MongoDB is the developer data platform company empowering innovators to create, transform, and disrupt industries by unleashing the power of software and data. Their finance team uses Front to streamline workflows and collaborate behind the scenes, significantly cutting down on email volume.
Challenge
Before implementing Front, email volume was a huge issue for their finance team. With a team also being located internationally, collaborating on emails and getting the right responses for customers in a timely manner was a difficult task, to say the least. There were times when four people on their team were accidentally responding to the same email. Work was being duplicated and it was unclear who owned what. They were also missing data to track how many emails the team was receiving and how quickly they could get back to the customer.
Solution
After a demo of Front, the team knew Front checked every box. As they had a few options like Zendesk and Hiver that are useful tools. Both solutions did not give the same personal touch capabilities as Front gave. They wanted to be sure that the tool they chose would enhance their connection with their customers, not offer them a ticket.
They noticed workflows became more streamlined and collaboration became much easier. They were able to cut down on email volume by using features like shared inboxes and automated routing. MongoDB found a solution that could scale with them and help them provide excellent customer service while keeping a personal touch.
“Before Front, the volume of email our team received was becoming increasingly unmanageable and was impacting our ability to manage vendor requests and collaboration with other teams in our organization. With Front, we reduced missed messages by implementing shared inboxes with automated routing and guaranteeing clearer ownership for every message. When escalations arise or a team member is out of the office, we have built-in triaging—all within our shared inboxes—to make sure each request is handled on time. In reducing MongoDB’s email volume by over 60%, Front has empowered our team to gain operational control and dedicate more time to strategic projects."
– Karin Roettgering, director of finance at MongoDB
Front makes collaboration easy for MongoDB
MongoDB’s international team grew quite a bit over the past year and Front helped them keep up with the corresponding increase in communication. By using features like tagging, new joiners can see specific examples of emails and requests that come through to the finance team. This feature has also helped them minimize the use of Slack, which just uses up more of the team’s attention. Instead of jumping to a different platform to have a discussion, they can simply tag each other on an email and receive help on how they should respond back to a customer.
Sharing drafts has also become a much-loved part of MongoDB’s workflow. Shared drafts help their team collaborate on messages so that nothing gets left out before sending them off to customers. Since information is often shared among several members of the team, it helps having multiple sets of eyes on high-stakes conversations.
A more refined view of what’s most important in your inboxes
At one point the finance team was receiving 300 to 500 emails a day. A typical team member would spend at least two hours a day just filtering through emails. Front has given their team a very refined view of what’s most important and requires the most attention.
Shared inboxes have also given the leaders the ability to pop into areas they have piqued interest. That kind of real-time visibility gives them the insight they need to focus their attention on what really matters to the team.
Quicker response times add tremendous value to customer base
With more time on their hands free from scrolling through emails, the finance team has been able to put more time into their responses, collaborate easier, and respond with quality answers faster than ever. Messages are no longer falling through the cracks and not worrying over a customer not being responded to on time is a huge weight off their shoulders.
“No need to look for any other tool, Front checks every box.”
- Karin Roettgering, director of finance at MongoDB
It’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the systems on the market for managing communication, but with personal touch as their north star, it helped MongoDB find the right system for them. Front has been able to help the team work much more efficiently without sacrificing their humanity.
