SimplifyVMS - 173tech

Data Roadmap

Turning reporting and analytics into a core SaaS feature

Objective

Enable fully customisable client reporting, without costs scaling per client.

Obstacle

A costly existing data stack, months-long onboarding, and an architecture that could not scale.

Outcome

Over $330k saved annually, onboarding reduced by 75%, and a fully embedded analytics team.

Background

SimplifyVMS provides vendor management systems for temporary staffing, serving enterprise clients including EasyJet, Marriott and PwC. Their platform is known for its flexibility in managing contingent workforce recruitment.

The team wanted to take reporting to the next level, giving every client 100% customisation of their dashboards and the ability to drag-and-drop bespoke reports. This meant building multi-tenancy infrastructure and a bespoke modelling pipeline for each client, without costs spiralling. They brought in 173tech to design and deliver the solution.

Challenges

Unsustainable Infrastructure Costs: The existing reporting stack, built on Databricks and EC2, was expensive to run and difficult to scale. Frequent memory issues in Kafka and Databricks workers added significant maintenance overhead, and the architecture was not designed to support a growing client base without costs escalating.

Onboarding That Could Not Keep Pace: Each new client required months of manual code creation and a separate Git branch, with individual updates needed for every new metric or feature. Without automation, engineering time was consumed by repetitive maintenance rather than product development, and clients were left waiting months for their reporting to go live.

Solution

Redesigned Data Architecture: 173tech evaluated multiple options, including Redshift, Databricks, Snowflake and Clickhouse. SimplifyVMS selected the option with Redshift with federated schemas for real-time data access. dbt was introduced to automate data transformations (replacing manual code), Airflow was deployed to orchestrate ETL processes, and a multi-tenant schema strategy was built to support custom client requirements without duplicating effort.

Enhanced Data Processing and Governance: A structured data modelling layer was introduced to simplify reporting and eliminate manual SQL joins. Governance policies were put in place to ensure secure access controls and data segregation per client, improving compliance and security.

Impact

Faster, Scalable Infrastructure: Client onboarding dropped from months to days through automated workflows. Materialised views were introduced to optimise query speed, and data refresh rates improved from hourly to near real-time, giving clients faster, more informed decision-making.

Knowledge Transfer: 173tech worked closely with SimplifyVMS’s internal team to build their capability in data architecture, analytics and best practices. Through targeted training and hands-on support, the team was empowered to troubleshoot issues, optimise workflows and implement scalable solutions independently.

Future-Proof: Through a strategic overhaul of its data architecture, SimplifyVMS now has a scalable, cost-effective and automated reporting system. The new infrastructure enables faster client onboarding, lower costs and near real-time insights, positioning reporting as a genuine competitive advantage.