A spreadsheet is often enough at first. Friction grows when several people edit separate copies of data and handling a request means searching emails and copying information by hand.
Start with the workflow
Imagine a service company receiving requests by email. An employee copies each request into a spreadsheet, assigns someone to handle it and sends separate progress updates to the customer. A shared tool could bring the request, status, ownership and change history together.
That does not automatically justify a new application. First check whether an existing product or an integration between current tools can solve the problem.
When a custom solution makes sense
- The process matters to the business and repeats regularly.
- Existing products require too many workarounds or lack necessary integrations.
- Different users need different access to the same information.
- There is a process owner and capacity to maintain the solution after delivery.
Prepare for the first conversation
Describe one request from start to finish. List the tools, the people handling the request and the points where mistakes or delays occur. If you have sample data, you can prepare an anonymised version. Think about how you would recognise an improvement, such as fewer manual steps or more complete records.
Keep the first version focused
Start with one important workflow. Add features after learning from users. Include maintenance and integrations in the budget.
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