Completed at

Brave Little Beast

Intake & Triage System

Designed an intake and triage system to structure incoming work, reduce ambiguity, and ensure requests were routed and prioritized before entering production.

Context

As the volume of ongoing client work increased, new requests were coming in through a mix of channels: Slack, email, meetings, phone calls, and random ad hoc conversations.

This created several issues:

Requests lacked consistent detail and context
Work was entering production without clear scope or prioritization
Ownership was often unclear at the outset
Manual coordination was required to route work to the right person

The result was avoidable friction at the start of projects, which carried through the rest of the workflow.

As the volume of ongoing client work increased, new requests were coming in through a mix of channels: Slack, email, meetings, phone calls, and random ad hoc conversations.

This created several issues:

Requests lacked consistent detail and context
Work was entering production without clear scope or prioritization
Ownership was often unclear at the outset
Manual coordination was required to route work to the right person

The result was avoidable friction at the start of projects, which carried through the rest of the workflow.

As the volume of ongoing client work increased, new requests were coming in through a mix of channels: Slack, email, meetings, phone calls, and random ad hoc conversations.

This created several issues:

Requests lacked consistent detail and context
Work was entering production without clear scope or prioritization
Ownership was often unclear at the outset
Manual coordination was required to route work to the right person

The result was avoidable friction at the start of projects, which carried through the rest of the workflow.

Intervention

I designed and implemented a structured intake and triage system to standardize how work entered the pipeline.

The system introduced a single entry point for all requests and a defined process for reviewing and routing work before it reached production.

It included:

A centralized request form used by clients to submit new work
Required fields to capture scope, context, and necessary inputs upfront
A dedicated triage queue where all incoming requests were reviewed
Defined triage process to assess scope, priority, and ownership
Routing logic to assign work to the appropriate team member or discipline
Automation to notify team members when work was assigned or updated

For ongoing (retainer-based) work, this ensured that requests were structured and visible before any time was spent executing.

I designed and implemented a structured intake and triage system to standardize how work entered the pipeline.

The system introduced a single entry point for all requests and a defined process for reviewing and routing work before it reached production.

It included:

A centralized request form used by clients to submit new work
Required fields to capture scope, context, and necessary inputs upfront
A dedicated triage queue where all incoming requests were reviewed
Defined triage process to assess scope, priority, and ownership
Routing logic to assign work to the appropriate team member or discipline
Automation to notify team members when work was assigned or updated

For ongoing (retainer-based) work, this ensured that requests were structured and visible before any time was spent executing.

I designed and implemented a structured intake and triage system to standardize how work entered the pipeline.

The system introduced a single entry point for all requests and a defined process for reviewing and routing work before it reached production.

It included:

A centralized request form used by clients to submit new work
Required fields to capture scope, context, and necessary inputs upfront
A dedicated triage queue where all incoming requests were reviewed
Defined triage process to assess scope, priority, and ownership
Routing logic to assign work to the appropriate team member or discipline
Automation to notify team members when work was assigned or updated

For ongoing (retainer-based) work, this ensured that requests were structured and visible before any time was spent executing.

Results

By structuring how work entered the system, the team was able to spend less time figuring out what needed to be done and more time executing.

Reduced ambiguity in incoming requests

Improved quality and completeness of project information

Clear ownership & timelines established before work began

Less manual coordination required to route work

Faster turnaround from request submission to work starting

Fewer mid-project clarifications and scope creep

Design Principles

Structure Before Execution

No work entered production without first being clearly defined and reviewed.

One Entry Point

All requests were funneled through a single system, eliminating fragmented communication across channels.

Clarity at the Start

Capturing the right information upfront reduced downstream confusion and rework.

Routing as a System, Not a Conversation

Work was assigned through defined logic rather than ad hoc discussion.

Structure Before Execution

No work entered production without first being clearly defined and reviewed.

One Entry Point

All requests were funneled through a single system, eliminating fragmented communication across channels.

Clarity at the Start

Capturing the right information upfront reduced downstream confusion and rework.

Routing as a System, Not a Conversation

Work was assigned through defined logic rather than ad hoc discussion.

A Defining Shift

Before implementing this system, work often started informally, typically based on conversations, messages, or incomplete requests.

After implementation, every piece of work began with structure, clarity, and ownership, significantly reducing friction throughout the rest of the process.

Reflection

This system reinforced the importance of structuring work before it begins. Many delivery issues are not caused during execution. They originate at the point of intake. Addressing that early had a huge impact on overall efficiency.

Want to work together?

Send me a message

adam@adamhayman.com

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Want to work together?

Send me a message

adam@adamhayman.com

Instagram

Want to work together?

Send me a message

adam@adamhayman.com

Instagram