Each year, our sister publication Computer Dealer News hosts the Channel Elite Awards to recognize IT Solution Provider for their innovation, leadership, and commitment for creating value for their customers. As Canada’s leading IT channel publication, CDN invited solution providers to submit their best work to nine different categories for 2013’s awards. Here, we present the case studies these award nominees put forward to us. Find out who the big winners are on Sept. 11 when CDN presents them at the CEA Awards Gala.
Learn more about CDN’s Channel Elite Awards 2013
Nominee: GWA Business Solutions Canada Inc. from Markham, Ontario
Describe the solution or service you provide.
We support our client’s software needs for business solutions. And this means helping with MS-SQL issues and even back up issues that are pertinent to the optimal running of software.
What made your service of the highest quality? Provide measurable evidence of how you benefitted the customer’s business.
GWA normally supports its clients on a 9 to 5 basis. However, GWA has clients with offices in remote locations such as The Congo, Africa and Australia. When there are issues, The Congo client has more than just computers to deal with. There are challenges with the internet and the power as well. We provide exceptional service to these organizations when necessary. Sometimes this service even interrupts people’s vacation time.
Describe how services were delivered in a timely fashion, or how the response to a crisis was above and beyond the usual.
Many clients, despite our warnings run their computer systems like their inventory “just in time”.
This is scary and not a really productive way to run your business. GWA always tries to have their customers upgrade to the latest and greatest versions.
Take Y2k – that was 14 years ago. So many people were scrambling to buy new systems. Any of our clients that were up to date had nothing to worry about. This is not the majority of people and is a big issue still today. For those clients that do stay up to date, we see great improvements to a lot more than productivity.
Yes, the bonus of having the latest features is a great feeling, but when things like Y2K, HST and various other government changes arise, our clients are prepared and don’t have to worry. When clients agree to an upgrade, the upgrade is performed on time and on budget. We also will perform the upgrade procedure after hours to minimize any downtime.
How does your service surpass competitors in meeting the needs of customers?
GWA goes beyond its competitors for many reasons.
One of our clients is extremely sensitive to their reporting requirements. When the reporting system fails which it does from time to time – after all software is reliant on so many things, we are there.
Of course most of the time it runs smoothly until one of our consultants is on vacation. GWA’s team is very responsive to needs and even gives up vacation time or work way into the night. Yes it is normal to work nights and weekends, but it is not normal to be on vacation and logging in at the reservation desk’s computer while on an island with no wireless – this is above and beyond. The CEO used to be a consultant and was on the way to the hospital to give birth to her child and gave customer support while on the way to the hospital.
How does the solution further your customer’s green or environmentally friendly plans?
When we are upgrading older systems, they are running on old servers with old fashioned technology.
When a new server is put into the mix, the server will become more efficient. Another way to help clients is to put in new printers. The old printers are not only slower but so many of them use too much toner. By putting in the new fast, efficient and quiet printers, the energy costs go down.
We also help clients to choose different fonts for their reports as certain fonts use less ink. This may sound silly but if you can imagine how much printing is done in a year by yourself in your job alone, think about the accounting department alone.