BIRAD achieves 30% efficiency boost with Zoho solutions

The challenge

BIRAD's operations required effective communication and coordination across multiple departments. Researchers, the finance team, business development staff, and Bar-Ilan University representatives needed to stay updated in real time to ensure projects ran smoothly. BIRAD relied mainly on emails and Excel spreadsheets for most essential processes and internal communications. Budget management, purchase orders, and data tracking were all done manually, which was time-consuming, prone to errors, and lacked the transparency needed for effective collaboration across departments. An updated solution was needed to enhance operational efficiency and streamline the company's workload.

The solution

To establish the infrastructure for a better way to work, BIRAD optimized management in two of its key operations. Using Zoho Creator, a low-code platform for building custom business applications, the company developed two designated customized solutions. The first was a budget and purchase order management system for the university's researchers. It was fully integrated with the company’s financial systems, providing researchers with real-time updates and complete transparency on budgets and purchases. The second was a patent management system designed to track and manage all stages of the patent registration process, like obtaining permits from partners and relevant stakeholders at BIRAD and Bar-Ilan University.

"Zoho Creator allowed us to build exactly what we needed to continue improving our workflow without relying on external help. The two systems we mentioned were tailored to our needs, making it easier for us to manage daily operations in a smart and convenient way."

—Dr. Tsvika Ben-Porat, CEO, BIRAD

With these key functions optimized, BIRAD's next step was to improve how different departments communicated and collaborated. For this, the company adopted Zoho CRM. Originally designed for client relationship management, the system's flexibility, customizability, and simple interface enabled rapid updates between the university's researchers and the company's business development team. Zoho WorkDrive also became a vital part of BIRAD's daily operations. The secure, cloud-based document management platform helped to keep crucial files and documents well organized, ensured relevant stakeholders had easy access, and promoted seamless collaboration between BIRAD and Bar-Ilan University.

Benefits and ROI

Adopting Zoho tools and solutions enabled BIRAD to create a workflow that was suited to its needs instead of adapting to limitations presented by previous solutions. Seamless communication between researchers and the business development team allowed smoother collaboration across departments. Some of the company's complex processes were automated, reducing manual effort and allowing the staff to focus on tasks with higher value. In addition, budget management was now centralized into a unified and organized system. This digital transformation resulted in a 30% increase in service quality and faster response times.

Looking forward

BIRAD is focused on maintaining its improved efficiency and collaboration while staying prepared for future growth. The flexibility of Zoho's solutions allows the company to adapt to new needs as they arise, ensuring its operations remain smooth and effective. In the future, BIRAD aims to build on its current success by deepening its use of Zoho’s tools, ensuring its workflows remain efficient and adaptable to the company’s growing needs.

"It was a significant shift from relying on emails and spreadsheets to a unified system made precisely to suit our processes. Even with an adjustment period, it has been highly rewarding in the long run."

— Meir Gershtnkoren, Information Systems Manager, BIRAD