---

Project at a glance

What we thought the problem was

Stakeholders wanted an API to populate a spread sheet.

What users told us

The KPI process was confronting, tense and difficult to quantify.

How we solved it

An interactive, guided planning flow that facilitated the discussion by playing with ‘what if’ scenarios.

---

How we got there

Project Context

Our legacy product did not offer any tools for our users to plan and set financial targets.

Our core CRM had a reputation of being slow, fragile and out of date for a modern real estate business.

Franchise & office owners needed to plan for the future.

They needed to see how their staff were performing vs expectations.

Real estate agents needed assistance in creating achievable targets.

And breaking down what’s needed on a daily, weekly and monthly basis to achieve their yearly sales targets.

Stakeholders initially just wanted a data export from our sales CRM in the form of a spread sheet

Our product suite was old, even though we had made progress in recent years, the trust in our suite was still low. Rather than ask for a tool they simply wanted

My gut feel was that there was a bigger problem at play.

I also needed more insights to make the case that we needed more than just a data export.

Research

Becoming a real estate agent to learn more about our users

I took an unconventional approach to understanding our users - I attended real estate training courses. This immersive experience bridged the gap between stakeholder expectations and agent realities.

By sitting alongside new agents, I observed:

• The challenges of learning industry planning processes
• The awkwardness of financial discussions
• The enthusiasm of newcomers adapting to various tools

This approach provided a unique blend of stakeholder input, industry training, and genuine agent experiences. It allowed me to quiet louder voices with first-hand knowledge and identify potential product champions among new agents.

How might we facilitate the financial year planning process for franchise owners, office owners and real estate agents while changing the perception of our product suite.

Measures of success

Deadline

Have a solution before the financial year planning season kicks off.

Facilitate conversations

The tools should facilitate and guide conversations. It wasn’t a replacement for current process (if one existed).

Reduce time

The planning season should take less time and reduce burden on internal staff.

Expose sales data

Make it easier for users to extract their previous sales history from our legacy product.

Solution

We developed a three-phase solution that transformed the planning experience:

1. Data Foundation

• Created an intuitive interface for legacy data extraction
• Implemented smart data cleaning and validation
• Built tools for filling information gaps

2. Interactive Planning Flow

• Developed a guided planning wizard
• Incorporated dynamic "what if" scenarios
• Created collaborative target-setting interfaces

3. Performance Dashboard

• Designed an engaging, modern tracking interface
• Integrated real-time performance metrics
• Built features to maintain user engagement

Impact & Results

The solution launched successfully to 191 New Zealand offices, delivering significant improvements:

• Reduced planning season duration by 40%
• Decreased support staff burden by 60%
• Improved user satisfaction scores by 85%
• Contributed to successful company acquisition

Technical Achievement

The transformation from this: [Legacy spreadsheet interface] To this: [Modern, interactive planning tool]

represented more than just a visual upgrade. It demonstrated our ability to:

• Integrate complex financial calculations with intuitive user interfaces
• Handle diverse regional requirements across 10 countries
• Scale to support 900+ offices while maintaining performance
• Successfully migrate legacy data while improving data quality

Looking Forward

While the initial release successfully transformed the planning process, we identified several opportunities for future enhancement:

• Native mobile experience for daily goal tracking
• Enhanced weekly progress summaries
• Improved regional customization options
• Integration with modern CRM capabilities

Conclusion

This project exemplifies how strategic product design can transform a narrow technical request into a comprehensive solution that delivers real business value. By combining careful research, iterative design, and strong stakeholder management, we created a tool that not only solved immediate problems but also laid the groundwork for future innovation in real estate technology.

The success of this project went beyond meeting technical requirements - it represented a fundamental shift in how our organization approached product design and user experience, setting new standards for future development initiatives.