Startup Operations & Client Services

B2B electronic payment startup

Situation

The Client was a consortium of private investors and a major bank. Their goal was to develop a B2B electronic payment processing business through the Internet, which would facilitate accounts payable and receivable processing and reconciliation, in an information-rich and bank neutral environment. This client was a start-up with whom LoBue worked from the blueprint stage to product launch.

The objective of our engagement was to design and implement the functionality, staffing, and processes and procedures necessary to effectively launch and deliver the product. LoBue built this from scratch based on the proposed functionality and ensured that specifications from other project participants (systems, website design and security firms) were captured in the Operations and Customer Service Center environments.

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Recommendations

Recommendations began with the analysis and development of a business model, then included the specifics of website functionality, and ended with the intricate design and implementation of front, middle and back end tasks and activities.
All development focused on creating an Operations and Service Center that fully supported the functionality of the website and the customers. The business model mandated user ease; which required delicate balancing of risk management with a robust product.
Recommended the necessity for and trained an in-house Program Director to oversee rollout.
Created customer and staff user manuals and instructions on enrollment, website navigation, implementation and payment processing. These on-line manuals supported operating procedures that were designed for customer support, risk management, enrollment and activation, transaction processing and account maintenance. Error events and routine transaction handling procedures were crafted.
Created complex capacity modeling tools and job descriptions to support hiring needs for a rapidly changing environment. Predictive transaction volume forecasting tools that supported the staffing models were essential in an environment where possible future alliances could quadruple volumes.

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Results

LoBue's project management expertise was instrumental in taking this client from vision to launch. During the engagement, LoBue coordinated implementation of a robust operational center that supported employees and clients.
During staged releases, LoBue supported design, testing and refinement of the website and procedures to ensure full scope functionality, effectively operating as another client team member on many critical path elements.
LoBue's involvement preceded the implementation of the Operations and Service Center, so as new management and staff joined the client, LoBue conducted training on operational functions, which expedited the assimilation of new hires into a very rapidly growing organization.
"Best in Market" was both the goal and result, from product and website design through operational simplicity.

The first business-to-business network for secure, information-rich, bank-neutral, internet-based payment transactions was successfully launched.

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