Introduction to HotCRM

HotCRM is a world-class Customer Relationship Management system that combines Salesforce-level functionality with Apple/Linear-level user experience. Built on the innovative @objectstack/spec protocol, it provides a comprehensive solution for managing the entire business lifecycle from Lead to Cash, with additional HR and AI capabilities.

What is HotCRM?

HotCRM is designed to help businesses of all sizes manage their operations more effectively. It covers six major domains with 69 core objects:

🟢 Sales Cloud

Complete sales pipeline management with 360-degree customer view, opportunity tracking, and activity logging.

Objects (8): Account, Contact, Lead, Opportunity, Activity, Task, Note, Assignment Rule

🎯 Marketing Cloud

Multi-channel campaign management with ROI tracking and lead nurturing capabilities.

Objects (11): Campaign, Campaign Member, Email Template, Email Send, Form, Landing Page, Marketing List, Unsubscribe, Lead Nurture Program, Touchpoint, Automation Workflow

💰 Revenue Cloud

Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ), product catalog, contract management, invoicing, and payment tracking.

Objects (13): Product, Product Bundle, Product Bundle Component, Quote, Quote Line Item, Pricebook, Price Rule, Discount Schedule, Approval Request, Contract, Invoice, Invoice Line, Payment

🛟 Service Cloud

Omni-channel case management, SLA tracking, knowledge base, and customer self-service portal.

Objects (21): Case, Case Comment, Knowledge Article, Forum Topic, Forum Post, Queue, Queue Member, Routing Rule, Escalation Rule, SLA Policy, SLA Milestone, SLA Template, Agent Skill, Skill, Business Hours, Holiday, Holiday Calendar, Portal User, Email to Case, Web to Case, Social Media Case

👥 HR Cloud

Human Capital Management covering recruitment, onboarding, performance, payroll, and training.

Objects (16): Employee, Department, Position, Candidate, Application, Interview, Offer, Recruitment, Onboarding, Time Off, Attendance, Goal, Performance Review, Payroll, Training, Certification

🤖 AI Cloud

AI capabilities embedded throughout the system with unified model registry and prediction services.

Features: Lead scoring, churn prediction, sentiment analysis, revenue forecasting, product recommendations, resume parsing, and more

Core Principles

HotCRM is built on five core architectural principles:

1. Metadata-Driven Architecture

All business objects are defined natively in TypeScript (.object.ts files), not YAML or JSON. This provides:

• Full type safety with IDE autocomplete
• Compile-time validation
• Easy refactoring and version control
• Native JavaScript/TypeScript development experience

import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';

export const Account = ObjectSchema.create({
  name: 'account',
  label: 'Account',
  fields: {
    name: Field.text({
      label: 'Account Name',
      required: true,
    }),
    // ... more fields
  },
});

2. ObjectQL Query Language

Replace SQL with a type-safe, flexible query language:

// Simple query
const accounts = await db.find('Account', { 
  filters: [['Status', '=', 'Active']] 
});

// Complex query with relationships
const result = await db.query({
  object: 'Account',
  fields: ['Name', 'Industry'],
  filters: {
    Industry: { $in: ['Technology', 'Finance'] }
  },
  related: {
    Opportunities: {
      fields: ['Name', 'Amount', 'Stage']
    }
  }
});

3. UI Engine with Tailwind CSS

Frontend rendering based on ObjectUI framework with Tailwind CSS for beautiful, responsive interfaces.

4. AI-First Design

Every major feature has built-in AI capabilities:

• Lead scoring and enrichment
• Opportunity win prediction
• Smart case routing
• Knowledge base Q&A

5. Modular Monorepo Architecture

Clean separation of concerns with pnpm workspaces:

hotcrm/
├── packages/
│   ├── crm/        # Sales Cloud (8 objects)
│   ├── marketing/  # Marketing Cloud (11 objects)
│   ├── products/   # Product Catalog (9 objects)
│   ├── finance/    # Invoicing & Payments (4 objects)
│   ├── support/    # Service Cloud (21 objects)
│   └── hr/         # HR Cloud (16 objects)
├── apps/
│   └── docs/       # Documentation site

Who Should Use HotCRM?

HotCRM is designed for:

• Small to Medium Businesses looking for an affordable, feature-rich CRM
• Enterprises requiring customization and extensibility
• Developers who want full control over their CRM system
• Teams seeking modern UX with AI-powered insights

What's Next?

• Installation Guide - Get HotCRM up and running
• Quick Start - Your first steps with HotCRM
• Architecture Overview - Deep dive into the system design