Solutions

Every solution is one agent with one job.

There are six jobs we take on. We start with the one that costs you most, and we find out which one that is by sitting with the people who do it.

Allward is entering its first pilots. The documents on this page are illustrations of how each agent is designed to work. The orders, people and figures in them are invented.

Pick a handoff.

This is one job's path through a business, from the first request to the last payment. Each number sits where work passes from one person, document or system to the next. Each is a job we take on.

Fig. 1 · One job's path through a business, and the six places we take responsibility. Your path will differ. The handoffs won't.

Quoting

Request → Quote

The problem, as an owner would put it

“A request comes in and sits for three days because the one person who can quote it is out on the floor. When it does go out, half of it was copied from an old job, and nobody checked which half.”

Draft · not sentQuote Q-2306

Illustration

Line	Draft	Where it came from
Customer	Account C-118, general contractor	Request email, Thu 8:14
Item	Sectional door, 12 ft × 10 ft, quantity 2	Request email
Panel	2 in insulated steel	Job 4302, same customer, March
Windows	None	Drawing A-2, attached to the request
Finish	White, standard	Job 4302. The request doesn't say. Confirm with the customer.
Hardware	Standard lift, 2 in track	Job 4302
Lead time	Left for M. Tran	The agent doesn't promise dates
Price	Left for M. Tran	The agent doesn't set prices

Prepared by the quoting agent, Thu 12 Nov, 8:31. Waiting for M. Tran.

Fig. 2 · A draft assembled from the request and the closest past job, with the source beside each line. An illustration: the request, the jobs and the people are invented.

What the agent does

It is designed to start when a request for a quote lands in the sales inbox. It reads the email and the drawings, looks up the customer, and finds the closest past jobs in your system and your quote folder. It builds the draft in your own quote layout, line by line, and notes where each line came from. If the request is missing something a quote needs, it prepares a question for the customer's contact. Then it tells the estimator the draft is ready.

What stays with you

The price, the lead time, and the decision to send. Questions to the customer wait for a named person's approval. An estimator can also direct the agent in plain words: “Prepare a quote using the last similar job.”

What you receive

A draft quote with its sources. A short list of what the agent could not find. A weekly report of requests received, drafts prepared, and how long each one waited for a person.

Next along the lineOrder intake

Order intake

Quote → Order → Engineering

The problem, as an owner would put it

“The order gets keyed from the quote by hand. Something is left blank or typed differently, engineering finds it two days later, and then three people are on the phone working out what the customer agreed to.”

AgreedQuote Q-2291

Size16 ft × 8 ft

WindowsOne row, clear

FinishCharcoal powder coat

KeyedOrder 4417

Size16 ft × 8 ft

WindowsOne row, clear

FinishBlank

Doesn't match. Held back at 8:03.

To M. Tran · 8:03

Order 4417 has no finish. Quote Q-2291 says charcoal powder coat. Which is right? The order is held until you answer.

Answered 9:41 · charcoal

Fig. 3 · The quote and the order, read line by line, and the question the gap produced. An illustration: the order, the people and the times are invented.

What the agent does

It is designed to start each time an order is keyed. It reads the order against the quote the customer agreed to, and against what engineering needs to begin. When a field is blank or different, it holds the order back, writes to the person who can answer, and waits. When the answer comes, the order is corrected, the change is recorded, and the agent prepares the worksheet for engineering.

What stays with you

The answer to every question it raises, and the release to the floor. In this illustration M. Tran supplies the finish and D. Okafor approves the order at 10:15. The agent found the gap. It did not guess the answer. Anyone can ask it afterwards: “Why was order 4417 held?”

What you receive

A record for every order, showing what was read, what was held back and who answered. A held list in the console, oldest question first. A weekly report of orders checked, orders held, and the reason for each.

Next along the linePurchasing paperwork

Purchasing paperwork

Purchase order → Receiving → Supplier's invoice

The problem, as an owner would put it

“We pay for things we received short, because nobody has an afternoon to line up the purchase order, the packing slip and the invoice.”

Three-way matchSupplier invoice 60418

Illustration

Item	OrderedPO 7731	ReceivedPacking slip	BilledInvoice	Reading
Bracket, stainless	200	200	200	Matches
Track, 16 ft	24	24	24	Matches
Torsion spring	48	40	48	Doesn't match. Billed for 8 that were not received.

Needs you. Held back from payment. A note to the supplier is prepared and waiting for purchasing.

Fig. 4 · Three documents on one slip, and the line where they disagree. An illustration: the supplier, the parts and the quantities are invented.

What the agent does

It is designed to start when a delivery is received or a supplier's invoice arrives. It finds the purchase order in your system, the packing slip from receiving and the invoice from the accounts inbox, and compares the three line by line. Where they agree, the invoice goes forward for payment approval. Where they don't, it tells purchasing which document is out and by how much, and prepares a note to the supplier.

It also takes instructions. “Order another 200 stainless steel brackets from our usual supplier” gets the supplier found, the purchasing history pulled and a purchase order prepared for approval.

What stays with you

Approving payment, sending anything to a supplier, and deciding what to do about a short shipment. Every purchase order the agent prepares waits for a named person.

What you receive

A match slip for each invoice. A list of the ones that are out. A weekly report of invoices matched, invoices held back, and what was wrong with each.

Next along the lineScheduling

Scheduling

Receiving → Schedule → Shipment

The problem, as an owner would put it

“We tell a customer the 20th. Then material comes in late, another job jumps the queue, and the first time anyone notices is when the customer calls on the 21st.”

What the agent does

It is designed to run every morning, and again whenever the schedule or a receiving record changes. It reads the dates customers were promised, the production schedule as it stands, and the material on hand and on order. For each promise that won't hold, it tells the scheduler which order, by how many days and what is in the way, and prepares a message to the customer. It answers questions too: “Check whether we have enough materials for next week's production.”

Mon 16 Nov, 7:00Promised dates against the schedule

Illustration

4398Promised Wed 18
Holds. Finishes Tue 17.
4403Promised Fri 20
Won't hold. Finishes Tue 24, two working days late. 8 torsion springs short on PO 7731.
4409Promised Mon 23
Holds. Finishes Fri 20.
4412Promised Wed 25
Won't hold. Finishes Fri 27, two working days late. The powder coat line is booked through Wed 25.
4417Promised Fri 27
Holds. Finishes Thu 26.

Fig. 5 · Five open orders on a Monday morning. Two will miss their dates, and there are still days to act. An illustration: the orders and dates are invented.

What stays with you

The schedule. The agent does not move jobs. A person decides whether to change the sequence, chase the material or call the customer with a new date, and a person sends that message.

What you receive

A list each morning of the promised dates that won't hold, with the reason beside each. A weekly report of dates kept, dates changed, and how much notice each customer was given.

Next along the lineWarranty claims

Warranty claims

Shipment → Claim

The problem, as an owner would put it

“A claim comes in by phone or email, and the first week goes on finding the order, the build sheet and whoever remembers the job. The customer waits while we look for paper.”

W-0147

Claim file · opened Mon 9 Nov, 9:12Bottom seal, order 4163

Illustration

Account C-088 reports that the bottom seal has come away on the left side of a 14 ft × 7 ft sectional door, delivered in March.

Quoted: Q-2057, 28 January
Ordered: 4163, 6 February
Built: 3 to 5 March
Delivered: 14 March
Claimed: 9 November

DecisionLeft for the service managerRepair · replace · credit · decline

In this file

1The claim as receivedEmail, Mon 9 NovIn the file
2Order 4163 and quote Q-2057From the order systemIn the file
3Build recordBuilt 3 to 5 March, final check signedIn the file
4Shipping recordDelivered 14 March, signed forIn the file
5Warranty terms as quotedFrom quote Q-2057In the file
6Photographs3 received from the customer, Tue 10 NovIn the file
7Installation dateNot on record. Customer asked Tue 10 Nov.Waiting

Fig. 6 · One claim, with the order and the build record pulled together and the gap named. An illustration: the claim, the order and the dates are invented.

What the agent does

It is designed to start when a claim arrives by email, or when whoever took the call logs it. It opens a claim and finds the original order and quote, the build record, the shipping record and the warranty terms that applied. It asks the customer for what is missing, such as photographs or the installation date. Then it puts one complete file in front of the person who decides, and tells them it is ready.

What stays with you

The decision to repair, replace, credit or decline. So does anything said to the customer about fault or cost. Requests to the customer wait for a named person's approval.

What you receive

One file per claim, with everything attached and the gaps named. A list of open claims by age. A weekly report of claims opened, files completed, and claims waiting for a decision.

Next along the lineReceivables follow-up

Receivables follow‑up

Invoice → Payment

The problem, as an owner would put it

“Collections happen when someone has a slow afternoon, so they don't happen. The accounts that are ninety days out are the ones nobody wrote to at thirty.”

Thu 12 Nov, 7:30Overdue invoices and the next step

Illustration

Account	Invoice	Days over	Amount	Next step
C-131	INV-1041	6	$2,140	Reminder prepared. Waiting for approval.
C-118	INV-1019	34	$8,600	Second follow-up prepared. Waiting for approval.
C-097	INV-0988	47	$12,350	Customer replied Tue 10 Nov and promised payment by the 20th. Nothing to send.
C-140	INV-0962	63	$5,900	Call needed. Two follow-ups sent, no reply.
C-075	INV-0951	71	$18,200	Call needed. The customer disputes the invoice.

Reconciled. Four payments received this week, each matched to its invoice.

Fig. 7 · The aging list as the controller finds it in the morning. An illustration: the accounts and amounts are invented.

Prepared · not sentIllustration

To: Accounts payable, account C-118
Re: Invoice INV-1019, due 9 October

Hello. Invoice INV-1019 for $8,600 was due on 9 October and our records show it as open. We wrote on 26 October and have not heard back. Could you tell us when to expect payment, or let us know if something is holding it up? A copy of the invoice is attached.

SendWaits for R. Bianchi, controller

Fig. 8 · One of the follow-ups on the list, ready for a person to read, change or send.

What the agent does

It is designed to run every morning against the open invoices in your accounting system. It notices each invoice as it goes overdue and prepares the follow-up that fits, with the invoice attached and the earlier messages in view. It reads the replies and records promises to pay. It names the accounts where another email is the wrong move and a person should pick up the phone. It can also be told: “Follow up with customers whose invoices are more than 30 days overdue.”

What stays with you

Who is written to, and what the message says. At the start every follow-up waits for a named person. Phone calls, payment terms, disputes and write-offs stay with your controller.

What you receive

An aging list each morning with the next step beside every account. The prepared follow-ups, ready to approve. A weekly report of what was sent, what was promised and what came in.

Back to the start of the lineQuoting

Beyond manufacturing

The same six handoffs run through other trades.

We are starting with custom manufacturers in the Greater Toronto Area. That is where our first pilots are.

Distributors, contractors and repair businesses pass work across the same six seams under different names. They are where we intend to go next. We are not working in them yet, and the right-hand columns below are our reading of those trades, to be tested the same way.

Each of the six jobs and its equivalent in four kinds of business
The job	NowCustom manufacturing	NextDistribution	NextContractors	NextRepair businesses
Quoting	A request for quote, answered from the drawings and past jobs.	A request for pricing, answered from the price list and the customer's terms.	Site visit notes, turned into an estimate from past jobs of the same kind.	The customer's description of the fault, turned into an estimate from past repairs.
Order intake	The keyed order against the quote, before engineering starts.	The customer's purchase order against the quote, before it is picked.	The sold job against the work order the crew is handed.	The approved estimate against the work order on the bench.
Purchasing paperwork	Purchase order, packing slip and supplier's invoice.	The same three documents, in far greater number.	Material ordered to a job, delivered to site and billed.	Parts ordered, parts received and the supplier's bill.
Scheduling	The promised ship date against the production schedule and material.	The promised delivery date against stock and inbound shipments.	The promised start date against the crew calendar and deliveries.	The promised pickup time against the bay schedule and parts on order.
Warranty claims	The claim, with the order and the build record.	The return, with the original order and the supplier's terms.	The callback, with the finished job and what was installed.	The comeback, with the first work order and the parts fitted.
Receivables follow‑up	Invoices on terms, followed up on time.	The same, across many more accounts.	Progress invoices and the amounts held back until completion.	Invoices to customers who pay on account.

Show us the one that costs you most.

An hour at your place. Bring the handoff that keeps getting dropped and the documents on either side of it. We'll tell you plainly whether we can take it on.

Have us in How an engagement runs