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Add New Customers and Strengthen Relationships with Existing Clients

We all here about firms that want to be the “Provider of Choice” for their market and there can be many firms within a given market that are all talking in these terms.  How do you make that happen?  What kind of added value can you provide that will differentiate you and make you the provider of choice in your market?

When it comes to the construction materials testing (CMT) market, we at Agile Frameworks have some great ideas about how to help you – ideas that have been proven in the market over many years with companies just like yours.

At a basic level, a CMT firm provides testing services in the field and delivers reports to its clients.  The client wants the results to be timely and accurate.  But, what else do your clients want?  How can you go above and beyond the basics? 

For instance, along with timely and accurate results, what about having the results easily delivered in multiple formats such as e-mail, fax, FTP or via a client portal?  How about showing the test results via clickable maps so that your client can drill down from a high level to a very fine level of detail?

One of our clients, Braun Intertec, is using these advanced capabilities to win new business and to retain existing customers.  Their customers not only appreciate the advanced capabilities but they are now helping to drive new requirements that enable an even closer relationship.

We can help CMT firms to differentiate  themselves in the market which  enables them to more easily add new clients while also creating tighter relationships with existing clients.  How?  Via our innovative MetaField™ and AgilePort™ cloud-based software solutions.  For a no cost meeting at your facilities or via webex, get in touch with us today at dbonestroo@agileframeworks.com or 612-202-9011! 

During a recent career search, I knew I wanted to find a company that embraced the principles of Agile development. I had been on other successful Agile teams and saw firsthand the benefits it brings to the development approach and more importantly, the value it brings to our clients.

I joined Agile Frameworks as a Business Analyst because it was evident they embraced Agile development. I recently re-read the Agile Manifesto (http://agilemanifesto.org) that Kent Beck and team created and was reminded of the simplicity this document and how it inherently carries over to the simplicity of our work when developing Agile Frameworks solutions.

Manifesto for Agile Software Development

We are uncovering better ways of developing
software by doing it and helping others do it

Through this work we have come to value:

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools 

Working software over comprehensive documentation
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Responding to change over following a plan 

That is, while there is value in the items on
the right, we value the items on the left more.

The architecture, engineering and construction firms we work with strive to provide leading edge services – and they want their clients to recognize them as industry leaders. But many are now struggling with the fact that their clients see them as commodities. This isn’t because they’re not great at their specialties – it’s because they’re not creating unique client experiences.

In today’s technology driven world, technology plays a crucial role in how a firm is experienced by clients. It is virtually impossible to be recognized as an industry leader if you run your business with outdated or underperforming information technology (IT) systems and you force your clients to interact with you through those outdated systems.

I’ve heard more than one business leader suggest remedying this by putting iPads and smartphones into the hands of their employees. I have bad news: that tactic is easily duplicated by your competitors and gives you no real advantage.

I know, iPads and smartphones are...

I thought I’d put together a list of things to consider when looking at a SaaS offerings called "CIO SaaS Checklist".  Here are the questions that I would encourage CIO's to ask:

1.  Will the SaaS app require modification of IT or network infrastructure or need special integration?

2. Can I retire redundant IT infrastructure by using the SaaS application?

3. How long will SaaS deployment take vs. software?

4. What training will my IT staff require?

5. Can I redeploy existing staff to other projects with SaaS?

6. How does our end users' application experience compare with SaaS vs. software?

7. How does security of our data compare?

8. What's the operational reliability of SaaS vs software?

9. How will SaaS affect data backup and disaster recovery?

10. How much will I spend on a SaaS subscription over three years compared with total cost of infrastructure and application ownership and operations for software?

11. What's the level of support I can get with SaaS?

12. How easily can I upgrade or scale each solution?

13. Is the SaaS provider financially stable, and how does its IT and network operational capability compare to our own?

14. How will SaaS better serve our business?

15. Will business-unit managers, executives, and the board notice any difference with SaaS? 

Do you have other questions that you like to ask when making this kind of decision?  Please share them with me at tcase@agileframeworks.com. 

I was coming home recently in a jet-powered aluminum tube with stubby wings - I believe Kurt Vonnegut coined the term.  After landing, when I opened my eyes, my marvel at the state of modern transportation was replaced with marvel at how many people were powering up their smart phones - including me. 

At Agile Frameworks, we are committed to providing our clients with a superior customer experience. That experience starts with the first contact we make with your firm, which will always be courteous and professional; and extending throughout the sales, implementation and support phases of a relationship.   

Our pre-sales process is designed to help both our prospective clients and our team at Agile Frameworks to determine whether or not there is a good fit for both parties. Since there is a significant amount of work that is required on behalf of both parties to deliver the results you are seeking – including metrics such as improved profitability, cash flow, service delivery and competitive position -- there has to be a great working relationship that is developed prior to the time the agreements are signed. If we believe that we will achieve anything but an outstanding result for you, then we will be hesitant to partner.

We truly derive significant satisfaction from keeping our...

So, you may be asking, what exactly is AEC 2.0? In a nutshell, it’s the new way that architectural, engineering and construction firms will do their work. And very soon—actually, it’s beginning to happen already.

AEC 2.0 is about automating paper-based processes via the latest mobile and digital technology, moving data center apps into the cloud, and enabling real-time collaboration with staff, customers and partners.

It’s about making your business processes run more smoothly, helping your people to work more productively, and making your clients happier by providing them with better information, faster.

And for those AEC firms that are first to embrace it, it’s about creating a significant competitive advantage: competing on brand rather than on price, pricing competitively without sacrificing margins, improving profitability and offering clients a differentiated set of services.

Over the coming weeks and months, we’ll be publishing blog posts here that explain more about AEC 2.0,...