Custom CRM and AI Reporting Tool for Affiliate Management Agency

Our client is a global leader in partnership marketing, helping brands drive revenue through affiliate programs. With teams on 3 continents, managing programs in over 40 countries and $7.2 billion in client revenue as for 2024, they’re no stranger to scale. Yet, they needed a partner management system that could grow with them: smarter, more integrated tech stack and faster insights. 

We stepped in mid-project, after the affiliate management agency had parted ways with a previous vendor, whose solution, while technically sound, didn’t allow scaling. Recognizing this critical gap, the GetDevDone team provided the necessary expertise to finish the multi-layered digital infrastructure overhaul in less than 1,5 years.

• Period of cooperation: May 2022 – ongoing
• Team size: 5 members (3 Backend/AI Developers, Fullstack Developer, Solution Architect)
• Expertise: Partnership Marketing
• Headquarters: Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Project highlights

• Data storing and management:
  We took over the complete DMP system rebuild for better scalability and flexibility. Altogether, our team developed a brand-new CRM with intuitive interface and deep integrations.
• Key success factor: Seamless partner discovery logic migration from third-party tools — without any functionality loss — made the system more cost-effective and capable of outperforming the strong competitors.
• Time optimization: We saved tons of client’s time by launching the AI Smart Reports module that uses GPT to generate reports, summaries, and content automatically.

Business challenge

The client’s existing data management platform was holding them back. The legacy system was heavy and slow, making it nearly impossible to scale with growing demands. Key tools weren’t integrated — for example, their partner discovery solution operated in isolation, leading to repetitive tasks and fragmented data. Without a centralized CRM, there was no clear view of the partner ecosystem, campaign results, or affiliate engagement. 

Meanwhile, reporting remained mostly manual, lacking the AI support needed to generate quick performance insights or reduce time spent on data analysis. On top of that, the internal tech team required upskilling in AWS, PySpark, and OpenAI to confidently manage and evolve the system. All these issues weren’t just technical hurdles — they were the wake-up call.

Technology solution

The system restructuring began with a plan to re-engineer the existing DMP system, build a brand-new CRM from scratch, and integrate partnership recruitment functionality.

We broke the project down into clear phases to keep things lean, scalable, and future-proof.

System Rebuild
We started with a complete reengineering of the existing DMP, restructuring it into a scalable architecture using AWS tools like Glue, Redshift, and S3. This laid the foundation for all future development.

Custom CRM
From scratch, we designed and developed a full-featured CRM tailored to our client’s workflows. It featured:

• Intuitive dashboards;
• Real-time data sync;
• Scalable architecture for thousands of partner profiles.

Partner Discovery Tool Integration
Partner discovery features were deeply embedded into the CRM’s Partners section. This meant users no longer had to jump between tools — everything was in one place.

Smart Reports with GPT
In a first for this agency, we introduced a fully integrated AI module powered by OpenAI’s GPT. This Smart Reports feature enabled:

• Auto-generated campaign summaries;
• PDF report creation;
• Performance predictions and content suggestions.

Upskilling & Handoff
Throughout the build, we trained our client’s internal team on the technologies used — so they could own the platform post-launch without vendor dependence.

Tech stack:

• Frontend: Hasura (No-Code GraphQL), Custom CRM UI
• Backend: Apache PySpark, AWS Glue, Python
• Data: AWS Redshift, S3, CloudWatch
• AI/ML: OpenAI (GPT), PowerBI
• DevOps: GitHub Actions, CircleCI
• Other: AWS SQS, Heroku

Business outcome

There are no more roadblocks, now the client’s partner management platform can bring all client’s requests to life without infrastructure headaches.

• Faster insights: Smart Reports cut down reporting time drastically, letting the team focus on decision-making.
• Streamlined tools: Partner discovery tool integration removed tool-switching friction and simplified data workflows.
• Lower costs: With their own CRM in place, our client reduced reliance on paid third-party tools.
• Tech independence: Upskilling gave the affiliate management agency the confidence to manage and iterate without external help.
• Stronger foundation: The custom-built partner management platform became the hub that other systems now orbit around. 

Most importantly, the renewed system enabled the agency to onboard new clients and motivated existing ones to the delegation of new projects. 

What’s next? 

This client continues to partner with this on future enhancements:

• Platform Optimization: Refining data processing pipelines for performance and cost-efficiency.
• Feature Expansion: Extending CRM’s capabilities with automated workflows, deeper analytics, and embedded ML models.
• Full-Service Support: Helping our client transform more manual processes into streamlined digital systems.

Our role shifted from vendor to trusted tech partner of a growing global player. Such a systemic way of building and improving tailored digital systems helps businesses that are growing fast or already large and is especially good for online stores, software companies, and businesses that use a lot of data to make decisions. If you are stuck with tech blockers, reach out to us.