Strensall Merchants / BG-Demo – QBR
Callcompleted
Strensall Merchants · 29 Aug 2025 10:30
Group Finance Director Fiona Metcalfe says she will not renew Enterprise without a usage case for the board. Active users are in the high twenties against 160 licences. Delivery source is live and billing matches.
What was said
What this says
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026Group Finance Director Fiona Metcalfe says she will not renew Enterprise without a usage case for the board. Active users are in the high twenties against 160 licences. Delivery source is live and billing matches.
What happened: Daniel Okafor ran the 29 Aug 2025 quarterly review. Ashok Patel has switched on the delivery system source after a one-branch test, and it loads cleanly each night.
Customer view: Neil Craven is positive, citing a housebuilder query answered from one page. Fiona confirmed nothing is overdue or disputed, but said unused licence is a hard conversation for her.
Commercial: Lewis Kerr stated the contract runs to 27 Feb 2026, with the renewal date on BG-Demo's side 28 Feb 2026, at £114k a year. He will hold the written proposal until Daniel's usage review is done.
Watch: Fiona wants pounds, not time saved, and the evidence does not show a value figure yet. Account totals differ from the ledger on a few credit note accounts, which Ashok thinks is timing but has not proved.
Themes
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026Theme
Usage case before renewal
Importance
renewal
Sentiment
mixed
Voice
decision-maker
Who was there
BG-Demo
CRMmade from
Them
CRMmade from
Follow-up
Next steps
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Daniel Okafor to check the ledger match from Ashok Patel's example accounts and report back.
- Daniel to send a review-time measurement template to the credit team by the middle of the following week and set up the sponsor session.
- Lewis Kerr to hold the renewal proposal until Daniel's usage review is done.
Risks
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Most of the Enterprise licence is unused and the Group Finance Director will not renew without a usage case she can explain to the board.
- Account totals differ from the ledger on a few credit note accounts, which could undermine trust in B-Viz among finance.
- No pound value for B-Viz has been shown yet, only faster account reviews.
Opportunities
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Rolling B-Viz out to branch managers, with roles limited to their own accounts, would raise active users against the licence.
- The executive sponsor session and a dashboards trial for the key account team are included but not yet used.
Transcript
Daniel OkaforHello, can everyone hear me alright? Good morning. Thank you all for your time, I know Fridays are a scramble. Let me just check who has joined. I can see Neil and Ashok, and Lewis is here from our side.
Neil CravenMorning Daniel. Aye, we can hear you fine. Fiona's just coming in, she's had a call run over.
Fiona MetcalfeSorry, I'm here. Good morning, all. Before we start, what decision is needed from me today?- Daniel OkaforGood morning, Fiona, and no decision at all today, honestly. This is the quarterly review. I'd like to walk through how the team is finding B-Viz, how usage has moved, the tickets, and then agree a couple of things we do between now and the renewal. Just to close the loop on where we are, really.
- Fiona MetcalfeGood. Then I'll listen, and I'll ask for the usage case as we go. I won't be agreeing anything on price on this call.
Lewis KerrUnderstood, and I wouldn't ask you to, Fiona. I'm only here to listen and pick up anything commercial that comes out of it. I'll keep it short.- Daniel OkaforLovely. Ashok, you usually start with what you've changed since last time. Would you like to go first?
Ashok PatelYes, happy to. Since we last spoke I switched on the delivery system source. I tested it on one branch first, left it a week, compared it against the ledger and the delivery notes, and then rolled it out to the rest. It's loading cleanly every night now.- Daniel OkaforThat's great to hear. And was the one branch test useful, or did it just go through?
- Ashok PatelIt was useful. A few account numbers had a different format in that system, so the same trade account showed up twice. I fixed the mapping before it touched anything else. Which account number is that, is always my first question, and now the answer's the same in every source.
- Neil CravenThat's the bit that matters to me, that. One builder, one account, whichever branch they walk into.
- Daniel OkaforYes, and that was the whole idea when you joined us in February. Neil, how has it been for the branch side? How is the team finding it?
- Neil CravenBetter than I hoped, if I'm honest. I'll tell you what happened this morning. One of our big housebuilder accounts rang me before nine, wanting to know why a delivery had been held. Old me would have rung three people. I asked B-Viz, and it showed me the order, the delivery note, the call from their site manager and where the account stood with credit, all on one page.
- Fiona MetcalfeWhich account, Neil? And what's our exposure on it?
- Neil CravenI'll not say the name on a recorded call, Fiona, I'll message you. But that's the point. You and I were looking at the same screen, and credit and sales agreed in about five minutes. Used to take a day.
- Fiona MetcalfeFine. That's worth something. I'd still like it in pounds eventually, but go on.
- Daniel OkaforUnderstood, and I'll come back to the value in a moment, Fiona, because I've pulled some figures together. Let me share my screen. Can you see the usage page?
- Ashok PatelYes, I see it. A bit small. Could you zoom in?
- Daniel OkaforOf course. Is that better?
- Ashok PatelBetter, thanks.
- Daniel OkaforSo, the headline. You're licensed for 160 users on Enterprise, and the number of people actually active in a typical month is in the high twenties on average. That's up noticeably on the previous quarter, so the direction is right. It's still a small share of the licence, and I'd rather say that plainly than dress it up.
- Fiona MetcalfeThank you. That is the thing I was going to ask. So most of the licence is unused.
- Daniel OkaforMost of it, yes, for now. The seats were sized for the wider rollout across the branches, and we're still early in that. I'd see it as headroom rather than a problem, but I understand why you'd want to see it move.
- Neil CravenTo be fair, we haven't put it in front of the branch managers yet. That's been the plan, but we wanted the delivery data in first so they weren't looking at half a picture.
- Ashok PatelThat's right. With the delivery source now live, I'd say we're ready. Before we do, I'd want to check how the permissions look for branch managers, so they only see their own accounts and the shared trade accounts.
- Daniel OkaforWe can do that with the roles you've already got. I can sit with you on it. Shall we say a working session in the next couple of weeks?
- Ashok PatelYes, please. I'll send you the list of branch roles beforehand.
- Daniel OkaforPerfect, I'll note that. Now, questions asked. This is the measure I trust most. It's up on the last quarter again, and it's spread across the key account team, credit control and a handful of branch people. Not one person asking everything, which is healthy.
- Fiona MetcalfeWho in credit control is using it?
- Daniel OkaforI can see it's a small group, a few people on the credit team, and they mostly ask about account history and recent calls before they review a limit. I won't name them here, but I can send you the breakdown by team.
- Fiona MetcalfePlease do. And to be clear, they look. They don't set limits from it. Limits stay with credit, not with sales.
- Neil CravenAye, that's understood, Fiona. Nobody's touching limits. We just want to see the same facts.
- Fiona MetcalfeGood. Carry on, Daniel.
- Daniel OkaforNext, the records. Indexed records are climbing steadily, and that's mostly the new delivery source. Nothing has gone flat, so there's no sign of a connector quietly failing. Ashok, you'd tell me if one had, I know, but it's good to see it on the chart too.
- Ashok PatelI would, and I check it most mornings. The nightly refresh has been finishing before the start of the working day. The data says it's been steady.
- Daniel OkaforYes, and that's the freshness commitment under your Enterprise terms, so it's good to confirm it's being met. On tickets, you've raised two in the last month. One was a how-to question, and one was marked high priority.
- Ashok PatelThat was mine. A load stopped halfway after a change on our side. I marked it high because it was the morning of a credit review.
- Daniel OkaforAnd that was picked up inside the Enterprise response time, as I recall. It's closed, and the data caught up the same day. Was it handled to your satisfaction, Ashok?
- Ashok PatelYes. Quick response, and the engineer explained what had happened rather than just restarting it. I'd rather have that.
- Daniel OkaforGood, I'll pass that on to the support team. They don't always hear the nice bits.
- Lewis KerrIf I can add something, Daniel. Fiona, just so it's on the table, your contract runs to 27 Feb 2026, and the renewal date on our side is 28 Feb 2026. I'm not here to negotiate it today. I'd just like you to know when we'll come to you and what we'll bring.
- Fiona MetcalfeGo on.
- Lewis KerrDaniel will give you a usage review ahead of the renewal conversation, and the usual notice comes from us well before the end. I'll then send over a written proposal, with the VAT position stated clearly, so you can take it to the board. At the moment you're contracted at £113,500 a year, and our invoices match that, so there's nothing to reconcile on the billing side.
- Fiona MetcalfeI can confirm that from our ledger. Nothing overdue, nothing disputed. That's one thing off my list.
- Fiona MetcalfeBut I'll say this now so nobody is surprised. We'll look at it at renewal. I won't renew without a usage case I can explain to the board. Licence unused is a hard conversation for me.
- Lewis KerrThat's entirely fair, and I wouldn't push anything the usage doesn't support. If the numbers don't justify a change, I'll say so. To put a number on it, the proposal will be built on what the team has actually used, not on what was planned.
- Daniel OkaforAnd that's the reason for the rollout to the branch managers. If we get them in over the next few months, then by the time we meet for the renewal you'll have a clear picture, either way.
- Neil CravenLet's sort it, not talk about it. Ashok, can we pick a couple of branches to start with? Ones that are keen.
- Ashok PatelYes. I'll test the roles on one branch first, as ever, then widen it. I'd suggest two keen branches and one that's more sceptical, so we hear honest feedback.
- Neil CravenHa. Fair. I'll find you a sceptical one. I've got plenty.
- Daniel OkaforThat would be perfect. We could run a short training session for them too, nothing heavy, how to ask a good question and how to read the account page. Would the key account team want to join as well?
- Neil CravenThey'd bite your hand off. They're the ones who use it most already.
- Fiona MetcalfeDaniel, one question. In pounds, if you can. What's the single clearest example so far of B-Viz saving us money, or protecting it?
- Daniel OkaforI don't want to invent a pound figure for you, Fiona, because I'd be guessing and you'd spot it. What I can say is what the credit team told me: they review an account faster because the calls, orders and payments are together. If you and Neil would be happy for us to measure it, say time to review an account before and after, we could put a proper value case together before the renewal.
- Fiona MetcalfeTime is not pounds. But it's a start. If credit can tell me how many reviews they do and how long each one takes, I can price it myself.
- Neil CravenI'll ask the credit team lead to jot it down for a few weeks. Nothing fancy.
- Daniel OkaforThat would be wonderful, thank you. I'll draft a simple template so it's not a burden on them, and I'll come back to you by the middle of next week.
- Ashok PatelCan I raise one technical thing while we're here?
- Daniel OkaforOf course.
- Ashok PatelReports. The finance team asked whether the account totals in B-Viz will match the ledger exactly. At the moment they match for trade accounts, but there's a small difference on a few accounts with credit notes. I don't want to overstate it. I think it's timing, but I haven't proved it.
- Fiona MetcalfeThat I do care about. If it doesn't match the ledger, nobody will trust it.
- Daniel OkaforAgreed, and it's a fair thing to check. Ashok, if you send me two or three example accounts with the figures from both sides, I'll sit down with our engineers and we'll find out whether it's timing or mapping. I'll come back to you on that rather than guess.
- Ashok PatelI'll send them today, with screenshots.
- Fiona MetcalfeCopy me, please. Briefly.
- Ashok PatelWill do. One line, Fiona, I promise.
- Lewis KerrDaniel, can I check one thing on our side? Is there anything in the contract the team hasn't yet used that we should flag, so it doesn't go to waste before the renewal?
- Daniel OkaforGood question, Lewis. The executive sponsor arrangement is one. Fiona, you and Neil haven't had a proper session with our sponsor yet, and it's included. It might be the right place to talk about the value case and where you want this to go next year.
- Fiona MetcalfeI'd take that. Not a long one. Half an hour, with a clear agenda.
- Daniel OkaforI'll arrange it with an agenda sent beforehand. I'll come back to you with some dates.
- Neil CravenCan I ask something, Daniel? Honest question. Is there anything we're not using that other customers find handy?
- Daniel OkaforA few teams build dashboards from the questions they ask most often, so the answer is waiting for them each morning. You haven't gone that way yet. With the key account team asking so much, it might suit them. But I'd test it with them before I recommend it.
- Neil CravenRight. Aye. I'll float it with them.
- Lewis KerrNothing to add from me beyond that. I'll send over a note today with the key dates, and I'll keep the renewal proposal until Daniel's usage review is done.
- Daniel OkaforLet me just recap, so we all leave with the same list. Ashok sends me the example accounts today, and I come back on the ledger match. Ashok and I do the branch manager roles session in the next couple of weeks. Neil finds two keen branches and one sceptical one. Neil also asks the credit team lead to note review times, and I'll send the template by the middle of next week. I'll set up the sponsor session for Fiona and Neil. Lewis keeps the renewal proposal until the usage review is done. Have I missed anything?
- Ashok PatelThat's everything I have.
- Fiona MetcalfeThat's fine. Thank you, Daniel. Clear and honest, which I appreciate.
- Neil CravenGood call, that. Cheers, all. Right, I've a builder to ring back.
- Daniel OkaforThank you everyone, really. Have a lovely weekend, and I'll be in touch by the middle of next week. Best wishes, Daniel.
- Lewis KerrThank you all. Kind regards, Lewis.
- Ashok PatelBye for now.
- Fiona MetcalfeGoodbye.
- Daniel OkaforSorry, the recording was still running. Ending it now.
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