Digitising Operations for a 50 Year Old Service Business

From Excel Sheets to a robust Project Management System in Notion

Client Overview

A 20-member team struggling with non-existing project management system, relying heavily on emails and WhatsApp, and managing more than 100 GB of data in their email system. Reports were manually built in Excel, and all files were offline, leading to significant administrative burden on the Directors.

Challenges:

For each client project the team had to put together a lot of documents which would inturn go through an approval process to complete the project.

• Inefficient communication and project management via email and WhatsApp.

• 100 GB+ of data clogging the email system.

• Offline file storage causing accessibility issues.

• Manual report creation in Excel was time-consuming and error-prone.

• No centralized system for managing finances and project tasks.

• Disorganized lead management from the website.

Solution:

I conducted thorough consultations with each team member to understand their unique needs and pain points. Based on this detailed analysis, the following solutions were implemented:

A Centralized System with Notion and Google Drive

Google Drive Setup: Established a Google Drive system to organize all files in a centralized, easily accessible location, eliminating offline file chaos.

Notion Integration: Built an automated system in Notion where projects and tasks are automatically set up depending on the project type.

Finance Management: Integrated financial management with the project management system creating a dedicated private dashboard for the Account Team.

Lead Management: Connected website leads directly into Notion for better tracking and follow-ups.

Personal Dashboards: Created personalized dashboards for each employee to enhance focus and productivity.

Wiki with Checklists and SOPs: Developed a comprehensive wiki containing checklists and standard operating procedures to ensure consistency and streamline processes.

Automations:

1. Add actionable task list for each project based on its type

2. Calculate the fee of project based on quotes shared with each clients

3. Create a Templatised Folder in GDrive based on the type of project

4. Add the GDrive Folder URL in corresponding Notion Project

5. Move the folder to Archive once the project is complete

6. Clean up the archived folder in GDrive

7. Send Status updates to stakeholders at different stages of Project progress

Results

1. 📥 Streamlined Communication: Reduced reliance on emails and WhatsApp for project management. Focused conversations happen only in project cards now.

2. 📁 Efficient Data Management: Centralized data from emails and excels into an organized Google Drive system. No more email back-and-forth or long threads!

3. 🤝🏼 Improved Accessibility: Files are now accessible online, improving collaboration and accessibility of data by all team members.

4. 📊 Automated Reporting: Shifted from manual Excel reports to automated reporting in Notion directly using the projects progress data.

5. ⚡ Enhanced Project Management: Automated task and project setups based on type, ensuring consistency and efficiency.

6. 🤑 Integrated Financial Management: Centralized and automated finances in Notion allowing accountant to stay on top of invoice creation at different stages of the project.

7. 👤 Lead Management: Streamlined lead tracking from website and follow-up in Notion.

8. 🕵🏼 Increased Employee Focus: Personal dashboards allow employees to focus on their work without distractions and keeps them accountable.