Recognized for workplace modernization for SMB
Microsoft Inspire 2023, held on July 18th and 19th, brought together 400,000 Microsoft partners for a celebration of outstanding achievements impacting businesses and industries worldwide. The global event featured Microsoft’s annual Partner of the Year Awards (POTYA), which acknowledge outstanding successes by partners who utilize Microsoft technologies to provide remarkable solutions to address customer needs. This year, Microsoft received more than 4,200 POTYA nominations across 106 countries/regions. From those nominations, the Microsoft Modern Work team chose to feature TechMD as a partner success story at Microsoft Inspire 2023.
[Microsoft] was really impressed with [TechMD’s] submission featuring workplace modernization efforts for [their client]. It is a rich story that highlights the capability of Microsoft365 to help a small business grow more efficiently.
TechMD and Go Glass, a Microsoft workplace modernization success story
“Everything glass, friendly and fast,” is the slogan of Go Glass, an auto, residential, and commercial glass company in Delmarva. But, in 2018, this then 36-year-old company was having trouble delivering on the “fast” part because of a fragmented, paper-driven operating structure.
Go Glass prided itself on efficiency and excellent customer service, but rapid business expansion, disparate legacy business practices, and changing technologies had resulted in growing costs and longer order cycle times. They started working with managed IT services provider (MSP) Cards Technology (now part of TechMD), who immediately identified Microsoft 365 Enterprise (E3) as the solution to modernize Go Glass and bring it into the digital age.
Like many small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) in the mid-2010s, Go Glass was struggling to grow efficiently in an increasingly digital world. Up to that point, Go Glass had been relying on a local MSP to manage their IT. An initial current state assessment discovered:
- Ad hoc file sharing using various tools
- No centralized collaboration methods; costly in-person quarterly sales meetings and trainings
- Employees using company owned, yet personally managed mobile devices
- An avalanche of paper; filing cabinets stuffed with outdated SOPs and service manuals, sales representatives toting around huge binders stuffed with catalogs
- Manual quoting, ordering, and payment processes
- No centralized call centers
- Reliance on PCs and company servers
- Lack of attention to cybersecurity
TechMD worked with Go Glass to deploy E3, SharePoint, and Teams to address the challenges.
- Moved all files to SharePoint and OneDrive.
- Digitized and moved thousands of pages of documentation to SharePoint.
- Created SharePoint site for sales reps, stocked with catalogs and product options. Instead of lugging huge binders to the client, they now use tablets to pull up options, swipe through catalogs, and place orders immediately, which then filter through the now almost completely automated workflow.
- Implemented mobile device management platform, improving security.
- Rolled out Teams for meetings, conferencing, chat, and appointments, which reduced in-person meeting expenses by 75%.
- Empowered Go Glass to manage permissions in a self-service way instead of via IT support calls.
- Enabled remote work. Over 60% of office staff now have the flexibility to work from home, another office, or on the road.
- Reduced quote turnaround time by 80%.
- Achieved cost avoidance of $9.4 million through data breach prevention.*
Through these efforts, Go Glass was able to remain open during the lockdowns and capitalize on their digitalization afterwards, in large part to TechMD’s expertise deploying and managing Microsoft technologies. Due to its scalability, a Microsoft deployment that works for a smaller client also works for shops with hundreds of employees. Manufacturers, local governments, schools, hospitals, veterinarians, hotels, restaurants, nursing homes, and many more rely on TechMD to keep them running and their data secure while they focus on the business of serving their local communities.
Thanks to TechMD and Microsoft, our modernized workplace is set up to strategically respond to future unknowns, all while fulfilling our customer promise of, ‘Everything glass. Friendly and fast.'
Why modernize with TechMD and Microsoft365?
We invite you to watch Microsoft’s video (above) featuring how Go Glass was able to modernize their workplace with TechMD’s help and then contact us to see how TechMD can help bring your business confidently into the future.
About TechMD
TechMD is a national IT management company located in Endicott, NY. With over 275 employees nationwide and a cyber security sister-company, 1nteger, Tech MD, provides future-ready tech leadership, long-term technical fitness, and invisibility reliability for its clients. TechMD’s technical expertise and “IT built around you” personalized care allows its clients to focus their energy on creating positive impact for their companies and the communities they service. For more information, speak with one of our technology advisories today.
*Per IBM, the average cost of a data breach in the United States in 2022 was $9.44M
