"We had bought software twice for a problem that turned out to be a pick list in the wrong order. Clearline spent two weeks watching us work before they suggested anything. Late deliveries went from 18% to 3% and I have my Saturdays back."
Kestrel quote turnaround
Sixty staff, a full order book, and a quoting process that ran through one person's inbox. We took it out of the inbox.
What was going wrong
Every enquiry at Kestrel went to the commercial director, who priced it himself between other jobs. Nine days was the average turnaround and three weeks was not unusual. Nobody could tell which quotes had been won, so nobody knew the price was wrong until a year of margin had gone.
What we changed
We wrote the pricing rules down — material, setup, run rate, a margin band per customer type — and put them in one shared sheet two other people were trained on. Quotes over £25,000 still go to the director. Every quote is logged won or lost with a reason, and the log is read out loud on a Tuesday.
Where it landed
Turnaround is two days. The win rate went from 22% to 34% in the first quarter, and the Tuesday log showed which customer type had been underpriced for two years. That correction alone was worth more than the programme.
What clients say
"They wrote down the pricing rules we had been carrying in one person’s head, trained two others on them, and left. Quotes now go back in two days instead of nine, and we can see which ones we lose."
"Our rota was rebuilt every morning by whoever answered the phone first. It now goes out a fortnight ahead with named cover. Overtime fell from £31,000 a quarter to £9,000 and our carers stay."
"I expected a deck. What I got was three routines written on one page each, owned by people who are not me, and a number on the wall for each of them. The week is quieter and the business is not."