Interactive Project Management

Better, Smarter and Faster.

Visit Silicon Systems web siteWeb-based Interactive Project Management (IPM) systems, such as Flowmation by Silicon Systems, let clients interact with suppliers quickly and easily, from the office or from home. An IPM can combine Digital Asset Management and Remote Approval with Project Management in an innovative way, enabling unprecedented levels of professional interaction within and across organisations. When built from the ground up to be entirely web-based to J2EE specifications, such systems can provide scalability to enterprise levels.

First Impressions Count

The way you interact with your clients is central to how they perceive and value the service you are providing.

The day-to-day experience is crucial to maintaining relationships. Providing prospects with a quality experience is also key to winning new accounts and business too. If competitors are offering broadly similar services, having an edge in the way you deliver those services will bring the business your way.

An IPM gives you that edge. It lets you interact with your clients in a way they will really appreciate. Ultimately they will become so used to it they would not think of interacting in an inferior way.

Eliminate Chaotic Working

Most graphics organisations work on numerous simultaneous projects, each with different timeframes and pressures. Coordinating these projects can absorb an enormous amount of time, particularly when communicating to clients and colleagues what needs to be done and when.

The haphazard way of working with emails, sheets of paper, spreadsheets and other assorted mechanisms has had its day. As shorter timeframes and better quality are demanded from clients, delivering in a chaotic way is no longer acceptable.

IPM’s such as Flowmation let you control projects in a more structured and organised way. They give you an overview of each project and the status of each part of the project down to individual documents. You can embed workflows into your projects to help them progress in defined ways, always to a consistent high standard.

Speed Up Project Completion

Reducing the time to project completion is a true key to success.

Waiting periods are one of the main culprits for project deadlines being missed – particularly on large projects. Sometimes clients inadvertently hold up the process, perhaps because they do not fully understand the implications of delays that they introduce.

You can manage the wait times by setting alerts in the IPM to act as gentle - or not so gentle - reminders to your clients. You can even give your clients access to the system so they can see for themselves what is required, and they can then take action straight away.

Web based Flat Plan

Project documents can be viewable across the Internet in a Flat Plan so you can get an easy overview of a project’s status. In an instant you can see graphically how your project is progressing and what needs to be done to get completion.

Supports Multiple Formats

Systems such as Flowmation are also platform-independent and can be used in both Macintosh and Windows environments.

They should work with a wide range of file formats, including Quark, InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, jpegs, gifs, Microsoft Office and RAW. This means you do not have to save separate PDF documents alongside your native application documents.

Files entered into the appropriate folder on your server can be automatically recognised. Metadata, including thumbnails, are captured enabling immediate access from all parts of the system.

They should also work with leading SQL databases such as Microsoft SQL Server or MySQL. These provide cost-effective options for smaller companies and larger enterprises.

Speed of Email - but in control

IPM systems are as fast as email, but eliminate the frustration of lost messages. They simply let you share documents online with others working on the project. Your colleagues and co-workers will appreciate the organised way in which an IPM presents project information online.

Coordination

A single project can involve a range of professionals:

  • Authoring
  • Photography
  • Editorial
  • Ad sales
  • Agency
  • Graphic
  • Production
  • Prepress
  • Print
  • Client Service Representation

Interactive Project Management systems provide efficient coordination between these professionals by providing a central place for collaboration, organisation and communication.

Gather Info with Web Forms

You can create web forms to collect information from users in the project cycle. The type of information is totally customisable and the system can be set up so that different types of information can be gathered for different types of projects. For example, creative briefs and job orders can be entered into the system. All this information can then be shared among those working on the project. Creative, financial, print and fulfilment information can be kept in an easily accessible central area.

Efficient Permission System

Having proper control over a project is crucial so an IPM like Flowmation has a full permissions system that is easy to administer. Administration is through a secure web browser. Different permission levels can easily be created and once created applied to users. To make the system even easier you can let your client create users from within their own company. This has three advantages:

  • It lets them give colleagues immediate access to project information rather than waiting for you to do the administrative part of the process
  • It saves you time and effort
  • It gives your client a sense of ownership over the system

Easy to Use 24/7

Intuitive IPM interfaces should deliver a totally user-friendly experience. Such systems are web-based and require little, if any, training. If you can buy from Amazon you have enough web skills to use a solution like Flowmation. This is a key factor for guaranteeing your clients will be enthusiastic about using the system. As they’re web-based, users can access these systems whether they have Macs or PCs and whether they are at the office, the studio, at home or, increasingly, on the move.

Automate Repetitive Actions

IPMs let you automate parts of your project by creating workflows to perform sequences of actions. These actions are linked together and can be passed from one user to another. This incredibly powerful functionality is provided as standard. Start off with some simple workflows that automate repetitive parts of your production process and see how easily you can expand this to create longer more complex workflows.

Flexible Functionality

No two organisations are alike, so the way in which a project is taken from start to finish will vary enormously. IPM systems can work the way you want them to, not the other way around. They are comprehensive, working from a project’s conception and initiation right through to completion.