How Electrical Safety UK moved from admin restraints to clear growth

The problem

A distinct divide

“We used to run our business on lots of spreadsheets. It was time-consuming and error-prone, and the spreadsheets were created by different people, not all of whom were always in the office. It got to the point where I could only do financial planning on Fridays because the person maintaining that spreadsheet could only bring it up to date that day. By our Monday meetings, it was out of date again."

“Some of our jobs are very complex. Multiple engineers work on the same job, and one client might have 10 or 15 jobs running simultaneously. So it was very hard to manage it the way we were doing things.”

“An engineer entering their time had to look down a list to see which job number to allocate to it. There was nothing to prompt or verify if it was the right job, and often, the list was outdated. So, the wrong number could easily be entered. We had to cross-check every posting afterwards. It took so much time.”

“Engineers did their work without having to consider the financial side. Engineering and Finance were like two separate organisations. There was an artificial divide that no one intended, which meant that job decisions were being made, which had all sorts of implications that each side was completely unaware of. For example, sometimes, an engineer would work on a project and inadvertently keep working past the point of approval and funding. There wasn’t any system to set off an alarm."

“Billing was also often late. When part of a project was completed, it took time and effort to pull together all the costs and times and check for accuracy. There was very often a delay of two or three weeks before the invoice was sent out, which, of course, hurt cash flow.”

It became clear to Rebecca that she needed to introduce a more workable system, and she spent a year researching options.

The solution

Swift implementation

"We chose Synergist because it integrated all the main elements we needed.”

“We worked with the Agency Works team for the implementation, which was very good. We did it on a fast track. Most of the training was done online, which worked well for us. At the end of that, we requested one day of in-person training to tidy up loose ends, which was excellent. So we were up and running quickly.”

“I can’t believe how much of a change it made for us in the first month alone.”

The return

Transformation

The first thing Rebecca noticed was how much time they were saving. 

“We only have to enter information once now, and the information is prompted and logic-checked where possible, so it’s far more accurate. Plus, it's helped us to cost jobs better. Previously we wrestled with very complex spreadsheets to work out the costings, and that’s all been replaced now.”

The spreadsheets they were using are mainly a thing of the past, with Rebecca saying: “I bet we’ve abandoned over 20 spreadsheets!”

“Our jobs are scheduled properly now, and all our work fits into phases. There’s no more risk of engineers working beyond the funded segment. And it also means that clients are clearer on progress and job status.”

“We’re much better at setting targets now because it’s backed up by data. Before, it was all a bit top-down, and not always realistic enough. Our cashflow is also much stronger, and the delay in invoicing has disappeared. Supplier invoices are all fully tracked so all costs are allocated properly. There’s far less risk of something slipping through the cracks.”