IDT/Tronitech: A Block and Company Customer Case Study
Block & Co. Future-Proofs ECM with Low-Cost Cloud Technology Company Gains 24/7/365 Support, Smooth Transition for Users Software that is inexpensive, upgrades automatically and offers unlimited storage is usually a welcome choice for any IT professional—especially when a change is unwanted, but necessary, due to discontinued support and a platform at the threshold of maximum capacity. Such was the case for Kremena Hagen, Manager, and Information Technologies for Block & Company, a leading manufacturer of POS and money handling equipment, security and office products based in Wheeling, IL. Support ended in 2013 for the company’s on premise electronic content management (ECM) system used in its Accounts Payable, Distribution, and Customer Service departments, and a new solution was needed. Led by Hagen, the four-person IT team at this 81 year-old firm had already been working since 2012 on major hardware, system and application upgrades to meet company goals of faster data access, better integration between systems and more process automation. For the ECM system conversion, Hagen had three primary goals: retain the same functionality, no disruption for users and contain costs. Affordable, Cloud-Based ECM Hagen turned to Block’s ECM consultant Integrated Document Technologies (IDT), Itasca, IL, to assist with selecting a new system. “We trust IDT’s technical expertise, vast experience with multiple ECM systems, and most importantly, knowledge of our own infrastructure and data,” says Hagen. The two companies have worked together since 2001, when IDT designed, installed and integrated the company’s first ECM system, and on a prior conversion in 2009. For its next upgrade, Block considered new enterprise ECM software from its current provider. But Hagen found the cost too high, and, didn’t want to purchase yet another system on premise that may not be supported four years from now. To meet cost constraints without sacrificing functionality, IDT recommended a Cloud-based system, Tronitech’s VAULTview ECM that would provide Block with several long-term advantages: reduced infrastructure and maintenance costs; unlimited storage; and greater functionality and flexibility than the previous system. “By moving ECM to the Cloud, Block eliminated on premise servers and IT infrastructure, plus licensing fees. All that’s needed to use it is a web browser,” notes Mike Nolfo, IDT president. “With upgrades included, there’s no downtime or added cost. And since space is always available in the Cloud, unlimited storage is another plus.” Tronitech also offers technical support 24/7, 365 days a year, and a relief for busy IT teams. All these factors added up to good reason for Block to move to the Cloud. “Internally for IT, we have one less server and application to worry about,” says Hagen. “ECM systems are not in the core of our IT expertise, and having someone else taking care of it is welcomed.” The Tronitech VAULTview ECM Importantly for many companies, too, says Nolfo, a Cloud ECM system like VAULTview is a good solution for disaster recovery. Rather than having hardware on premise, servers are housed in a compliant data center and regularly backed-up, again eliminating work for in-house IT teams. This became another value-add for Block, since the company is in the midst of developing a disaster recovery plan. A Successful Conversion In line with Hagen’s goals of not disrupting the user experience or requiring training, IDT and Tronitech were committed to configure the new ECM system to closely resemble the set up the company had previously. For data capture, scanning and indexing, Block was happy with the performance of its current technology, CAPSYS® CAPTURE, and wanted to keep it in place. The web-based, thin client software enables documents to be captured electronically from anywhere, on any device,...
Refining your image
Integrating imaging and business process automation with your core service offerings can be easier with the right solution provider. Let’s get one thing straight: Paper is going to be around for a long time, but the revolution of digital information has taken place. Remember when having your head in the clouds referred to being out of touch or unrealistic and going on vacation did not include taking your smartphone to instantly respond to work emails or phone calls? We have come to rely on having information available at our fingertips. We also are familiar with the rapid pace at which technology moves, and this one-way freight train loaded with evolving data technologies, continues to gain momentum. In addition, regulations and security requirements are only getting more stringent, forcing organizations to make decisions. An example of this for RIM (records and information management) companies was when the HITECH (Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health) Act forced the medical industry to adopt electronic medical records (EMRs). Although RIM companies are still enjoying profits from storing and shredding paper documents, a dramatic change is taking place in the industry. The role of RIM services providers is changing from records storage and destruction partners to total information management partners. “Big data,” however, can offer “big opportunities” for RIM companies. Now is the time to add one of several new revenue sources to not only grow your business but also to compete in offering integrated solutions tailored to your customers’ needs. One such opportunity is document imaging and business process automation. Confronting obstacles I know you might have heard from your peers about their experiences in this area, have attended trade shows with sessions on the topic, have seen other companies try to offer these services and have even explored offering business process automation services yourself, but the challenges of committing to a technology seem too overwhelming and distracting to take action, even though business process automation is a natural fit. What is clear is this: Times are changing, and the digital world we live in today is a different ball game that requires a different offensive strategy. Integrating imaging and business process automation with your core services is becoming less of an option and more of a necessity if growth is your company’s goal. To meet your customers’ immediate and long-term needs, becoming a full-service information management company will not only help you to reach new clients, it also will help you to produce more revenue from existing clients. Contrary to what many commercial RIM professionals believe, document imaging can drive more boxes to your business, and if you are not offering this service to your customers, someone else will. Unfortunately, too many records management and secure destruction companies are not looking outside the box mostly because of the preconceived notion of the complexity of imaging and the obstacles they will face when offering this service. Do any of these excuses sound familiar? I don’t understand the technology or business processes associated with imaging. The barriers to entry are too high and too expensive. My existing staff is not trained to sell or provide imaging services. I am afraid of failing with my customers or of wasting time and money to learn imaging. I do not think my customer base is ready for or accepting of document imaging. I don’t have time to focus on a new service that will distract from my company’s core services. Document imaging is too expensive. Any one of these perceived obstacles is enough to prevent a business from offering or achieving success in document imaging....
ECM-Slow Sales, No Sales, WHY? ECM Sales and Services
ECM-Slow Sales, No Sales, WHY? I was sold on the idea 5 years ago ECM was the silver bullet. Became an expert on Docu-Everything and used the logic that If You Build It, They would come. What happened? After attending trade shows, reading publications and speaking with peers, document imaging was going to be the silver bullet coming out of the economic downturn. Determined and committed, I began discussions with several different software vendors, viewed demos and heard how easy the sale will be in a booming industry, the plunge was a no brainer. The company selected Docu-Everything software [insert any software vendor] which was the best ECM software ever offered at a very competitive price. After investing a lot of money to become an authorized reseller and sending staff to training, we were Docu-Everything experts and fully armed to deploy the troops to send sales skyrocketing, OR WERE WE??? The answer is an emphatic NO!!! Chasing every opportunity, responding to RFP’s, canvassing any business with file cabinets, you name it, but the sales were dismal and it became fruitless to continue. The silver bullet bombed, big time. Unfortunately, the above scenario is far more of the norm than exception. Companies sign with Docu-Everything, pay the reseller fee, get trained (certified as an authorized reseller) and go ‘gung ho’ to sell document imaging. Sales were less than desirable, the boss was applying pressure and eventually INSANITY sets in, you know, doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results. The white flag was raised and in frustration begged the question “WHY”? With the best sales people on the planet that were Docu-Everything experts, a marketing team Google envied and support staff ready to help 24/7, how could this fail, “WHY”? A 110% effort was put forth with a lot of hard work, meetings, proposals, emails etc. Of course every dog has its day and luck eventually takes your side to close a few deals just enough to win a few battles, but I could never pinpoint what differentiated those sales from all the deals lost. Each time, you met with the customers, told them how great Docu-Everything was, showed them a demo, got the volumes of paper, submitted a proposal on time and followed up as a good sales person would do, but to no avail. So once again “WHY”? It must be Docu-Everything software which was the best, is that WHY? “Why”, “Why, “Why, “Why”? WHY #1. They didn’t know how to sell ECM. These companies hadn’t the slightest clue of who, what, when, where and especially WHY. ECM is a complex sale that requires knowing Who is a suspect or prospect, What the problem is [business or technical challenges], When to offer a designed solution to fix the problem, Where the advocates or opponents are, and WHY they need an ECM solution, justified with a proven ROI. At the very least, get a better understanding of common business problems. Know the terms, speak their language, understand their workflows, then match a solution to that. Why #2. Just because you have the best sales people (they do know how to sell) and marketing personnel that are all trained on Docu-Everything, doesn’t make the sales numbers. The “why” conundrum could have been solved here: The sales people have to care or know how to ask the questions that finds the business problems by addressing how a solution specifically speeds up accounts payable, how it reduces the new hire on-boarding process from days to hours in HR, and how to streamline the shipping and receiving department for greater...
Tronitech, Inc. Receives 2015 Best of Cincinnati Award for Document Imaging
Cincinnati Award Program Honors the Achievement CINCINNATI March 10, 2015 — Tronitech, Inc. has been selected for the 2015 Best of Cincinnati Award in the Document Imaging Solution category by the Cincinnati Award Program. Each year, the Cincinnati Award Program identifies companies that we believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and our community. These exceptional companies help make the Cincinnati area a great place to live, work and play. Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2015 Cincinnati Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the Cincinnati Award Program and data provided by third parties. About Tronitech, Inc. Tronitech is a document imaging solutions provider with customers worldwide. Tronitech takes a completely unique approach by providing all the skills and support necessary for successfully offering document imaging. Tronitech is your connection to powerful document imaging solutions, services and support. Tronitech’s robust docTeam suite of solutions includes Tronitech Capture and Vaultview content management designed to securely streamline the most complex business processes via the cloud or on-premise. www.tronitech.com/ About Cincinnati Award Program The Cincinnati Award Program is an annual awards program honoring the achievements and accomplishments of local businesses throughout the Cincinnati area. Recognition is given to those companies that have shown the ability to use their best practices and implemented programs to generate competitive advantages and long-term value. The Cincinnati Award Program was established to recognize the best of local businesses in our community. Our organization works exclusively with local business owners, trade groups, professional associations and other business advertising and marketing groups. Our mission is to recognize the small business community’s contributions to the U.S. economy. SOURCE: Tronitech Media Contact: Mark Arkenau 800-582-7652 [email protected] I want to learn more! to learn more or call us at (800)...
NAID 2015 Conference & Expo – March 20-22 Dallas Texas – It’s A Breakthrough Approach to Imaging For Destruction and Record Storage Companies
Are you puzzled over how to get started in imaging? Frustrated by all the pieces that look the same and take too long to put together? Need assistance to see both the whole picture as well as the details? By visiting Tronitech at the NAID 2015 Conference & Expo, Booth 227, we will explain how we take a completely different approach that will help you succeed in offering document imaging services. Tronitech provides all the skills and technology necessary that will remove any obstacle that may prevent a business from offering imaging services. Running a business means making tough choices. Choosing an imaging company that will constantly support you is not one of them. Choose Tronitech! Simple! Powerful! Profitable! Together, we can create success! Stop by and visit us at the NAID 2015 Conference & Expo, Booth 227 to learn how we work hard to make imaging easy for our clients. I want to learn more! to learn more or call us at (800)...