An Essex based landscaping and gardening company was servicing both commercial and residential gardens. With jobs ranging from regular maintenance to complete redesign the family owned company needed a database to efficiently manage their operative’s work load.
The Challenge
Heavily reliant on excel spreadsheets and using whiteboards to plan work the directors of ABC Ltd recognised the need to systemise the process. The current way of working was damaging business growth with some regular maintenance jobs being missed and new quotes getting buried.
The company was keeping track of new quotes, regular maintenance and new projects on an excel spreadsheet. Job planning and the assigned operative’s weekly work was conducted on a whiteboard in their office. Operatives were then informed individually of their upcoming jobs via email and text.
Solution
Our recommended solution is a web based bespoke database split into four main modules:
- Operatives – For contact details, skills and an overview of projected work/availability
- Projects – To contain project details, planned maintenance and a calendar view
- Clients – To store details on clients and associated contacts
- Maintenance – For information you would control yourself, such as users
Database Benefits
The system would provide A Single View of the customer, job and operative. It would allow the company to log details of work and people into the database and would provide benefits such as:
- Increase in business – due to a reduction in lost work as the database records quotes
- Better customer service – remove inconsistencies and eradicate the risk of disappointing customers.
- Automated Text Messages – immediate SMS communications can be sent from the system. Operatives can log on and see their work from home and therefore saves the office staff time.
- No costs per user, no limit on the amount of users and no on-going rental or licence cost due to having a bespoke database.
Technologies
In a project such as this we would use technologies such as: Microsoft SQL Server Microsoft Word Microsoft .NET
This scenario is based ABC Ltd a fictitious company – although the challenge is not! If any element sounds familiar please get in touch.
Learn more about how a database can streamline your business.
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