Client & Developer Collaboration Platform

A single-platform collaboration tool that replaced fragmented email/chat processes and automated progress reporting — improving transparency and reducing manual status updates.

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Role

Full-Stack Engineer — owned end-to-end design and implementation of client & developer workflows, GitHub integration, and CI/CD automation.

Constraints

MVP in 8 weeks, role-based access, secure logins, enterprise-grade data isolation, limited budget for external integrations.

Problem

Clients and developers relied on email, chat and spreadsheets to track work. This caused missed updates, unclear ownership, and frequent status-check requests.

Approach

  • Interviewed 5 users (clients & developers) to understand real pain points and workflow bottlenecks.
  • Mapped user journeys for three key personas: client, manager, developer, to visualize interactions and responsibilities.
  • Used AI tools to rapidly prototype UI and workflows, enabling quick validation of core concepts before development.
  • Planned and prioritized the MVP: quotes, messaging, progress tracking, GitHub integration — focusing on automating the most painful manual steps first.
  • Executed 1-week sprints with early pilot feedback from users, iterating quickly to refine functionality and UX.

Key Features

  • Quote Requests

    Clients can request quotes for new projects, providing necessary details upfront so work starts with clear scope.

  • Live Messaging

    Real-time chat between clients and developers keeps communication direct and reduces email noise.

  • Progress Tracking

    Visualize project progress with automated updates from development activity and commits.

  • GitHub Integration

    Sync repos, commits, and pull requests to automate progress reporting and reduce manual status updates.

Outcome / Results

  • Clients reported clearer visibility and fewer status meetings
  • Developers stopped manual update emails
  • Single source of truth for all project activity
  • Automated GitHub progress reduced manual reporting work

Lessons Learned

  • Start with one core workflow and automate the worst manual step first
  • Push heavy integrations (webhook processing) to background workers
  • Distinguish client-view vs developer-view to reduce noise