Bryan Orr (@BryanJOrr) is both a brick-and-mortal small business owner and software entrepreneur, based in Florida. In owning and operating a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) installation company, he has experimented with a great variety of project management tools and collaboration software. Following this, he ventured into the software game itself, commissioning his own system to help run the business.
He also hosts the WOW Small Business Podcast and is a co-creator of MentionTribe, an online service aimed at helping local small businesses.
Show Notes & Links
Bryan owns a HVAC installation businessMentionTribeWOW Small Business PodcastPrescott had a past life as a Mechanical Engineering draftsmanR-12 vs R-134a refridgerantsRemember The Milk and TeuxDeux, examples of “laundry list” appsBasecamp, classic email replacement toolGantt ChartsTime-tracking and InvoicingImage previewing and collaborative reviewing“Tasking”, Bryan’s term for assigning items to different team membersGwenyth Paltrow uses BasecampBryan favours Trello for team collaborationKanban board, take a task through a lifecycleFreedcamp is a free(mium) version of BasecampPrescott doesn’t like “glorified checklists” because not everything in life is a checkbox item“Email needs to be taken out back, burned, and never heard from again” ← Click to Tweet“Advanced Chat”, Bryan’s term for specified cross-talk which replaces emailJosh Miles, previous podcast guest and design firm owner“Pictures of Success”Eisenhower methodologyClients should not use text messaging, especially when the recipient may be drivingToggl, simple time-tracking but not so much invoicingScreenshot Monitor, keeps an eye on team members up-to-the-minuteXero, small business online accounting software; and employer of Saul Colt, past podcast guestStarship Design, Prescott’s design companyThe Wayback MachinePassword managers like Dashlane allow you to have your password on you at all timesThe trouble with reference materials, “knowledge base”Wiki software is not very user-friendlyDropbox beats Google Drive for roll-back of individual filesWork Smarter by Nick LoperEntrepreneur on Fire podcastTools
Remember The MilkTeuxDeuxBasecampHarvestDesign Sign OffEvernote and Easily DoTrelloKanBan FlowFreedcampSlackHipChatMindMeisterJira from AtlassianWorkamajigAsanaFreshBooksFreeAgentProTogglScreenShot MonitorXeroMintGitHubIFTTT – If This Then ThatGoogle DriveLighthousePivotal TrackerTacoAppDashlaneDropboxKippt, bookmarking tool for teamsGingko, non-linear writing toolTechniques
Create new columns (“States”) in your Kanban boardUtilise a real Project Manager to make decisions and keep the project movingDefine “Pictures of Success” to demonstrate best practices within your teamUse the Eisenhower methodology to determine what’s important vs. what’s urgentDon’t use text messaging for businessCreate a method of your own to-do listCreate a method for group communication/chatCreate a method for assigning tasksEnsure you have mobile capabilitiesExperiment with mind-mapping methodologiesBuild a team knowledge base so folks don’t have to ask each other for stuff all the timeHabits
Adhere to the system you create, but also test new methodsReview your personal and team to-dos at the end of each day
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