For more than four decades, James Garner has been a fixture in the U.S. mineral and land management space. Starting as a field landman, Garner transitioned to managing client mineral portfolios and ultimately built Garner Minerals, a small, family-owned firm that now owns over 500 mineral properties in eight states.
Searching for the Right Solution
With deep expertise but limited back-office resources, Garner faced a growing challenge: how to run a lean operation, manage increasing acquisition activity, and bring modern efficiency to a traditionally manual and fragmented business.
As a solo operator, Garner was juggling spreadsheets, PDFs, mineral data sites, and an array of point solutions that lacked integration. Although he had attempted to build a proprietary system, he quickly found that the level of customization required was beyond what off-the-shelf software or third-party developers could handle.
“We went through an extensive review process,” Garner said. “Most platforms either didn’t last, couldn’t scale beyond one state, or couldn’t understand the complexity of our needs. We even considered building our own, but no one could keep up with what we were trying to do.”
Adding to the complexity, Garner also supports other mineral owners with best practices and resources. With increased demand for his time and more data to process, it became clear that a more efficient system was needed. Garner discovered SS&C MineralWare three years ago after exhaustively testing competing tools and quickly found the solution that fit his needs, both functionally and financially. From automating revenue processing to digitizing hardcopy check stubs, MineralWare helped streamline and centralize every part of Garner Minerals’ operations.
“We can upload all of our PDFs and check details, and MineralWare processes it for us. That alone solved a major pain point and saved me an enormous amount of time,” said Garner.
Efficiency and Responsiveness That Stand Out
The responsiveness of the MineralWare team has also been a standout for Garner, who noted a major project that was turned around in just two days – a process that he estimates would have taken other vendors 30–45 days and would have incurred significant upfront fees.
By adopting MineralWare, Garner Minerals now operates with the confidence and efficiency of a much larger shop without the overhead. The platform has enabled Garner to compete more aggressively in acquisitions by managing backend costs and having data at his fingertips, as well as operating digitally for both day-to-day tasks and long-term records, shifting from paper-based to scalable, searchable systems. “MineralWare costs less than the big players and delivers more value. The transition of PDFs into actionable data, without charging per item, has been a valuable benefit and key to our ability to operate efficiently,” said Garner.
Looking Ahead
As MineralWare continues to evolve its offerings, including improvements to mapping, visualization, and integration, Garner sees the platform becoming even more essential, particularly for smaller mineral owners who can’t afford expensive enterprise systems. “Once you learn the system, it changes how you think about managing your properties. MineralWare’s new iteration is a major leap forward,” he added. “I’m typically pretty critical of vendors. However, MineralWare passes the test.”
Garner Minerals’ journey demonstrates how technology can transform even the leanest operations. By leveraging MineralWare, Garner Minerals has unlocked efficiency, scalability, and confidence. Proving that with the right tools, small firms can compete at a big-league level.
SS&C MineralWare offers innovative management tools for individuals, family offices, institutions, and banks throughout the oil and gas sector, specifically the mineral and royalty space. To learn more about how SS&C MineralWare can support your unique business needs, call (817) 735-8195 or email contact@mineralware.com.
