Architectural practice Western Design, based near Blandford in Dorset, had won a large number of design awards, particularly for their creativity while respecting local context and environment. The growth of their practice was increasingly putting pressure on their practice procedures, and it became clear that they needed a professional management software system that reflected their standing and would support future expansion.
During their initial evaluation of available systems, Western Design had approached another architectural practice in the region which had unhesitatingly recommended Noveos NPM software. The subsequent implementation at Western Design transformed practice management, and NPM has become key to both internal operations and outward-facing business practices.
What it says on the tin…
Director Matthew Witt spoke about the benefits initially advertised by Noveos
“The Noveos website says that ‘businesses will see benefits to the bottom line […] within months’ and it really happened like that. Cash flow has improved and credit control has sharpened up as, on the one hand, we can now get 50-70 invoices out in 3 days - not a week-and-a-half as previously - and on the other, we can easily track and take action on overdue payments”.
Not just internal systems
One of the objectives in adopting Noveos NPM was to test if decision-making and fee setting could be better informed. Matthew again:
“Building project history in stage detail, which NPM easily lets you do, has allowed us to forecast project profitability and set fee limits with much more confidence, as we draw on history of similar work to support bids”.
Looking to the future
The continued success and expansion of Western Design has meant that they have steadily extended their use of NPM. Matthew Witt makes some final comments on both NPM software and the Noveos company:
“Our use of NPM has expanded as we have taken up more features that Noveos, with their knowledge of professional practice management, have developed and introduced. While that does lead to increased complexity, it’s very manageable, and we really do get the benefit. Pretty well everything in our practice management processes now depends on NPM”.
“That said, you can happily run with a simpler set up if you wish, either initially or long term. The people at Noveos can help you think about this - we’ve been impressed with the level of business practice knowledge and technical support from the start”.