Dan Fitzgerald MRICS,
Director at Core Project Services

As soon as we say that we have this software, it's how we manage the project for you and we show them a sample dashboard report and they just think bloody hell these guys really know. And to be fair, I did have a call with a landlord client the other day and told them that they were sort of like, really? And I was like, yeah, and I'll show them the software.

 

Sometimes I get it out when I meet clients. How it works. So I think it's been really positive. In terms of the feedback, sometimes it's hard to see how that translates to direct results but overall, ESTA has helped us to improve our client’s perception of our service.

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Dan Milligan: Why do you think clients like it?

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Daniel Fitzgerald: The ESTA dashboards provide readable summaries. My approach is to publish a new dashboard every two weeks that collects the minutes from four twice-weekly meetings, an updated risk register, and any new payments. I will also include any variations. I think of the dashboard as an overarching update. For clients reporting to oversight boards, especially overseas boards, it allows them to forward a snapshot of the project at an appropriate frequency.

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Dan Milligan: What’s been the impact on you in your role as a director?

 

Daniel Fitzgerald: One thing that's great about it is, it actually becomes a hub for all your projects. Right? Yeah, you know, and I can see where other projects are. First up, yeah, there's a management aspect there like I sent you earlier, you know, Mel's gonna have two jobs coming online, I can see if she's doing a payment. So that's an a minutes.

 

Dan Milligan: Does it give you better visibility into your operations?

 

Daniel Fitzgerald: It gives us consistency between layers that we're doing, we're issuing the same documents and working in the same process for each project. I know, every smart person tends to work differently. But it creates a sort of benchmark and has given us a more consistent approach to reporting. 

 

Dan Milligan: You were relying on Excel and Word before ESTA, what’s the transition been like?

 

Daniel Fitzgerald: The transition has been fun. There were a few teething issues, but the information we now provide to our clients is more comprehensive and has more context. I appreciate your team’s regular calls and suggestions; I also liked that you took our feedback constructively and made improvements to ESTA.

 

Dan Milligan:  We develop software for the general market but we felt that many of your suggestions would be appreciated by other firms.  From a pounds and pence return on investment, what have you observed as you’ve implemented ESTA?  

 

Daniel Fitzgerald:  I think we're seeing a return already in the first three months. We have started to include some new capabilities it enables in our pitch documents and have won some big jobs. Now we have completed projects of similar size in the past but ESTA has helped.

 

Dan Milligan: One last question, what does ESTA allow you to do that more traditional document processes cannot?

 

Daniel Fitzgerald: Access all information in one source. I can access all of my jobs, payments, and certificates very easily. Earlier I would have to click through a bunch of folders. The portfolio dashboard gives me a good overview with much less work than before. And we can drill down easily when you have questions in a review meeting.. We use it as a resource tracker as well. 

 

Dan Milligan: Thanks very much for your time, I really appreciate going through that with you.​​​​