Big C V2 is on the move! Andrew's boat is being crated up ready for shipping

It's a big day for adventurer Andrew Bedwell and his amazing Big C Atlantic Challenge!

Andrew is packing up Big C and crating it ready for its journey across the Atlantic to Newfoundland on a container ship.  It will arrive in plenty of time for Andrew's launch back to the UK on his world record attempting journey, in May 2026. 

Big C in good hands... please don't drop it!

Our app for Andrew's followers has also hit a milestone today, and it's ready for testing.  Take a look for yourselves, here: https://big-c-atlantic-challenge.app/

Follow and support Andrew via his Facebook page, Big C Atlantic Challenge.

You can now have an instant video call with our Support Team

Need help?  Want to show us a problem you have on your screen?  You can now launch an instant video call with our Support Team straight from our website.

Instant video call! No Teams, no Zoom, just one click!

Click https://whereby.com/start-software-support to launch your call - but do call us first so we're expecting you!

Out on site with Acorn Asbestos – troubleshooting and improving Tracker Mobile face-to-face

There’s nothing quite like getting out from behind a desk and onto site.

Last week, Zac from our Alpha Tracker Support team did exactly that—joining the asbestos surveyors from our partners at Acorn Asbestos for a day in the field. The goal? To see first-hand how surveys are carried out, how our software performs in real-world conditions, and—most importantly—where we can make things even better.  We've had some repeat tickets from an asbestos surveyor and wanted to see the issue live - supporting our wonderful customers is *so* much easier in person.

Why site visits matter

We spend a lot of time building and refining Alpha Tracker and Tracker Mobile but the real test is always on site.

Asbestos surveying isn’t done in ideal conditions. It’s tight spaces, awkward access, poor signal, and the constant need to work quickly and accurately. That’s exactly why Tracker Mobile has been designed to work offline, capture detailed data, and sync reliably later.

But no matter how much experience we have, there’s no substitute for standing alongside surveyors and watching the process unfold.

A day in the life of a surveyor

Zac spent the day following Acorn’s team as they carried out a live asbestos survey.

From logging into site, reviewing previous records, and planning the inspection route, through to capturing samples, photos and notes—it was a full walkthrough of the survey lifecycle.

Nice tats, Zac!

In the photo above, you can see Tracker Mobile in action—being used on-site to capture survey data in real time. This is exactly how the system is designed to be used: simple, structured, and reliable, even in less-than-ideal environments.

Tracker Mobile plays a central role here. Surveyors are using it to:

• Record asbestos samples and suspected materials

• Capture photos and link them directly to items

• Log “no access” areas and site observations

• Work through structured forms designed around their workflow

All of this is done on a phone or tablet, often with no signal, and synced back to the main system later.

If you’re new to Tracker Mobile, you can read more about how it supports asbestos surveying on our website:
👉 https://alpha-tracker.co.uk/asbestos

The small details that make a big difference

One of the most valuable parts of the visit was spotting the little things.

Not big feature requests—but small, practical improvements:

• Reducing the number of taps needed for common tasks

• Making key fields easier to access on-site

• Improving visibility of important information in bright or awkward environments

• Streamlining workflows when moving quickly between rooms or areas

These are the kinds of refinements that only come from real-world use. And they matter—because when you’re on site, every second counts.

This kind of continuous improvement is something we’ve talked about before—particularly in how user feedback shapes development.

Working with great partners

It was also a great opportunity to spend time with the team at Acorn Asbestos.

Their experience, professionalism, and willingness to share honest feedback are exactly what make partnerships like this so valuable. Open conversations about what works (and what doesn’t) help us continuously improve.

At Alpha Tracker, we’ve always built our software in collaboration with the industry—and days like this are a perfect example of that in action.

Feeding back into Tracker Mobile

Tracker Mobile is already widely used across the asbestos surveying industry and has been refined over years of real-world use.

But we never stand still.

The insights from Zac’s visit are already feeding into discussions with the development team—helping shape future updates and improvements. Whether it’s performance tweaks, usability enhancements, or new features, it all starts with understanding what happens on site.

If you’d like to explore more about Tracker Mobile and how it supports asbestos surveying teams, take a look here:
👉 https://alpha-tracker.co.uk/asbestos

Final thoughts

A big thank you to Acorn Asbestos for having us along.

Getting out on site, asking questions, and seeing the reality of asbestos surveying is invaluable. It keeps us grounded, focused, and motivated to keep improving.

And for Zac… not a bad day at the office.

We have a new Calendar Sync module available. Get in touch with Support to organise your system update

Jack has published a new Calendar Sync update for Alpha Tracker.  

This is a bug-fix update which will help busy asbestos consultancies especially.  Jack has fixed a couple of bugs which affected appointments which were scheduled/deleted/rescheduled within a few seconds of being created - something that doesn't happen very often but does happen occasionally.

Busy, busy, busy!

Calendar Sync is an Alpha Tracker feature which synchronises Alpha Tracker diary appointments into Microsoft (Outlook/Exchange) diaries or Google Calendar, so that site staff know their schedule simply by looking in their normal diary phone apps.

Get in touch with Alpha Tracker Support (UK or Australia/New Zealand) to organise your update.

"Office Hours" drop-in session on Wed 25 March 12:00-12:30. We'll be showing the new AI-powered Alpha Draw

We’re excited to announce that next week we will be starting our first series of Alpha Tracker “Office Hours” sessions. We hope you can join us.

Click this link to join the session from 12:00-12:30 on Wed 25 March

To explain what “Office Hours” are (confession... most of us here at Start Software weren’t aware, either!), the term originally referred to academic help sessions in the US, where students could get personalised assistance outside of class. Our Alpha Tracker Office Hours sessions will be short, informal, half-hour drop-in sessions providing the opportunity for support, discussion, clarification, demonstration, advice – all sorts of help with any area of Alpha Tracker.

The Office Hours are live and interactive; we’ll be led by the topics you want to discuss. These are “cameras on” sessions for everyone, we’ll be on camera and so will you. To make you feel more comfortable, we won’t record the sessions.

Join Robin, Kim & Zac for the first session on Wednesday 25 March 2026 at 12:00. No need to pre-register, simply click the link between 12:00 – 12:30 on the day to join: https://whereby.com/alpha-tracker-office-hours

See you Wednesday!

Experimental AI tools published for asbestos consultancies - try them now! Free to use, please experiment and give us feedback

We’ve published a set of experimental AI tools designed for asbestos consultancies to explore and test.

There are six tools altogether (although one only applies if you're Norwegian!)

These tools are currently being evaluated and refined. Once they have been thoroughly tested, the most successful features will be integrated into our asbestos software, Alpha Tracker, as part of our 2026 development roadmap.

Although the tools are being developed alongside Alpha Tracker, consultancies using other asbestos software are very welcome to try them and share feedback.

There are currently six tools available, including one developed specifically for the Norwegian asbestos industry.

The tools were previewed at the FAMANZ ASBESTOS 2026 conference in Sydney, and they are now available for anyone to try.

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Photo Analyst

Analyses a photo of suspect materials and provides an AI-powered assessment of whether asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) may be present.

https://asbestos-photo-analyst.start-software.ai/

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Building Analyst

Evaluates whole-structure photos to identify areas that may contain asbestos-containing materials.

https://asbestos-building-analyst.start-software.ai/

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Asbestos Report QC

Checks asbestos survey reports for potential errors, omissions, and inconsistencies.

https://asbestos-report-qc.start-software.ai/

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AI Asbestos Scanner (Norway)

Developed for the Norwegian asbestos industry and aimed primarily at contractors working in Norway.

Don’t worry if you don’t speak Norwegian! The tool includes an English/Norwegian toggle.

https://ia-asbestscanner.app/

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Asbestos Prompt Engineer

Helps you build reliable AI prompts for asbestos-related tasks when using tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude.

https://asbestos-prompt-engineer.start-software.ai/

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Asbestos Report Extractor

Extracts key information from asbestos reports and allows the data to be downloaded into Excel and other formats.

https://asbestos-report-extractor.start-software.ai/

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You can access the full set of tools here:

UK:
https://alpha-tracker.co.uk/ai-tools

Australia and New Zealand:
https://alpha-tracker.com.au/ai-tools

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Please do try them and send us your feedback.

These tools are still experimental, and your feedback will help shape how AI is integrated into asbestos software Alpha Tracker in the future.

MASSIVE congratulations to the whole FAMANZ team for a wonderful Sydney conference - ASBESTOS 2026

ASBESTOS 2026 by FAMANZ has been an amazing event - 300+ attendees (most of whom seemed to know Judy!) - with Alpha Tracker asbestos consultancy clients everywhere we looked. 

Robin's AI talk demo'd some of the experimental tools we've been building - and you can try them all for yourselves on our Australian/New Zealand Alpha Tracker or UK Alpha Tracker websites.

Ben from our fabulous Alpha Tracker asbestos consultancy Forensic Specialists won our bottle of South Australian champagne (from Penfolds) in our "have your photo taken and win the bottle" competition.  Congrats Ben!

Judy, Ben & Robin (and the bottle)

We collected so many photos over the 3 days of the conference that we actually ran out of printer paper!

Many of the discussions we had with our users (and prospective users) was around the use of AI Agents inside Alpha Tracker and outside, too.  It's a good job we'd published our Alpha Tracker Roadmap before we came - it shows, in detail, what our plans are.  We also picked up a whole load of great ideas along the way - conferences are great for that!

What a location, and what a venue (and view!)

With the conference winding down, we had the "fun" job of packing up our stand.  We did it in 10 minutes - just - not bad when Judy was suffering after picking up a netball injury, and Robin was still in a timezone somewhere between Sydney and Shanghai!

Thanks again to the organisers and all of our wonderful Alpha Tracker asbestos software users from Australia & New Zealand who have made the conference so much fun for us.  See you again next year!

ASBESTOS 2026 has started! Alpha Tracker is a proud exhibitor and supporter of FAMANZ's 5th asbestos conference

Judy & Robin have arrived at Sydney's stunning Darling Harbour for FAMANZ's 5th asbestos conference called "ASBESTOS 2026" (see what they did, there!).

Robin (jetlagged!) and Judy with the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the distance

Our Australian business, Alpha Tracker Pty, based in Adelaide, is one of the exhibitors - and we're proud to say that we've been a sponsor and/or exhibitor at every one of the five FAMANZ asbestos events.  We're here to talk to our amazing Australian & New Zealand asbestos consultancy clients, and also to meet other partners and potential partners including PAS and MPAR.

Alpha Tracker is in good company

The event is really well attended, again, with more than 350 delegates.  They represent the whole asbestos industry as well as organisations managing asbestos in buildings and asbestos software companies, like Alpha Tracker.  Robin is going to be showing off the experimental Alpha Tracker AI tools for asbestos consultancies in his talk on Wednesday.

The welcome drinks always attracts a crowd!

Our stand is busy, as usual with clients and prospective clients coming to say hello.  To encourage new people to visit, we're running a competition this year to win a bottle of South Australian "champagne" from the mighty Penfolds.  There is a lovely connection here for Judy & Robin - they visited Penfolds back in 2018 to help them with some on-site data capture technology, see https://blog.start-software.com/2018/05/software-meeting-at-penfolds-magill.html.

Instant prints - Polaroid-style - from a digital camera (the TimTam is for scale!)

Visitors to our Alpha Tracker stand are offered the chance to have their photo taken and an instant print produced... with all photos going into a hat to win the bottle at the end of the conference.

The photo printer has been busy!

Judy has been busy all day, right from the start at 08:00, and tomorrow and Wednesday are likely to be even busier with more delegates arriving.

Judy talking to an interested asbestos surveying company owner

Come and find us - we're easy to spot!

Lunch breaks give us a chance for some fresh air and to take in the stunning view over the harbour.  What a venue and what a city!

Judy with Brett from Agon Environmental

Come and find us again tomorrow - if you can squeeze through the crowds.

Robin has managed to avoid being in the photos (so far)

Not a drone photo! Robin was up a staircase

Congratulations to the event organisers at FAMANZ for putting on such an amazing conference and for encouraging so many interesting (and interested) people to attend.  We're going to have a really productive and stimulating three days.

Our Alpha Tracker Roadmap is now available. Check out what we have planned for 2026

A Closer Look at What’s Coming Next

At Alpha Tracker we always listen closely to our users. That insight helps us plan updates that make the software more capable, easier to use and better suited to real world project workflows.

Our 2026 Alpha Tracker Roadmap sets out the major releases we have planned this year. These updates reflect customer feedback, industry demand and our ongoing commitment to practical improvements.

It's going to be a busy 2026 for the Alpha Tracker team!

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Release 42 (Q1): Customer-Driven Enhancements

We kick off the year with Release 42, which brings together a number of features we have been testing with customers:

• Improvements to Water Hygiene data collection and reporting, including enhanced Client Portal workflows

• Better automation of milestones and automated report email distribution

• Improved QR code support for field teams

• Enhanced admin automation, such as auto-populating of report recipients

• Completion of the Australian asbestos risk assessment methodology

• Ongoing security improvements across the product

This release lays a strong foundation for the rest of the year by focusing on core user needs and meaningful workflow improvements.

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April: Release 42.1 — Technical and Cosmetic Refresh

Next up is Release 42.1, focused on general performance and usability:

• Updated software framework for better overall performance

• Faster import tools, making data loading quicker

• A fresh look and cleaner user interface, optimized for tablets and desktop

• Usage tracking to guide future performance improvements

• Integration with Assure360

• API updates to support integrations with external systems

These enhancements make Alpha Tracker easier and faster to use day-to-day.

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May: Release 42.2 — AI Enhancements

Building on the AI work we started in 2025, Release 42.2 brings multiple AI-powered features:

• Jotter auto-summaries to help reduce time spent writing narrative text

• An AI photo analyser to assist with image tagging and interpretation

• Better list summaries throughout the product

• An updated and integrated AI QC checker

• Tracker Agent, our AI-powered replacement for Tracker Filer

These tools are designed to save time and support quality control across busy workflows.

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June: Release 42.3 — Finance

Customers have been clear that finance workflows matter. Release 42.3 focuses on:

• Improved Xero integration for smoother accounting workflows

• Faster, easier invoicing

• A new application for payment process

• A special feature to support designated charities

This release makes financial processes in Alpha Tracker quicker and more flexible.

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Custom Regional Updates: Release 42.4 (Australia & New Zealand)

We are batching up changes requested specifically by our Australian and New Zealand asbestos consultancy clients and delivering these in Release 42.4.

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Later Releases in 2026

After that we have a series of updates focused on specific areas of the product:

Release 42.5: Sales, Customer Service and Client Portal

This update will improve how your customers interact with Alpha Tracker through the Client Portal and optimise internal sales and service processes.

Release 42.6: Calendar & Maps

Expect new and improved calendar views, tighter integration with What3Words, enhanced mapping capability and a new Calendar Sync module.

Release 42.7: Fire Risk Module

We are rebuilding the Fire Risk assessment module from the ground up and plan to release this later in the year.

Release 42.8: Accessibility

Alpha Tracker already meets many accessibility standards. In this release we go further, especially for users with limited vision.

Release 42.9: Technical Refresh

Towards the end of the year we intend to retire some older modules “behind the scenes” and replace them with a new product core, setting the stage for Release 43 and future development.

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What This Means for You

This roadmap shows a clear progression through performance, usability, AI, finance, regional customisation and specialised updates. It reflects both our development priorities and the real needs of Alpha Tracker users.

We will continue to refine and adapt based on feedback as the year progresses, and you can expect each release to bring practical improvements to your workflows.

If you have specific ideas or requests for future releases, please get in touch. Your insight helps shape Alpha Tracker’s direction.

Support Desk Performance Update: February 2026

Time for another look under the bonnet of our Support Desk covering Alpha Tracker (UK and Australian/New Zealand support), Alpha Legal and ecoScribe.

We like publishing these updates for a simple reason. If you are trusting us to run systems that matter to your business, you deserve to know how we are performing. Not just the good months. All of it.

Here are the latest figures covering September 2025 through to February 2026.

The headline numbers

Over the last six months we have:

• Resolved 5,149 support tickets

• Delivered an overall 92 to 94 percent on-time resolution rate each month

• Achieved between 97 and 99 percent on-time performance for high-priority issues

That is not a small volume. It represents consistent, steady demand from clients using Alpha Tracker, especially, and the wider Start Software ecosystem every day.

We track Support Desk performance monthly - and weekly - and daily!

Monthly breakdown

A quick snapshot of the last six months:

• February 2026
  926 tickets resolved
  92.33 percent on time overall
  98.81 percent on time for high-priority

• January 2026
  904 tickets resolved
  93.58 percent on time overall
  98.86 percent high-priority

• December 2025
  685 tickets resolved
  91.09 percent on time overall
  99.30 percent high-priority

• November 2025
  808 tickets resolved
  92.08 percent on time overall
  99.37 percent high-priority

• October 2025
  947 tickets resolved
  92.40 percent on time overall
  97.16 percent high-priority

• September 2025
  879 tickets resolved
  94.20 percent on time overall
  98.38 percent high-priority

Across the period we resolved 4,772 standard priority tickets and 992 high-priority tickets within SLA.

What the numbers tell us

A few observations.

1. Volume remains high and steady

We are consistently resolving between 800 and 950 tickets per month, with December being the natural seasonal dip. That level of activity reflects a growing user base and more organisations embedding our software deeply into their workflows.

Busy is fine. Uncontrolled is not. The consistency shows the team is absorbing the load without performance dropping off a cliff.

2. High-priority issues are handled exceptionally quickly

When something is genuinely urgent, we treat it that way. High-priority SLA performance has stayed around 98 to 99 percent. That is where it needs to be.

If a system underpins field operations, compliance, billing, or reporting, delays are not just inconvenient. They cost money. Our focus is always to protect business continuity first.

3. Overall SLA performance is stable

Overall on-time performance has remained comfortably above 91 percent every month, peaking at over 94 percent.

Of course we would like that to be 100 percent. Real life occasionally intervenes. Complex issues take deeper investigation. Some require third-party involvement. Some involve careful data repair rather than a quick patch.

What matters is that the trend is stable and predictable, not volatile.

What sits behind these figures

Support performance is not just about answering tickets quickly. It depends on:

• Well-structured, documented software

• Clear release management

• Robust hosting infrastructure

• Experienced developers who can step into escalations

• And clients who provide good information when raising issues

We are fortunate on all counts.

As Alpha Tracker and our other platforms continue to evolve, we invest heavily in stability, monitoring, and preventative fixes. The best support ticket is the one that never needs to be raised.

A quiet thank you to the team

Support work is rarely glamorous. When things run smoothly, nobody notices. When something breaks, everyone notices.

Sustaining over five thousand resolutions in six months with consistently high SLA performance takes focus, discipline, and care. We are quietly proud of the team.

Zac keeping his eye on a ticket - and the Support Team

If you are a client

Please keep raising tickets through the proper channels. It helps us track, prioritise, and measure properly. Emails sent to individual developers may feel faster, but they make it harder to maintain this level of visibility and accountability.

And if you are considering working with us and want to understand how we operate, transparency like this is part of the culture.

We build software that supports operational businesses. That means our Support Desk has to perform, month in, month out.

If you would like to talk about how Alpha Tracker or our wider solutions could support your organisation, just get in touch.

We will keep publishing these updates. Quiet consistency beats loud promises every time.

Look for the latest Alpha Tracker Mobile which hits the app stores this week

Our latest Alpha Tracker Mobile update hits the app stores this week.  It is focused on fixing issues which have occasionally affected water hygiene users when syncing their data.

Make sure you update to the latest version of Alpha Tracker Mobile

The key change is that all users will now automatically be using the latest sync method - which will improve the speed and reliability of the sync process, especially when there is a slow or unreliable Internet connection.

Did you know that Alpha Tracker now produces 1000s of water hygiene reports each week?  Legionella is now one of the fastest growing sectors for Alpha Tracker.

You can check your app version in the "About" screen - the latest one is v3.1.91

Alpha Tracker order! It's been a long week, we needed cheering up..

Our Alpha Tracker asbestos software Support Desk has been hammered this week with complex questions from our lovely asbestos consultancy 😉 users.  Some of the questions have related to imports that users performed months ago... testing our ability to retrieve old system backups (we can!), look into complex data queries (yes, all good!) and keep calm whilst under stress to answer difficult questions quickly (sometimes...!!).

This is the face of a Support Tech pretending not to be stressed!

We've cheered ourselves up with another Alpha Tracker order at the end of the week, from an asbestos consultancy switching from our main competitor. More details to follow once we've taken the weekend to destress....

Welcome to the Alpha Tracker Family, Complete Asbestos Surveys

We are delighted to welcome Complete Asbestos Surveys to the growing community of organisations using asbestos software Alpha Tracker to streamline asbestos management and compliance.

This week, our very own Robin had the pleasure of delivering remote training to the Complete Asbestos Surveys team. They jumped straight in, exploring key features and workflows within Alpha Tracker that will help them manage surveys, reports, and compliance with confidence and efficiency. It was great to see such engagement and enthusiasm throughout the session.

Robin preparing for the Complete Asbestos Surveys Alpha Tracker training session

Ready for Success

Complete Asbestos Surveys provide expert asbestos survey and consultancy services across the UK. Their commitment to high-quality, client-focused solutions aligns perfectly with the way Alpha Tracker supports visibility, accuracy, and accountability in asbestos management. You can find out more about their services on their website: https://www.completeasbestossurveys.co.uk/

What We Covered in Training

During the session, Robin guided the team through:

• Setting up projects and managing survey workflows

• Customising templates and reports for consistency

• Using dashboards and filters to stay on top of tasks and deadlines

• Best practices for data integrity and compliance

The team picked up the essentials quickly and asked great questions throughout — we’re confident they’re ready to get the most out of Alpha Tracker from day one.

Welcome Onboard

It’s a privilege to support Complete Asbestos Surveys as they begin their Alpha Tracker journey. We’re here to help every step of the way, whether it’s refining templates, importing data, or exploring advanced features.

Here’s to greater efficiency, clarity, and success together!

If you’d like to share your own experience with Alpha Tracker or talk through your onboarding, just let us know — we’d love to hear from you.

Two weeks to go until Sydney, Australia and the FAMANZ Asbestos Conference

In just a fortnight, Robin Bennett, CEO of Alpha Tracker, will be speaking at the FAMANZ Asbestos Conference in Sydney. #Asbestos2026 

He’ll be joined by Judy Key, Director of our Australian asbestos software company, Alpha Tracker Pty, as we connect with asbestos professionals from across Australia and New Zealand.

Robin’s topic: AI innovations in asbestos surveying

Artificial Intelligence is no longer something “coming soon” to our sector. It is already reshaping how surveys are captured, analysed and delivered.

Robin will be sharing practical, real-world insights into:

• How AI can support asbestos survey data validation

• Reducing reporting time without compromising compliance

• Improving accuracy and consistency across large portfolios

• Where AI genuinely helps, and where human expertise still matters most

As always, this won’t be blue-sky theory. It will be grounded in real development work inside Alpha Tracker and real challenges faced by asbestos consultants every day.

Why this matters

The asbestos industry is under constant pressure: tighter compliance expectations, faster turnaround times and increasing scrutiny from clients and regulators.

AI is not about replacing surveyors. It is about giving them better tools.

If you’re attending FAMANZ in Sydney, we would love to see you there. Come and say hello, ask questions, and find out what’s next for AI-driven asbestos management software.

Australia, we’re looking forward to seeing you soon.

Our Second Traction/EOS Away Day – Birmingham, Big Goals and Even Bigger Ambition

Yesterday we held our second Traction/EOS “away day” in Birmingham.

Present were:

• Me (Robin, CEO)

• Catherine, our Customer Success Manager

• Jack, CTO

• Dan, Development Manager

No inbox distractions. No “just a quick call”. Just a room, a screen, notebooks… and some properly big thinking.

Jack, Dan, Catherine and my empty chair!

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Why We Do Traction Days

We follow the principles in Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business by Gino Wickman. It’s not fluffy strategy. It’s structured, practical and occasionally uncomfortable.

And that’s exactly why it works.

Our away days are designed to pull us out of day-to-day delivery mode and force us to answer questions like:

• Where are we actually going?

• What does success look like in 12 months?

• In 3 years?

• In 10?

• Do the right people own the right things?

• Are we building the team we’ll need — not just the team we have?

Traction and a glass of gin/water

Setting Our 1-Year, 3-Year and 10-Year Targets

The 10-year conversation is always my favourite.

It stretches thinking. It removes artificial limits. It forces us to ask what Start Software and Alpha Tracker could genuinely become if we execute well, stay focused and keep improving.

From there, we worked backwards:

• What must be true in 3 years to make that 10-year vision inevitable?

• What absolutely has to happen in the next 12 months to stay on track?

This isn’t about vague ambition. It’s about clarity.

Revenue targets. Product development priorities. Market positioning. Team structure. Delivery standards. Everything gets put under the microscope.

And sometimes rewritten.

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Reviewing Our Accountability Chart

One of the most valuable parts of the day was reviewing our staff accountability chart.

Not a traditional org chart. An accountability chart.

There’s a big difference.

It forces us to define:

• Who owns what.

• Where responsibilities overlap.

• Where there are gaps.

• Whether someone truly “gets it, wants it and has the capacity to do it”.

These conversations are constructive, but they’re honest. If we want to grow sustainably, clarity beats comfort every time.

We also reviewed development needs — not just technical capability, but leadership growth, communication and decision-making maturity.

If we want a 10-year vision to become reality, we have to grow as individuals at the same rate as the business.

Our first time at St Paul's Suite in Birmingham, a great venue

Why Away Days Matter

It would be easy to skip days like this.

There’s always client work to deliver. Always features to build. Always improvements to make.

But without stepping back, you drift.

With structured planning, you steer.

This was our second Traction away day. The conversations were sharper than the first. The thinking was clearer. The ambition was bigger.

And that’s exactly how it should be.

Onwards.

A long lunch with old friend and asbestos compaigner, Ray Nye

Today was one of those visits that reminds you what really matters.

Me (Robin), Kirsty, Ray and Andrew

I popped in to see Ray Nye, the husband of the much-missed and much-loved Mavis Nye, along with regular visitor Kirsty Budenbender from DSK and Andrew Paten from UKNAR. What was meant to be a catch-up turned into a proper natter, plenty of laughter, and the sort of easy conversation that only happens when people genuinely enjoy each other’s company.

Ray was on fine form.

There’s something wonderfully grounding about spending time with someone who has seen so much, done so much, and yet still carries warmth and humour so lightly. We talked about work, about people we know, about life generally, about Bristol Zoo, and about Ray's new hobby, Mahjong! It was not solemn. It was not formal. It was simply good company.

Remembering Mavis, Naturally

Of course, whenever Ray is in the room, Mavis is never far from the conversation.

Not in a heavy way. Not in a sombre way. Just as part of the fabric of things.

Mavis Nye did extraordinary work as an asbestos awareness campaigner. After being diagnosed with mesothelioma, she turned what would have crushed many people into a platform for action. She campaigned tirelessly for better awareness, stronger regulation, and justice for those affected by asbestos exposure. She helped give a voice to people who often felt unheard.

And she did it with courage, humour, and determination.

The funny thing is, when you’re sitting in Ray’s living room laughing about everyday things, you’re reminded that behind every campaign, every headline, every policy discussion, there are real people. Real families. Real lives.

That’s easy to forget when we are buried in paperwork, compliance documents, or technical guidance.

Why It Still Matters

Asbestos is not history. It is not something we can neatly file away under “industrial past”.

It is still present in thousands of buildings across the UK. It still poses risks. It still affects families. The work that organisations like DSK and UKNAR are doing remains important because awareness, management, and responsibility are ongoing duties, not one-off exercises.  It's the reason we created asbestos software Alpha Tracker here at Start Software.

But today was not about reports or regulations.

It was about connection.

It was about remembering that behind every awareness campaign is a human story. Behind every safety protocol is someone’s parent, partner, or friend.

And it was about laughter.

Because if Mavis taught us anything, it was that strength and humour are not opposites. They sit very comfortably together.

The Best Kind of Catch Up

We left having laughed a lot, put the world to rights in a modest sort of way, and reminded ourselves why the work around asbestos awareness still matters.

Not because it is dramatic.

Not because it is political.

But because it is personal.

And sometimes the most meaningful moments are simply a handful of people in a warm room, sharing stories, remembering someone remarkable, and carrying on the work in their own way.

Thank you, Ray, for the welcome, the stories, and the laughs.

We’ll be back for another cup of tea and Kirsty's sandwiches soon.

🚨 High Priority Under Pressure: Delivering When It Matters Most

When we talk about Support Desk performance, it’s easy to focus on overall SLA percentages. But some tickets matter more than others — and that’s where the real story lives.

Our Support Desk - performing Under Pressure

High-priority (H) tickets are often time-critical, business-impacting, and unpredictable. Looking back over the last six months, these tickets show just how consistent and resilient the Support Desk has been when the pressure is on.

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📊 Consistency where it counts

Between August and January, the Support Desk resolved 992 high-priority tickets. Throughout that entire period, the in-time rate for H tickets stayed impressively high — between 97% and 99% every single month.

January is a strong example:

• 🔴 174 high-priority tickets solved

• ⏱️ 98.86% completed within SLA

That level of performance doesn’t happen by chance. It shows clear prioritisation and a strong focus on what matters most.

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💪 Pressure doesn’t mean compromise

Ticket volumes naturally rise and fall. Over the same six-month period, total tickets solved ranged from 685 to 947 per month.

Even during busier months like October and January, high-priority performance remained consistently strong. When demand increases, the desk doesn’t trade quality for speed — it adapts.

That’s a key indicator of a mature and reliable support operation.

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🧠 What helps make this possible?

Behind the numbers are some important habits:

• Clear triage and prioritisation

• Strong ownership and handovers

• Experience handling complex and urgent issues

• A shared understanding of what “high priority” really means

Together, these keep critical issues moving — even when things get busy.

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🔮 Looking ahead

High-priority tickets will always be unpredictable. What is predictable is how the Support Desk responds.

As we move into the next quarter, the challenge isn’t just maintaining these results — it’s understanding what helps sustain them at scale, and where we can push even further.

Because when it really matters, performance under pressure is what counts most ⭐

Our Start Software Support Desk handles issues for asbestos/water/fire software Alpha Tracker, legal services portal Alpha Legal/Alpha Portal and environmental reporting software ecoScribe.

🚗 Start Software's Roadvlog on Good Morning Britain — Clean Up Britain Spotlight on Britain’s Most Repulsive Road

Britain's most repulsive road - the A50/A38

This week, Roadvlog was featured on ITV’s Good Morning Britain during a discussion about Britain’s most repulsive road — and the national attention couldn’t have come at a better time for our growing community of road observers and data contributors.  Watch for yourself, here: https://www.itv.com/watch/good-morning-britain/2a3211/2a3211a4265 (fast-forward to approx. 10 minutes in).

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During the segment, the presenters highlighted how poor road conditions — from litter-strewn verges to deep potholes and debris — are one of the biggest frustrations for British drivers. Roadvlog’s data plays a central role in understanding and documenting these everyday experiences on UK roads.

The A50/A38 problem was first reported by Martin Burrows from Truckers Cleaning Up Britain - so thanks Martin!  Clean Up Britain made the award after reviewing the 5,500+ reports made within Roadvlog.

🚘 What Is Roadvlog?

Roadvlog is a simple, web-based roadside condition logging app that empowers passengers to report and rate the state of roadside verges and road surfaces as they travel. Using GPS-enabled logging, users can:

• 📍 Capture a photo of the roadside

• 🧰 Rate the condition (from clean to serious litter/debris)

• 📊 Submit a report in seconds

All reports are automatically logged with location and local authority — building a powerful, evidence-based dataset that helps campaigners and authorities understand where improvements are needed most.

🛣️ From Drivers to Data: Your Contributions Matter

Roadvlog wouldn’t exist without its active user base. Every submission — whether it’s litter on a country lane or erosion on an A-road embankment — adds to a growing dataset that drives awareness and supports real campaigns for cleaner, safer, and better-maintained roads.

In the Good Morning Britain feature, the importance of data and public feedback was emphasised as part of a wider conversation about road quality and driver frustration across the UK. With issues like potholes and poor verge conditions topping lists of motoring grievances, Roadvlog’s crowdsourced approach is more relevant than ever.

📈 Why It Matters

Britain’s road conditions continue to be a major talking point among drivers — from persistent potholes across local networks to stretches of highway that feel neglected or unsafe. Public reporting tools like Roadvlog shine a spotlight on these issues and provide an independent, data-driven perspective on what’s really happening out on the tarmac.

🧠 Get Involved

Have you spotted a road that needs reporting? Try Roadvlog now at roadvlog.uk and start logging reports today — every submission helps build a clearer picture of the UK’s road health.

Together, we’re turning everyday journeys into meaningful insights that can help influence better road maintenance and policy change.