Overview

Industry: Construction

Size:  4000 employees

Locations: International

Customer Objectives 

  • With 600 built-to-order laptops on backorder, the client needed to catch up on a deep hardware backlog without sacrificing company standards
  • Maintain evolving hardware needs to standards, accomplish progressive technology goals, and manage security for a global workforce, both in the field and the office, with constrained IT resources  

Outcomes

  • CSI's personal approach to service helped the client climb out of their backlog, not only meeting company standards but exceeding them, for the same price

  • CSI's approach to Modern Procurement is moving the client from reactive hardware ordering to proactive, saving them time and money and giving them peace of mind:

    • A custom warehousing analysis and inventory project will enable them to ship built-to-order units overnight versus taking 4-6 weeks to ship

    • A custom-built CSI storefront makes hardware orders easy, quick, and seamless

  • A transition from an on-site VPN to a vFTD will virtually eliminate crashes, while maintaining a highly secure environment 

 

The Story

With 4000 employees spread across offices throughout the US, Canada, the UK, and Ireland, the client is at the leading edge of construction management, using technology to empower their employees to best serve their clients, reduce project costs and schedules, improve speed to market, and stay flexible and highly adaptable. 

So when they were facing a hardware supply issue—with 600 built-to-order laptops on back order, in the midst of the recent chip shortage—they needed a partner who could get creative and help them track down the critical tools they needed to keep their business running, and their clients' projects moving.  

Deena, their Sr. Client Advocate, worked with the client to understand their needs. Because she had line-of-sight into Lenovo's warehouses, she then worked with the client's Lenovo rep to uncover in-stock devices that would not only match the client's specs but exceed them—and for a price that matched their standard units.   

"I don't like to ask, 'what keeps you up at night?'," says Deena. "I like to ask, 'what helps you sleep at night?" 

 

With the client caught up on their backlog in just 8 months, CSI also stepped in to help them manage registrations and licenses and quickly got to work moving the client from a state of reactive hardware ordering to proactive.  

Part of CSI’s dedicated personal service approach includes a custom-built storefront. Deena and Katie, in Procurement, worked with the client to create a storefront for all hardware orders, built exactly the way they want it, to their specs, with bundles that make ordering easy. Their storefront provides real-time views into warehouse stock levels, so inventory is always up-to-date, and integrates with CSI's CRM, giving Deena automatic order updates so she can seamlessly help the client’s manage orders. And because it's built in the cloud, it's more secure. 

CSI is also working to run an internal analysis to see how many of their built-to-order systems they procure on a monthly basis, in order to create a standard inventory level and transform the wait time on their systems from 4-6 weeks to the ability to ship units overnight. 

This transformation from out-of-stock and behind on enabling the client’s team members with the tools they need to easy, integrated, and proactive has saved the client time and money—and helped them sleep at night, knowing everything will be taken care of. 

 

 

Next Steps

When the client was looking to transition from an on-site VPN system to a vFTD (virtual Firewall Threat Defense), they turned to their CSI partnership for the same fast response times, high level of personal service, and team knowledge, dedication, and creativity. 

When the tool they work working with was discontinued, CSI Engineer and Cisco Specialist Barry helped them track down a solution through Azure that will help bridge their transition to vFTD, enabling them to virtually eliminate VPN crashes, while elevating security.