Transforming Finance Workflows in a Bespoke Ticketing Platform

Project Summary

Product: Events

Client: British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)

Delivery Timeframe: 2023 – 2024

Technology Stack: Front-End: Svelte, JavaScript, Back-End: PHP, MySQL, Integrations: Stripe, VAT compliance

Tools: Jira, Confluence, Figma, Slack

Approach: Agile Development

Project Overview

As Product Manager for BAFTA Events, I led the financial workflow integration that transformed the platform from basic member ticketing into enterprise-level awards management, enabling high-value ceremony ticket sales that became essential for the platform’s commercial white-labelling success. The COVID-19 pandemic had shifted BAFTA Events from its original vision toward supporting online events, but by 2023, the return of live awards ceremonies created demand for sophisticated financial workflows that could handle premium ticket pricing, administrative approval processes, and comprehensive guest management.

My key strategic focus was designing implementation workflows that could retrofit complex financial capabilities into the existing platform architecture without disrupting proven operational systems. Rather than rebuilding the core platform, I worked with Finance and development teams to integrate dual-payment workflows—cash basis for immediate transactions and invoice basis for high-value awards tickets—whilst adding administrative approval, guest data collection, and comprehensive credit management capabilities.

Working with the development team, we delivered the invoicing foundation in late 2023 and deployed it operationally for the 2024 Games and Craft Awards, then continuously enhanced the system throughout 2024 based on user feedback. The financial workflows became fundamental to BAFTA Events’ commercial viability—without comprehensive invoicing capabilities, white-labelling for external clients would have been impractical, limiting the platform’s growth potential and strategic value to BAFTA’s broader technology portfolio.

Project Background

BAFTA Events launched in early 2020 with a focus on supporting BAFTA’s extensive member events programme, but the COVID-19 pandemic immediately redirected priorities toward online event delivery and safety protocols for eventual live event returns. The platform had proven effective for member-focused ticketing with straightforward payment workflows, but BAFTA’s prestigious awards ceremonies required entirely different financial capabilities—administrative approval for guest lists, comprehensive invoicing for high-value tickets, detailed guest data collection, and sophisticated credit management for cancellations and changes.

The operational gap became critical as BAFTA prepared to resume live awards ceremonies with limited guest capacity, premium ticket pricing, and complex approval workflows. The existing self-service ticketing model worked well for member events but couldn’t support the administrative oversight required for awards ceremonies where attendance required approval, invoicing needed to accommodate corporate purchase orders, and guest information had to be collected for security and catering requirements.

Without comprehensive financial workflows, BAFTA Events would remain limited to basic member ticketing, constraining its operational value and eliminating its potential for commercial white-labelling. External organisations evaluating the platform for licensing required sophisticated financial capabilities that could handle diverse pricing models, administrative workflows, and compliance requirements. The challenge was retrofitting enterprise-level financial functionality into an existing platform architecture without compromising the operational effectiveness that had made BAFTA Events successful for member-focused activities.

Project Objectives

Enable Premium Awards Ceremony Ticketing+–

Integrate administrative approval workflows and high-value ticketing capabilities to support BAFTA’s prestigious awards ceremonies, transforming the platform from basic member events into enterprise-level ceremony management.

Implement Dual Financial Workflow Architecture+–

Design cash basis and invoice basis payment systems that could accommodate both immediate member transactions and corporate invoicing requirements with purchase order support, meeting diverse organisational payment preferences.

Establish Comprehensive Guest Management+–

Create detailed guest data collection and management capabilities including dietary requirements, accessibility needs, and security information, replacing manual spreadsheet workflows with integrated digital processes.

Retrofit Financial Complexity Without System Rebuilds+–

Integrate sophisticated invoicing, credit management, and approval workflows into existing platform architecture whilst preserving operational effectiveness and avoiding costly system reconstruction.

Position Platform for Commercial White-Labelling+–

Establish the financial workflow foundation essential for external client licensing, ensuring BAFTA Events could serve diverse organisational requirements rather than remaining limited to internal use cases.

Deliver Iterative Enhancement Capability+–

Create financial architecture that could support continuous improvement based on user feedback, enabling ongoing feature development without requiring fundamental system changes.

Development Process

Phase 1 – Financial Architecture Planning & Requirements Definition

Establishing comprehensive financial workflow requirements and system integration approach.

Financial Architecture Planning & Requirements Definition

Conducted extensive consultations with Finance, Awards, and operations teams to define cash basis vs invoice basis requirements, administrative approval workflows, and guest data collection needs.

Platform Integration Strategy Development

Designed retrofit approach for integrating complex financial capabilities into existing Events architecture whilst preserving operational stability and proven user workflows.

Compliance and Payment Processing Alignment

Coordinated VAT compliance requirements, Stripe integration specifications, and purchase order handling procedures to ensure comprehensive financial functionality.

Phase 2: Implementation Design & Workflow Architecture

Creating detailed implementation specifications and user experience design.

Dual Workflow Implementation Design

Designed cash basis and invoice basis payment workflows that could operate seamlessly within existing platform architecture whilst meeting diverse organisational payment preferences and compliance requirements.

Administrative Approval System Architecture

Specified administrative approval workflows using existing platform capabilities, enabling controlled access to high-value ceremony tickets whilst maintaining user experience quality.

Guest Data Collection Framework

Designed comprehensive guest information workflows including dietary requirements, accessibility needs, and contact details, replacing manual processes with integrated digital collection and management.

Phase 3: Development Coordination & Iterative Enhancement

Managing technical implementation and continuous improvement based on operational feedback.

Technical Implementation Oversight

Oversaw the staged development of each financial workflow, coordinating incremental builds and ensuring developer blockers were resolved quickly.

Testing and Validation Management

Managed comprehensive testing across payment scenarios, administrative workflows, and guest data collection processes to ensure reliability under live ceremony conditions.

Continuous Enhancement Coordination

Led iterative improvements throughout 2024 including address book integration and credit note workflows, responding to user feedback whilst strengthening financial capabilities.

Phase 4: Operational Deployment & Commercial Foundation

Launching financial workflows and establishing commercial viability foundation.

Awards Season Operational Launch

Coordinated deployment for 2024 Games and Craft Awards, monitoring system performance and providing real-time support during critical high-value ticketing periods.

User Training and Process Integration

Delivered comprehensive training for Awards and administrative teams whilst integrating new financial workflows with existing operational processes and stakeholder communication.

Commercial Viability Validation

Established financial workflow capabilities essential for external client white-labelling, positioning BAFTA Events as commercially viable rather than limited to internal use cases.

Key Features and Innovations

The BAFTA Events financial integration focused on delivering enterprise-level capabilities through thoughtful retrofit design rather than system replacement. Working closely with Finance and development teams, I prioritised implementation decisions that would enable commercial growth whilst preserving operational effectiveness:

Working with Finance requirements, I designed cash basis and invoice basis systems that could accommodate both immediate member transactions and corporate invoicing with purchase order support. This implementation flexibility enabled BAFTA Events to serve diverse payment preferences whilst maintaining the streamlined user experience that had made the platform operationally successful.

I leveraged existing platform architecture to create administrative approval workflows for high-value ceremony tickets, enabling controlled guest list management without requiring fundamental system rebuilds. This approach preserved operational efficiency whilst adding the oversight capabilities essential for premium awards events.

I designed integrated guest information collection that replaced manual spreadsheet workflows with digital processes covering dietary requirements, accessibility needs, and security details. Working with operations teams, this eliminated administrative overhead whilst improving guest experience through proactive accommodation planning.

Rather than rebuilding the platform, I focused on architectural integration that preserved existing functionality whilst adding sophisticated financial capabilities. This approach maintained operational stability and user familiarity whilst delivering the enterprise-level features required for commercial viability.

I established continuous improvement processes that enabled ongoing feature development based on user feedback, including address book integration and credit note workflows delivered throughout 2024. This iterative approach ensured financial workflows evolved with operational requirements rather than remaining static after initial deployment.

Working with Finance and development teams, I designed comprehensive credit note and refund capabilities that could handle both pre-payment and post-payment scenarios, ensuring administrative flexibility whilst maintaining clear financial audit trails and user transparency.

The financial workflow integration became essential for external client licensing—without comprehensive invoicing, administrative approval, and guest management capabilities, white-labelling would have been impractical for most external organisations requiring enterprise-level functionality.

Challenges and Solutions

Retrofitting Financial Complexity Into Existing Architecture

BAFTA Events had proven operationally successful with streamlined member ticketing, but awards ceremonies required administrative approval, invoicing, guest data collection, and credit management—enterprise-level functionality that could destabilise the existing platform if poorly integrated. The challenge was adding financial sophistication without compromising operational effectiveness or requiring costly system rebuilds. I focused on leveraging existing platform capabilities wherever possible, working with the development team to integrate approval workflows using established user management systems and payment processing through proven Stripe integration, ensuring new functionality enhanced rather than replaced operational foundations.

Balancing User Experience Across Diverse Payment Scenarios

The platform needed to serve both immediate member transactions and complex corporate invoicing requirements without creating user confusion or workflow complexity that could reduce completion rates. Different organisations had varying payment preferences—some requiring immediate card payments, others needing purchase orders and invoice terms—creating UX challenges around presenting appropriate options clearly. I designed distinct user paths that automatically presented relevant payment options based on event type and user permissions, ensuring streamlined experiences regardless of payment method whilst maintaining administrative oversight capabilities where required.

Managing Continuous Enhancement Without Operational Disruption

Financial workflows required ongoing refinement based on real-world usage—address book functionality, credit note improvements, guest data enhancements—whilst maintaining system stability during critical awards seasons when any disruption could compromise high-profile events. This required balancing feature development with operational reliability during live ceremony periods. Working with development and operations teams, I established testing protocols and deployment schedules that enabled continuous improvement whilst ensuring stable performance during critical ticketing periods, allowing iterative enhancement without compromising awards ceremony delivery.

Conclusion

The BAFTA Events financial workflow integration demonstrates how thoughtful retrofit strategy can transform platform capabilities whilst preserving operational effectiveness. By focusing on architectural integration rather than system replacement, we delivered enterprise-level financial functionality that became essential for the platform’s commercial viability and strategic value to BAFTA’s technology portfolio.

The project’s success came from recognising that commercial platform growth required comprehensive functionality rather than basic feature sets. Rather than limiting BAFTA Events to member-focused activities, the financial workflow integration enabled high-value awards ceremony management whilst establishing the foundation for external client white-labelling that unlocked additional revenue opportunities.

Working with Finance, operations, and development teams, we proved that existing platforms could be enhanced to meet enterprise requirements without sacrificing the user experience qualities that made them operationally successful. The iterative enhancement approach—continuously improving functionality based on user feedback throughout 2024—demonstrated how strategic implementation design creates foundations for ongoing platform evolution.

This project reinforced my conviction that successful product management requires balancing immediate operational requirements with strategic platform growth objectives. The financial workflows that solved BAFTA’s awards ceremony challenges simultaneously created the commercial capabilities that positioned Events as a licensing opportunity, demonstrating how solving specific problems can unlock broader strategic value.

The continued platform evolution through address book integration, credit note enhancements, and guest management improvements validates the architectural approach of building flexible foundations that support continuous improvement whilst maintaining operational stability. This strategic implementation design enabled both immediate business requirements and long-term commercial success.

Interested in working together?

I help organisations streamline workflows, modernise legacy systems, and deliver user-focused digital products — without unnecessary complexity. If you’re looking to scope a project, refine a platform, or explore automation and no-code solutions, I’d love to hear from you.

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