Every project at Xylora Studios runs through a central project board divided into standard sequential stages, tracking production from intake to final handover.
This board serves as the definitive operational record for your scope, active deliverables, internal departmental hand-offs, and required client approvals.
Column structure and progression
Your project board reflects the live status of individual deliverables. Tasks move strictly from left to right through five distinct columns:
1. Briefing & Inputs: The task is defined, but work has not started. This stage holds the project scope, required source files, credentials, and reference material. If an item sits here, the studio is waiting on complete inputs before scheduling it. 2. In Production: The item is actively being worked on by either the Creative or Technology department according to the agreed brief. 3. Client Review: Deliverables have passed internal quality checks and are ready for your assessment. A formal notification is logged on the card, and the feedback window begins. 4. Revisions: Requested adjustments within the agreed scope are logged and reassigned to the production team. 5. Approved & Completed: The deliverable has received written approval or reached sign-off, and associated source files or deployed code have been archived or transferred.
Items do not move backwards to earlier stages. If a deliverable requires changes that sit outside the agreed scope, it remains in Client Review until an additional scope addendum is raised, quoted, and accepted.
Departmental ownership
Every card on the board has an assigned owner responsible for its progress:
- Operations & Client Services: Sets milestones, manages task sequencing, tracks feedback deadlines, and handles commercial queries. They coordinate the board daily from Monday to Thursday, 09:00 to 17:00 GMT.
- Creative: Owns all design, layout, brand assets, motion, and visual production items.
- Technology: Owns front-end code, infrastructure, integrations, platform configurations, and technical deployments.
You should always address status questions directly on the relevant card or via the Ask Xylo chat on this portal. Operations reviews these queues with a first-reply target of 24 hours during working days.
Client responsibilities and review windows
To keep production schedules intact, the client is responsible for supplying assets and approvals in a timely manner:
- Supplying assets: Initial brand assets, copy, access credentials, and technical access must be uploaded directly to the card in the Briefing & Inputs column. Work does not enter production until all essential inputs are verified.
- Feedback delivery: When a card moves to Client Review, feedback must be submitted as a consolidated, written list on that specific card. Fragmented notes across multiple threads delay production.
- Approvals: Clear, written sign-off (e.g., "Approved to proceed") is required to move any card into Approved & Completed.
Failure modes and bottlenecks
Delays almost always stem from one of four breakdowns:
- Partial inputs: Uploading incomplete copy or low-resolution files halts the transition into production. The 48-hour bespoke quote window and scheduled start dates depend entirely on receiving a fully completed brief.
- Silent review periods: When deliverables remain in Client Review past the agreed review window without communication, the card stalls and dependent technical or creative tasks are rescheduled based on studio capacity.
- Out-of-scope feedback: Requesting structural alterations during a minor review cycle will pause the item. Operations will issue a bespoke quote for the extra hours required, with approval needed before work resumes.
- Deposits are non-refundable once your production slot is held. Before work begins, sums not yet earned are refunded pro rata; after work begins, completed work and booked time are charged. Defects are fixed free of charge within the acceptance window. The full terms are on the Refund Policy page of the main site. If a project is paused indefinitely by the client, existing milestone progress is archived, and restarting work may require a re-onboarding assessment.
Quick checklist for board hygiene
- [ ] Keep all communications and asset uploads attached to the relevant task card.
- [ ] Confirm your assets meet required formats before marking an input item ready.
- [ ] Consolidate feedback into a single, unambiguous update per review round.
- [ ] Submit replies within working hours (Monday to Thursday, 09:00–17:00 GMT) to avoid weekend queue delays.
- [ ] Use the Ask Xylo chat on the portal for urgent scheduling or operational escalations.