Building a CRM platform from scratch

Taking scattered spreadsheets and inboxes to one cloud CRM that ran 20,000+ enquiries and 100,000+ user journeys across B2B clients.

Context

Reach And Teach delivered custom software to 60+ B2B clients. Most of them ran sales and admissions on scattered spreadsheets, inboxes and phone notes. Enquiries got lost, follow-ups depended on who remembered, and nobody could see the pipeline.

What I did

Workflow first, tool second. Before any configuration I sat with the people doing the work. Over 1,200 hours of discovery went into mapping how each team actually handled an enquiry from first contact to enrolment.
0-to-1 delivery. Owned the cloud CRM from scoping to rollout, including the automated communication engine that replaced manual follow-ups.
Integrations that kept data moving. Connected the CRM to Facebook and Instagram lead forms, Stripe, Razorpay, WooCommerce and client ERP systems, so sales, marketing and operations worked from one record.
Scrum at squad scale. Ran delivery with 15-person cross-functional squads, with clear acceptance criteria before anything entered a sprint.
Commercial fit. Worked directly with client stakeholders on which features justified their cost, tying product milestones to commercial goals.

Outcome

Operational efficiency up 185%. The platform handled 20,000+ active enquiries and 100,000+ unique user journeys, and the enhancements contributed $100K in net-new annual SaaS revenue.

What I learnt

Most CRM projects fail before they start, because nobody agreed on how the business actually works. The system ends up looking right and working wrong. Fix the workflow first and the system design becomes obvious.