Mike is the general counsel at a real estate consulting firm. For this interview, the CEO, Jim P. also joined us. They both wear many hats at the company, which has 41 full-time employees.
When asked what was keeping them awake at night with regards to their IT solution, Mike shared:
“Our IT provider at the time used to work at our company in a full-time capacity. So, we started using his service, and he brought on a new hire to service our account. This is when things started going awry – we just weren’t getting the consistent support we needed. We needed to make some overhauls in our servers and responsiveness was a big issue.”
He added, “We wouldn’t hear from them for days, so communication was a big issue too.”
The Challenge
Ignoring Doesn’t Make Technology Problems Go Away
When asked what steps the company had taken to solve these challenges that ultimately didn’t work, Mike admitted:
“Institutionally, we let things go for a while, maybe buried our head in the sand a bit. We did this knowing that we were never going to get to where we needed to go with the vendor we had. So, we didn’t push the issue much.”
Naturally, there were significant costs associated with looking the other way. Jim shared that they were losing uptime and efficiencies. Further, they didn’t have anyone with the right skill set to keep things running smoothly.
Mike added:
“Downtime means you’re not making revenue, and you can’t make it up. There are only 24 hours in a day. Once we’re down, we’re down.”
The Solution
Hire a Managed IT Service Provider
Mike and Jim, however, knew they needed to make a change. And, once they made up their minds, they didn’t waver in the decision.
Mike knew that they required more institutional knowledge on the vendor side, as well as responsiveness, all at a more affordable price point. Jim identified the need for more depth and strategic planning. He felt it was important to be working with an IT partner who was thinking ahead and proactively addressing needs to come.
Jim was aware of XL for several years. So, when it came time to explore options, he didn’t hesitate to interview XL along with other providers they found online.
XL made sure Mike and Jim were comfortable with their business model and pricing structure, to the point where they were excited to work together.
The Results
Cognizant Technology Solutions for Your Business
Mike and Jim haven’t shown any hesitation in taking advantage of what XL has to offer. “We use them heavily,” Mike explained simply.
For all those times when a computer or printer’s not working, their staff has access to helpdesk support. As Mike shared:
“Things are working very well. XL is very, very responsive. They’re not sitting on things.”
This made a tremendous difference for the real estate consulting firm. They were immediately able to reduce downtime and ensure their staff was online and able to work.
Jim and Mike are also partnering with XL on their long-term planning, replacing servers, and other technical needs.
Further, because of the pandemic, the company had to make a quick switch over to a remote workforce.
“Things were snowballing quickly. We thought we had a month, then it was two weeks, then it was little more than a week and the world shut down the next day. So, we made sure everyone was up and running at home and I think we accomplished that. XL was a big part of making sure people had the resources to remote access the network.”
Finally, Mike added:
“We haven’t arrived, but we aren’t supposed to – it’s a multi-year project costing thousands of dollars. So, talk to us in five years to see where it’s at.”
Goal: Continue Implementing IT Solutions
When asked what their next big goal for the company was, Mike shared:
“We had the band-aid approach to the server room behind the scenes, and some of those things are old and breaking. In a cost-efficient manner, we need to get those things figured out.”
Clearly, Jim and Mike still feel there is much to be done. But overall, they are more than satisfied with the results they’ve gotten from partnering with XL.
“I’m excited [about] who we’re working with right now,” offered Mike.
Interview recording:
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