What was said
What this says
Current to 10 Oct 26Imogen Hartley closed out a refresh ticket caused by a helpdesk field change, then said eleven active users out of forty is not good enough. She needs to show Douglas growing usage before the spring renewal.
What happened: Only Imogen and Daniel Okafor attended, as Douglas was at a trustee meeting. The ticket was a broken mapping after a helpdesk field change, fixed the same day, and Imogen asked to hear about such changes in advance.
Customer view: Usage is flat at around eleven active people on an average day against forty licensed users. Those who use the brain swear by it, while newer managers default to the helpdesk and call notes.
Commercial: Douglas will ask about value at the spring renewal, and Imogen wants to show growth, not steady use. Daniel will bring a questions-asked comparison to the next check-in.
Watch: Flat usage on Growth with unused seats weakens the value case unless the late November session lands.
Themes
Current to 9 Oct 26Who was there
BB-Demo
Them
Follow-up
Next steps
Current to 9 Oct 26- Daniel Okafor to send Imogen a note on how helpdesk changes should be communicated by the end of next week.
- Daniel Okafor to propose times for the late November practical session by the middle of next week.
- Daniel Okafor to bring the questions-asked comparison to the next check-in.
Risks
Current to 9 Oct 26- Active use is flat at about eleven of forty licensed Growth users, which weakens the value case at the spring renewal.
- Customer system changes can break a connector mapping without BB-Demo being told, leaving the brain on stale data.
Opportunities
Current to 9 Oct 26- A practical session on the customer's own schemes with about six non-users could widen adoption.
- A month-on-month questions-asked comparison could give Douglas a concrete value case.
Transcript
- Daniel Okafor NoneImogen, good morning. Thank you for making the time. I think it's just the two of us today, so shall we give it a minute in case anyone else drifts in?
- Imogen Hartley NoneMorning, Daniel. No, I think it's just us. Douglas has a trustee meeting running over, so he sends his apologies. Can you hear me all right? My headset's been temperamental this week.
- Daniel Okafor NoneClear as anything. How's the week been? I saw it's turned properly autumnal up in Edinburgh.
- Imogen Hartley NoneOh, grey and damp, as ever. But it's fine, the schemes don't care about the weather. We've got a fair bit on with the scheme valuations, so everyone's slightly frazzled, if I'm honest.
- Daniel Okafor NoneThat sounds about right for this time of year. Well, I'll keep this tidy. I wanted to close the loop on the one ticket from last month, have a look at how the team is using the brain, and hear what you'd like us to focus on before the end of the year. Does that work?
- Imogen Hartley NoneThat works. Start with the ticket, because that one did annoy people for a day or so.
- Daniel Okafor NoneOf course. As I understand it, the member-query tickets stopped refreshing one morning, so the relationship managers were looking at yesterday's picture. Is that how it landed for you?
- Imogen Hartley NoneYes, exactly. Two of the managers noticed before I did, which tells you something good about how much they rely on it. They had a trustee call and the numbers didn't match what they'd seen in the helpdesk, so they flagged it.
- Daniel Okafor NoneThat's the best kind of noticing, in a way, even if I wish it hadn't happened. It was a change to a field on the helpdesk side, which broke the mapping. Our engineers fixed it that same day and the refresh was back to normal the next morning. How is the team finding it since?
- Imogen Hartley NoneFine since. No repeats. I think the real question is whether we can hear about changes like that before they bite us, rather than after. We do change things on our side without always thinking about the brain.
- Daniel Okafor NoneThat's fair, and it's a good point. I'll come back to you by the end of next week with a short note on how we'd like to be told about helpdesk changes, and what we can do on our side to catch a broken mapping sooner. Would a named person on your side be useful?
- Imogen Hartley NoneProbably me, for now. Mm. Or one of the admins, but I'd rather it came to me so it doesn't fall between chairs.
- Daniel Okafor NoneUnderstood, you. I'll write it that way. Shall we look at usage?
- Imogen Hartley NonePlease. I've got a feeling it's about flat.
- Daniel Okafor NoneIt is, give or take. Around eleven people active on an average day over the last month, which is almost exactly where it was last quarter. A very small dip, really nothing to read into. You're on Growth with forty licensed users, so there's plenty of headroom.
- Imogen Hartley NoneRight. And that's the thing I wanted to talk about, actually. Eleven out of forty is not a number I'm proud of. We bought forty seats because we thought every scheme-relationship manager would be in there, and they're not. It's the same core group.
- Daniel Okafor NoneMm. Do you know who's missing? Is it a particular team, or more a habit thing?
- Imogen Hartley NoneIt's habit, mostly. The newer managers still go to the helpdesk first and the call notes second. They don't think of asking the brain. The ones who do ask it swear by it. One of them told me last week she'd never prepare for a trustee call any other way.
- Daniel Okafor NoneThat's lovely to hear, and I'd love to pass it on to the team. So the product's working for the people who use it, and it's a question of getting the rest in the room. Have I got that right?
- Imogen Hartley NoneThat's exactly it. And I've seen this work elsewhere, when someone sits with a new starter for half an hour and shows them one real question on one real scheme. It sticks after that.
- Daniel Okafor NoneThen let's do that. I can run a short practical session, on your own schemes, for whoever you'd like to bring. Nothing formal, just real questions. Would November suit, or is that too close to the valuations?
- Imogen Hartley NoneLate November would be better. Once the valuations are out of the door. I'll pick the people. Maybe six or so, the ones who've never really got going.
- Daniel Okafor NonePerfect. I'll hold a slot and send you a couple of proposed times by the middle of next week. Is there anything else on your list while I have you?
- Imogen Hartley NoneOne thing. Douglas will ask me about the renewal at some point, it's in the spring, and he'll want to know the value. I'd like to be able to show him that the usage is growing, not just steady.
- Daniel Okafor NoneQuite right, and it's still a good while off. If the session lands well, we can look at the questions being asked month on month, which is the best single measure of value. I'll bring that to the next check-in so you have something solid to show him.
- Imogen Hartley NoneLovely. Let's make it count. I don't want us coasting into the renewal.
- Daniel Okafor NoneNor do I. So, just to close the loop: a note from me on helpdesk changes next week, times for the practical session by the middle of next week, and the questions-asked comparison at the next check-in. Anything I've missed?
- Imogen Hartley NoneNo, that's everything. Thanks, Daniel. Always a straightforward conversation with you.
- Daniel Okafor NoneThat's kind. Thank you for your time. Best wishes to you and the team, and good luck with the valuations.
- Imogen Hartley NoneCheers. Speak soon. Best, Imogen.