Active Education's team doesn't work from a central office. They're at elementary schools across California—programs in Orland, Chico, Whittier, Anaheim, and Santa Ana. Area managers schedule their regions. Program managers coordinate with specific schools. And Lee oversees it all remotely.

When Lee took over in 2020, the organization was small. He'd spent two decades in marketing and design. Operations? Payroll? California labor laws? Entirely new territory.

"I'm a designer. I'm all crayons and pens and graphics and creativity," Lee says.

But taking the helm meant learning fast—including inheriting Zenefits, the payroll platform costing thousands annually.

The problems stacked up quickly. Zenefits charged fixed costs even when seasonal staff weren't working. Onboarding each employee took 15-20 minutes. And for someone with zero payroll experience, navigating California's complex labor laws—overtime calculations, meal and rest break requirements, split shift premiums—felt overwhelming.

Lee needed visibility into which programs were profitable, where staff were clocking in, and how much each school district cost in labor. Zenefits wasn't built for that.

“I had to learn a lot of skills. And one of the first things that I looked at was payroll.”
‍
— Lee Hartley, Director of Operations at Active Education

The solution: A platform that scales with seasonal teams.

Lee didn't have time to become a payroll expert. He needed a platform that would work for someone learning on the fly.

The cost structure at Homebase made sense right away. Unlike Zenefits, which charged fixed costs even when seasonal staff weren't working, Homebase's per-employee pricing meant Active Education only paid for active workers.

“We didn't want to be spending thousands over the summer when staff are not there. With Homebase, it was really quick to take them off, save money, and bring them back on.”

— Lee Hartley, Director of Operations at Active Education

Lee had to wait six months to exit the Zenefits contract, but the actual transition to Homebase was straightforward. By January 2023, Active Education was running payroll through Homebase with no disruptions to paydays.

For someone without payroll experience, one feature stood out immediately: Homebase automatically handles California's complex labor laws. Overtime calculations, meal and rest break requirements, split shift premiums—all calculated automatically without Lee needing to become a compliance expert.

"It's so easy and I've learned how to do payroll," Lee says.

Lee got creative with the setup. He configured departments by geographic area—Orland, Chico, Rialto, Fontana. Within each department, different programs became roles. That gave him visibility into labor costs per program and profitability by district.

"Homebase really gives us a good detail of percentages," Lee says. "Which programs are more profitable than others."

The onboarding process that used to take 15-20 minutes per employee? Now it takes less than a minute.

Area managers got control over their regions. Anthony in Northern Cal builds his schedules. Greg in SoCal builds his. Lee reviews everything and publishes. Weekly scheduling takes less than an hour across all California regions.

For a remote team, the communication features keep everyone connected. Lee set up messaging groups by region and program. Read receipts show who's seen important messages. Clock-in notifications alert him when someone's running late.

"As part of our business, we want communication, integrity, and clarity throughout what we do with all our staff because they're remote," Lee says.

For payroll, Lee spends two hours every two weeks reviewing timesheets and running the cycle—confident that California's labor requirements are handled automatically in the background.

Nearly three years in, Active Education has grown from a very small operation to 40-55 employees across multiple California regions.

“Homebase has allowed us to grow with no hiccups. There haven’t been any constraints.”
‍
— Lee Hartley, Director of Operations at Active Education

The result: 20K saved and only 2 hours to complete payroll.

Lee could see the impact across operations and growth.

The cost savings were immediate and significant. When UK International—the larger sister company—saw what Active Education was doing with Homebase, they made the switch too. Their CFO calculated they were saving $15,000 to $20,000 annually compared to Zenefits.

For Active Education, the seasonal flexibility that created budget constraints with Zenefits is now a non-issue. They only pay for active employees, saving thousands during summer program breaks without complex contract penalties.

The time savings compound with every cycle. Employee onboarding that used to consume 15-20 minutes per person now takes less than a minute. Across dozens of seasonal hires and rehires throughout the year, those minutes add up to hours reclaimed.

Scheduling that once required coordinating multiple spreadsheets and phone calls across California regions now takes less than an hour weekly. Payroll processing for 40-55 remote employees takes two hours bi-weekly, including review time.

Perhaps most remarkably, Lee runs it all confidently despite zero prior payroll experience. California's notoriously complex labor laws—overtime thresholds, meal and rest break penalties, split shift premiums—are calculated automatically in the background. For someone who described himself as "all crayons and pens and graphics and creativity," that automation made payroll learnable.

Since transitioning to Homebase in January 2023, Active Education has maintained 25% annual revenue growth. The same sustainable pace they've achieved for five to six years. The team has scaled from a very small operation to 40-55 employees.

The validation came from an unexpected source. UK International, a $3-4 million company where Lee had worked for over 20 years, followed Active Education's lead. They switched their entire operation to Homebase—running two separate accounts to manage full-time staff and seasonal international coaches.

Nearly three years in, sustainable growth continues, fueled by word-of-mouth referrals, not advertising dollars.

Learnings that last a lifetime.

Lee never set out to hit specific revenue targets or headcount goals. His approach has always been simpler: do great work, take care of your people, and let growth happen naturally.

"We've got sustainable growth," Lee says, "not rapid growth that comes from just cutting costs."

That philosophy shows up in how he leads. Every month, Lee asks his managers to evaluate their teams on three qualities: Are they humble? Are they hungry? Are they smart?

"As a leader, you've got to always stay humble because you never know what's around the corner," Lee says.

It shows up in how Active Education has grown: entirely through word-of-mouth referrals, with zero dollars spent on advertising. Principals and schools recommend them to other districts because the work speaks for itself.

And it shows up in the tools he chose. Sustainable growth requires the right foundation: systems that let you invest in your team instead of drowning in administrative work. Tools that scale when you're ready, not before. Platforms that don't require you to be an expert to run them confidently.

For Active Education, Homebase provided that foundation. Lee went from marketing and design to running payroll for a multi-region team—learning on the fly while the organization grew 10x.

Three years in, Active Education is proof that you don't need expensive enterprise software or massive operations experience to scale sustainably. You need clarity about your values, commitment to quality, and tools that support both.

The rest takes care of itself.