At first glance, the term Digital Transformation (DX) appears broad. However, embracing the term ultimately means refining old operating methods and becoming more agile. It is only when we take this onboard that we are able to respond to our customers and overtake our competitors. Both evolving and increasing value to clients are dependent on integrating digital technology, automating operations into all areas of our businesses. Here, Relativity, the business technology experts based in East Sussex look at the definition of the term, the benefits to your business and how to start.  

Definition of Digital Transformation

Digital transformation is the integration of digital technology into all areas of a business, fundamentally changing how you operate and deliver value to customers.

The Enterprisers Project

Digital transformation is the process of using digital technologies to create new – or modify existing – business processes, culture and customer experiences to meet changing business and market requirements.

Salesforce

Digital transformation is the incorporation of computer-based technologies into an organisation's products, processes and strategies. Organisations undertake digital transformation to better engage and serve their workforce and customers and thus improve their ability to compete.

TechTarget

Benefits of Digital Transformation

• Streamlining of operations
• Enhanced customer experience
• Advanced product and service innovation
• Increased employee productivity
• More agility and responsiveness to changing markets
• Faster to the market with new products and services

Infrastructure modernisation is often the key to success. By incorporating current technologies into your products, processes and strategies, you will be better able to compete in the digital economy of today.

Where Do You Start with Digital Transformation?  

The clue is in ‘transformation’ as it will transform your business. You will need to evaluate your business and identify areas where it can be improved. A clear strategy will need to be implemented with all your team onboard. Transformation is dependent on agility and by adopting a business culture based on this, innovative ideas will result form the encouraged experimentation. It is an investment and should be seen as such, so approach it one step at a time.

How Can Relativity Help Your Business with its Digital Transformation?

Automating processes has now become a top priority for many companies. It leads to increased efficiency and a better customer experience. However, the transformation can be daunting and at times complex. The experts at Relativity are specialists at integrating new technologies into existing systems and helping you to develop new ways of doing business. This ultimately reduces costs and increases agility. Contact us on 01825 280123 or email info@relativity.co.uk. You could soon be developing new revenue streams and providing a far better experience for your customers.

https://enterprisersproject.com/what-is-digital-transformation

https://www.salesforce.com/eu/products/platform/what-is-digital-transformation/

https://www.techtarget.com/searchcio/definition/digital-transformation

Zoho Projects is cloud based project management software. It should be noted that it is not a specialised time tracking app, but is designed to track time in the context of project management. With the app you will be able to plan project activities, assign tasks to team members and communicate with them and customers and manage resources. You will always have detailed reports as to how a task is progressing with updates so that projects are delivered on time.  Our last two articles have discussed the benefits of time tracking software and time management software considerations. This time, Relativity, the business technology experts from East Sussex looks at Zoho Projects in more detail in regard to time management.

Time Management Features:

• Timers
• Timesheet
• Invoicing
• Budgeting
• Calendar

Global Timer

Zoho Projects has a built-in timer, which can be started and stopped with each task. If it is left running accidentally, it lets you know the next time you go to that task and caps the number of hours you can do so you can’t exceed the number set by the account administrator. You can also clock in on multiple tasks at once.

Timesheets

Timesheet management has never been easier and this logs the time spent by each team member on a task. This is particularly helpful when invoicing customers and identifying bottlenecks. By spotting them quickly, they can be resolved. 

Invoicing

Invoice time logs and record expenses by integrating with Zoho Books or Invoice. This simplifies the generation of quotes, which can then be forwarded to clients.

Budgeting

Cost management can be improved which will automatically reduce quote errors. Control your finances by creating, tracking, and forecasting budgets, billing clients, tracking expenses, and analysing reports.

Calendar

You will soon realise the benefits of having your project activities all in one place. Meetings and events can be easily scheduled. Just click on any particular day of a project to create new tasks, milestones, events or bugs, and assign them to the right people.

Why Use Zoho Projects to Track Time?

• Improve productivity – determine which tasks take more time
• Boost profitability – see how long non-invoiced tasks take such as sending emails
• More transparency – let clients know how a project is progressing
• Manage teams worldwide – determine who is on track with planned hours and who has too much to do

What Do the Experts Say?

“Highly rated by some of the most trusted critics around, Zoho Projects is highly capable project management software with plenty of tools for team communication, project timekeeping, and bug tracking. The platform is particularly attractive for small teams and start-ups, since it offers a free plan for up to five users and very inexpensive paid plans. However, large teams utilise and love Zoho Projects as well. Some of these are Stanford University, Dell, Airbus, and many more.” 

techradar

“Zoho Projects is a well-balanced project management app that is especially appealing to small and growing businesses. It offers all the core tools needed for managing projects, such as Gantt charts, basic resource management tools, and timesheets, for a price that's more than fair. Getting started with the app is fairly easy, although it takes a little time to learn its finer points. Overall, Zoho Projects is an excellent project management tool and continues to be an Editors' Choice winner. We recommend it for small teams on a budget, in particular.”

PC Magazine UK

Zoho Projects is best for project management, all business sizes and supports multiple platforms. It is great value for money, easy to use with great functionality.”

Software Advice

How can Relativity help you with Zoho Projects?

Zoho claims that your projects will be finished, ‘On time, all the time’. It’s so easy to get lost in time particularly when you have multiple projects on the go at the same time. For more information about Zoho Projects, call Relativity, the business technology specialists on 01825 280123 or email info@relativity.co.uk for more information.

Time tracking software is a very important part of your business as it lets you know if you are making money on the work you are doing. The most efficient way to capture the information is to use software dedicated to this purpose. This will also provide reports and analytics into team productivity, time distribution and costs and profits across all tasks. Here Relativity, the business technology experts based in East Sussex looks at the definition of time tracking and four of the benefits time tracking software can bring to your business.

What is Time Tracking?

This normally refers to how your business records the working hours of your employees. This is important for not only payroll, but also how long team members are spending on tasks and projects. The software used will normally include extra features including hourly wages, breaks for lunch and integration with other systems including invoicing and human resources.

Benefits of Time Tracking Software

• More productivity from employees
• Creation of more accurate estimates and quotes
• Prioritising projects
• Analysis of your performance

A More Productive Team

Do you feel sometimes your team is sitting around, twiddling thumbs, not knowing what to do next? Using time tracking software will encourage your team to take ownership of their time. They will be able to see the tasks that are waiting in the queue and will therefore always have something to do. It also shows deadlines that have to be met helping to prevent a lack of urgency in the projects they are working on. You will also be able to review their performance, identify areas for improvement and also find out if a particular team member is trying to do too much.

More Accurate Estimates and Quotes

Have you ever done a job for a client and discovered it took a lot longer than you had anticipated resulting in less or no profit? Knowing exactly how long a task will take will help to eliminate this scenario. You certainly don’t want to be in a situation where you quote, the client accepts, is then delighted with the work you have carried out, would like to use you again, only to discover the next task will be a lot more expensive because you hadn’t quoted accurately in the first place.

Prioritise Projects

A task for a big client has not been finished but a ‘nice to finish’ job has? Some projects will inevitably be more important than others and need to be finished by a specified deadline. You do want to finish tasks in the right order. With time tracking software in place, if your team goes off track, you can redirect them back to that really important project before it becomes a problem.

Analyse Your Performance

Do you know if tasks are going along at a reasonable pace? Is a team member being distracted by something that is unimportant and irrelevant? Are those quotes and estimates matching the time logs? Time management will enable you to see the full picture so you can easily see what you are doing right. You’ll also see any costs you had not anticipated and any unexpected delays. Built in analytics with your time tracking software will help you to accurately understand your performance.

Time Tracking has Benefits for All Sizes of Business

Small businesses will find that time tracking software will help with productivity as this can be analysed and optimised. Invoicing clients will become simpler as the hours worked are all recorded. Companies with more than ten employees will find benefits in terms of project management, as progress is easy to see and the budget can be controlled. The software can also be integrated with other systems including human resources. Large businesses can forecast the profitability of individual projects and use the insights provided to make smarter decisions.

How Can Relativity Help You with Time Tracking?

Time tracking software is key to improving your project management work and has many key benefits. It is a tool that should never be underestimated and should be used for all tasks irrespective of the size of the project. To find out more about logging the working hours of your employees, call Relativity, the business technology specialists on 01825 280123 or email info@relativity.co.uk for more information. We are here to support all business types including freelancers, remote workers, small to mid-sized businesses and larger companies.

Next time we will be looking at the considerations you should make when deciding on what time management software is best for your business.

There are considerable benefits of using CRM software for your business. If one of your key goals is to grow your business, you will need a centralised database, namely a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to build relationships with your clients. It naturally follows that the more you know about your customers, the more successful your business will be. CRM software is the live database where you can record, store and analyse all customer and potential client communications and interactions. You will be able to use this platform to schedule meetings, share ideas and documents including communications via telephone, email and digital channels. In the latest article from Relativity, the business technology specialists based in East Sussex, we look at what CRM software is used for and the benefits and advantages of using it.

What is CRM Software Used For?

Insights, information and interactions with your customers can be stored in one place, your CRM software. It is really beneficial to your sales, marketing and customer support teams to create quotes, process orders, qualify leads and forecast sales. Communication will be enhanced and you can better analyse the ways in which your business interacts with its customer base, leading to improved customer service. You will also better understand your relationship with customers, which is essential for driving business growth. It will allow you to identify the areas where marketing resources will be best spent in order to improve the performance of your company. It will help with landing page creation and email marketing and it can serve as a knowledge base or ticketing system for your customer support team.

What are the Benefits of Using a CRM System?

• Centralised customer information platform
• Alignment and increased visibility of sales and marketing
• Automation of repetitive daily tasks
• More sales efficiency
• Easy sharing and synchronisation of data
• Creation of workflows
• Identification of valuable data trends within multiple interaction channels
• Analysis of processes and customer pipelines

A Central Database for Your Marketing, Sales and Customer Support Teams

Consistent communication with customers is essential as well as within your team. As companies turn to remote working, CRM software will give you more of an edge over your competitors. Businesses of all sizes from freelancers to large corporations will be able use CRM technology effectively. A CRM is particularly useful for businesses with dedicated marketing and sales teams and those wanting to increase efficiency.

Key Advantages of Using CRM Software

• Improved customer service
• Improved team productivity and efficiency
• Increased sales
• Automated sales reports
• Streamlined internal communications
• Better sales forecasting
• Easier nurturing of leads
• Detailed analytics

How Can Relativity Help You with CRM Software?

CRM software is a vital tool for businesses of all sizes. Your database will be updated every time your team contacts a customer. Collaboration between members of your team is made much easier so customer relationships can be nurtured together. If you would like to talk to us about software that will organise contacts and automate tasks, please call us today on 01825 280123 or email info@relativity.co.uk for more information.

Next time we will be looking at Zoho CRM in more detail. Here, Zoho provides users with a straightforward interface so that data can be presented in a simple way in order to gain valuable insights into business relationships, increase customer retention and drive the growth of sales.