Intake Migration

Kill the

intake spreadsheet.

Framework 04

The spreadsheet was never the problem — it was the proxy for the problem. Data lived in Drive, disconnected from the CRM, un-searchable, un-reportable, and invisible to every downstream automation. This framework migrates it into the CRM in one phase and wires a deal-creation trigger that fires the moment the operator logs the meeting.

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By the numbers

In one look.

18

New contact properties

12

New deal properties

2

Workflows shipped

36 hrs

Phase duration

REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Why this ships first

Every downstream framework reads from this data.

AI document processing verifies intake against source records — it needs the intake in the CRM. The routing agent matches inbound notifications to deals — it needs the contact record to exist. Stage gates read property values — those properties need to be populated at deal creation, not three days later by a paralegal.

The intake-migration framework is the unglamorous phase that makes every other phase possible. We ship it first, intentionally, even when the client wanted to start with "the AI stuff."

Sequencing principle — Data model before automation. Automation before AI. AI builds on top of a clean CRM — never under one.

REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Current vs. proposed

Same trigger. Different everything else.

The operator-visible trigger ("Log Meeting" in the CRM) stays identical. What happens around it changes completely.

  • Current — Spreadsheet-based
  • Proposed — CRM-native
REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Current

Spreadsheet-based

Data lives in Google Drive. Not searchable, not reportable, not available to downstream automations.

  • Copy spreadsheet template — Manual duplicate of the intake template, named for the client.
  • Conduct strategy session — Fill the spreadsheet live during the call.
  • Upload to Drive — Completed spreadsheet goes into the client folder.
  • Log meeting in CRM — Separate step — the spreadsheet data never reaches the CRM.
  • Auto (4 steps) — Deal created in Awaiting Documents. Contract email sent. 24hr expectations email. Lead status → Client.
REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Proposed

CRM-native

Custom fields live on the Contact record. Data is searchable, reportable, and available to downstream AI automations on day one.

  • Open Contact record in CRM — Client is already a lead in the CRM.
  • Conduct strategy session — Fill the native intake form live on the Contact record. Form data becomes Contact properties in real time — no spreadsheet, no Drive upload.
  • Log meeting in CRM — Same trigger. One click.
  • Auto (5 steps) — Conditions written to Contact Notes. Lead status → Client. Deal created with auto-populated fields (Round 1, standard engagement, $1,300). Contract email with signing links. 24hr expectations email.
  • Downstream unlocked — AI agent now has the conditions list, contact properties, and deal properties it needs to verify documents and populate forms.
REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
What changes

Five material differences.

The specifics change per firm, but the shape of the change is always these five. This table is the quickest answer to "why do we need this?"

Area Current Proposed
Data location Spreadsheet in Drive CRM Contact record custom fields
Case-detail tracking Not captured in the CRM Conditions with statuses (New / Denied) in Contact Notes, editable inline
Deal field population Manual or empty Auto-set on log-meeting: deal type, determination, case type, forecast amount
Edge-case attachments Sent to every client (even when not applicable) Attached only when the underlying flag on the contact is set to true
Downstream use None — data is siloed AI agents use conditions for source-document verification, form population, and notification routing
REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Workflow W0b

Enhanced Deal Creation

Trigger — Operator logs meeting on the client's Contact record.

  1. SET — Contact property lead_status = "Client".
  2. SET — Condition list written to Contact Notes from the intake form (e.g. "Item A — New · Item B — Denied · Item C — New").
  3. SET — Create new Deal in Pipeline 1, stage = Awaiting Documents.
  4. SET — Deal properties: deal_type = Round 1, case_type = Standard, forecast_amount = $1,300.
  5. IF/THEN — Determination known from the intake? YES → populate case_rating field. NO → leave blank, operator fills in later.
REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Enhanced Deal Creation · continued

Enhanced Deal Creation

  1. EMAIL — Send Step 1 Email to client with contract signing links (authorization form + master contract).
  2. DELAY — Wait 24 hours.
  3. EMAIL — Send Expectations email to client (what happens next, timeline, who to contact).
  4. EXIT — Deal created in Awaiting Documents. Pipeline 1 takes over — rotting timer, reminder cadence, AI monitor all arm themselves.

Exit — Deal is on the board. Downstream workflows fire on stage entry.

REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
What ships in the phase

Three deliverables. One UAT.

01

Field audit + data migration

Every field on the legacy spreadsheet is mapped to a CRM property. Historical data is one-time migrated into the new properties. Legacy template deprecated and archived.

02

CRM-native intake form

Form lives on the Contact record. Fields auto-save as the operator types. Mobile-friendly so the session can be conducted from a tablet or phone.

REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Three deliverables. One UAT. · continued
03

Deal-creation workflow + chat alert

The W0b workflow in full. Google Chat webhook announces the new deal to the team channel. End-to-end UAT with the operator team before flip.

REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION
Next step

Start here.

Everything else builds on it.

Intake migration is the phase where the data model gets right. It's cheap, it's visible, and it unlocks the AI work. Four to six weeks, inclusive of operator training.

Scope this phase · rexblack.com/lets-talk
See the phased delivery playbook · rexblack.com/frameworks/phased-delivery

REX BLACK · INTAKE MIGRATION