Penmaen Software / BG-Demo – QBR
Callcompleted
Penmaen Software · 22 Dec 2025 14:30
QBR on 22 Dec 2025 with CFO Huw Bevan: about eight daily active users against 40 licences, no tickets, invoices paid. He wants evidence the subscription earns its price before the 25 Jul 2026 renewal.
What was said
What this says
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026QBR on 22 Dec 2025 with CFO Huw Bevan: about eight daily active users against 40 licences, no tickets, invoices paid. He wants evidence the subscription earns its price before the 25 Jul 2026 renewal.
What happened: Marcus Bell reported around eight daily active users, slightly down on the previous quarter, with 40 licensed users. Cerys Llewellyn put the dip down to December absence and year-end reporting.
Customer view: Huw Bevan accepts payment is fine but says value is his question. Cerys says the brain replaced three spreadsheets, but admits she has no clean count of renewals spotted early.
Commercial: The contract runs to 24 Jul 2026 with renewal on 25 Jul 2026, and Tom Ashdown owns terms and price. Huw asked for no conversation on that yet and wants to decide on evidence in the spring.
Watch: This is a value risk, not a money risk. The evidence does not show the renewal outcome.
Themes
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026Theme
Value case before renewal
Importance
renewal
Sentiment
mixed
Voice
decision-maker
Who was there
BG-Demo
CRMmade from
Them
CRMmade from
Follow-up
Next steps
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Marcus Bell to send a one-page usage case in January, ahead of the 25 Jul 2026 renewal.
- Marcus Bell and Ffion Rees to fix the renewal date column on the dashboard.
- Cerys Llewellyn to pick the first account managers and, with Ffion, count renewals the chat helped spot.
Risks
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- The CFO questions whether use justifies the annual fee and wants proof in numbers.
- Use is concentrated in a small core and fell slightly on the previous quarter.
- Cerys has no count of renewals the brain helped spot, so the value case is not yet evidenced.
Opportunities
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Getting four or five account managers on the brain in January would broaden use against 40 licences.
- Finishing the per-operator dashboard on the Growth plan would put renewal dates in front of account managers.
Transcript
Marcus BellAfternoon, everyone. Can you all hear me? I think I'm still waiting on one or two.
Cerys LlewellynAfternoon, Marcus. I can hear you. Ffion's just coming in, I can see her in the lobby. Huw is here already, I think he's muted.
Huw BevanGood afternoon. Yes, I'm here. Apologies, I couldn't find the unmute button.
Ffion ReesHello, sorry, I'm here now. The link took me to the wrong room first.- Marcus BellNo problem at all. Thanks for making time, especially this close to Christmas. I know it's a busy week. I'll share my screen and say what I want to cover, if that's alright.
- Huw BevanBefore you do, if I may. Could we start with adoption? I'd like to understand who is actually using it. That's what I always want to know.
- Marcus BellOf course, that's the right place to start, and it's the first thing on my list anyway. So the plan is usage first, then tickets and service, then what you want to get from the next few months. Is that okay for everyone?
- Cerys LlewellynThat's fine by me. Huw, I've told Marcus you'll want the whole picture, so he's got it ready.
- Marcus BellRight. So I've pulled the numbers for the quarter. On average, around eight people were active each day over the last month. That's a bit below the previous quarter, so I'll be straight with you, it's gone down slightly.
- Huw BevanI see. And you have forty licences?
- Marcus BellForty licensed users, yes. So you're using a fraction of what's there.
- Huw BevanMm. Right. That is rather what I was worried about. It's forty-eight and a half thousand a year, so I do need to see it earn that.
- Marcus BellUnderstood. I'd rather give you the honest picture than dress it up. Cerys, would you say there's an explanation on your side? Because it's December, and I know that changes things.
- Cerys LlewellynIt does, yes. I don't want to make excuses, Huw, but we've had people off, and a couple of the account managers have been out visiting operators, which is what they do at this time of year. And we've had a few weeks where the whole team was heads down on the year-end reporting.
- Huw BevanThat's reasonable. But is it the seasonal dip, or is it something that will carry on into the new year? Those are different things.
- Cerys LlewellynFair question. I'd say the first, mostly. But I've seen this work best when it's part of the weekly routine, and I'll be honest, it isn't yet for everyone. That's on me.
- Marcus BellIf it helps, the pattern looks like a dip rather than a trend. It was climbing earlier in the autumn, and the people who do use it, use it regularly. It's the breadth I'd want to see more of.
- Huw BevanSo who are the regular users? Roughly. I don't need names, I'd like a sense of who.
- Marcus BellA small core. Cerys and Ffion ask most of the questions, then a few of the customer success managers, then a long tail who dip in occasionally. Ffion, you're the admin, is that how it feels to you?
- Ffion ReesYes, that's about right. I'd say I'm in there most days, partly because I'm the one keeping an eye on the connectors and making sure the refresh has landed each morning. The others come and go depending on whether they have a renewal in front of them.
- Huw BevanAnd the refresh. Has it been reliable?
- Ffion ReesVery. I haven't had to chase anything this quarter. It's been there first thing, every morning I've looked.
- Marcus BellThat matches what I see. No tickets in the last month at all, so nothing open and nothing high priority. Quiet, which in this case I read as it just working. And the invoices are all paid, nothing overdue.
- Huw BevanGood. I'd expect that. The payment side is fine, it's the value I'm asking about. What would we lose if we stopped using it?
- Cerys LlewellynCan I take that one? Honestly, we'd lose the single view across tickets, renewals and usage for each leisure operator. Before this, I had three spreadsheets and a lot of phoning round. Now I can ask one question and see which operators have gone quiet before the renewal conversation, not after.
- Huw BevanI understand the principle. But I'd want to see that in numbers. How many renewals did we spot early that we might otherwise have missed?
- Cerys LlewellynI don't have a clean count, and I won't pretend I do. I could put one together with Ffion. That's a fair thing to ask for.
- Ffion ReesWe could probably do it from the renewal list. Match the ones we flagged in the chat against what happened. It would take me a few days in the new year.
- Huw BevanThat would be helpful. Let's not rush it, I'd rather it was right than quick. Marcus, what could you provide from your side?
- Marcus BellI can put together a one-page usage case. Who's active, how the questions have trended over the year, what's been built, tickets and response times. Plain numbers, nothing fancy. And I can send it in January so it's in front of you well ahead of the summer.
- Huw BevanThank you. And the date, just so I have it right. The contract runs until July?
- Marcus BellIt runs to 24 Jul 2026, with the renewal on 25 Jul 2026. So there's time. Anything about terms or price would be with Tom Ashdown, he's your account owner, and I'd rather he picked that up with you than me muddling it.
- Huw BevanUnderstood. I'm not asking for a conversation about that today. I just like to know where things stand.
- Marcus BellOf course. Shall I show you the dashboards page quickly? It's the part of the Growth plan I'd most like to see used more, and it ties into the usage case.
- Cerys LlewellynYes, go on. We did start one after the last call, didn't we, Ffion?
- Ffion ReesWe did. One per operator view, with tickets and usage. I built the first and got a bit stuck on the renewal date column, then December happened.
- Marcus BellThat's still there, you got further than you think. The renewal date column is the bit that needs the finance data connected, and that's something we can sort together. Happy to jump on a call with you in the new year, if that suits.
- Ffion ReesThat would help a lot, thanks. If I can get that column working, I think the account managers will actually use it.
- Huw BevanWhich is the point. If it's pinned in front of them, they don't have to remember to ask.
- Cerys LlewellynExactly. Let's start with the team who'll use it, that's my view. Get four or five account managers on it properly in January, and then see where we are, rather than telling everyone to log in and hoping.
- Huw BevanI think that's sensible. Let us do that, and then look at the numbers together in the spring. I'd rather we made a decision on evidence.
- Marcus BellThat works for me. Let me read back what I've got. I'll send the one-page usage case in January. Ffion and I will fix the renewal date column on the dashboard. Cerys will pick the first group of account managers, and you'll do the count of renewals the chat helped you spot. Have I missed anything?
- Cerys LlewellynThat's everything, I think. I'll write the group of names to you before the break if I can, otherwise first week back.
- Ffion ReesAnd I'll send you some times for the dashboard session. Not the first week, we're all still on holiday, but the week after.
- Huw BevanThank you, Marcus. A useful session. I appreciate you being candid about the numbers.
- Marcus BellThanks, Huw. Happy to be. Have a good Christmas, all of you, and thanks for your time.
- Cerys LlewellynNadolig llawen, Marcus. Diolch, everyone.
- Ffion ReesBye, all. Happy Christmas.
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