Do you do services?

Services One is a fully operational and ready to go system to run all core processes for any services firm.

All services firms follows the same process, more or less. Different names, different numbers of steps, different participants - but basically same sequence. Roughly speaking:

• Law office:
  • Client calls, mails or visits.
  • Gather information.
  • Challenge assumptions, discuss scope and value.
  • Do research.
  • Do the work.
  • Court/Negotiations/Transactions...
  • ...
  • Delivery.
• Advertising agency:
  • Client calls, mails or visits - or you do a pitch.
  • Gather information.
  • Challenge assumptions, discuss scope and value.
  • Do research.
  • Copy work.
  • Art work.
  • ...
  • ...
  • Delivery.
• Consulting:
  • Client calls, mails or visits - or you do a pitch.
  • Gather information.
  • Challenge assumptions, discuss scope and value.
  • Do research.
  • Do the work.
  • Implementation.
  • Measure.
  • ...
  • Delivery.
  
  
  

• After adding the client, gathering information and having the pre-project discussions all activities can be seen as "Projects", it be research, do the work, implement some IT systems or whatever. One task or thousand, one participant or hundreds - same thing.
• Each assignee can split his assignment into any number of subtasks in parallel and/or sequence and any number of sub-subtasks - rinse and repeat. Hence an assignee will in fact be a "Part project owner" with the usual need to conduct the activities, report back and in general be on top of it all.
• Instead of spending time on chasing status reports, writing status reports and updating spreadsheets and MS Project she/he can now sit back and watch it all unfold in Services One. Real time.
• Not limited to using the baton in full sight of the orchestra the Project Owner can be allowed to add tasks, subtasks and change the path at any time. Again all from Services One with instant effect.
  
  

With Services One you don't have to (but can, if found useful):

• Use email.
• Go to meetings.
• Write reports. Thingamy's Services system does that continuously.
• Request updates. All is visible.
• Answer requests for updates.
• Looking for stuff. In email clients, file trees and document handling systems.
• Update spreadsheet and project management tools.
• Spend time with to-do lists.
• Fire up any other software.

Instead you focus on actual work and share it with your team or group or everybody else.

• Thingamy's Services One runs on any operating system (currently compiled on Windows, Linux and OS X) and requires no other software.
• It can be on-premises or in the cloud. We can even run it as a service if need be.
• Install is copy and paste then start.
• Implementation requires, once started, an update to participants via web interface or by import (XML or CSV). Other implementation issues depends on scope - including connection via API to other systems etc.
  
  

• €30 per user and month once up and running to full satisfaction, no binding. Users equals all team / group / department / company users depending on scope.
• Admin has it's own interface for settings and tweaks to/adding of workflows, reports, property fields and more.
• Layout specific files are open and accessible.
  
  

Simple and typical process from client calling to delivery.

1. Before first time use admin will have to tweak for your type of business:

	Define assignment type like "Research", "Copy" and "Art" if you're an advertising agency. Makes keeping an eye on the assignments / tasks easier - and adds knowledge to the "Project" overviews.
	Add "Specialities" and "Participants" would be the last preparation before running it for the first time. Participants could be Suppliers, Team members, Project leaders etc. Either manually or by import of XML or CSV files.
	Check if all's right using one of the reports. Note that blue text indicates a "clickable" expansion of the "object".

2. Ready to go, log out as "admin" and log on as yourself:

	I'm logged on as a Project Owner and starting a new project would be from "context" of some sort. We've chosen the "context" to be "Speciality" - in this case a small law firm with two specialities. Start a new Project of a chose type once the client calls or mails you.
	First task for new project would normally be to choose or add new client to the system. Always useful to know what client we're working for.
	Adding details in a typical "Display / Fillout" screen.
	Add Project details and select a Project Owner. Yourself if you'd like. The new "Project owner" will be notified with all pertinent information and given the option to decline or accept. If declined you will have to choose another Project owner. (The notification is omitted if you choose yourself).
	First task for the new Project owner would be to study the information gathered about the project so far, then contact the client to discuss the matter.
	An important part of that would be to challenge assumptions and discuss scope and value hopefully leading to an agreement of price and timelines.
	This task ends with either "Decline" or "Start the project".
	Side note: Tasks always gives the "Task/Assignment title" as well as what kind of process/flow it's a part of and most important; when it was assigned!
	Another side note: On the top of your home screen there are links to all flows views where every task/assignment is visible, including who and when. Some has the right to pick up and do tasks on behalf of others - either any or limited to those assigned by the participant.
	Now the work starts and as all work is a version of a "Project" this will be the way it is here too. A project would have at least one assignment / task: Do the work myself.
	But there are no limits here as to how many assignments / tasks you give in parallel, how many there are in sequence or indeed how many subtasks are dispensed with.
	Accept or decline is an option always given to the assignee. Add a note to be polite and punt it back. The assigner will then have to argue why I should do it or send it to somebody else.
	Accept and do it as one task or split into subtasks and assign those to others and/or myself. This allows all kind of twists including the usual situation where an Art Director is given the assignment to do the art for the project, then delegates freely into subtasks.
	At last somebody does a task and is given all pertinent information in one go so there should not be any need to rummage around in file hierarchies or KM systems.
	Keeping an eye on things happens through the reports that are real time of course and sorted in many different ways. Quite often they allow you to "do things" as well like adding notes or files, new tasks or subtasks - all depending on what role you have and what relationship you have with a project or assignment.
	Typically for "My live projects" (typically only for project owners); you can add new tasks when it hit you that you had forgotten something, or add notes and files.
	Ditto for assignments assigned to or by me - add subtask or notes are useful activity options straight in the report.
	When an assignment is finished the assigner will be asked to review and send back for more if found necessary.
	When reviewed and found sound there will be time to add another follow-up task / assignment or not.
	Final review and delivery or send it back for more.
	Project delivered and time for a "Post mortem" so you might do a better job next time.

If you want to dominate your industry, please feel free to contact me.

Thank You.

Sigurd Rinde

Phone: +33 6 8887 9944, Skype: sigurd.rinde, Twitter: @sig, Email: sig@thingamy.com.