What was said
What this says
Current to 13 Oct 26Graeme Charlton, CFO, has the renewal proposal but has made no decision; the board wants to see what it returns. His governance lead asked whether single sign-on fits twelve sites. Usage is climbing and a finance session was agreed.
What happened: Marcus Bell reviewed rising usage, two same-day tickets and the renewal. He offered the brain to the finance team, and Graeme agreed to a short session at no cost.
Customer view: Graeme said he had not made a decision on the proposal and that the board wants to see what it returns before they sign anything. He also asked for a written answer on single sign-on before the end of the year.
Commercial: The contract was stated as £51k a year, contracted and invoiced the same, ending 5 Jan 2026. Single sign-on is part of Enterprise, so the question may point to an upgrade conversation.
Watch: Marcus owes a written SSO answer and the finance session. Price sits with Lewis, and the proposal and usage story need to match.
Themes
Current to 9 Oct 26Who was there
BB-Demo
Them
Follow-up
Next steps
Current to 9 Oct 26- Marcus Bell to send a written single sign-on answer to Graeme Charlton before the end of the year.
- Marcus Bell to run a short session for the finance people with example questions.
- Marcus Bell to keep Lewis informed so the proposal and usage story match.
Risks
Current to 9 Oct 26- The board has not decided and wants to see the return before signing the renewal.
- A late or loose answer on single sign-on could stall the board paper.
Opportunities
Current to 9 Oct 26- Single sign-on is an Enterprise feature, so the governance lead's question points to a possible upgrade.
- Finance staff could use the brain for overdue invoices within the existing licence.
Transcript
- Marcus Bell NoneHello Graeme. Afternoon. Can you hear me all right?
- Graeme Charlton NoneAfternoon, Marcus. Yes, fine. Bit grey up here, but no snow yet.
- Marcus Bell NoneSame in Manchester. Just rain. Well, thanks for making the time. I'll share my screen and say what I want to cover: usage since we last spoke, the couple of tickets, and then where we are with the renewal.
- Graeme Charlton NoneGood. What's changed?
- Marcus Bell NoneMainly that usage is still climbing. Active users are up about sixteen per cent on the previous quarter, averaging nearly eight a day. The contract managers are the heart of it.
- Graeme Charlton NoneIs that good or just more of the same?
- Marcus Bell NoneIt's good. It's a steady upward line rather than a spike, which is what I like to see. And the pattern is that they open it first thing, check the trust referrals, then come back to it when invoices and turnaround tickets need lining up.
- Graeme Charlton NoneThat's what we bought it for. One view per trust.
- Marcus Bell NoneRight, exactly. Mm. One thing I'd flag is that you've got forty licensed users and we're nowhere near that, so if there's a team that hasn't been shown it yet, it'd be easy to bring them in.
- Graeme Charlton NoneWhich team did you have in mind?
- Marcus Bell NoneWell, I wondered about the finance side. You mentioned payment timeliness, particularly from the trusts, and the brain already has the invoices. A couple of your finance people could ask it who is late and by how long, without building a report.
- Graeme Charlton NoneHm. That's interesting. I'd want to see it first. Can you show me?
- Marcus Bell NoneHappy to. I've got your own data up here. If I ask it which invoices are overdue by trust, you get this table, and then I can follow up in the same chat. See, it keeps the context.
- Graeme Charlton NoneHold on. That's the one I'd normally ask my team for on Monday mornings.
- Marcus Bell NoneYes. And it's the same source your team already uses, so there's no second version of the truth.
- Graeme Charlton NoneRight. Let's keep it simple. Who would need to be set up?
- Marcus Bell NoneJust the people. They're inside the licence you have already, so no extra cost. I'd do a short session with them, maybe half an hour, and give them three or four example questions to start.
- Graeme Charlton NoneDo that. Is there a cost for the session?
- Marcus Bell NoneNo, that's part of what I do for you. It's not a paid add-on.
- Graeme Charlton NoneGood. Support, then. You said a couple of tickets.
- Marcus Bell NoneTwo in the last month, neither high priority. One was how to filter the referrals view by modality, MRI against CT, and the other was asking how a particular invoice was linked to a trust. Both answered inside the same day.
- Graeme Charlton NoneNothing about the data being out of date?
- Marcus Bell NoneNo. The nightly refresh has been landing before seven each business morning, so the contract managers have fresh numbers when they sit down. If that ever slipped I'd expect to hear it from them quickly.
- Graeme Charlton NoneThey would tell me, trust me.
- Marcus Bell NoneI believe it. Ha.
- Graeme Charlton NoneSo, the renewal. Lewis has sent me the proposal. I've not made a decision. The board want to see what it returns before they sign anything.
- Marcus Bell NoneUnderstood. I'm not the one to talk price, that's Lewis, and I'd not want to step on that. What I can do is give you the usage story for the board. I sent you a one-pager on that, did it arrive?
- Graeme Charlton NoneIt did. I read it on the train. It was clear. I passed it to our governance lead.
- Marcus Bell NoneGood. Did she have any questions? I can answer them or take them away.
- Graeme Charlton NoneShe had one. Whether single sign-on would work with how we manage staff accounts across the twelve sites. I told her I didn't know.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat's a fair one, and I don't want to guess. Single sign-on is part of Enterprise, and I'll get a proper answer from our technical team about how it fits your setup. I'll come back with it in writing rather than say something loose on a call.
- Graeme Charlton NonePlease. And before the end of the year, if you can. I'd like to put it in front of the board with the rest.
- Marcus Bell NoneI'll do my best to have it to you well before then. I can't promise an exact day on someone else's work, but I'll chase it myself.
- Graeme Charlton NoneThat's all I ask. Suppliers that keep their word. I've had plenty that don't.
- Marcus Bell NoneUnderstood. So, to recap. I'll set up a short session for the finance people, I'll get the single sign-on answer for your governance lead, and I'll keep Lewis in the loop so the proposal and the usage story match.
- Graeme Charlton NoneGood. And the contract itself. Remind me where it stands, so I don't misquote it to the board.
- Marcus Bell NoneContracted and invoiced at £50,800 a year, both the same. It ends on 5 Jan 2026, with the renewal date 6 Jan 2026. Lewis will confirm the detail but those are the figures on the order form.
- Graeme Charlton NoneThank you. That's what I had. Well, I'll leave it there, Marcus. Useful, as ever.
- Marcus Bell NoneThanks, Graeme. I'll send a short note after this with the actions. Speak soon.
- Graeme Charlton NoneGoodbye.