Here’s a bit more detail from behind the scenes.
After working on about a dozen internal Marriott applications, one of our Marriott clients (it’s a big company so we had many different clients from different divisions) came to us and asked about a solution for their Openings process. Their team had been using a scheduling application, but several key features were missing which would make their process much more efficient.
We listened to and noted what parts of the process were time-consuming and then explored the product they were using to see what improvements could be made. We created an outline of what the client said would be an ideal application for their needs and reviewed it with them.
Internally, we hashed out everything, including the budget, and determined that building a SAAS application would make the most sense.
Why SAAS when we had typically built enterprise applications?
Prior to engaging with us, the client had done extensive research to find an existing solution but couldn’t find anything available in the marketplace. Our research also did not turn up a suitable option. That’s a strong indication of an opportunity to solve a problem for more than one company.
With a SAAS application we could reduce costs to the client up-front and help them keep within their budget. Plus, we could offer the solution to any other client needing help with their Opening process.
A win-win.
After doing some sketches and basic wireframes, we created a functional prototype and presented it to the client. The response was overwhelmingly positive, so we put a team together and built Usher.