How The Crew built CallOps: real time control over every fundraising campaign
Who's who?
The Crew is a Belgian call center specialized in fundraising campaigns for major NGOs, including Natuurpunt, Oxfam Belgium and Dokters van de Wereld.
The Challenge
Operational, financial and planning data lived in separate systems that didn't communicate. Reporting and reconciliation were manual, and every increase in volume meant more work and less clarity.
Approach
Together with The Crew, we built CallOps: one platform on top of their call center software that brings together campaign, planning and financial data. It keeps evolving through weekly co building sessions.
Result
Near real time visibility on campaigns, agents and performance, automated reporting and reconciliation, and client portals that give NGOs live insight into their campaigns. The Crew fully owns its system and data.
Outcome summary
The Crew transformed its call center operations into a fully integrated, data driven system by co building CallOps, a tailored operational platform connecting Steam Connect, financial data, and internal workflows into one scalable backbone.
Key results
- One central platform for operations, planning, and financial tracking
- Near real time visibility on campaigns, agents, and performance
- Elimination of manual reporting and reconciliation
- Continuous system evolution through weekly co building
- Full ownership of their operational system and data
The Challenge
The challenge was structural, not tactical.
As operations scaled, complexity increased across multiple layers:
Fragmented data ecosystem
Operational data lived in Steam Connect, financial data in accounting tools, and planning in separate systems. These sources did not communicate.
No real time performance visibility
Campaign insights and KPIs required manual consolidation, delaying decision making.
Manual planning and coordination
Agent allocation and scheduling lacked performance driven logic, limiting efficiency.
Complex financial reconciliation
Matching sold hours, performed hours, and campaign results was time consuming and error prone.
Client reporting pressure
NGOs required clear insights, but reports were created manually and reactively.
This created a scaling ceiling. More volume meant more manual work, more risk, and less clarity.
Approach
This was not a delivery. It was a co building process.
Together with The Crew, we designed and continuously evolve CallOps, an advanced project management and operations platform built on Airtable.
At its core, CallOps acts as an operational layer on top of Steam Connect.
1. Deep integration with Steam Connect
- Direct connection to campaign, agent, and performance data
- Near real time updates every 15 to 60 minutes depending on use case
- Reliable data flow via the Customer Data Reporting API
This ensures decisions are based on live operational data, not snapshots.
2. Centralisation of all operational data
CallOps brings together:
- Campaign performance data from Steam
- Financial data for invoicing and margin tracking
- Timesheets and planning data
- Internal operational metrics
One system, one source of truth.
3. Advanced planning and operational control
- Agent allocation based on performance and availability
- Visibility per campaign, project, and agent
- Structured workflows replacing ad hoc coordination
This turns planning from manual scheduling into data driven optimisation.
4. Automated reporting and client transparency
- Real time dashboards for internal teams
- Client portals for NGOs with live campaign insights
- Elimination of manual reporting cycles
Clients no longer wait for reports. They access them.
5. Financial clarity and automation
- Direct linkage between sold and performed hours
- Accurate input for invoicing and margin analysis
- Removal of manual reconciliation work
This connects operations directly to financial outcomes.
6. Continuous co building model
This is where the model fundamentally differs.
- Weekly iterations with The Crew team
- Monthly CallOps credits for ongoing development and optimisation
- New features, workflows, and integrations added continuously
Examples include:
- Workflow automation
- AI driven enhancements
- Custom dashboards and logic layers
- Integration with CRM, HR, and accounting systems
The system evolves with the business, not behind it.
Result
The impact is not just efficiency. It is control.
From fragmented tools to one operational backbone
All critical data flows into a single platform, eliminating silos.
From delayed insights to real time decision making
Campaign performance, agent productivity, and financial metrics are visible continuously.
From manual work to automation
Planning, reporting, and reconciliation are system driven, not spreadsheet driven.
From service provider to data driven partner
The Crew can offer NGOs transparent, real time insights into campaign performance.
From dependency to ownership
The Crew owns its system, its logic, and its data. No black box.
From static tooling to continuous evolution
Through weekly co building, the system keeps adapting to new campaigns, clients, and scale.
Closing line
The Crew did not adopt a tool. They built their own operational system, layer by layer, turning a call center into a fully data driven fundraising engine with complete control over how it scales.
Wannes Driessens
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