Wasps Rugby

Wasps recognised that their current system and processes were no longer as effective as they could be and reached out to Pragmatiq to provide a more suitable and tailored solution. The Premier-League rugby club required a platform that was designed around their corporate salespeople’s roles. The requirements included full visibility of their pipeline from initial contact to sale, streamlining the product selection process and removal of excessive coding & customisations from their current system to improve stability and enable them to take their platform to the next level.

Before engaging with Pragmatiq, Wasps faced challenges around their current processes and the complexities of the systems they had in place. Firstly, the over-customised functionality within the previous system meant that carrying out crucial software updates and changes was a challenge, as any of the elements could easily break, and would be difficult to decipher which part had caused the issue.

As the sales team has continued to grow, the rigid structure of the sales process within the previous system no longer reflected the way that Wasps conducted business. This resulted in users having to perform additional steps when nurturing an opportunity or closing a deal, in order to effectively input information into the system. In turn, the process was longer than it needed to be, and having a system that accurately reflected the way in which business was conducted, would save time and increase conversion rates. This also prevented management from getting a true representation of the total sales activities across the team and being able to report accurately on trends and forecasts.

User engagement was affected due to the impractical functionality within the old system and meant that employees found themselves working outside of the CRM. Spreadsheets were used to store information prior to a deal being closed, as the lead functionality was not built within the system. This meant that only completed deals were tracked and any valuable information from the start of the process was lost. Finally, Wasps did not have mobile access to their CRM data, meaning that information could not be captured on the go. This was one of the goals to be achieved alongside:

1. Improve overall operational & process efficiency
2. Improve the speed of access to key information
3. Streamline the product selection process

To achieve the main goals for Wasps we implemented the latest version of Microsoft Dynamics 365, including the Unified Interface. We stripped out the old customisations and replaced this with standard functionality within the system, such as Leads & Opportunities, meaning that the system was futureproofed and could be updated safely without risk of elements breaking. Also, adding the lead entity enabled the salespeople to capture information from the very start of the process, instead of waiting until the deal has closed. This improved the salespeople’s experience of the system as the process was mapped to the realistic way they conduct business, eliminating the need to go through extra unnecessary steps, or store data in separate spreadsheets.

In order to effectively design the system, it was crucial to understand the hospitality element of the Wasps corporate business and how they sell products (tickets, boxes, lounges, etc). We then developed the system to match this and through the Unified Interface, enhanced and streamlined the product selection process.

Following that, we introduced the mobile app as part of the Unified Interface upgrade, allowing Wasps to capture information on the go and not wait until back in the office to input new data – this was crucial for the salespeople who often attend events. Alongside this, we implemented an Outlook integration within Dynamics 365, so emails would automatically sync within the system. Both of these developments aimed to increase productivity and save time, as users were duplicating efforts in these areas previously.

In addition, we rearchitected the existing booking process to link with Wasps’ booking system. When a booking is confirmed, records are then created within Dynamics 365, allowing the operations team to effectively plan and make necessary arrangements. Finally, we implemented Power BI, transforming the previous cumbersome and time-consuming reporting process. We created dashboards to give visibility into leads, opportunities, bookings, and Wasps’ other main revenue pillars. This enabled management to report on key information against projected forecasts and make more informed strategic decisions. Salespeople also gained enhanced insight into their current opportunities and pipelines, providing the entire business with increased visibility of data.

Through the implementation of our proposed solution, the following benefits were realised:

• Improved visibility & access to information – All sales data is now in the system meaning managers and salespeople have a full view of the end-to-end process. Using this data, combined with Power BI, managers can make more strategic decisions, identify trends and forecast effectively. Previously, a lot of data was held in spreadsheets or not tracked at all, making reporting a challenge; this is now much more efficient as data is consolidated in one central application.
• Enhanced user experience – We re-engineered the sales process within the system to better reflect the true way in which Wasps conduct business. This allowed salespeople to access data more easily and progress through the stages of a sale quicker, as they are not hindered by restrictive functionality. This has also created a better user experience for employees and eliminated the need to work outside the system.
• Time saved – By implementing standard functionality within Dynamics 365 to replace clunky customisations that were in the previous system, information can be input more quickly and time is saved when adding opportunities. Previously, when adding opportunities into the system, it would take the team approximately 7 minutes to input each individual one. As a result of the tailored process Pragmatiq implemented, this process now takes 2- 3 minutes per opportunity.
• Streamlined product selection process – The way in which products were selected in the previous system was time-consuming and over complicated. We rearchitected that process and by leveraging features within the Unified Interface, this process is much simpler and faster, which is crucial when assisting in the completion of a sale.
• Future-proof system – By replacing the custom code sitting in the old system with standard functionality, the current solution provides a more stable platform to build on in the future, as the business grows and requirements change.