CASE STUDY - FIRST COVENANT

AT A GLANCE

First Covenant focuses on providing individualized, professional, caring, cost-effective fiduciary services to their clients, relying on state-of-the-art technology to enable them to stay focused on client service. Before WealthHub, First Covenant used trust accounting software and excel spreadsheets for workflows. Without automated workflows, there were significant bottlenecks while people tried to to figure out what step they were on and who owned which steps. Additionally, their CRM was not scaling with them. 

WealthHub transformed First Covenant’s fragmented processes into streamlined, scalable workflows built for the future of fiduciary administration and is the foundation for First Covenant’s operations.

Primary Challenges

  • Spreadsheet-driven workflows
  • Email-based approvals
  • Limited visibility into task status
  • Fragile pipeline and CRM processes

Key Results

  • Increased efficiency
  • Better client service
  • Processing distributions and tracking new leads/prospects is ten times faster
  • More capacity to add clients
  • Reporting and visibility across processes

Faced with growing complexity, spreadsheet failures, and email-based approval processes that could no longer support its growth, First Covenant turned to WealthHub to modernize its trust administration and client relationship management. Today, First Covenant operates on a single, highly customizable platform that unifies workflows, approvals, reporting, and CRM, giving the firm greater efficiency, visibility, and capacity to serve clients with confidence.

THE CHALLENGE

Manual Workflows and Systems That Could Not Scale

Before adopting WealthHub, First Covenant relied on a combination of trust accounting software and Excel spreadsheets to manage workflows, approvals, and pipeline tracking. While these tools worked in the firm’s early stages, they became increasingly fragile as complexity and volume grew.

Key operational challenges included:

  • No clear way to move tasks through defined workflow stages
  • Bottlenecks caused by limited visibility into who was responsible for next steps
  • Approval processes handled entirely through long email threads
  • Difficulty consolidating approval history and supporting documentation for regulators
  • Pipeline spreadsheets with complex formulas that repeatedly corrupted and lost data

Approval workflows, particularly those involving Trust Committee member approvals, were especially cumbersome. Email threads were difficult to track, documents were scattered across systems, and committee members often had to reference multiple tools just to gather the context needed to make decisions.

“We were trying to scale on systems that simply weren’t built for it,” shared Candace Smith, Senior Development Associate, First Covenant. “At some point, Excel and email just stop working.”

The breaking point came when First Covenant’s complex pipeline spreadsheet repeatedly self-corrupted, wiping out critical data. At the same time, the firm was using task lists inside its trust accounting system as a makeshift CRM, an approach that could not support growth.

First Covenant needed a solution that could handle both operational workflows and CRM in a single, scalable system.

THE SOLUTION

WealthHub: A Purpose-Built Platform on Salesforce

First Covenant evaluated several potential solutions but ultimately selected WealthHub for its depth of customization, fiduciary focus, and foundation on Salesforce, the world’s leading CRM platform.

“WealthHub is an incredibly powerful and customizable software, especially since it is built on Salesforce. This opens the door for endless ways to make day-to-day processes more efficient,” added Smith.

Rather than forcing First Covenant into rigid, predefined processes, WealthHub allowed the firm to design workflows, reports, and objects that matched how they actually operate. While some Salesforce elements are standardized, the majority of the platform could be tailored to First Covenant’s needs—an essential requirement for improving efficiency.

Implementation began with the areas causing the most pain:

  • Workflow tracking for key trust administration processes
  • CRM functionality for leads, prospects, and existing clients
  • Approval processes that required structure, visibility, and auditability

Onboarding and training were conducted in close collaboration with the WealthHub team. First Covenant highlighted the responsiveness and transparency of the implementation process, noting that timelines, expectations, and system design were communicated clearly as new objects were rolled out.

“The system wasn’t a blank sandbox on day one, which initially surprised us,” Smith shared. “But we quickly understood why. Everything is built intentionally, and that’s what makes it so powerful.”

WealthHub is an incredibly powerful and customizable software, especially since it is built on Salesforce. This opens the door for endless ways to make day-to-day processes more efficient.
Candace Smith, Senior Development Associate, First Covenant

THE TRANSFORMATION

From a Point Solution to a Trust Administration Operating System

What began as a solution to workflow and CRM challenges quickly evolved into a core operating system for First Covenant.

The first workflows they implemented addressed their two largest bottlenecks: distribution processing and lead and prospect tracking. The impact was immediate.

Tasks that once stalled due to unclear ownership or email delays now move automatically from step to step. Approvals are captured in a single system, with all supporting documentation available in context. Team members can instantly see where a request stands and what action is required next.

“We’re processing distributions and tracking new leads at ten times the speed,” said Smith.

As new objects and workflows continue to roll out, WealthHub is becoming more deeply embedded across the firm’s operations, reducing friction, improving accountability, and freeing staff from manual work.

THE RESULT

Efficiency, Capacity, and Confidence

In the short term, First Covenant realized dramatic efficiency gains. By eliminating email-driven approvals and spreadsheet-based tracking, the firm reduced delays and regained control over its workflows.

Over the longer term, the benefits have compounded:

  • Increased capacity across the firm
  • Ability to take on new clients without adding operational strain
  • Better care for existing clients through smoother processes
  • Greater confidence in data accuracy and audit readiness

“We were drowning in some of our processes before WealthHub,” Smith reflected. “Now we finally have room to breathe.”

WealthHub is by far the most forward-thinking trust administration and CRM solution on the market. They’re running laps around other products and continually adding new features.
Candace Smith, Senior Development Associate, First Covenant

CONCLUSION

A Forward-Thinking Platform for Modern Trust Administration

By adopting WealthHub, First Covenant replaced fragile, disconnected systems with a single, scalable platform designed for trust administration and CRM.

Built on Salesforce and with customer implementation and support done by a team with deep trust administration expertise, WealthHub is a partner that understands how trust companies operate and grow.

“WealthHub is by far the most forward-thinking trust administration and CRM solution on the market,” added Smith. “They’re running laps around other products and continually adding new features.”

Today, they spend less time managing workflows and chasing approvals and more time focused on serving clients, supporting growth, and building a stronger future for the firm.