As a business grows, so does the complexity of employee administration. Companies often invest millions in smart systems that, ironically, end up introducing more manual work if they don't communicate effectively. For the health and care provider Ecura, this led to manual processes and challenges regarding precise payroll distribution and project allocation. To bridge the gap between HR, CRM, and payroll, we at Axaz developed "Line" – a web application that streamlines the interaction between these systems.

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Ecura utilizes specialized systems for HR, payroll, and project management, but these systems weren't always on speaking terms. Project managers often found themselves performing manual tasks just to keep information consistent across all platforms. This particularly impacted Ecura's managers, who are responsible for allocating employees' time across various projects.

For managers, daily life is a balancing act. In addition to their many other responsibilities, they must ensure their employees have the correct schedules. When one employee is split across five different projects with varying end dates, it’s easy for typos to occur or for details to be forgotten. Managers had to piece together info from different systems: Were there too many hours here? Too few there? As a result, far too much relied on the manager's memory. We saw a clear need for a solution to take over the "math," allowing managers to focus on creating value and leading their teams.

Technology as a Bridge

To avoid the constraints of heavy legacy systems, we built the solution using the same modern technology and code that powers the fastest consumer apps—in our case, Next.js. To ensure a secure and stable environment, everything runs within Ecura's own cloud.

For Ecura's managers, this means they can now use a simple "drag-and-drop" interface to allocate resources. Instead of navigating dense tables, you move hours and employees like pieces in a game. The workflow is entirely different when totals update automatically as you move elements, allowing you to see instantly that hours align with the contract.

In the background, the technology handles the heavy lifting: it pulls master data from HR and projects from the CRM, validates the information, and sends processed data directly to the payroll system. If a manager tries to input something incorrect, the system provides immediate feedback. Errors are caught and corrected on the spot, rather than two days after payroll was supposed to be disbursed. This provides a new sense of security in the workday, knowing the system is watching your back. For a manager, this means less time on administration and better overall control.

A Conscious Choice to Launch Early

Instead of locking ourselves away for months to build a theoretically "perfect" system, we made a strategic choice to start with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) that solved the most critical functions first. We bypassed time-consuming overhauls of existing core systems, prioritizing instead the development of a light and fast front-end using Next.js to act as an efficient bridge over the manual clutter.

We made this choice because we believe rapid iterations yield better results than theoretical plans. It was about ensuring that what we built actually solved the most pressing problems for Ecura right then and there. We chose fast iterations and immediate data validation over complex, wide-reaching process changes. By rolling out a simple version that allowed managers to allocate staff almost immediately, we were able to see how the tool performed in the real world.

Real Value, Delivered Faster

Through this collaboration, Ecura has transformed a vulnerable manual process into a robust digital workflow. Key benefits include:

• Precise Payroll: Correct distribution of working hours ensures employees receive the right pay and project costs are accurately recorded.
• Increased Management Efficiency: Less time spent on administration and a better overview of team capacity.
• Full Traceability: A detailed change log ensures documentation of all allocations and adjustments made.
• Data Quality: Automated integrations reduce manual entry errors and ensure master data remains consistent across all systems.

The Road Ahead

With the "Line" application in place, Ecura has laid the foundation for more data-driven personnel management. The next steps involve ongoing maintenance as well as the development of notification routines and expanded functionality to support even more complex employment scenarios.

Success is rarely about having the heaviest specialized systems, but about how quickly you can remove friction from the workday. For Ecura, the journey from manual clutter to digital flow was shorter than they expected.

Are you struggling with systems that don't play well together, or do you have other technological needs? Let's have a coffee and look at the possibilities.

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