Readable references
Every item gets a reference like PORTAL-142, numbered per project and easy to mention in an email.
The problem
Your work is spread across five tools, three naming schemes and somebody’s inbox.
Name your columns, keep a common language.
Every project gets the columns it needs, and underneath, each one maps to one of seven stages. That’s what lets one board hold every customer at once, and lets each client read your board in their own words.
01 · Columns & stages
Your own columns, one shared vocabulary.
Add, rename, reorder and archive columns per project. Each column says which of the seven stages it stands for, and that mapping does the rest: one board across all your customers, a label per column for the client, and a status dot that means the same thing everywhere.
- Two columns can share a stage, so “Internal QA” and “Client review” can both sit under Review.
- Each column can carry a label for the client, so “Done · billable” reads as “Delivered” on their side.
- There’s no colour picker. The stage decides the dot, so every board reads the same way.
Portal Relaunch — columns6 of 7 stages used
| Your label | Stage | Client sees |
|---|---|---|
| Requested | Backlog | Requested |
| Estimated | Planned | Quote ready |
| In progress | In progress | We’re on it |
| In review | Review | Awaiting your feedback |
| Done · billable | Done | Delivered |
| Blockedyou added this | Blocked | same as internal |
The seventh stage, Billed, is for work that has been invoiced. This project hasn’t mapped a column to it yet.
02 · Client requests
Four fields instead of an email to re-type.
Your client raises the work themselves. It lands on the project’s board as a work item in their own words, recording who asked and when, and files can be added to the item afterwards. The person who wanted it stays on the record.
- They suggest a priority. You set the estimate and the assignee, and you have the final say.
- Clients can only move a card when you’ve opened both the column it leaves and the one it enters.
Request work — as your client sees it
TitlePDF invoice export
DescriptionWe need to hand invoices to our accountant as PDF, with the same numbering as the portal.
PriorityHigh▾
ProjectPortal Relaunch▾
03 · Two estimates
The estimate you share, and the one you expect.
Each item has a quoted estimate, which the client sees, and an internal estimate, which only your team sees. Both start at the same number, so any difference between them is a deliberate choice rather than an oversight. The internal estimate shows where your estimates tend to run short, and it never leaves your side.
- Tracked hours sit next to both, so going over the estimate shows up on the item.
- Change the quoted estimate later and the internal estimate stays exactly where you left it.
Your side
PORTAL-142SEPA direct debit
Internal
10.0 h
Quoted to client
8.0 h
Tracked
9.4 h
Their side
PORTAL-142SEPA direct debit
Estimated effort8.0 h
Internal estimate and hours: not sent04 · All work
One board across every customer.
The workspace board pulls every project into the seven stages, so Monday morning’s question, what’s in progress everywhere, has a single answer. Narrow it to your own work with one switch, or open a project to see its own columns.
- Board or list: the list drops columns as the window narrows, so it fits on a laptop beside a call.
- The open item lives in the URL, so a colleague who opens your link lands on the same item.
All work3 customers · grouped by stage
Backlog
PORTAL-151Muster GmbH
NORD-12Nordlicht
In progress
PORTAL-142Muster GmbH
OCK-7Studio Ocker
Review
NORD-9Nordlicht
In detail
Five priorities
None, low, medium, high and urgent. Only high and urgent are shown in colour, so they stand out on the board.
Labels across projects
One vocabulary for the whole agency, so the same thing carries the same word in every project.
Comments in two modes
Each comment is internal or shared with the client. On an internal item, the shared option simply isn’t offered.
Files with previews
Drop or paste screenshots onto an item or a comment. Images show a preview, and every file passes the same access checks.
Linked documents
Attach a spec or a brief to the item it describes, and reference any item from any text.
Edit in place
Title, description and estimates are edited right where they appear, the description with the full rich-text editor.
A timer on every card
Start tracking from the card, the list row or the item itself. One click, and no form to fill in.
Other features
See it with your own customers in it.
We’ll set up your workspace with you and move your current projects over before the first call ends.