Beginnings Sees a new day with Google Apps
The North Carolina non-profit discovers a new answer to better support their mission of helping deaf and hard of hearing children: Google Apps for Business.
BEGINNINGS for Parents of Children Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, Inc., has provided emotional support and access to information as a central resource for families with deaf or hard of hearing children since 1987. The team of 15 professionals within the non-profit organization offers an impartial approach to meeting the diverse needs of these families and the professionals who serve them. However, their good work came to a sudden halt one day when their internal server unexpectedly crashed and left the entire organization in technological limbo.
CHALLENGE
The organization’s mission needed to remain focused on the needs of their clients and stakeholders and not on maintaining servers and software. When their internal server went down, they didn’t have the IT resources to fix it. This challenge presented an opportunity to move in another direction and to optimize their business infrastructure with fiscal prudence.
SOLUTION
BEGINNINGS entered into an agreement to begin using Google Apps for Business the same day their internal server crashed. They contacted Accent Plus who performed the migration as well as provided training and support. During the process, they also opted to shut down their complicated VPN and remove the old server and related equipment. Now, the entire organization is using an enterprise-class, cloud computing solution.
RESULTS
Business operations have experienced zero interruption since shifting to Google Apps. In addition to email, the organization is enjoying the use of all the various tools available through the platform such as Docs, Calendar, Chat, and more to communicate and collaborate from multiple locations. The ease of use and reduction of costs coupled with the peace of mind of keeping information safe, secure, and running efficiently in the cloud has the company back on track and more focused than ever on the important work they do in the community.
At a glance
What did they need?
- Reliable back-office operations and support
- An affordable and easier way to approach business continuity
- More time to focus on their mission instead of IT
What did they do?
- Removed internal servers and migrated to Google Apps for Business with NeoNova
- Shut down their complicated VPN and use of related equipment
- Redefined the rules of collaboration with 15 professionals in two offices
What happened?
- Cut overall IT operational costs
- Increased focus on productivity through their overarching mission
- Promoted enterprise-wide collaboration on one secure and reliable platform