Managed Services Success Story

The Challenge

As an IT Services Provider since 1987, this Rhode Island company  had been experiencing significant issues in its back office efficiency. Using several back office applications to manage and run their business, the work leadership recognized the need for better control over data entry, a reduction in information silos across all departments, and a reduction in the number of manual processes needed for one transaction. The company was using both Salesforce.com and GoldMine for its CRM tools, as well as a list of other applications and tools for daily management and project workflows.

While many of the applications being used were off the shelf solutions, the company had also invested significant time and money into developing and maintaining internal applications for various tools such as time and expense keeping. Their Chief Operations Officer said, “our focus is always on our clients and satisfaction with our service. Having multiple applications and a broken flow of communication internally prevented us from being able to provide the fastest and most accurate information possible to our clients. That simply was not acceptable to us.”

The Solution

Prior to investigating a solution, the department heads came together to agree on the features and functions needed in order to eliminate the multiple applications being used at the time. After receiving feedback from sales, marketing, project management, IT, tech support, operations, accounting & billing, and client contacts, the work leadership decided to select TimeLinx and an integrated CRM as a solution to solve the following objectives:

  • Increase business efficiencies and provide greater intelligence into profitability for both employees and clients
  • Create a new turnkey application for sharing information and communication across the organization
  • Easily update and maintain data across departments at all levels
  • Better control over managing records of client equipment
  • Better control and visibility over profit margins for its Managed Services Solutions
  • Increase visibility into Sales Performance
  • Improve business intelligence with one system
  • Better statistics and metrics for reporting
  • Improved sales process for providing quotes, pricing and proposals
  • Greater visibility into client needs and support usage throughout the year

The Process

Early in the evaluation process, a specific well-known CRM was being considered. However, it was immediately apparent that the solution would only provide CRM functionality.  Their trusted ERP partner who was familiar with TimeLinx recommended an alternative CRM that would eliminate the need for multiple applications.

According to the COO, “Because we are such a client focused business, a CRM-based professional services solution made sense. Visibility and accountability are critical for business to succeed and we were sold once we saw how TimeLinx covered our long wish list. Finding a single complete solution was paramount.”

Once TimeLinx was implemented, employees could immediately see the value and benefits of the new system. Employees were no longer manually keying client information into various spreadsheets or in multiple systems. One complete application now allowed sales professionals, service staff, and tech support personnel to view various types of information from one system in real time reducing the amount of calls and questions regarding client activity or equipment  performance. Cutting down on staff time dedicated to data entry or manual processes has allowed them to right-size  various  departments and roles plus shift talent into more effective areas within the company resulting in immediate cost-savings.

One area with significant impact from the new solution was their Managed Services group. The TimeLinx component allowed them to better manage assets and profitability for their consulting services.

The way we are managing our assets has dramatically changed,” said their CIO. “When a deal is won, we can immediately import the hardware directly into a client’s account and out of our inventory. When contract renewals come up, we know right away how to treat the hardware making our projections about profitability more accurate. Managing assets from the initial purchase through to client support has been incredibly beneficial in how we operate.

In addition to improvements in asset management, customized reporting has allowed them to realize more accurate profit margins for its clients with less time and effort. Better business intelligence also highlighted a greater need for sales training. This led to an increase in performance for sales professionals.

The TimeLinx Customer Service area allows them to capture and report on the volume of cases associated with a particular client. By having both the assets and case activity in one system, the company can now accurately manage profit margins for clients that require more tech support, while ensuring high value and benefits for clients who need less. At contract renewal time, the sales professionals are now able to show the actual value of their services to clients including ticket volume, peak times and support information as well as other details captured in the client records.

Senior leadership noted that the TimeLinx system provides more clarity and intelligence around overall business efficiencies. Today, time is tracked directly in the project or account giving complete visibility into project profitability. Management has been able to help reduce the amount of time staff spends on unnecessary duties and administrative tasks, increasing overall productivity.

“A deeper understanding of our client relationships allows all of us to deliver better services and support to our clients,” said their CFO. “We knew we wanted an out-of-the-box solution but also wanted the flexibility of being able to customize it to fit our business to better serve our clients. The TimeLinx team worked tirelessly to ensure our satisfaction in an effort to improve the overall quality of the product for us and for future clients. Feedback from our team was welcomed at every step. Clients are the focus of our business and we feel TimeLinx is the same way for its customers,” she continued.

The company has nearly doubled in size and revenue since implementing TimeLinx and in turn has increased the number of users on the system. “As our employees have become more familiar with the functions and features of the system, more and more have requested access to take advantage of the benefits it provides,” said the COO. “TimeLinx has allowed us to scale our business and grow with our success. We look forward to continuing to use TimeLinx and look for ways to continue to improve both our internal operations as well as how TimeLinx can support our changing needs.”