Project Overview
Pedders Suspension & Brakes began in 1950 by specialising in the servicing of shock absorbers. Today this Australian automotive powerhouse has expanded to developing, manufacturing, distributing and installing their own products from retail stores across over 120 locations, Australia-wide.
To support significant growth, Pedders recognised they required a technology platform which would meet escalating customer demands as well as provide greater insights and scale rapidly, as needed. Pedders is focused on customer service and empowering staff and franchise teams with the right solutions would increase efficiency and in-store experience.
Even though each franchise store, functions as a separate business, team members frequently share their experience and expertise and from a customer point of view – every Pedders store offers the same outstanding service – having one technology platform was key to supporting this.
Pedders were working with a mixture of paper based, manual processes which resulted in double handling of customer, vehicle information – including assessment records.
The Pronto Woven project focused on integrating front-end processes such as bookings with back office functionality ensures all staff work one integrated platform, rather than switching between multiple applications. This streamline operational processes with technicians for example able to record their observations and recommendations online as vehicle assessments are completed and that information being available to customers with accuracy & speed. This can include safety alerts. The impact of this change has been transformative for Pedders in terms of employee empowerment and thorough data which in turn has delivered increased customer experience.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Chris Stolke
Raymond Clifton-Dobing
Andrea Kift
Peter Hofmann
Stephen Lay
Pippen Peng
Project Brief
Pedders growth strategy is focused on increasing the number of franchises – and while they often have deep automotive expertise, the demands of running a business can be challenging. Providing potential franchisors with a ready to go and easy to use business management system provided a competitive edge in closing more deals.
The legacy systems at Pedders were a mixture of online and offline, very manual processes – especially those completed by service technicians during vehicle brakes, steering and suspension checks. This resulted in a lack of visibility, clarity and accessibility of their business status, inventory and customers globally.
While HQ needed data about the overall activity of all franchises, each franchisor required greater access to insights about their operations, customer history and inventory. Without the ability to gather and track customer transactions across contact points, appointments and franchises, it was difficult for Pedders to increase customer experience, with timely follow up and strengthen loyalty. It was also impossible to leverage data for new opportunities to generate leads.
Also Pedders deal with over 1000 car models every day, each involving hundreds of different parts from various manufacturers. Instant access to this information for all staff is vital when servicing the vehicle. Technicians needed to quickly add any new knowledge they may encounter in their everyday work –including critical safety warnings.
Pedders partnered with Pronto Woven to deliver a seamless and integrated software solution that enhanced the workflow for customers and staff – from booking an appointment to quoting the customer and receiving payment.
Project Innovation/Need
Pronto Woven identified the need for robust software that would combine key processes and systems used by the Pedders team on one platform Pronto Xi Avenue – and accessible via a simple interface, this includes:
• updated workflows to provide consistency in data with one source of truth which is Pronto Software’s ERP solution, Pronto Xi
• real-time inventory updates to ensure information gets to the right place at the right time
• the ability to input orders and customer information into the Pedders data base and accept payment
• shorter training times for staff with reduced documentation, making it easier for technicians to use and input the right data when completing vehicle checks. These notes are vital to share findings and knowledge with colleagues and customers.
• automatic integration with Part DB a Pedders application that stores and pulls vehicle product relationship data such as models and parts VIN.
• a central CRM to maintain historical customer information in one place for the entire company, including franchises
In summary, the project streamlined the business processes at Pedders across all areas of operations including appointments, vehicle assessment, inventory management, quoting and customer history.
A key complexity in achieving this outcome was the requirement for one company-wide data set to remain as the central source of truth – but to also exist as a unique record when the franchises needed it to be, such as when showing pricing and other competitive information.
User Experience
The main focus in designing the platform was understanding and mapping the day to day workflows of each key stakeholder (store manager, franchise owner and technician).
The design needed to continue supporting current workflows while where possible introduce efficiency improvements. This included creating a tablet-first design allowing the technicians to be completely mobile while completing vehicle checks.
The new digital platform on Pronto Xi Avenue, enables the following:
• online Booking which automatically sends a notification to the selected store
• calendar smarts to show availability of times for each technician and their work load to eliminate overlapped appointments
• employees can be trained to use the new tool in 10 minutes
• check in of vehicle via their customer’s name or number plate and ability to review servicing records
• creating an detailed checklist for the technicians when completing a suspension, brake and steering check. Technicians can easily record their prime concerns and any failed items
• comments section so technicians can record all their observations
• collection of evidence such as videos and images of the pre-state of the car
• view and add all related vehicle parts and price types (cost, RRP and customer price) to the estimate for the customer
• automatic quote regeneration for customer to review based on the previously created checklist.
• SMS messaging to communicate and notify customers of their estimates, car pick up times or are due a safety check.
• record all customer history and other stores are able to view this history without individual store’s prices and confidential info.
Project Marketing
The new technology has been successful in delivering key insights that increase customer experience and strengthen the relationship between Pedders and their customers .As a recently launched solution however, Pronto Xi Avenue for Pedders Suspension is still in the growth phase of its communication (marketing) plan.
The software has been rolled out across the business and training has been provided to the all Pedders owned stores across the country. The Pronto Xi Avenue Platform has enabled Pedders to better capture data to enhance customer communications including:
• creating a customer data base for the history of past vehicle and job assessments resulting in easier follow up interactions
• customer notifications via SMS of booking reminders, services and also detailed quote estimate breakdowns so customers gain a comprehensive view of their vehicle assessment.
• part IQ to show customers accurate representation of the relevant vehicle parts
Further tactics may include case studies, testimonials, direct marketing and communication efforts.
Project Privacy
Pronto Software is contractually obligated to observe the principles of the Australian Privacy Act including the Notifiable Data Breach (NDB) scheme and complies with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Our privacy procedures were followed in this project. In accordance with the terms and conditions listed in the scope of work, customer data and business information were kept strictly confidential. Our teams conducted regular testing and security protection checks to protect all data captured. Pronto undertakes ASAE3402 audits with a Type II audit report produced on an annual basis. We undertake annual penetration testing, conducted by a third party security specialist.
This provides independent assurance on Pronto Software’s controls as a service organisation. The audits are extensive and covers a broad range of application and information security controls to protect customer data. This includes policies and procedures, user awareness, access management, password security, multifactor authentication, physical access security, antivirus, firewall, encryption, vulnerability scanning, Intrusion Detection (IDS), Intrusion Prevention (IPS) and log Security Event Management (SEM), secure data destruction and third-party management. Pronto has also achieved the ISO 27001:2013 Certification in 2019.
We store data in centres located in Australia that are in SCEC (Security Construction and Equipment Committee) Zone 3 or higher, ISO 27001 (Information Security Management Systems), ISAE 3402 / SOC 2, and PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) certified.
Monitoring systems are in place that check our environments from networks, physical hardware, applications and virtualised platforms. Our systems are monitored 24/7/365 with automated alert notifications.
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