We responded to a request sent by a project design and installation company. This company intends to commission glacom to digitalise its commercial process in order to improve its organisational capabilities and take an important step towards growth. The company is a family business with a well-known brand in a specific territory, but it is aware of the importance of digitalisation, both for improving the control of its data, and for automating and optimising unnecessary tasks and processes.

We also proposed that they extend this digitalisation not only to their commercial process, but also to their installation, maintenance, and repair processes, in order to include the entire business dynamic under the same umbrella.

Lean manufacturing

Our proposal is based on the concept of lean manufacturing, a business philosophy that originated at the Toyota company in Japan which consists of reducing costs and unnecessary time restraints in order to increase quality and efficiency. This methodology covers two aspects: the data with which a company manages its operations, and product manufacturing. In this case, we will focus exclusively on the area of data management (lean office).

When we, at glacom, encounter a situation like this, we do not propose restructuring a company’s software. Instead, we focus on improving what already exists. In this case, the company uses a software solution to manage its quotes and invoices, and another to manage customers relations, schedules, images, etc. Our proposal centres on the creation of a single software solution to centralise all this data.

The people who conduct sales visits take photos, but where do these images go? Are they sent via WhatsApp? Are they lost in a sea of emails? In fact, installers don’t actually need to talk to anyone: they should be able to receive notifications each day informing them which customers they need to visit and where they need to go. They should also have access to a file for each customer with all the data they need for each installation. This approach is possible, and it’s one that we are very interested in.

✅ We propose using a tool that gathers all the data stored on individual software solutions and displays it in a centralised space. This tool is G-Space.

G-Space

G-Space software (glacom space) is not standard software — it’s a fully customisable space. Glacom, as a software company, doesn’t agree with standardisation. And as there is no single software that collects data from all the platforms that the company uses, we needed to create one that encompassed them all.

Browser automation

We analysed the company’s CRM and accounting software and found that it lacks an API (application programming interface), which is the protocol by which two pieces of software can communicate with each other without affecting coding. When there is no API, information cannot be transferred from one software to another. Someone can be tasked with the job of accessing one platform, creating and downloading an Excel file with all the data, uploading it to another platform, and building a manual communication bridge between the two. However, this requires a great deal of time, effort, and capital. Is it worth it when there is a solution that can automate the entire process? Browser automation techniques enable the automation of this entire process.

✅ We digitalise in order to improve control and to eliminate unnecessary tasks, not to create new ones. Browser automation is the best solution if software doesn’t have an API.

Alert system

The digitalisation of a commercial process is nothing new. What is new is that, as we have seen, if a company’s software does not have an API, we can implement browser automation software to address the issue. Everything we do on a computer can potentially be automated, so who wouldn’t want this level of digitalisation?

The dream of every entrepreneur is having a company that runs itself and sends out alerts whenever there is a problem. In an ideal world, these alerts would be sent directly to the person responsible for resolving each issue.

✅ With G-Space you can create an alert system to communicate installation dates, quotes that need to be drawn up, pending maintenance, etc. That way, employees can focus on doing their jobs with the peace of mind that everything is under control and that they do not have to spend their time on unnecessary tasks that contribute very little.

Scheduling

A project design and installation company relies on scheduling to coordinate its activities. It’s required from a commercial perspective in terms of scheduling client visits, communicating tasks to installers, and coordinating maintenance and reported repairs.

Scheduling software is one potential solution to this, but it would incur an extra cost for the company. Instead, we can harness the benefits of free software solutions like Calendly and Google Calendar. Both solutions have APIs, so they can be synchronised with G-Space (any entries added to Calendly or Google Calendar are automatically displayed in G-Space).

✅ A calendar entry that is also synchronised with the corresponding customer record is the desirable level of digitalisation for a smart company.

Acceleration

All this is conducive to acceleration. Once a company is well organised, it wants to sell more. To achieve this, it needs more salespeople, and if the volume of installations increases, the company also needs more installers. The concept of a lean office enables the optimisation of processes, which in turn leads to an optimised organisation that sets the stage for growth. Companies that opt for digitalisation are, without a doubt, making the best decision with the future in mind.

✅ The first step is getting organised. Consequential actions prevent human error and optimise processes.

Artificial Intelligence

We proposed including artificial intelligence (AI) in the G-Space, so that the customer can interact with a chatbot to resolve queries and request information or quotes. AI can speed up processes and perform boring tasks of little value. This frees up time for employees so that they can focus instead on improving the quality of processes. Automating customer support is, therefore, a good idea.

✅ A G-Space is not a closed system. It is like an empty box that can be filled with whatever you want. By including AI, you can optimise tasks and, ultimately, promote growth.

Thank you for your attention.

Glacom UK L.t.d. We are business development consultants. We accelerate business development through digital transformation. https://www.glacom.uk

Dibitonto, Daniele — CEO at Glacom — daniele@glacom.com +34 628 88 76 09 https://wa.me/34628887609