb.

“The migration of data was one of our biggest concern. How would staff react to using a completely new system? Training was going to be essential and our wish list of functionalities was growing the more we heard about CPL could offer.”

“We had to put our reservations aside to allow us to give a better service to our clients.”

Hacking and Paterson now enjoy the benefits of a dedicated software system, specific to the needs of the Hacking and Paterson business. It has helped propel their business and their clients forward into the 21^st Century.

“CPL are the leaders in the industry. The software automates many of our previously manual tasks such as Direct Debit collections and the import of data, tasks that would take hours now only takes a few minutes!”

2019 and the Future

Now, in 2019, with the system embedded in the structure of the business, and new updates and products added to enhance the client’s business, there’s always things to learn.

“I meet with CPL’s Technical Director, Will, monthly to discuss future developments and ideas.”

“He knows the system inside out and continues to show us how to use it more efficiently. We also organise regular in-house training to keep our staff up to date on new CPL releases. A good example being the Document Management tool, which scans our paper client letters into an CPL Document Manager for allocation to the client record. This has substantially reduced our paper storage requirements as the majority is held as a digital copy”.

The biggest benefits Chris believes the system offers are that diarised charges are automated instead of manually input, saving a lot of time and reducing errors, making the business more efficient. The Hacking and Paterson app and portal are great for clients. And having all information in one area means our team don’t require paper copies – “everything is there, accessible when we need it, directly from our screen.”

Hacking and Paterson and Property Factoring in Scotland has come a long way since the Tuesday Channel 4 first aired. And whilst Paul Coia’s radio and TV career has disappeared, Hacking and Paterson’s dedicated property factoring software will continue to help their business grow from strength to strength.

If you would like to know more about how CPL Software can help move your organisation, please contact a member of our team to discuss your needs.