Connections Legal Management (CLM) saw rapid business growth outpace the IT systems
Established in 2014 and growing rapidly, CLM specialises in the consenting of electric, gas and water connections to developments of all sizes.
The business was reliant upon Excel spreadsheets and an Access database. Solutions that were restrictive (single person access to a spreadsheet at a time), cumbersome (client reports took days to compile), and prone to user error.
The nature of the business requires client email communication be kept for a long period. This required a high volume of emails to be manually saved, which was burdensome for staff.
As the business grew, processes and supporting spreadsheets grew in complexity, extending the time to get new hires up to speed.
It was evident the business had outgrown its IT systems.
Don’t put us in a box!
CLM wanted to explore IT solutions available so spoke with a number of different organisations:
"The problem was people would say, “It sounds like legal” or “It sounds like surveying”. They kept wanting to put us in a box. Then we met CRM Insights. They didn’t do this. Instead they listened to us as a company. Then they looked at what CRM solutions were available."
Laura Wilson, Director & Founder
CRM Insights invited CLM to attend a Discovery Workshop.
"This was one of the most draining experiences I’ve ever been through. Being challenged on why the things I’d done for 15+ years were being done that way. It was great though! We could clearly see where the holes were, and I could see why people struggled to understand my interpretation of processes. You’ve got to be open to challenge. When you get through it, the resultant system stands you in good stead for the future.”
Laura Wilson, Director & Founder
A bespoke solution
CRM Insights recommended Workbooks. Bespoke configured, CLM can now easily see critical business data, including:
- Current project volume and status
- Forecast spend and invoicing
- And much more
There are also lots of time saving capabilities provided. For example:
- Automated project reference numbers
- Default saving of emails into project folders
- Easy completion of client timelines
In short, the job has been made a lot easier for people.
Transparency, time saved, and reduced risk
"Transparency is key. During the recent lockdown period I was easily able to see a project’s progress whilst the team were all working from home. After transparency is time saving. We used to have meetings for the sake of meetings - to discuss how things were going, timescales, etc. Now we have one management team meeting a week. Very rarely do we need to talk about workloads. Finally, we’ve reduced business risk through process automation."
Laura Wilson, Director & Founder
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