Meet Mark from Plan Co.
When I was first introduced to Mark, he’d recently returned from a holiday with his family. During what was supposed to be a well-earned break, on day he spent so much time taking care of emails that he got through 108 of them. That’s not much of a break from work. I knew then that I could really help Mark with his email management, and free up his time so he can take a genuine break from work and also give him time back time on a daily basis.
Here’s what Mark had to say about outsourcing to That Girl Tuesday.
Please share the story that led you to outsourcing
We are a small but busy team of planners working in the resource and subdivision consent environment. Much of our time is occupied by liaising with clients, councils, external specialists and undertaking review work, report writing and responding to application and customer queries. We’re constantly looking at ways to do this more efficiently and effectively, thereby giving us time to focus on our clients, critical issues and more proactive with our communications. We were introduced to the idea of outsourcing some of the non-planning tasks as an option/opportunity to help achieve and drive these efficiencies and improvements.
Initially, what were your hesitations and why did you choose me?
Outsourcing was something we had heard about, but with planning being a very technical and specialised industry it was difficult to see how bringing someone into the business without this specialist background or knowledge would work well. After meeting with Tuesday to get an understanding of how she worked, and getting to see how passionate she was to help people and digest new knowledge and ways of working, I could quickly see numerous opportunities and potential improvements through working with Tuesday.
What specific benefits have you received from my services?
Tuesday undertakes a couple of roles for us: one being management of my email inbox, and the other is assisting us with liaison and communication with councils and specialists. The benefits of this have been the creation of time for me and the team. In turn, the team have been able to focus on the planning work more, and provide better and more timely advice. For me, rather than worrying about how many emails I will come out of a meeting to, and what issues need to be resolved, I have peace of mind that this is being taken care of and I am left to deal with the essential matters. In turn this has meant I have been more present in meetings and with clients, which has been well received and valued by our customers as well.
Who would you recommend my services to and why?
Absolutely, I have been so impressed by Tuesday’s enthusiasm and ability to learn our processes and pick up technical planning matters so quickly. She is always asking what more she can do and this makes her feel like part of the team. One of Tuesday’s roles with us is following up on outstanding specialist inputs and obtaining progress updates from councils for our clients. This is usually a fairly time-consuming exercise, however now that this is undertaken by Tuesday the whole team have more time and are feeling more relaxed and focused. The biggest example of this from last week was when I was leaving the office and one of our staff said, “I love Tuesday”. My initial reaction was, ‘that’s an odd day of the week to like’, but they quickly followed up by adding, “not having to chase people gives me one less thing to think about and I’m really enjoying it”. It was then I realised she was talking about Tuesday and her support for the team, not the day of the week!
Meet Al from Monkeytronics
When I first met Al, I could instantly sense his passion for what he does and I saw that he needed more time throughout the week to be able to focus on designing and creating his incredible products. Monkeytronics is on a mission to develop products that will help solve challenging social and environmental issues by using simple, high-quality technology. Al has developed and engineered temperature, humidity and CO2 sensors that tell you if your house is unhealthy and potentially dangerous to you and your family.
Here’s what Al has to say about outsourcing to That Girl Tuesday
Please share the story that led you to outsourcing.
Before finding Tuesday, I was working long weeks, long hours and struggling to keep on top of the crazy volume of tasks in my to do list. I had completely lost sight of the things that I started the business to do - the stuff that I'm good at and that I love doing. I'm not a naturally organised person, so I was genuinely struggling and really needed help.
Initially, what were your hesitations and why did you choose me?
I didn't really hesitate. You just seemed to have an enthusiasm and can do attitude that I really value!
What specific benefits have you received from my service?
Tuesday has swept in and accepted every challenge - from helping put together product brochures to reaching out to customers. She is efficient, personable, and quick to pick things up and pays very close attention to detail. I'm free to get back doing the fun stuff: designing electronics products and blowing things up - 100% safe in the knowledge that Tuesday has the rest in hand.
Who would you recommend my services to and why?
I would recommend Tuesday to any small business owner who is struggling to manage their workload. Tuesday is very efficient and has no fear of getting stuck in.