Unified Business Dashboard Through Multi-Platform Integration

A growing UK retailer struggled with fragmented systems and manual data management:

• Disconnected Platforms: Using separate systems for e-commerce, CRM, and quoting with no unified visibility
• Manual Data Compilation: Operations manager spending 10+ hours weekly copying data between systems
• Delayed Business Insights: Decisions based on week-old data due to manual reporting lag
• Human Error: Manual data entry causing inventory mismatches and missed customer follow-ups
• No Real-Time Visibility: Unable to see current sales, pipeline status, or quotes in single view
• Reporting Bottleneck: Executive requests for ad-hoc reports requiring hours of manual work
• Scaling Limitations: Manual process couldn't support 40% year-over-year growth trajectory

Budget-conscious automated business intelligence solution:

• Centralized Dashboard: Single unified view of all business data from multiple platforms
• Real-Time Updates: Automatic data synchronization with zero manual intervention
• Custom Analytics: Capability to create reports and visualizations from unified data
• Familiar Platform: Preference for spreadsheet-based solution team already knows
• No-Code Approach: Non-technical team must maintain and modify independently
• Cost-Effective: Budget-conscious solution avoiding expensive enterprise BI tools
• Quick Implementation: Operational within 4 weeks to support quarterly planning

The project required creative integration of three distinct platforms with different data structures, update frequencies, and field naming conventions. Each platform had its own authentication requirements and rate limits. The main challenge was linking records across systems—matching customers between platforms, handling duplicates, and standardizing values. Additionally, the solution needed to remain maintainable by non-technical staff within budget constraints.

Designed and implemented comprehensive integration ecosystem over 4 weeks:

Week 1: Requirements & Data Architecture

• Documented all required data points from each platform
• Created unified data schema design
• Identified customer email as common identifier for record linking
• Designed structure with separate tabs for orders, CRM deals, quotes, unified customers, and analytics dashboard

Week 2: Integration Workflows

• Configured automated workflows connecting all three platforms
• Set up e-commerce triggers for new orders, status updates, customers, inventory changes, and refunds
• Implemented CRM triggers for new deals, stage changes, wins, and activities
• Created quote system triggers for creation, sending, and acceptance events
• Established data mapping between platform-specific fields and standardized columns
• Added automatic customer record linking based on email addresses

Week 3: Analytics & Calculations

• Built formulas for daily, weekly, and monthly revenue summaries
• Created calculations for quote conversion rates and average order values
• Implemented customer lifetime value tracking
• Developed sales pipeline velocity metrics
• Added inventory turnover rate calculations
• Created pivot tables for multi-dimensional analysis
• Built charts and graphs for visual analytics
• Implemented conditional formatting for alerts on low stock and overdue quotes

Week 4: Dashboard & Training

• Created dashboard with key metrics and visualizations showing today's revenue versus target, pipeline value by stage, top products, quote conversion funnel, and customer acquisition trends
• Tested all integrations with live production data
• Refined data mappings based on edge cases discovered during testing
• Trained operations team on reading dashboard, creating custom reports, making basic modifications, and troubleshooting common issues
• Documented all workflows, data mappings, and maintenance procedures