Small business workspace setup for a team of up to twenty

Who this setup is for

Shops, studios, service businesses, travel agencies and other small teams where the same few people handle customers, admin and delivery. It replaces the mix of group chats, spreadsheets and paper lists that most small businesses start with.

You set this up by hand in a few minutes, and can add spaces later as the business grows.

Spaces to create

Start with the first two. Add a space per customer only when a job has enough work, files or conversation to need its own place.

Modules to turn on

Internal spaces start with Tasks, Schedule, Timesheet, Posts and Activity, plus Pulse. Turn on Docs & Files in Company. Turn off the Timesheet unless you track hours. In customer spaces, turn on the Board if the job has several stages.

Board columns

For a customer job space: To do, In progress, Waiting on customer, Done. Mark a card blocked with a reason when you are waiting on a supplier.

Task lists and example to-dos

• Company > Finance: "File monthly tax return" (repeats monthly), "Pay suppliers" (repeats weekly), "Pay salaries" (repeats monthly)
• Company > Admin: "Back up the shared computer" (repeats weekly), "Order office supplies" (repeats monthly)
• Sales & customers > Follow-ups: one to-do per open enquiry, with a due date and an owner

Docs and folders

In Company, create folders for Policies, Price lists, Contracts and Supplier details. Keep one current copy of each document and upload changes as new versions. Put supplier and customer contacts who do not need an account in the company Directory.

Schedule

Add a recurring weekly team meeting in Company and put licence renewals and other yearly dates as all-day events that repeat annually. If you have a meeting room, admins can add it in Admin > Meeting Rooms so bookings do not clash.

Pulse and Posts

Use Pulse in Company for daily coordination instead of a personal group chat. Use Posts for anything everyone must read: new prices, holiday closures, a new policy. Pin the ones that stay relevant.

Optional board Rules

• When a card enters Waiting on customer, set it blocked.
• When a card enters Done, mark it complete.

Growing past this setup

As the team grows, split the Company space by function: a Finance & admin space, a People space and an Office space, each with its own routines and documents. Admins can create departments and groups in the Admin Console and grant access to each space by department instead of adding people one at a time. Access adds up, so someone in two groups sees both groups' spaces. Keep one space everyone can see for company-wide Posts, so important updates always have a single home. Review recurring to-dos every few months and remove the ones nobody needs any more.

Try it

The small business solution page explains the thinking, business operations covers recurring routines in depth, and task management describes to-do lists and repeats. Emitii is invite-only: request access, or try a live demo from the Emitii home page.