One working session, 33 ways to cut an owner's admin

The client

A licensed building and maintenance business serving domestic, commercial and industrial clients across the Hunter and Central Coast, with a small core team and more than 50 subcontractors.

The challenge

The owner's day was spent clicking buttons and making phone calls. Every work order, quote request, reminder and invoice was handled by hand, and quote requests to subcontractors were going out about a week after site visits. The owner's goal was simple: reduce his day-to-day input.

The approach

Measure before automating. An admin tally sheet came first, followed by a half-day Process Audit Workshop on site, where sample tasks were timed as they really happen so improvements can be judged on evidence, not guesswork.

The solution

The workshop produced a shared register of 33 improvement opportunities, and a follow-up time check is now capturing how often each task happens and how long it takes.

During the session we also built an AI-assisted asset register tool that pulled serial numbers, models, photos and service dates into one place. Written guides followed for job queues, email and SMS templates and connecting the business's systems.

The results

The owner has one register of where his hours go and a working asset register prototype that found details he could not find by hand. Measured time savings will be added as each improvement goes live.