ZOHO ONE IMPLEMENTATION
The Company
The Problem Statement
Despite its strong sector expertise and growing client base, the Vehicle Coverage Underwriting Company was being held back by operational inefficiencies rooted in outdated and disconnected systems.
A central element of the business infrastructure was a long-standing legacy system that, while essential to daily operations, was rigid and difficult to customise. Replacing it outright was not feasible due to its specialised insurance processes and complex functionality, but supplementing it became critical as key limitations began to affect business agility and decision-making.
The most pressing concern was the inaccessibility of real-time, decision-ready data. The team frequently found themselves reacting late or without confidence due to challenges in preparing reports or accessing complete operational views.
This challenge was compounded by several key issues:
- Time-Consuming Data Preparation
- Data extracted from the legacy system was difficult to work with—requiring hours or even days of manual cleaning and structuring before it could be used. The process created long lead times for routine reports and made on-demand analysis nearly impossible.
- Disconnected Systems and Data Silos
- The business relied on multiple standalone systems for reporting, client support, and communication—none of which were integrated. This fragmented landscape resulted in duplication of effort, inconsistent records, and inefficiencies across the team.
- Lack of Real-Time Operational Visibility
- Leadership had limited access to current, consolidated metrics, which hindered proactive decision-making. By the time reports were assembled, the underlying data was often stale, reducing its strategic value.
- Limited Client Notification Capabilities
- The legacy system offered basic notification features, restricting the company’s ability to communicate effectively with clients. This impacted service delivery, especially for time-sensitive updates.
Evaluation of the Problem
Before designing the implementation roadmap, the Both& team facilitated a collaborative workshop with key stakeholders from the company. This session allowed us to map the full business context, uncover underlying inefficiencies, and identify the key touchpoints where systems, data, and decision-making intersected.
Rather than attempting a full system migration, it became clear that the most effective path forward was to complement the existing legacy infrastructure with Zoho's modern, integrated tools—addressing pain points without disrupting essential operations.
A central insight from this process was that the challenge was not a lack of data, but a lack of accessibility. Business-critical information existed across various platforms but required a defined pipeline to transform raw data into reliable, real-time insights. Additionally, the team needed operational systems that could reduce duplication, unify workflows, and improve the consistency of service delivery.
From this evaluation, a strategic direction was shaped: to implement a unified, integrated solution—Zoho One—that could enhance agility, improve data readiness, and enable more responsive client engagement, while continuing to run in parallel with the legacy system to maintain business continuity.
Guided by our internal Success Methodology, we developed a transition strategy to support the team in replacing disconnected peripheral applications with purpose-built Zoho tools. This would allow them to streamline key functions—such as reporting, client support, and communication—without disrupting their core legacy platform.
These processes culminated in the development of a detailed project plan, which was discussed with the Vehicle Coverage Underwriting Company to ensure their alignment before proceeding with the implementation.
The Solution
To enable faster, more accurate reporting, we proposed building structured data pipelines in Zoho DataPrep to extract key data from the legacy system and other relevant sources. Within DataPrep, the data would be cleaned, transformed, and enriched, before being passed into Zoho Analytics for final transformations and then visualisation through dynamic dashboards and automated reports.
This approach would remove the need for manual data preparation, allowing leadership to access real-time, actionable insights across areas such as broker performance, claims processing, and support trends. The team would be trained to extend and adapt these dashboards, enabling ongoing analysis without reliance on external development.
Zoho Analytics and DataPrep would enable the team to work with their legacy system bypassing the limitation of not being able to directly integrate—extracting the necessary data and transforming it into strategic insight.
Zoho Desk Configuration
Claims, quotes, and broker support were previously managed through a combination of Freshdesk and email, leading to fragmented service tracking and limited visibility. To resolve this, we proposed consolidating all support operations into Zoho Desk—a centralised platform offering customisable workflows, SLA management, and real-time reporting.
The migration would include all historic ticket data from Freshdesk to ensure service continuity. Zoho Desk would be configured to align with team structure and service model, giving them a clear view of support performance and the flexibility to adapt processes as needed.
Both&'s Success team guided the team through setup and adoption, with hands-on training designed to empower them to manage and evolve the platform independently—ensuring long-term ownership and continuous improvement.
Zoho CRM Configuration
To centralise and streamline customer and broker management, we proposed implementing Zoho CRM configured specifically for the workflows of the commercial passenger transport insurance sector. Rather than integrating directly with the legacy system, client and broker data would be extracted and processed via Zoho DataPrep, ensuring CRM records remain current and accurate without disrupting existing infrastructure.
The CRM would support core business processes, including new business onboarding, renewal management, and broker relationship tracking. By integrating with SMS and telephony systems, the platform would enable automated notifications and improve communication efficiency. Additionally, Zoho Sign would be connected to the CRM to allow for secure, digital document signing for key broker documentation.
This configuration would provide the team with a single, comprehensive view of broker and client profiles, enabling more consistent communication and informed decision-making. With its flexible structure, Zoho CRM would also serve as a scalable foundation for future business growth.
Zoho Campaigns & Zoho Survey Configuration
To enhance engagement with brokers and industry partners, we proposed implementing Zoho Campaigns and Zoho Surveys. These tools would enable the team to send branded updates and announcements, conduct surveys, and collect structured feedback.
Survey can be embedded into campaigns for seamless response capture, while campaign templates can be customised to reflect the brand’s tone and operational cadence. These lightweight, easy-to-manage tools would address a key communication gap while keeping all engagement activities within the same integrated suite.
To ensure long-term adoption and internal ownership of the new systems, we proposed a structured success management approach. This would include role-based training content delivered ahead of rollout, customised documentation aligned with the Vehicle Coverage Underwriting Company's use cases, and live Q&A sessions to support practical understanding.
Special attention would be given to the team adopting Zoho Desk, where additional post-launch sessions would help reinforce new workflows,address real-time questions, and build user confidence during the transition.
Both&'s Success Methodology would ensure that each application was not only implemented effectively, but adopted and owned by the team—with workflows that reflect their reality, rather than relying on default system behaviour.
Implementation Timeline
Project Duration | 3 months |
Solution Design | 1 week |
Implementation | 2 months |
System Training | 3 weeks |
The Result
Following the implementation of the Zoho One suite, the Vehicle Coverage Underwriting Company experienced significant improvements in operational efficiency, data visibility, and service responsiveness—all while continuing to run their essential business functions through their legacy system.
With the new data pipelines in place, reports that previously took days to prepare can now be generated in minutes and accessed on demand. This allows the leadership team to make faster, data-informed decisions, respond to broker activity proactively, and reduce delays across reporting cycles. The business now benefits from real-time insights into key operational areas such as claims, support volumes, and broker engagement.
The transition to Zoho Desk brought immediate benefits to the support team. By consolidating all tickets and communications into a single platform, service delivery and workloads became easier to track and manage. Internal visibility improved significantly, and team members reported confidence in using the new platform, improved efficiency, and access to valuable insights that have improved customer service.
Zoho CRM enabled the Vehicle Coverage Underwriting Company to centralise customer and broker information, reducing duplication and improving access to reliable, current data. Integrations with SMS and telephony systems enabled more consistent, personalised communication, while Zoho Sign streamlined the documentation process for brokers.
The launch of Zoho Campaigns and Zoho Survey equipped the business with a scalable communications platform that supports branded outreach and efficient feedback collection from brokers, industry stakeholders, and internal team members alike.
Throughout the transition, team members adopted the new systems with confidence due to tailored training and a phased onboarding strategy. Ownership of the apps was transferred smoothly, supported by internal champions and a system configuration aligned with their daily work.
Today, the Vehicle Coverage Underwriting Company benefits from enhanced oversight, automation-driven workflows, and the ability to adapt swiftly to changing business requirements. The strategic adoption of these tools has reduced duplication of effort, strengthened internal alignment, and helped the company deliver on its commitment to providing “seamless and hassle-free services” to its customers and broker partners.