T H E C O R E S T R U C T U R E S T O R Y

The Right Structural Engineer for Your Project

Core Structure Inc. is a full service structural design company

offering services for a variety of project types and sizes.

The team at Core Structure has over 75 years of experience

in civil and structural engineering design and construction

observations. Core Structure has remained dedicated to

developing and nurturing relationships with the nation’s finest

architects, homebuilders, developers, and general contractors.

While key team members provide a depth of local knowledge,

their global staff works together to develop efficient, cost-

sensitive engineering solutions within client timelines.

Launched in 2014, Core Structure has grown quickly in the last

three years, and currently serves architects, developers, and

private investors from coast to coast. Reliable performance,

customer service, and sustained projects contribute to the

company’s growth and strong reputation.

I N D U S T R Y

Consulting | Engineering & Architectural Design

C O M P A N Y

Core Structure

S I Z E

1-50 employees

W H A T M A V E N L I N K R E P L A C E D

Asana, Excel Spreadsheets, Manual processes

B E N E F I T S

• 50% increase in gross margins

• 100% visibility into utilization

• Cut time spent on administrative tasks in half

S U C C E S S S T O R Y

Core Structure Improves Margins by 50% with Mavenlink

2

F I G 2 .

Phase 1

Design

Preliminary Logo . . . .

Re�nements . . . . . . . .

Final Logo . . . . . . . . . .

Website Redesign

Wireframes . . . . . . . . .

Content . . . . . . . . . . . .

Preliminary Design . . .

Final Mocks . . . . . . . . .

Development . . . . . . . .

Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Deploy . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Marketing Plan

Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . .

Content . . . . . . . . . . . .

Presentation . . . . . . . .

14 %

J 23

F 05

F 16

60 %

J 28

F 03

F 26

M 07

M 09

M 22

M 30

30 %

J 17

J 22

F 18

W K 1 W K 2 W K 3 W K 4

T H E C H A L L E N G E

Rapid Growth

Core Structure started in 2014 with two co-founders and has experienced

over a 500% growth in employment each year. Amir Deihimi, President and

CEO of Core Structure, explains the shock associated with the rapid growth

of his company, “Honestly, it’s a little bit scary. But it’s exciting.”

As demand increased, so did the number of employees, projects, and

offices for Core Structure. Amir quickly realized he needed time tracking

and project management tools that did not involve manually inputting

data into Excel spreadsheets. “Using spreadsheets is not the right way for

a multi-office, multi-discipline company to operate. We’d end up with

several versions of the same file,” says Amir, who grew concerned over the

growing team’s ability to properly collaborate with offices dispersed from

Washington D.C. to Los Angeles.

Amir understood they needed to find modern solutions that would enable

them to spend less time on time-consuming tasks and more time serving

their clients. “I don’t think any spreadsheets or conventional method could

catch up with the growth rate that we had,” says Amir. He knew that Core

Structure had matured to the point where visibility, and control was an

absolute necessity.

F R O M T H E S O U R C E

“We are growing everyday.

No spreadsheet or conventional

method could catch up with the

growth rate that we had. We

had to track time and projects

more efficiently.”

– Amir Deihimi, CEO & President Core Structure Inc.

F A V O R I T E M A V E N L I N K F E AT U R E

Dependencies

Core Structure’s CEO and President, Amir Deihimi loves “having the ability to link one

task to another” through the Dependencies feature in Mavenlink. Dependencies are

the relationships among tasks which determine the order in which activities need to

be performed. Being able to automatically alert a resource when it is time to start the

next task greatly reduces wasted time and inefficiencies.

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05 %

12 %

10 %

15 %

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3

T H E S W I T C H T O M A V E N L I N K

Time is Money

As Core Structure matured, the need for new solutions became clear.

Amir felt that the company needed to move on from spreadsheets,

and start tracking projects, time, and resources with a cloud-based

software, in hopes of enhancing visibility into profits and productivity.

He tested out other project management tools, but the complicated user

interface ultimately sent him on a search for something better. The ease

of use, along with an attractive UI, were the major drivers behind Core

Structure’s selection of Mavenlink.

Insight into Profitability Helps Make Important Decisions

Amir shares why a time tracking tool became critical for Core Structure,

“Time is money. The more time we spend on a project, the more costs we

incur, and ultimately the less profit we make.” Today, Amir and team use

Mavenlink to understand the profitability of each project and each client,

so they can make strategic decisions about future engagements.

Cloud Collaboration Improves Project Delivery

“As a young company, we wanted everything to be in the cloud where it

was easy to collaborate, even with employees across the country,” says

Amir, commenting on how Mavenlink enhances operations. Cloud-based

project and resource management software grants employees, especially

principles, the ability to login from anywhere, anytime, and have

complete visibility into projects, resources, billing, and overall success.

F R O M T H E S O U R C E

“For me, it’s all about margins.

After adopting Mavenlink,

we witnessed at least a 50%

improvement in margins.

And even that would be a

conservative percentage."

– Amir Deihimi, CEO & President Core Structure Inc.

Before Mavenlink, we didn’t know how profitable a project was. We were just winging it.

“ “

14%

www.mavenlink.com • @mavenlink 6501 Irvine Center Dr. Suite 250 • Irvine, CA 92618

©2016 Mavenlink • Rev. 12/16

The Results

To say that Mavenlink played a critical role in the scaling of Core Structure would be an

understatement. Amir was not shy when asked how important Mavenlink is to overall

success, “Our survival literally depends on Mavenlink.”

Improved Margins by more than 50%

Mavenlink managed to increase margins at Core Structure substantially—by more than 50%.

Amir notes that prior to Mavenlink there was literally zero insight into the profitability of

projects. They simply did not know how profitable projects were, or how much they were

costing. Today, Mavenlink provides the Core Structure team with the necessary data, to know

if they are over servicing a client.

Reduced Time Spent on Administrative Tasks by more than half

Principles at Core Structure no longer had to chase down employees, or track down emails, to

know a project’s status. Due to increased visibility through Mavenlink, Core Structure reduced

the time spent on resource allocation and other administrative tasks. Today, Core Structure

has the ability to view resources, tasks, and project specs “literally at the push of a button.”

Increased Visibility Into Utilization by 100%

Before Mavenlink, the employees at Core Structure did not track time, so they weren’t able to

view utilization. As a small company, they could wing it. As they increased staff by 500% and

continued to open new offices across the country, it was clear that they needed to improve

their approach to managing resources. Today, they know at-a-glance, which resources they

can place on projects, as well as understand when they need to hire to meet client demand.

Our survival literally depends on Mavenlink.

“ “

Role 1 ADP

DSU

80 H

Role 1

80 H

Role 2

40 H

T I M E L O G G E D : M A Y 3 - 2 5

3 10 17 3 10 17

6 Projects

3 Tasks

4 Projects

2 Tasks

124 H R S 115 H R S