“Being able to build an app in an
afternoon makes me look like a star!”
– Lisa Bateson, Geeks R’ Good
The Search For The Perfect Tool
Lisa Bateson, principal consultant at Geeks R’ Good sat down to talk with Asel, our APAC sales associate, to talk about her journey with Appenate. Read on to find out how she found Appenate, and how it’s impacted her clients and her consulting business.
Business Goal
Solution
Outcome
- Had to find a digital tool that’s simple to use on the front end. Main requirement: be faster than paper.
- Needed custom and client-specific mobile apps that end-users could learn to use in 5 minutes or less.
- Found a solution that, once tested, suited all requirements and made workers’ lives easier.
The Challenge Of Change
You may remember the earlier case study with Lisa on improving safety incident reporting – this time, however, it’s all about her journey as a consultant with Appenate. This includes the challenges she’s faced and how she breaks through initial resistance to change.
“Reams and reams of paper just seemed incredibly wasteful.” – Lisa Bateson
Paper Gets Old
Lisa’s been helping clients get their processes in order for 20 years, and paperwork was always a challenge. The trick was to find a balance between information and paperwork.
Try to gather too much information, and people won’t find the time to complete the paperwork. Gather too little, and you’ll find yourself unable to get critical compliance data in place – necessary for, say, government tenders or insurance claims.
Lisa found Appenate while helping a client meet government standards.
Mission: Total Compliance
When Lisa started her search for the right digital tool, there were many off-the-shelf options to choose from. The problem was that none of these proved a fit for what Lisa was trying to achieve. They were either too complicated for the users or too simple to capture the necessary information.
When Lisa found Appenate, she knew she was onto something.
The fuel distribution company Lisa was helping needed something that fit into the fuel tanker drivers’ lives. They didn’t have the time to add extra work to their day, so they needed an easy solution that would save time – not cost it.
Appenate fit the mould – and also avoided the need to have multiple systems running in tandem. Everything could run through a central point. Even though Lisa was a little hesitant about just how technical Appenate might get, she went for it and has never looked back. 😊
Training Made It Easier
Appenate is a user-defined platform. That means you get to design your own apps the way you envision them (no coding required).
The company Lisa was helping, however, couldn’t spare the staff or the time to learn the platform and create their own solutions. It was up to her to build out the necessary forms – an intimidating prospect at first. That said, thanks to the free one-on-one training that Appenate provides, Lisa got a basic incident report form up and running quickly.
One notable result of this was that insurance claims – previously a headache – were no longer a cause for panic. The data was captured and readily available within Appenate. A simple export gave them everything they needed for successful claims. 🥳
“I Don’t Use Digital Technology”
As Lisa moved forward and introduced more clients to Appenate, a common argument against the platform was that workers don’t like digital technology. They even find it intimidating in some cases.
It’s understandable. Paper is familiar, comfortable and easy. However, Lisa’s response to this argument has always been “if you can use an app on your phone, you can use Appenate.”
That’s all Appenate is to the end-user – a simple mobile app. The initial setup can be a little intimidating, but using it on the front end is as easy as opening a game of Sudoku or ordering a pizza online. Simply click on the relevant app and add your info.
Once employees start to use Appenate, they realise that it’s easier than paper. There’s no “system” that they have to learn – it’s perfectly straightforward.
A Picture Or A Thousand Words?
One of the things that stand out about Appenate is how versatile it is – especially when compared to paper.
Unless your staff have art degrees and specialise in still life drawings, paper isn’t great at capturing information from the scene of – say – an accident. The written account of what’s happened isn’t likely to help much either. Adrenaline-fueled ramblings are more likely what you’ll get.
Instead, Appenate lets you snap photos. That, combined with an annotation or short written account, can further ensure a successful insurance claim.
As Lisa discovered more of these features, the realisation hit home that Appenate can be used for far more than a basic incident report.
Work On Your Business, Not In It
Having to run around asking questions and enforcing compliance is never the best use of a business owner or manager’s time. Ideally, you want to have the leisure of sitting back and analysing compliance with a handy overview on your computer.
Lisa agrees that Appenate gives you that overview.
What’s more, Appenate helps lay the foundation for growth. Instead of training new team members on the processes, your app can do it for you. That’s what Lisa always tries to do with Appenate – make the data capturing process almost mindless. That way, anyone can pick it up and run with it.
Appenate is also perfect for the global shift towards remote work. Sure, the pandemic may have sparked more businesses to shift to work-from-home models – but population growth will also keep pushing us in this direction as housing space take priority over huge, spacious offices.
So whatever the future holds, adapting to a solid remote solution like Appenate will always be a wise choice.
Appenate Improves Creativity?
The fact that she can build an app in an afternoon often leaves clients in wonder.
Lisa went on to say, “Appenate has provided a new platform for exploring avenues of problem-solving, which is where my business creativity comes to the fore.”
She can generate new ideas that aren’t hampered by “old thinking.”
As a consultant, Lisa finds that employing Appenate has become part of her delivery capability. “There’s so much more to explore.”
Need A Consultant Account?
Click here if you’re a consultant and want to add a no-code paperless tool like Appenate to your toolbelt. There will be a short assessment in the beginning to establish your grasp of the platform. Upon completion and approval, you’ll get a free Appenate account to manage and distribute your clients’ apps. You’ll also get a certificate and a badge to show off on your website or LinkedIn profile.
Throughout the partnership, your nominated account manager will be there to give you all the training and support you need.
If you’re a client looking to get in touch with Lisa, you can reach her at lisa@geeksrgood.com.au.