How AI agents and consolidated reporting gave a business owner his time back

As the co-founder of American Grit Electric, Derrick Roberts’s early days weren't just spent on job sites—they were spent in the office long after the sun went down.

“In the early days, I was the guy in the office working 8-, 10-, 12-hour days, and then coming back and doing all of the administrative stuff,” Derrick recalls. Between running payroll, sending invoices, and drafting estimates for future jobs, the manual workload was a second full-time job.

But for Derrick, the goal wasn't just to work harder; it was to get home to his wife and children faster. By leaning into the automation and AI-driven features of QuickBooks Online, he’s done exactly that.

A one-stop shop for daily operations

Today, Derrick’s routine starts not with a stack of paper, but with a streamlined digital dashboard. QuickBooks Online acts as his central command center, pulling in data from across the business into one consolidated view.

“It gives me so much information in one spot,” says Derrick. “I’m looking at past-due invoices, overdue invoices, what the accounts receivable is looking like, and what the accounts payable is looking like.”

Derrick transitioned from working 12 to 14-hour days to a streamlined process that allows him to manage his entire administrative workflow from a single dashboard.

Turning leads into jobs with AI agents

One of the biggest shifts for American Grit Electric has been the speed of their estimation process. In the service industry, the first to provide a quote is often the one who wins the job.

Using the QuickBooks AI Customer Agent, Derrick has automated the lead-capture process. The agent automatically pulls potential leads from his email and organizes them in one spot. This eliminates manual data entry and ensures no opportunity falls through the cracks.

“Speeding up those estimates obviously equates to more work opportunities and more work landed,” Derrick explains.

Gaining fresh business insights

Beyond the day-to-day tasks, QuickBooks Online is helping Derrick think like a CFO. New monthly financial insights provided by AI agents have changed how he views his company's trajectory.

The software compares current performance to the same month last year, the previous month, and the previous quarter. For Derrick, this isn't just data—it’s a roadmap.

From the field job-site to the future

Whether he is in the office or on the go, Derrick now has the information he needs at his fingertips in real time. From the initial customer agent interaction to the final invoice and request for a review, American Grit Electric is now a more efficient, data-driven operation.

“QuickBooks Online has been a one-stop shop for every facet of the projects,” Derrick says. By automating the "tedious" parts of business ownership, he has reclaimed his most valuable asset: his time.