The new Business Pilot, Status Progression Tool, represents a radical evolution of the business management tool and CRM, which the software company argues transforms the platform and its ability to revolutionise the way its customers’ run their businesses. We caught up with Business Pilot Managing Director, Elton Boocock.
What is Business Pilot
EB: We launched Business Pilot in 2019 as a business management tool designed by installers for installers. It mobilises the power of cloud-based technologies giving installers complete visibility of each and every element of their operation from leads and conversions to job scheduling, cost of installation, service calls, and financial reporting.
The Business Pilot partnership includes Cherwell Windows Jim and Ryan Breslin and Thames Valley Windows Ryan Schofield. Everything we have developed and released is built on the day-to-day realities of running a retail installation business.
We’ve taken the process from each business, developed new ones and brought it together in a digital business management tool, built for the home improvement sector.
What is the Business Pilot Status Progression Tool?
EB: It’s an easy-to-use, but massively powerful addition to the Business Pilot platform, which at its simplest, allows you to map your lead-to-contract or contract-to-delivery process – the things you do every day in your business – but digitally.
That does three things; it allows you to simplify things for staff, they’re prompted as they go to do each thing that they need to do to get the job done, without you having to; because everyone is following the same process i.e., the ones you set, it gives you complete visibility of where a job is at any time; and it allows you to automate certain processes, saving you and your team time.
It’s the tool that you’ll wish you had been using from day one of your business!
Can you explain how it works?
EB: It’s made up of three elements, a ‘Pipeline’ or process – what you need to do to get from ‘A’ to ‘B’, lead to contract, or contract to delivery; ‘Status’, where you are in that process; and ‘Tasks’, what you need to do before moving on the next step in the process or pipeline.
As an illustration imagine you’re making the tea for your team. There are some things that everyone would need to do, for example boil a kettle, but there are specific actions that will be unique to making a cuppa in your business, for example someone might like two sugars, someone else may not want milk etc.
The Business Pilot Status progression tool would allow you to establish the process specific to your business and then when it’s someone else’s turn to do the job, they have a process to follow. They will be automatically prompted to ask if someone wants a digestive with their tea so they don’t forget; you would be able to look on your phone or desktop and see when it was going to be ready, and if you had a smart kettle, it would even automatically turn it on to boil!
We’re not talking tea runs, here, but you get the general principles. Apply Status Progress to your business process and you can transform your operation.
How is it different from other business administration tools?
EB: We have created some ‘off the shelf’ pipelines that everyone can probably use, but what’s so powerful about the Business Pilot Status Progression is that you can create whatever process you want. You have complete control.
The system can be adapted to your specific business processes and you can guarantee that your team are following them. It gives you process, control, and efficiency – and its unique, there is no other window and door industry CRM with this capability.
You set and automate a process saving time and money, but also force your team to operate within them, delivering a far more consistent customer experience.
Who can the Business Pilot Status Progression Tool benefit most?
EB: It’s designed for any business, any size but owner-managed businesses are probably the ones who are going to see the single biggest benefit because they’re run a little leaner and maybe don’t have the same resources in place.
Those business are often heavily reliant on a key individual who maybe founded the business. They’re no longer on the tools but haven’t put in place the processes and operational infrastructure to support their teams in working effectively but also to guarantee service levels that the owner wants them to deliver.
Without process money and opportunities are being wasted, through error and duplication of effort – the business structure isn’t there. Business Pilot Status Progression puts it in place.
