The Arc transforms service delivery, compliance, and operational efficiency with Zoho Creator
"Creator didn’t just digitize our processes—it gave us real-time control over an operation that used to take days of manual effort. What we built wasn’t a replacement for paperwork; it became the backbone of how we run our services every single day."
— Deryck Cooper, Vice President of Technology and Risk Management, The Arc
Created by : The Arc
Use case : EVV, Payroll, and Compliance management
Industry : Nonprofit
Implementation Partner : KDG
Region : USA
The company
The Arc of Lehigh and Northampton Counties is a nonprofit organization dedicated to championing a life of inclusion, opportunity, and equity for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Through a wide range of advocacy, educational resources, and support programs, the organization empowers individuals and families with the services they need to live independently and with dignity. As a mission-driven agency supporting more than 1,000 clients, The Arc manages a complex ecosystem of service providers, managing employers, and regulatory requirements.
The problem
Before their digital transformation, The Arc relied heavily on paper forms, manual spreadsheets, and an out-of-the-box system that could not scale as their programs expanded. Service time entries were filled manually and collected weekly across more than 1,500 service providers, leading to errors, delays, and excessive administrative overhead. Internal payroll processes were equally time-consuming, adding to the daily strain on staff.
Beyond operational inefficiencies, compliance pressures were intensifying. With the implementation of the federal 21st Century Cures Act, The Arc needed to adopt electronic visit verification (EVV) to verify key data points like the service provided, the date and time of visits, the service location, and the identity of the staff member delivering care. As regulations from ODP (Office of Developmental Programs) changed frequently, the organization needed a system that was both secure and highly adaptable.
"We needed something that could keep up with us—regulation changes, program expansions, and the sheer scale of 1,500+ providers. Paper and spreadsheets just couldn’t do it anymore.”
— Deryck Cooper, Vice President of Technology and Risk Management, The Arc
The solution
To solve these multi-layered challenges, The Arc evaluated multiple vendors through an RFP process and selected KDG (The Kyle David Group), a Zoho Premium Partner, as their digital transformation partner, with Zoho Creator as the low-code platform of choice for its rapid development capabilities, HIPAA-friendly architecture, and scalability.
What began as a payroll-management automation project soon expanded into a full-fledged digital operations platform that now serves over 1,500 service providers, 60 internal staff members, and more than 1,000 clients. The system integrates tightly with The Arc’s proprietary billing software, Zoho Flow, Zoho Analytics, Zoho WorkDrive, ZeptoMail, Zoho Sign, and Tango.ai for guided user onboarding.
"Creator gave us the ability to evolve and customize processes at the speed our programs needed. It became the backbone of our service delivery."
— Deryck Cooper, Vice President of Technology and Risk Management, The Arc
Key modules and capabilities include:
Payroll management
This module digitized the punch-in/punch-out process for internal staff. It validates user entries, automates approvals, and generates export files compatible with JetPay payroll processing. This eliminated manual spreadsheet handling and ensured staff and managers had clear, real-time visibility into time logs.
EVV (Electronic Visit Verification)
The most complex and mission-critical component, the EVV module allows service providers to log client visits through a secure application that captures location, visit times, and service details. The system validates eligibility and service rules in real time, and seamlessly routes records to managing employers for approvals. It also incorporates phone-based entry options, ensuring accessibility for all providers. Approved EVV records flow automatically into payroll and billing systems, meeting Sandata/ODP requirements.
Client and managing employer review
This module provides managing employers with a clear, user-friendly dashboard to review, approve, or request changes to visit entries. All PDFs, utilization summaries, and pay-period breakdowns are available at their fingertips. The module includes built-in explanations, document access, and navigation aids to support a broad user demographic.
Mileage tracking
To simplify and improve the accuracy of mileage submissions, providers can view their last five logged entries, making it easier to add accurate distances. This reduces errors, speeds up approvals, and improves cost control for the organization.
Reporting and compliance
The team receives real-time dashboards on utilization, time entries, exceptions, and compliance metrics using Zoho Analytics and supported by Zoho Flow integrations. These insights enable program managers to make informed decisions, forecast needs, and stay ahead of regulatory expectations. The Arc can now produce comprehensive documentation on-demand for audits and managing employers.
Together, these modules created a unified and responsive ecosystem that eliminated fragmentation across programs. The application is continuously improved, tested, and iterated on, helping The Arc adapt to new compliance rules and internal requirements without ever slowing down service delivery.
Benefits and ROI
The Arc’s transition to a unified Zoho Creator solution fundamentally reshaped how its teams, service providers, and managing employers operate. By eliminating manual processes, improving compliance, and centralizing data, the organization gained the clarity and control needed to focus more intentionally on client care.
"My team finally has time to focus on what matters—our clients—not on hunting down missing paperwork."
— Deryck Cooper, Vice President of Technology and Risk Management, The Arc
Streamlined operations and time savings
Automation of payroll, EVV entries, approvals, and documentation reduced the hours staff spent reconciling paper forms and spreadsheets. With real-time validations and notifications built in, administrative bottlenecks have nearly disappeared.
Stronger compliance and faster billing cycles
Built-in location verification, service validations, and approval workflows ensure The Arc meets federal and state EVV requirements without manual intervention. Clean, accurate data flows directly into billing, shortening reimbursement timelines and reducing exceptions.
Centralized data and real-time visibility
Dashboards and reporting through Zoho Analytics give leadership instant insight into utilization, service activity, and operational trends. This visibility supports faster decision-making and more effective program oversight.
Scalable, user-friendly application for a diverse workforce
The app supports over 1,500 service providers and continues to expand to new programs. Guided prompts, a help section, and Tango.ai walkthroughs make the application easy to use, even for non-technical users—closing the gap between digital tools and real-world care delivery.
Looking forward
The Arc’s Creator-powered ecosystem continues to evolve. With the foundation built by KDG, the organization is exploring enhancements that further streamline program management, expand integrations, and build out mobile-friendly experiences for its large and diverse provider base.
"This system isn’t just a solution—it’s an investment in our future. It gives us the flexibility to grow, adapt, and continue delivering the highest quality of care for the communities we serve."
— Deryck Cooper, Vice President of Technology and Risk Management, The Arc
Frequently Asked Questions
Zoho Creator is a low-code application development platform that allows users to create custom applications on their own, with minimal coding experience. The intuitive drag-and-drop interface empowers developers and business users to build web and mobile applications that satisfy all their unique requirements with ease.
Applications built on Zoho Creator are built to auto-scale—the back-end infrastructure seamlessly scales as business demand grows. Currently 22,000+ customers across are using over 6 million applications built using Zoho Creator, a testimony to the power of the platform.
Yes, Zoho Creator has a free plan. This plan comes with a limited feature set and allows for one user, one application, 250 MB of storage, and 1,000 records. However, you have the option to upgrade to a paid plan whenever you wish.