A lot of code has been spilled at Pike13 in the effort to foster simplicity and a delightful experience for business owners, staff members, and clients. As in any software, there's a tension between simplicity and configurability. We fight this battle every day with every feature, but today I'm writing about the role and permissions structure in Pike13.
We have talked to literally thousands of businesses (from Enterprise-y franchises to <5 staff member shops), and we have received feature requests for all kinds of permissions and restrictions settings. Owners (with good reason) want to minimize risk (which means keeping a tight rein on what staff members can do, like giving discounts) while simultaneously empowering all their staff to "do the right thing" by the customer (again, like giving discounts).
Have you ever been a customer and rolled your eyes at this one? "I can give you a discount, but I need to get manager approval, and she's actually not here right now." Yeah, us too.
In addition to all this, we know from experience that software permission issues generate a tremendous amount of user confusion and complexity and frustration, which nobody wants.
Taking all that into account, we have come up with this guiding philosophy:
Notifications to the rescue!
In Pike13...
And the list goes on. In addition, the activity feeds in client profiles and classes and appointments track changes, making it easy to see who did what, when. All this allows owners and managers to make sure staff are doing the right thing without requiring them to get "manager approval" or forcing owners to maintain an endless list of permissions and roles.
The result? Abuse becomes trivial to detect. You spend less time configuring software. Customers stay happy.
photo credit: Transguyjay via photopin cc
The Overlooked Opportunity Most studio owners spend their energy filling classes and booking appointments. That’s the core revenue, so it makes...
Protect your business and client data from unauthorized access with multi-factor authentication—a critical security layer that goes beyond passwords...
Monica B.: Jul 20, 2023
Whether you run a fitness studio, yoga center, or any other membership-based business, managing registrations, payments, and customer data can be...
Ben VandenBos : Feb 04, 2013
We added Notifications back in early December and have received some great feedback since then. We've incorporated this feedback into some recent...
Ben VandenBos : Feb 26, 2013
Today we added Payroll functionality to Pike13. This set of features allows you to track and manage your staff's tips, commissions, and...
Ben VandenBos : Mar 07, 2013
Yesterday we shipped a couple of improvements to Pike13 checkout, not least of which is the ability to sell merchandise. Now you can sell T-shirts,...
Ben VandenBos