TeenNow California is a non-profit organization whose mandate is twofold: to promote the health and well-being of expectant and parenting teens and their children, and to support prevention education efforts that address teen pregnancy.
Established in 1971, its membership includes educators, social workers, health care providers, parents and policy makers. They organize an annual state conference, and provide regional workshops, a quarterly newsletter, a teen services directory, and many other services.
Like most non-profits, TeenNow has a limited operating budget. To continue their work, they rely heavily on their ability to leverage both technical and human resources to free up time and energy for the youth and children they support. A steadily growing constituent base put pressure on the organization to meet increasing demands for service while keeping their operating costs in check. This pressure, combined with a recent office move precipitated a review of TeenNow’s existing matrix of office phones and computers. It was agreed that their current system had become too cumbersome to use and too difficult to manage. Dana Goodrow, CEO of TeenNow explained “It was obvious we needed to overhaul our network and phone system to meet our new requirements. For example, one of the things we wanted to do to is to allow our volunteer staff to access our network and technical resources from outside the office. This would allow them to spend more time in the field where they can do the most good, rather than coming in to the office as frequently. Our operating budget cannot support a full or part-time technical expert so we needed a solution that we could manage ourselves as much as possible.”
The group also needed to find a way to increase service levels for constituents without incurring greater operating costs. They determined that an ‘automated attendant’ feature would eliminate the need for a receptionist without compromising service levels. They also identified the adoption of remote management features as a way to lower support costs. Other sought-after network features included voicemail for all staff, Virtual Private Networking (VPN) and soft-phones to increase flexibility for the matrix of paid staff and volunteer workers who populate the TeenNow office.
To help them find the right solution, TeenNow engaged VividIP, a well-established Telephony and IT VAR specializing in communication solutions for small businesses. After a detailed analysis of their operations, VividIP recommended the Sutus Business Central as the best solution for TeenNow. Designed specifically for businesses of three to twenty-five users, the Business Central is a single device that runs all of the telephony, data and IT infrastructure in a small business environment.
“The TeenNow team basically wanted to start from scratch” explained Michael Zadeik, CEO of VividIP. “However, just like any successful business or organization, they couldn’t afford any downtime so they needed a solution that would not only run all of their infrastructure in a reliable and easy-to-manage fashion but one that could be up and running literally within hours.”
The Business Central is an enterprise-grade phone system that comes standard with advanced data and networking functions including file server, email server, router, firewall, wireless access point, VPN remote access, automated backups, and the ability to simultaneously support both standard phone line, and VoIP connections. The device is installed in a matter of hours, and its extensive management features allow for changes to phone lines, eliminating the need for third party support. For TeenNow, it meant that they could makes changes, from within or outside their office themselves. They also had the option of leveraging the support of VividIP as needed, in a matter of minutes, at a much lower cost.
Within hours of moving into their new office, the TeenNow team had transitioned from their old system and was up and running. VividIP was able to remotely login and set up their shared workspaces, soft-phones, relevant security services, and virtual private networking. “It’s amazing,” commented Goodrow. “You just don’t expect to be able to completely replace your network and phone system in that timeframe, let alone have it work perfectly first time. The fact that it is simple enough that we can handle our own network and phone administration is fantastic; and when we are too busy to do it ourselves, the guys at VividIP can quickly sort things out remotely rather than having to send a technician onsite, saving us a bundle.” He concluded, “I should also add that I brought in VividIP after I had already carried out a lot of cost-benefit research on different solutions. I was amazed at what the Business Central delivers us for the price we paid.”
