This article first published by Tanda.co is republished with approval of Roses Only, specialists at Mother's Day Flowers and, as you read below, flowers for Valentines Day!

Everything’s coming up Roses Only: How Tanda helps retailers save 100+ hours a week

Valentine’s Day: On this day celebrating love and relationships, couples, friends, and family prepare their choice of gifts for the special people in their lives. Hearts adorn storefronts, packages and discounts abound, and behind the bustle and celebration are the retailers that make it all happen.

Today is one of the busiest days of the year for the Roses Only Group, a business founded in 1995 that has grown into Australia’s leading flower retailer. It brings together more than 45 years of floristry and retail experience to create a business that provides gifts of all kinds to those who want to share the love: boxed roses, seasonal flowers, full arrangements, wines and champagnes, chocolates, and more.

We caught up with Chief Operating Officer Kelly Taggart as she prepared for the busy season to ask about how she manages it all. “A day in the life of me,” Kelly says, “no two days are the same.”

The search for the perfect software fit

Not everything was always wrapped up neatly at the Roses Only headquarters. “Our biggest time and attendance problem was really about planning rostering,” Kelly says. “Previously we were working in spreadsheets, and as a growing team, you tend to spend a lot of time in those spreadsheets. That time would be much better spent elsewhere, on making the business more productive.”

Using spreadsheets was an ordeal. Roses Only holds multiple warehouse locations throughout Australia, and an online store. With many teams and all 300-plus staff working in-house, balancing administrative tasks without a good platform was challenging.

That search for better shift scheduling software led them to Tanda.

Kelly recalls: “When we were comparing solutions, what actually stood out was the feedback Tanda had received from all of their existing clients. And for me personally, and for us as a business, recommendations are so important. For Tanda to get that client feedback, that was a big factor in our decision.”

They implemented Tanda across the organisation to positive reception. Changing from a manual process to a technology solution suited the team, with them even having some fun with the selfie photos in the employee time clock. The integrations the platform offered was a big part of that decision, as Roses Only uses bespoke systems and they found it fit neatly in alongside their preferred payroll software.

Trimming hundreds of hours from rostering means more time for operations

Roses Only has been using Tanda for so long, the team barely thinks of the problems it helped solve.

“They would be things like the administration time managers take to look at what time people show up to work every day. You really want your managers to be leading the team and making them more productive and hitting those business targets, not clock-watching.”

All in all, Kelly estimates Tanda saves them 100 hours a week across all locations. These saved hours go a long way—especially on huge business days like today, Valentine’s Day, and other peak periods like Mother’s Day and Christmas where they use the shift scheduling software to compare labour data from the previous year.

Roses Only uses a significant amount of big data in its operations, and that’s essential to their success each peak season. Understanding their processes and building efficiency into them is key to scaling for significant events. By having efficient operations already set in place, they don’t need to make too many changes: it’s just the same, only bigger.

“We found it’s even more beneficial with the extreme growth that we’ve had in the last 2 years, that our managers have been able to focus on other things besides managing people’s time and rosters because they have such a great platform in Tanda,” Kelly adds.

Blooming in a competitive industry

So what’s next for the retailer? As the market leader in delivered flowers and gifts, the organisation is setting its sights on supporting the future of its business through leadership development. They’ll also continue to serve their customers in the best way they know: with efficiency, productivity, and excellent service.

“Everyone’s collecting information, and you’ve got to be able to put that information through in the right way and understand what customers are trying to do, so you can provide them with what they’re looking for. Then look at your own infrastructure and the way that your operations are set out, the way that your teams are set out, to support that offering to your customers.”

“This business, in particular, has been in the industry for the past 12 years, and we have been online in a big way from the beginning. So we’ve already experienced many of these learnings and we’re making sure our infrastructure is supporting what we’re learning from that big data so that we can be the most productive that we can.”

Want to streamline operations to support your growth and expansion? Try Tanda for 14 days for free, no credit card required.

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8th MAY 2019

Porcelain Veneers Continue To Be Extremely Popular

Veneers are thin, yet strong tooth-coloured porcelain shells that are bonded on to the front of teeth. They have a “life like” appearance with the strength, beauty, and durability that only porcelain restorations can create.

Smile concepts, with over 40 years combined experience, has built a strong reputation in Sydney of providing a full range of dental services from a highly qualified and dedicated team. Their mission statement is to build authentic and trusting relationships with clients, at the same time educate them of the wide range of choices available. Porcelain veneers is one of those treatments and is growing in demand.

Dr Manish Shah, General & Implant Dentist with Smile Concepts said, “Porcelain veneers can dramatically improve crooked, crowded, chipped and gappy smiles. The veneers that we use in this procedure are of the highest quality and specially designed for the work we do. A big benefit of them, unlike crowns, is that they typically do not require significant erosion of the existing tooth they are being applied to.”

New DMA’s investigation found that due to the advanced skills and technology at Smile Concepts, Mild preparation is only required and they don’t have to cut away a lot of your teeth to place the porcelain veneer on to the tooth.

Dr Manish Shah, General & Implant Dentist with Smile Concepts said, “Due to the fast and dramtic results that our porcelain veneers Sydney clinic can produce, combined with the minimal impact on the patient’s teeth, we are seeing continuing strong demand for our sought-after porcelain veneer procedures.”

About Smile Concepts

Smile Concepts are one of the most trusted dental practices in Sydney with expertise in all areas of implant, veneer and general dentistry. They strongly believe in their patients having a beautiful smile & natural teeth for life.

Their caring and dedicated team, with over 40 years of combined experience, offer the latest dentistry technology in a modern and relaxed environment.

They believe in individualised care with all treatment being tailored to the particular wants and needs of each patient. All treatment is performed to the highest standards of precision, with the highest quality of materials, and by people with the highest level of skill, integrity, and concern for the client’s wellbeing.

For more information on Smile Concepts and the porcelain veneer costs should visit their website here: https://www.smileconcepts.com.au/ or call +61-2-9267-7777

Are you travelling to the United States of America

If you travelling to the United States of America for a period no longer than 90 days, you need to know you must have an ESTA Visa prior to going there to gain entry.

From January 12th 2009, all citizens of countries belonging to the VWP (USA Visa Waiver Program) must obtain this online agency travel authorization before entering the territory of the United States of America.

The blog team have prepared some questions and answers below to help travelers to the USA understand what and ESTA Visa is and what they need to do before they travel to the US.

What is an ESTA visa?

The Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is an automated system used to determine the eligibility of visitors to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) and whether such travel poses any law enforcement or security risk.

How long is a ESTA visa valid for?

Your ESTA Visa authorization is generally valid for multiple trips over a period of two years (starting the date that you are approved) or until your passport expires, whichever comes first*. This means that as long as you received an ESTA authorization to travel, you do not have to reapply during the validity period.

Who can apply for an ESTA?

ESTA is a mandatory travel authorization for travelers visiting the United States either by Sea or Air for tourism, transit or business visits under 90 days. Only travelers who hold a valid nationality from countries covered under the Visa Waiver Program are eligible to apply for an ESTA.

Why would esta be denied?

A denied ESTA is most likely due to one or more of the following reasons: On a previous visit to the United States, you overstayed beyond the amount of time allowable for your visa or visa waiver. ... The answers you provided on your ESTA application form were incorrect, once cross-checked with the US government systems.

How long can I stay in US with ESTA?

When traveling to the U.S. with the approved ESTA, you may only stay for up to 90 days at a time - and there should be a reasonable amount of time between visits so that the CBP Officer does not think you are trying to live here. There is no set requirement for how long you must wait between visits.

When should I apply for ESTA?

When should I apply for ESTA? Although your ESTA application can be approved in seconds, it's recommended that you apply at least 72 hours before departure. In fact, you may want to apply as soon as you decide on travel dates, just in case your travel authorisation is denied.

Do I need to print my esta?

Many applicants are confused by the fact that ESTA is an electronic travel authorization linked to their passport. Nevertheless, all travelers need an ESTA printout. Why do you need to print out your ESTA you may ask? The truth is that it is not necessary to have an ESTA printed out and we will explain why.

If you are Australian, you can learn more about the Electronic System for Travel Authorization Program by visiting EstaVisa.com.au, the online agency that provides assistance in obtaining the Electronic System for Travel Authorization that is necessary for entering the United States of America.

EstaVisa.com.auis a professional visa agency that our team have had positive experience with. They provide assistance with the visa waiver program where citizen travellers visiting the United States need an Esta Visa. As part of their services, they include live validation data, 24/7 support, extensive PDF documentation and a 100% refund guarantee in case of visa rejection.

They also offer a ‘rush’ service that enables applicants to receive their USA Visa in under 5 minutes. All services are offered in applicant’s native language.

You can learn more by visiting their website here: https://estavisa.com.au