Less expensive to buy new
Upgrading an aging phone system was nearly as expensive as replacing the entire solution with Mitel's MiVoice Connect (previously known as ShoreTel Connect) unified communications. Lower TCO made MiVoice Connect even more attractive.
After 30 years, CT Pros helps Jasper Engines reassess its telephony needs
After acquiring a company that had recently retired an old PBX system in favor of the MiVoice Connect phone system. Jasper Engines decided to take a hard look under the hood of its aging existing phone system. The system needed an upgrade, but its $800,000 price tag prompted Julia Flynn, director of IT, to explore other options.
While comparing the expense of upgrading vs. purchasing a new VoIP system, Flynn ascertained that the costs to move to a phone system were in the same ballpark. And the long-term ramifications, such as saving $216,000 year in operating costs, made a rip-and-replace even more affordable.
“We started looking at the new VoIP phone system because we recently acquired a company that had already made an investment in Mitel (at the time ShoreTel). Another reason that we focused in on using the Connect platform was because the company is constantly staying in the forefront with updates to the switches. They stay current and there’s not that big technology gap over time, so that figured into our decision-making process,” says Flynn.
After the decision was made, Flynn called ShoreTel (now Mitel) directly, which recommended contacting CT Pros. The selection committee lauded CT Pros’ approach and was confident that the firm was the right choice for the new implementation.
“The CT Pros team did an exceptional job of listening to what we had to say and then offered suggestions to doing things differently, and that’s the guidance we wanted,” explains Flynn. “CT Pros knows their resources, and they know how to utilize those resources, and how to pull comfort levels in. They’re definitely on top of their game”.
Jasper gains more flexibility, training options, and a streamlined invoicing process
On a day-to-day basis, Contact Center supervisors were given the ability to make changes to groups as needed. For example, if extra call coverage is needed, it’s easy to assign a temporary person to the overloaded group.
Supervisors use the Quiet Whisper feature for multiple purposes. “We use the Quiet Whisper for overall listening and monitoring. Some calls are recorded and we use those for training new hires, as well as call monitoring,” explains Flynn.
For Flynn, the new invoicing process makes life much simpler. “We get one invoice and we pay that one invoice for fees and other items. With our previous system, it was much more spread out and convoluted. It was hard to know how much you were really paying and what you were paying for,” explains Flynn.
Jasper Engines continues to run smoothly
CT Pros and ShoreTel (Mitel) service and support are getting high marks across the board. “We don’t have any complaints for sure on the responsiveness, and we receive good technical support. It’s not like you have to go through layers and layers and layers until you finally get somebody who knows what they’re talking about. It’s a pretty fast journey, and that’s critical,” says Flynn. “As far as the phone system itself, it’s really solid. We were concerned about it hitting our network pretty hard, but it hasn’t. It’s exactly what we thought it would be, so we’re happy with that.”
“OUR OLD PHONE SYSTEM TOOK A WHOLE LOT OF EFFORT TO GET FROM POINT A TO POINT B. I THINK IF ANY COMPANY WAS LOOKING TO UPGRADE THEIR PHONE SYSTEM AND WAS LOOKING AT HOW COMPLEX IT WAS OR IS, I THINK THAT’S ONE OF THE NICE THINGS ABOUT THE NEW SYSTEM. THERE’S A LOT TO IT, BUT IT’S REALLY A SIMPLE DESIGN.”
Julia Flynn, Director of IT
Jasper Engines
The simplicity of the system is also a welcome change. “Our old phone system took a whole lot of effort to get from point A to point B. I think if any company was looking to upgrade their phone system and was looking at how complex it was or is, I think that’s one of the nice things about the new system. There’s a lot to it, but it’s really a simple design,” concludes Flynn. “CT Pros did a very good job of helping us feel more comfortable with the whole process and that the change was going to be very positive.”
Future plans include implementing redundancy in the Call Center.
“THE CT PROS TEAM DID AN EXCEPTIONAL JOB OF LISTENING TO WHAT WE HAD TO SAY AND THEN OFFERED SUGGESTIONS TO DOING THINGS DIFFERENTLY, AND THAT’S THE GUIDANCE WE WANTED. CT PROS KNOWS THEIR RESOURCES, AND THEY KNOW HOW TO UTILIZE THOSE RESOURCES, AND HOW TO PULL COMFORT LEVELS IN. THEY’RE DEFINITELY ON TOP OF THEIR GAME.”