Building a Project Management System for a Board Game Manufacturer

JatApp developed a project management tracking system to help our client synchronize business processes and communicate project statuses to stakeholders.

Background story

As manufacturing involves a number of processes including design, production, marketing and distribution, producers require tools to effectively manage these processes. A project management application that allows for viewing progress across projects, monitoring deadlines, identifying projects at risk, sharing project statuses, and more, could help streamline the production process. Such a system was exactly what our client requested.

JatApp was hired to develop a centralized project management solution that covers all phases (concept, resource planning, production, and more) within the client’s production business and ensures their effortless management.

About the client

Our client is a Netherlands-based board game manufacturer with a production facility in China. The company needed a tool for effective communication with stakeholders and for tracking project statuses.

They turned to JatApp to build a project management system that serves the specific needs of their manufacturing business.

Challenge

Before reaching out to JatApp, our client used Excel spreadsheets to control their business processes. Because spreadsheets are not suitable for collaborative activities and prone to human error, the client started looking for a more efficient solution. Ready-made systems didn’t match the particular needs of the company, and so the client decided to develop a custom project management system.

When the board game manufacturer approached JatApp, they already had design mockups ready. Our task was to develop a project management application and ensure its stable and efficient performance. The client also wanted the system to seamlessly integrate with the software used by their vendors to get information related to the project activities, so we had to communicate with third-party developers to successfully implement the system’s integration.

It took us three months to develop an MVP. During the next year, our team iteratively worked on adding new functionality and maintaining the product.

Solution

Discovery phase

JatApp’s team conducted a business analysis to better understand the client’s needs and identify solutions to meet them. We developed technical specifications to document features we need to implement and built a roadmap with specific timeframes.
Integration with third-party software

Since our client collaborates with vendors, JatApp had to integrate the system with the third-party software to get data on project statuses. We communicated with developers from the vendors’ side to get API documentation that would enable interaction between our system and a third-party one.
Scrum sprints

During the project development, we followed Agile principles and worked in Scrum sprints. We broke the project into small pieces, planned objectives for a sprint, and iteratively worked to achieve sprint goals.
Web development

JatApp developed project management software where various types of users have access to different functions. For example, there’s a super administrator who sets up the whole system, and a project manager who controls the process, adds project milestones, deadlines, and assigns executives. Other user types include a brand manager, a planner and a vendor. A brand manager can create questionnaires to pick names for products. A planner is responsible for time tracking and staff workload and makes sure there is no downtime. Finally, a vendor has limited access to the system. They can see the current status of their part of the project and adjust deadlines.

Technologies Used

PHP
Laravel
Redis
Saas
Vue JS
MySQL

Results

Project status tracking

Our engineers built a system that allows all stakeholders to monitor project statuses. As everyone within a team is involved in project implementation, the manufacturing process becomes faster and more trouble-free.
Deadline management

The solution we developed enables stakeholders to seamlessly deal with deadlines. Project managers can plan and organize work process within limited time frames, while planners can keep track of deadlines, and ensure they are met. Third-party vendors can adjust deadlines for their activities.
Name selection tool

JatApp implemented a name selection tool to let brand managers pick the most suitable names for their products. Here’s how it works: a brand manager creates questionnaires, while all other users (except for vendors) can participate and offer name variants. Based on the survey results, the company finds the most suitable name for their new products.
Synchronization with third-party software

We successfully integrated the project management app with the vendors’ software. The system gets relevant data on the project's status from third-party software and makes it available to team members. This way the team can keep track of the project implementation.