Behind the scenes at Tall

Simply put, the delivery team are the people who make sure all tasks are completed on time and that the project runs as smoothly as possible.  We’re the unsung heroes behind our talented creative and client services teams.  I use the words “unsung heroes” because by virtue of us doing our job things are done according to the plan/timeline stated at the beginning of a project.

Who are the members of the well-oiled machine known as the delivery team I hear you ask?

• Jack – Senior project manager
• Irena – Studio manager
• Dan – Head of operations

Below we’ve given a little insight into the things we do to ensure everything runs smoothly.

What systems do you put in place to ensure things run smoothly at Tall? (Jack)

At Tall, before a project even starts we make sure it’s fully set up in our Synergist system. We use Synergist in order to manage the commercial aspect of a project. We then utilise a software called ClickUp to manage the on-going progress of a job and update internal parties. Both of these systems ensure that a project is fully planned out and monitored from start to finish, making sure we are on time and not going over budget. You may even call us the ‘timesheet police’ to make sure people are always keeping their timesheets up to date.

How do you work together effectively as a delivery team? (Irena)

Our Delivery team is still quite young (not age-wise mind you) but individually we bring heaps of experience to the table, as each of us has different specialisms.

We have a great understanding of what we need to cover on a daily basis and successfully marry it all together at the end of the day, to have the best outcome for our clients. Through our regular project meetings, we can identify any obstacles and help each other overcome them so nothing slips or escalates.

I also think having the squeakiest shoes in the agency makes everyone aware of my ever-presence, and they know that I’ll always come around to ask 1001 questions to make sure we have absolutely everything prepped and ready for our projects.

What do you think makes a successful delivery team? (Dan)

Sticking to the process, clear communication and attempting to predict the future.  OK, the latter might be a little far-fetched but it’s something we do try to do nonetheless.

Sticking to the process – We spend so much time learning from past projects and perfecting our processes to make things as smooth as possible from kick-off to deployment.  One thing the delivery team has to be mindful of is not being too process heavy and making things too robotic as it can hamper productivity.

Clear communication – Being such a central part of the business, the delivery team are the go-between from the creative and development teams to client services and ultimately our clients.  Although not all members of the delivery team are involved in all projects, it’s important that all of us loosely know the goings on so we can step in when needed.  It’s our responsibility to communicate all progress and obstacles to the relevant people as soon as possible which in some cases can mean reassigning resources internally and externally.

Predicting the future – One of if not the most important aspects of being a member of the delivery team is keeping things on track to make sure we hit all of the deadlines we have in place.  This often requires us to summon our inner Mystic Meg to foresee any issues that may come up along the way.  Thankfully this comes with experience and communication across all team members and only requires us to prod and poke the right people to smooth things out should something crop up.

This blog post isn’t actually what it started out to be. Jack and Irena completed their answers to the above before I did, so when I came to writing my own, I realised something that made me smile. We were all saying the same thing.  With that in mind, we decided to answer one of the questions each to create a team response.  The fact that all three of us were saying the same thing independently gave me a profound sense of confidence for a team that is already performing at an extremely high level.

We are a delivery team that is continuing to grow with a few new faces joining over the past year or so. Having said that, we very much have the effort, results and strive for excellence of a team that’s been working together for years.