When delivering engineering projects, it can be easy for spreadsheets to stack up. But what happens when these data sets aren’t talking to each other? How about when whole systems fail to communicate with one another, exposing your organisation to unnecessary risk?
Growing your business from the ground up is no mean feat but, with sustained growth, you’ll invariably hit a ceiling where the systems and processes that carried you through the early days are no longer sufficient for dealing with larger, more complex projects and workloads. The results can be dire and, through no fault of you or your staff, your sub-par systems may end up costing you valuable business.
How do I know if my systems SUCK?
As an engineer, you’re almost certainly a skilled logistician. The flow of data and information is easy for you to comprehend and you can visualise and engage with your business processes on a very intuitive level, probably all within your head. In summary, you know how to run your business.
Unfortunately, if your computer systems are not up to scratch, they won’t be able to match the complexity of your operations and support you in delivering projects to satisfied clients, on time and on budget. Here are just a few examples of things that can go wrong when your systems let you down:
- Manual tasks waste too much of your time
- Processes are not performed consistently and important steps are missed
- Data is spread across multiple systems with no single source of truth
- The status of projects lacks clear visibility, disrupting forward planning
- Customer experience deteriorates
Wouldn’t it be great to have your sales, operations and marketing processes come together as components of a single well-oiled machine? Wouldn’t that improve visibility over all your operations and enable the integrated automation of processes?
What’s the solution?
To execute your processes seamlessly, you need a system that uses smart technology to achieve reliable results, taking the processes out of your head so you can worry about more important things.
That’s where a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform comes in.
A CRM is where you can centrally control your sales, operations and marketing activities in a streamlined, integrated manner. With a CRM, you can set up detailed process pipelines for each of these areas of your business, with the marketing pipeline flowing into sales, and sales into operations. This allows you to accurately track the progress of a project from quoting to completion, all in one space. Here’s a list of just a few CRM features:
- Report on key milestones of the project and flag any upcoming roadblocks
- Automate tasks and processes across all operations
- Remove the need for manual tickets and emails
- Provide you with visibility over your sales and marketing team
- Bring together third-party software into one central platform
- Create efficient, repeatable processes for a friction-free customer experience
- Understand where your business is at to make smart business decisions.
As a business that operates in an industry where processes are essential, having the smart systems to match is essential. Not only will a system enable a project to run more smoothly, but it will also mediate much of the mental load that these projects tend to carry by automating activities.
Learn more about implementing your CRM today
That all sounds great, but how do I fund it?
Glad you asked! The Government has created the Entrepreneur’s Grant to encourage small to medium-sized businesses to invest in their own growth. The grant works by matching every $1 you spend on growing your business, with a maximum value of $20K.
That means the government will reimburse HALF of your spending if you spend $40K on growing your business, which includes implementing a CRM.Many businesses neglect to access grant opportunities - don’t be one of them! Check your eligibility today to get the ball rolling.
