Etam: how to manage all projects for a cashier environment with Kanbanchi and succeed
Surprisingly, there isn’t a specific corporate project management tool used across Etam, but this is a good thing. Every department is free to pick the perfect solution that best suits their current needs. Here’s the story of Serge Fraguas, project manager in a cashier environment there.
Etam: needs no introduction
Etam is a famous French retail brand that has been operating in Europe for 100 years. They have around 1300 of their own stores and also have partners in more than 36 countries.
Serge Fraguas has worked here for the last 10 years. Now he is a project manager dealing with projects regarding the cashier environment, having built up his career inside one of the best retailers in France.
“I started doing phone support for the stores and I ended up doing cash register projects” – Serge
Serge works in a team, which is the IT team that deal with all different aspects of the stores. Their main focus is on intranet and applications, while his role covers the cashier side of things. The IT team carries out a variety of tasks and Serge has a particular role to play. He feels like part of the team of course, because there are things that are connected to everyone, but also there’s a lot of work he has to do alone regarding the cashier environment.
Tools that suit needs
At the time of writing, Etam doesn’t have a company level tool for managing projects. This is simply because they still haven’t chosen a single tool that suites everyone. Everybody does it their own way, so people use email and Google applications generally. It also depends on the culture of every team. For example, the team of developers use Slack a lot.
“Three years ago Etam went Google”, – says Serge Fraguas – “and at that time I was lost with Google sheets and notes. I needed one tool that could organise everything. I think Kanbanchi is great for us, because of its integration with Google Drive.
At first I really wanted a simple Kanban board and because at that time the company went Google I was looking for something in their catalogue. At first I tried Trello, because our managers decided to use it. I didn’t like the appearance, but I liked the system. So I was looking for something more pretty looking and connected to Google. That’s how I’ve found Kanbanchi. Connection to Google was a priority, but the interface was also a win of course”.
The free version is good, but it feels better with the whole package
Kanbanchi fits perfectly in the workflow. The free version might even be enough for some people, but it feels better with the full range of awesome features that Kanbanchi has. For example, the Gantt chart helps and is very useful to have.
“I think I’m the only one using the paid version so far, others are just using the free version. And I’m trying to convert as many people as possible to Kanbanchi, but some people are not so technical and they are afraid to use something like Kanbanchi” – Serge
Serge relies heavily on Kanbanchi for managing his projects. He shares his boards when necessary, depending on the project, because sometimes other people are involved. People upload documents and leave their comments regarding projects, and it helps to collaborate. And of course everybody loves switching backgrounds)))) as it’s a fun part of the project setup when you get to choose a cool picture.
Understanding the global picture helps to succeed
Once you have a centralised place for everything in your projects it’s so easy to work and manage everything smoothly. But it’s more about the overall nature of the projects – people do things that are reflected on boards and they can see the whole picture. The project doesn’t happen in Kanbanchi – the work has to be done elsewhere – but Kanbanchi is a great tool for giving a global vision and a summary of what’s going on.
“It’s not because you are using Kanbanchi you will succeed, but not using Kanbanchi makes it harder” – Serge
If you are struggling with a mammoth pile of tasks and projects and don’t want to lose the global picture then try Kanbanchi. It helps.