In this case study, we explore three different organizations perspectives to learn why they chose a managed technology partner to outsource their IT operations. Unlike traditional managed services providers who solely deliver on a service offering, a managed technology partner takes a holistic approach to IT operational management by also providing strategic insight to guide future technology initiatives. As a result of partnering with OSIbeyond, clients realize several key benefits:
Strategic Technology Partner
Prior to engaging with OSIbeyond, the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) relied on a traditional managed services provider for IT support, however, they were unable to provide the level of strategic guidance that the organization was looking for.
“Our previous provider fell most on the strategic planning part. For us it comes down to trust and risk management… The breakdown with the previous provider was in that planning. We trusted them to offer services and solutions that would best fit the needs of our organization, but that just wasn’t the case.”
Kevin Doyle, Operations Manager, SMPS
This lack of strategic guidance lead SMPS to search for a new provider with a strategic approach. A technology assessment was conducted for SMPS, with the purpose of decreasing unexpected technology expenditures by providing 3-year budgetary costs, along with a technology roadmap consisting of industry best practices and recommendations.
“OSIbeyond put together a technology assessment back when we first started. It gave us a good benchmark for where we can and should be 2-3 years from now… Our senior staff loves this because they can take it to our board of directors and explain why we’re making the decisions we’re making with our technology.”
Kevin Doyle, Operations Manager, SMPS
Single Source Provider
One of the main benefits of a managed technology partner is the consolidation of IT operations under a single source provider. This was the primary focus of CommonHealth ACTION (CHA) when searching for a new technology partner.
“Our systems and equipment were all over the place… As we streamlined how we approached our IT we also looked to streamline our other systems. It made more sense to put everything in OSIbeyond’s hands… For us, it was a mindset change that had to happen over time where we realized OSIbeyond can take care of it and we don’t need to worry about it.”
Nehanda Lindsey, Vice President of Operations & Organizational Strategy, CHA
As a result of partnering with OSIbeyond, CHA was able to achieve their goal of consolidating their phone system, cloud solutions, and IT help desk to a single provider, which led to streamlining CHA’s IT operations by reducing administrative and managerial overhead.
“Having OSIbeyond take over everything was very important… We used to have an internal IT person because we thought we needed a someone on staff to work with us to get things organized. Because everything is managed by OSIbeyond we no longer need that internal resource. This has been helpful for me from both a budget and managerial standpoint lifting a lot of that burden off my shoulders.”
Nehanda Lindsey, Vice President of Operations & Organizational Strategy, CHA
Similarly, for the Los Angeles City Employees Club (LACEA), the benefits gained from a single source provider means they no longer have to manage the overhead of communicating with multiple vendors to resolve issues or implement new IT initiatives. As a result, LACEA’s internal IT team is now able to shift attention away from day to day IT operations to focus on serving their members.
“There are times when systems are in different places, for instance our ISP. We’ve found that OSIbeyond has taken the lead when we’ve got problems instead of us being the middle man. Having everything in one place is great because OSIbeyond stays on top of everything. This makes is easier for us to manage the relationship and frees us to work on more pressing matters.”
Alan Bound, Business Analyst, LACEA
A single source provider is also flexible enough to meet the specific technology challenges of an organization. For SMPS, this meant ensuring any issues related to their AMS and website were addressed due to the business impact that potential downtime would cause. To achieve this, SMPS leverages OSIbeyond’s virtual CTO services providing strategic insight to guide future technology initiatives.
“We like that OSIbeyond is flexible and willing to work around our needs. The Assistance Executive Director, Tina Myers, asked for a standing monthly call with OSIbeyond’s Chief Technology Officer to keep our technology initiatives on track. This has been instrumental in helping us make the right decisions.”
Kevin Doyle, Operations Manager, SMPS
Proactive Support
Prior to engaging with OSIbeyond, LACEA struggled to get the level of support they required from their previous provider. Support response times were slow, the helpdesk wasn’t efficient at resolving issues, and LACEA’s internal team would often have to follow-up to ensure their requests were being worked on. Ultimately, this lack of proactive support began to affect LACEA’s operations.
“We would come in on Monday and find out something had gone wrong over the weekend. Or, worse we would get calls from the CEO saying, ‘hey how come people can’t buy tickets online?’ And then we would have to call the provider asking, ‘what’s going on? How come you guys didn’t pick this up? A server has gone down and you guys didn’t even know?”
Alan Bound, Business Analyst, LACEA
As a result of partnering with OSIbeyond, LACEA was able to reduce their support resolution times down from a few weeks to within a few hours while providing peace of mind in knowing tasks are being completed.
“Peace of mind. I think that’s the main thing the previous company fell short on. Being confident in saying OSIbeyond is working on it and knowing that it’s going to get dealt with has been important for us. With our previous provider we were constantly asking ‘is this going to be okay?’ It was often the case that we would give the previous provider a task to do and a couple of weeks later nothing seemed to have changed forcing us to follow-up and chase them down.”
Alan Bound, Business Analyst, LACEA
In the case of CHA, proactive support means issues are addressed and often resolved before staff are impacted. This has not only provided peace of mind for CHA in how their IT operations are being managed, but it has also reduced the threat of downtime for the organization.
“I’ll get an email that says, ‘hey Nehanda a server or firewall is acting up but we’re going to fix it.’ I had absolutely no clue, people in the office had no idea about it, but it was fixed, and we were good to go. That to me was key. Having that kind of proactive support is very important.”
Nehanda Lindsey, Vice President of Operations & Organizational Strategy, CHA
As a result, CHA’s leadership is no longer burdened with managing day to day IT operations, which enables them to focus on the overall strategic direction of the organization.
“OSIbeyond knows how we work and you’re familiar with our staff and systems. For me that’s great because I know that when I call OSIbeyond our support requests get resolved… The only thing I do manage is the overarching IT approach which is where I am supposed to be. It allows me to do my job and be effective.
Nehanda Lindsey, Vice President of Operations & Organizational Strategy, CHA
About Our Clients
The Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS)
SMPS represents a dynamic network of more than 7,000 marketing and business development professionals from architectural, engineering, planning, interior design, construction, and specialty consulting firms located throughout the United States and Canada. As the business world and built environment continue to evolve, SMPS and its members will be steadfast in staying ahead of the curve. And continuing to transform the way A/E/C firms do business.
CommonHealth ACTION (CHA)
CHA’s vision is an America in which all people have equitable opportunities and neighborhood conditions to achieve their best possible health. Based on their collective experience, CHA believes that successful individual, organizational, systemic, or social change requires perspective transformation – the idea that once a person knows, think, and believes something different, they will make different decisions, engage in different behaviors, and take different actions.
Los Angeles City Employees Club (LACEA)
LACEA is a supplemental voluntary benefits provider for state, local, and municipal government employees of California. The Club provides discount entertainment and insurance benefits above and beyond what is offered through the employee’s work. Since 1928, the Club has strived to celebrate the work and lives of municipal government employees by providing significant discounts on entertainment, affordable insurance, and insane member service.
Learn More About Partnering with OSIbeyond
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Written by: Payam Pourkhomami, President & CEO, OSIbeyond