case study

I joined the ClientSavvy team at a turning point in the product’s evolution. The software at hand was 15 years old and had a great deal of complexity, customizations, and intertwined API calls, which frequently caused system failures. The development team struggled to complete tasks owing to the difficulty of the software – particularly with the present architecture and its numerous edge cases – but internal processes were also a source of frustration. As a result the business side was suffering, unable to deliver features in a timely manner.

At ClientSavvy, I walked into a challenging situation in which the legacy product was going under a full revamp. The state of things was clear; both its client base and internal teams were encountering challenges completing their daily tasks. The frustration with the software was growing big, and the codebase itself was burdened by two dedicated of code complexity and customizations. A perfect example of the situation we were in are the terribly long hold up times, system failures that used to happen in a response to a report request.

The solution was to create strategy on many levels, aiming to elevate the product, the team and the overall user satisfaction. Bringing more efficiency and quality of our operations was the main goal.

On a technical level, the objectives were clear – simplify the complexity, unknot the endless list of custom made features and connect them to actual user demands. This included addressing of the outdated and complex software design with the development team, working collectively on proposing a solution that would decrease system failures during report requests, as well as addressing other database weaknesses and API calls optimizations.
On a UX/UI level – working on connecting the dots together, which meant conducting numerous client interviews. Document those using the Customer Value Proposition mapping technique, delivered valuable insights that were able to provide stakeholders the ability to make informed product decisions. A part of the new process was to include clients at every stage of the products’ development, from a wireframe/prototype stage up to pre-release sneak-peak, engaging users more and more, increasing the overall client satisfaction with the tool. This was pure excellence.

On internal level, developing on a system so complicated, with edge cases that basically do not end was a huge challenge, still there was room for velocity improvement. Identifying and addressing team members’ pain issues by engaging with them personally, based on Agile methodologies and Lean beliefs.
Agile ceremonies were improved by introducing flexibility and new norms, such as shortening daily meetings from an hour to 15 minutes. A significant change in the retrospective approach – “I like, I wish, I wonder,” creating a good environment by minimizing blame and encouraging constructive development recommendations. Another part of this was the systematic documentation strategy that included technical, design, product, and quality assurance elements. To paint a picture of what happened, you need to think of a train (one of the old diesel ones) that starts rolling, and rolling and now is speeding up, up to it’s highest point. Everyone was doing their best and all this eventually resulted in not only a better use of JIRA but also faster ticket production/execution. The goal of increasing team velocity by 20% was met, resulting in faster delivery and smoother releases.
This extensive internal change had a significant influence on the business, resulting in faster and higher-quality releases, timely client communications, and improved internal cooperation.

This all happened as a result of challenging and rewarding team work. The whole team reached success on both the internal and external fronts as a consequence of our efforts. The development cycles began to go more quickly, and clients began to feel heard, their concerns addressed, and smiling smiles appeared as they began to see results! The business side was once again empowered; now that client satisfaction was enhanced, communications were more effective.

A bit of a roller coaster, and a success story, I couldn’t be more thrilled as Product Manager, seeing those results.

As a Senior Product Manager at ClientSavvy, I coordinated the revamp of the existing product.
I worked with the development team to reduce system downtime, reduce complexity, improve and optimize the legacy software, and develop new software.
Internally, taking care of the team pain points, introducing new/improved processes based on Agile and documentation structure, resulted in a 20% increase in team velocity.
In the UX/UI area, we conducted customer interviews. Documenting them downt to the smallest detail and using the Customer Value Proposition map, allowed for analysis and a collection of valuable insights, that later on were the core for feature conceptualisaition. Taking customers through every aspect of what we were doing, as a next step, increased overall user satisfaction, engagement and activity.

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