I can help you make your ideal real, within your budget and priorities, from planning to programming and tailoring to fit. Whether you have an existing or pre-packaged software you would like to fit you better, or need to create from scratch, Sophia Kelly has over 12 years of experience and can help. Do you want a database that your staff are happy to use, with screens and procedures laid out in a practical and helpful way? Usability of databases and websites is very important and is a prime consideration throughout the process.

For more information speak to Sophia at 604-255-3450 (M-F 10-6 PST).

Database examples from our portfolio:

• A database collecting and reporting on program stats for a provincial organization with over twenty remote service locations. Stats were formerly done on paper and not collated, now the organization has compiled data to demonstrate the volume and quality of work they do province-wide
• Databases for tracking accreditation and program evaluation data
• Distributed databases for data collection in organizations without an intranet
• Custom applications using visual basic and VBScript that pair with Microsoft Outlook to perform specialized scheduling, task and workflow management tasks at the touch of a button, in multi-user Exchange environments and standalone applications
• A custom database that collects membership and payment information and publishes it in custom formats for printing houses and automatic uploads to the website at the touch of a button…. This database saves hours of data entry, and reduces design costs for a yearly directory publication.
• A customized database application that allows for scheduling multiple clients and therapists with one another while tracking number of hours per client and therapist, full reporting and viewing and printing the information in dozens of different formats. This database allows the organization to save time reporting to their funders, so they can spend it helping children with autism.

For more information speak to Sophia at 604-255-3450 (M-F 10-6 PST).

Sophia Kelly has 8 years experience designing a wide array of Outlook and Exchange applications and providing expert-level support to Outlook users.

Outlook can be used as a groupware application, making use of the ease of use and general familiarity of staff with the tool to ease adopting new processes and save on the cost of new software.  This tool can be tailored to provide:

• Sophisticated and customizable contact databases
• Custom Outlook forms to automate data entry and distribution
• vbscript and vba form applications that interact with Word and Excel.
• Fully customizable reporting, with flexible displays to fit each user
• One place for everyone’s information, for all purposes, yet organized multiple ways so each person can see it the way they need to use it effectively.
• Automatic follow up reminders and task tracking and reporting
• Centralized and sophisticated staff, resource, and room scheduling….

Contact Sophia Kelly is you would like to:

• Leverage Outlook’s existing features and customize them to suit your own business processes.
• Set up security settings permitting varying access to data to suit enterprise needs.
• Create easy mass mailings with personalized form letters, labels and envelopes
• Learn how to perform mail and email merges from Outlook data, so keeping separate data files up to date is not required.

Customizations shape the program to fit you for functions like tracking and reporting on time usage, resource scheduling, tracking group actions on shared projects, document management and custom information tracking and distribution. Training, documentation and user manuals available.

If you want to print out summaries of information or find specific bits of information simply and easily, you will most likely want to use a database.

A database is like a filing cabinet for information. The drawers are called ‘tables’ and the file folders are ‘fields’. Fields can be thought of as containers that hold one piece of information each, like first name, last name, city etc… Related fields are grouped together in tables. Fields also hold links to other tables whose fields hold related information (amount purchased, membership join date, last invoiced etc…).

A good database will organize information in a way that makes data convenient to put in, view and compile for reports and other printouts. A well designed database will also prevent data from being entered incorrectly.

Industry-Specific Databases

If a person’s needs for a database are fairly common to others in the same industry, there is usually a database software already created for that purpose. MLS systems for Realtors and iMIS for non-profit organizations are examples of such industry specific databases.

Tailored Databases

However, if an organizations needs aren’t met by prepackaged software, they will commission a custom database. This is similar to having a suit made by a tailor or dressmaker—it may cost more, but should fit much better. Common software/programming languages used in ‘custom’ databases are Access, Filemaker Pro and Visual Basic.

Customized Databases

An intermediate solution is to have an existing package database customized—sophisticated and flexible databases can be created, for example, by customizing Microsoft Outlook.

More about databases | Sophia Kelly Technology Tailoring has been providing custom, customized and configuration and training services for a variety of database platforms including Access, custom Outlook applications and iMIS support for the past 8 years. She is based in Vancouver, Canada. www.sophiakelly.ca