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Transfinder
Efficient and Reliable Transportation Solutions for Students
Antonio Civitella, President & CEOTransfinder, the leader in school transportation logistics, has created a comprehensive and user-friendly software suite that streamlines transportation management for schools while meeting the unique needs of parents, students, and transportation staff. Its solution portfolio includes Routefinder PLUS, Wayfinder, Stopfinder, Viewfinder, Tripfinder, Servicefinder, and more.
Transfinder’s tools allow school transportation departments to revolutionize their communication strategies and adopt targeted approaches tailored to groups based on geographical location, grade level, or proximity to a particular event. They can convey crucial information with precision.
For example, if a bridge is undergoing construction, parents residing in that area are informed about potential delays. Parents can also request drop-off and pick-up locations at their convenience, allowing seamless operations without interruption. The integration of multiple communication channels within dedicated apps has proven highly effective.
Transfinder understands the challenges that can arise from any change in addresses, or requirements, as well as unexpected circumstances, like a child's injury that requires alternative transportation arrangements.
“By collaborating with clients, we ensure our software addresses critical issues,” says Antonio Civitella, CEO of Transfinder. “The most important thing is to get kids to school, get them educated, and then get them back home safe.”
Using the parent app Stopfinder, school transportation management can create valuable, two-way interactions through surveys or open-ended queries. Parents can ask questions and provide feedback directly to the transportation office, who can respond promptly and effectively. Formfinder is a customizable survey system imbedded in several of Transfinder’s solutions that allows users to create and digitize any form and gather feedback and information, including student referrals.
Bus drivers can report incidents or concerns swiftly, preventing behavior issues from escalating. It also addresses the issue of driver morale, as drivers need to feel supported and heard in their roles. By combining targeted notifications with a feedback mechanism, Transfinder’s innovative solution ensures parents are well-informed and actively engaged.
The Wayfinder driver app uses tablets on buses, providing directions and information to drivers. It can also include an RFID reader, allowing students to swipe a card when boarding the bus, triggering automatic notifications to parents. This technology improves communication and helps determine the number of students accurately utilizing school bus transportation.
Transfinder's 35 years of success is attributed to its close client partnerships, which aid in developing solutions. By gaining firsthand insights into the challenges parents face in accessing information about their children's transportation, the company provides comprehensive solutions. Civitella notes that user adoption is vital to the success of any technology solution. Recognizing this, Transfinder recently held a webinar to assist clients in increasing parent adoption rates.
Transfinder's efficiency was pivotal when Goose Creek CISD, a school district in the east Houston, Texas area, faced significant challenges after a devastating tropical storm. The disaster disrupted the district's transportation infrastructure, including servers, internet connectivity, and power supply. Recognizing the urgent need for assistance, Rick Waltersheid, director of transportation and special projects at Goose Creek CISD, contacted Transfinder, which immediately mobilized resources to support the district's recovery efforts.
The most important thing is to get kids to school, get them educated, and then get them back home safe
Leveraging its expertise and innovative transportation management solutions, the district successfully navigated the aftermath of a destructive hurricane. Transfinder's comprehensive data recovery, route planning, and optimization support enabled Goose Creek CISD to rebuild their transportation system, ensuring the safety and efficient transportation of students and staff. Successes like this have enabled Transfinder to win many accolades. It last won two Innovation Choice Awards, one for best software and one for best hardware, at the STN EXPO in Reno, Nevada, voted on by leaders in the school transportation industry.
At its core, Transfinder is dedicated to providing innovative solutions that empower various stakeholders involved in student transportation, including drivers, fleet maintenance teams, and educators. Adding new capabilities as needs arise, Transfinder stays abreast of evolving developments and ensures the safe and secure transit of students.
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Company
Transfinder
Management
Antonio Civitella, President & CEO
Description
Transfinder has created a comprehensive and user-friendly software suite that streamlines transportation management for schools while addressing the unique needs of parents, students, and transportation staff. Its portfolio of solutions includes Routefinder PLUS, Wayfinder, Stopfinder, Viewfinder, Tripfinder, Servicefinder, and more.
Transfinder News
Transfinder 2023 Revenue Up 23%, Hits $35.4M
Transfinder, which provides school transportation management and logistics solutions to more than 2,300 school districts throughout North America also added 164 school districts to its roster of clients, with 41 percent leaving competitors for Transfinder and 55 percent not using any software.
The increase in revenue came from a number of sources, including clients continuing to migrate from Transfinder’s earlier routing solution, Routefinder Pro, to its browser-based Routefinder PLUS, which was again named the Best Software in the industry. Contributing to revenue growth was the release of the company’s Servicefinder fleet maintenance solution, which was under development for several years. Transfinder also saw an increase in GPS hardware sales, up 114 percent from 2022.
In addition to revenue growth, last year also marked a return to conferences on a large scale, with Transfinder employees attending 39 conferences across the county, a company record. And Transfinder experts recorded 114 days on district sites, up 25 percent from 2022.
“We made a lot of noise in the industry in 2023,” said Transfinder President and CEO Antonio Civitella. “We launched two new products, Patrolfinder for police and Servicefinder for bus garages. We also made significant upgrades to all of our solutions and hit the road to meet our clients and future clients where they are at.”
Transfinder’s award-winning parent app, Stopfinder, named a Best Education App by Education Technology Insights, saw the number of subscribers increase 66 percent to 314,066 in 2023. Stopfinder allows parents to track their child’s bus in real-time as well as have two-way communication with district officials. In 2023, parents received 4.7 million announcements, up 71 percent from the previous year.
Another solution gaining momentum is Wayfinder, the award-winning driver app. The number of trips navigated using Wayfinder jumped 165 percent to 1.9 million in 2023, while the number of student scans for attendance increased 172 percent to 6.2 million during the same period.
Beyond Transfinder’s award-winning software and hardware is the company’s service and support teams that engage with clients in a number of areas. Clients implementing new software gave Transfinder an average 4.7 out of 5 stars for their experience in 2023. Meanwhile, 8,677 training sessions were held, up 6 percent from 2022; and 745 clients attended Transfinder University Livestream, up 8 percent.
Transfinder also added or improved ways for clients to reach its experts in support to reduce wait times, such as live chat, which increased 42 percent year-over-year. Customers on average gave Transfinder 4.7 stars for their chat experience.
Customer service is a critical focal point at Transfinder as its clients are traversing 75.9 million miles each year with students. That’s an increase of 198 percent from last year.
“We have to get it right for our clients because they have to get it right for the students and their parents,” Civitella said.
Transfinder continues to add to its headcount. Currently, the tech company has 182 employees globally, with 118 in the United States, the bulk of which are in New York’s Capital Region. That’s up from 174 globally and 111 in the United States in 2022.
Civitella anticipates crossing the 200-employee threshold in 2024.
Highlights in 2023 include:
• 26th consecutive year of annual revenue growth
• 164 new clients
• Hardware sales up 114 percent from 2022
• Created the Top Transportation Teams award, well received by the industry
• Launched the new and improved Servicefinder
• Launched Patrolfinder to assist police agencies and school resource
officers
• Received Best Software and Best Hardware awards from School Transportation News
• Received Top Education Apps from Education Technology Insights
• Named a Best Place to Work, Top Workplace and Best Companies to Work for in
New York State
• 8,677 training sessions with clients, up 6 percent
• Attended 39 conferences
• Officially opened Mumbai, India office, which closed 2023 with seven employees
• Received 3,723 applications (hired 20)
• Secured the location in San Antonio, Texas for the return of the Annual Client Summit
“2023 was a good year. We worked hard, learned a lot and gritted it out. We extended ourselves into new areas that will begin paying off in 2024,” Civitella said. “But 2024 will be a great year. Mark my words: 2024 will be transformational for Transfinder. Our employees know it. Our clients feel it. And soon, the industry will see it.”