D&G Office Interiors
D&G Office Interiors is an office furniture and interior refurbishment and fit-out business, providing the complete package from design and project management, through to completion.
Learning points
- Benefits of superfast bandwidths to business performance are incremental and require investment in time, resources and staff training.
- Greater use of superfast enabled technology allows for greater collaboration between staff, clients and suppliers.
- Superfast connectivity helps SMEs to compete with the services offered by larger national businesses.
Overview of the business
D&G Office Interiors is a family run business delivering and installing quality office furniture and providing complete and innovative interior refurbishment solutions. The business comprises of 17 full time staff, operating on a B2B basis with public and private sector clients from across the United Kingdom. The current turnover for the business is estimated at £4 million per annum, with a five-year business plan looking to incrementally expand and reposition the business toward the high end of the market.
D&G Office Interiors information flow diagram
Highlighting the internal and external communication flows of the business.
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Superfast broadband adoption
In March 2017 D&G Office Interiors gained a broadband connection through BT, replacing the problematic download speeds of 10 Mbps and upload speeds of 1 Mbps with superfast bandwidths 60 Mbps for download and 20 Mbps for upload. At present these speeds are considered to be adequate business functionality. However, there is a recognition that greater speeds will a worthwhile investment in the future.
Prior to the area receiving superfast connectivity, the business considered investing in a leased line, with estimate monthly costs ranging from £400 to £500 over a three year contract. However, the fibre connectivity is offered at under £50 a month, which is considered a small outlay
IT skills capacity
D&G Office Interiors continues to use an external IT consultant, who helps to identify and implement necessary software and functionality requirements. Internally, training and assistance is provided when required.
Use of digital technologies
The adoption of superfast broadband has boosted the functionality of the SAP mobile platform, which integrates the core business processes, such as finance, order processing, delivery, account management, and all CRM into one application. The higher bandwidth means that staff can now access functions and data in real time.
The business tailors services and software solutions to match needs. When selecting licenses for the applications, only the specific licenses required for particular employees and tasks are obtained. Additionally, bespoke functions are selected based on need and previous experience, removing redundant and unhelpful software tools when required.
D&G Office Interior continues to utilise cloud-based services, moving away from offline software, email and file servers. Microsoft Office 365 has become intrinsic to the business processes, streamlining communications between employees, clients and suppliers. One example is the move toward Microsoft Teams that can be accessed by all staff, as well as business clients. Previously there has been a reliance on multiple cloud-based storage accounts. Now all data backup and file exchanges being accessed through Microsoft Office 365 and OneDrive.
Further communication modifications include the replacement of traditional ISDN lines with broadband enabled Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and a greater emphasis on video conferencing:
Sharing data in real time, perhaps having meetings while we’re drawing just to check things out, ultimately makes our presentation more accurate, quicker and the whole turnaround of the project speedier.
Responding to the need for instant communication is the increasing utilisation of mobile telephones. It is commonplace for the staff to communicate via WhatsApp as opposed to email, allowing instant communication between team members and the sharing of images and videos when required. For example, if a problem arises onsite photographs or videos are sent directly to the office and manufacturers to develop real time solutions.
Business performance
For D&G Office Interiors, the biggest change relates to how business processes are achieved, rather than the processes themselves. A core element of this is the continued development of trust and customer relationships, achieved by tailoring services to the clients’ needs and working in an increasingly collaborative manner. Therefore, a competitive edge is attained based on the speed of the service, high levels of professionalism, team coordination and an overall confidence in the process.
Turnaround times have been reducing. The benefits of a joined up approach supported by broadband connectivity enables time and resources to be scheduled to meet demands:
Whereas before, the quickest you could turn a project around would be three to four days, now there’s the possibility that if someone had a three-hour design time free, we could just tap into it, design your office and get it back to you on the same day.
The adoption of superfast speeds has better equipped D&G Office Interiors to manage its internal and external collaboration. There has been a shift toward team collaboration, with multiple staff members working across projects either simultaneously or sporadically based on demand.
Moreover, the client can be immersed into the process, acting as a partner in the co-creation of the design of the office interior. This heightened relationship with the client enhances the customer experience and increases the likelihood of repeat purchases:
By getting the feedback as and when we designed it, rather than before the meeting with the design brief, and then go back and present. Now, we’re involving the client, in between those stages, so that when we go back and present, it’s exactly what they’ve been involved with, up until that point.
Knowledge of the project is shared across the team so lags can be cut waiting for the response of a specific sales person as multiple team members can process and respond to queries as required.
By implementing these small changes, the business sees itself as being able to compete on the level that was previously only attainable for larger businesses:
It’s enabled us to be able to offer those sort of solutions that perhaps were only available to the bigger companies. You’ve got that toolset now to play the same game.
In the 12-months since superfast adoption, D&G Office Interiors has seen incremental reductions in lost time and expense across the business. The business continues to manage the outlay of multiple software programs used across the business in order to cut costs, improve efficiency and achieve a more streamlined information flow. The business utilises design software that requires frequent updates to retain compatibility and functionality. Previously, large outlays were needed to purchase the latest full editions of design software. More recently, D&G Office Interiors maximises the flexibility afforded by bespoke software packages and licenses that can be tailored to the specific need of the business.
When the previous year’s case study was analysed, the replacement of ISDN lines with of broadband enabled Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) communications was in its infancy. One year on, the benefits of this transition are becoming apparent. The two key benefits speak to cost savings and greater functionality. When operating with traditional phone lines, there was an ongoing requirement to invest in equipment, maintenance and monthly bills. Now the business benefits from easy installation, automatic updates, remote connectivity and vastly reduced monthly outlays:
Previously the phone system may have been £400 a month, and that is with a big splurge every five years replacing something on it. Whereas now, we’re not even paying £100 a month for the phone system.
An additional financial and occupational benefit relates to the changes to working patterns, seen through increased flexibility and reductions in travel and mileage. Since all data can be synced on the cloud-based services, there is no longer a need for staff members to return to the office following a client visit. The information can be downloaded and processed remotely, allowing the business to work smarter. These savings accumulate, cutting out between five to ten thousand miles annually by staff not having to drive back to the office to process paperwork.
Indirectly, savings accrue from cuts to time wasted and optimised use of staff wages (for example, the business has the ability to function in extreme weather conditions such as heavy snow, with the staff able to access all software and data remotely). It is estimated that when all these efficiencies are considered, savings compile to at least £10,000 per annum:
Of the ten sales staff, at least five have fully integrated these remote working practices into their weekly routine. It is accepted that the change requires more than technology, with a need to provide ongoing training and remove the practical and cultural barriers preventing staff from maximising the remote working opportunities. The business is keen to explore additional performance benefits that could be achieved by gaining an ultrafast bandwidth capacity. However, at present, the business recognises that cultural change in the workforce practices takes time and continued investment to succeed.
