THE STAGNANT START UP - A 3 MINUTE READ
BUSINESS START UP IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR SUPPLY INDUSTRY. TRADING 6 MONTHS, HAD SECURED FURTHER FUNDING FOR TECH AND/OR STAFF, WANTED TO INVEST IN CORPORATE DUE DILLIGENCE AND CLARITY OF DIRECTION
THE MEETING - AN AWKWARD HELLO.....
Meeting with the board, who wanted to avoid an awkward shareholder meeting in three months....
We established a history of the organisation, the way they got there, what they wanted to do, what were their fears, aspirations and where do they wanted to go, and what their commitments were.
Shortly afterwards we provided advice on what we thought they were doing well, and held a second session to make sure they were happy with what we would provide.
The output from this meeting was a project plan to deliver their business needs, to make sure they had a firmer grip on the future and allowed them to communicate their requirements in a clear way to all departments and internal stakeholders.
We needed to make sure they could improve their semi safe foundations and move forward.
THE INTITAL STRUGGLE....
The company was thankfully brimming with energy and ideas, but they encountered roadblocks early on. Their data analytics and understanding of their staff and customers and their own processes were fragmented, leading to missed insights and incorrect decision-making.
Office integration was a maze of disconnected tools, hindering collaboration and productivity. Project and process understanding was according to the director,
"Like juggling burning logs!”
We knew we could help.
THE INTERVENTION ; USING DATA
We rolled up our sleeves and dove into their data collection, gathering the information they didn’t have. In reality they had a large amount of data but did not know how to find it, interpret it, or make decisions with it.
First, we conducted a comprehensive "data audit", identifying gaps and redundancies. After review we streamlined their data pipelines, integrated disparate sources, and implemented robust analytics tools. Depending on their resource and ability we trained them for ongoing understanding and suggested collection improvements.
Our team introduced predictive models, allowing them to anticipate market trends and customer behaviour.
The result? – Ongoing decision guiding insights, to provide staff retention, growth and company improvements to clients and new customers.
OFFICE INTEGRATIONS; WORKFLOWS
Hand in hand with providing a plan for improvements, we implemented workflow management required for ongoing day to day business, we tackled their office self-admitted "chaos".
We introduced a unified suite of collaboration tools, seamlessly integrating email, document management, and project tracking, and Data Compliance. Later helping them integrate accounting software and HR software.
With our guidance, they adopted best practices for remote work, ensuring smooth communication across teams. They introduced a 50/50 hybrid work environment for their staff after the once-disjointed office environment transformed into a well-oiled machine, where ideas flow freely, and deadlines are monitored and met.
PROJECT DELIVERY; COMMON SENSE
We customized an agile framework tailored to their specific needs. Daily stand-ups became required when needed, sprint planning sessions if necessary. We mentored their project leads, emphasizing transparency, risk management, and adaptive planning. As a result, they delivered projects on time, within budget, and with a dash of innovation.
We explained the difference between preparation and reaction, as well the difference between a project and a everyday high end work practice.
TRIUMPHS; THE OUTCOMES
We are proud that due to our intervention, the client emerged as a force to be reckoned with. Their revenue improved by 11%, which on its own may not impress companies with shareholders, but also their staff retention jumped! (reducing a rather high onboarding spend). Their process improvements allowed a 20% cut on their spending, making the company much more profitable. Aside from the financial ups they were now able to provide a 2-4 week service delivery, not the 6-7 weeks they previously offered.
The required improvements needed to maintain their public service contract (which provided 54% of their income at the time), was renewed for another two years, and allowed them to expand their scope to tender and bid into other sectors, as well as other contracts with the same organisation.
They now have the ability to focus their efforts, and not rely on most of their income come being generated from one large contract.