"Our coverage is now 24 hours a day and 70% of calls are answered within 1 minute – which is way better than we were able to deliver previously. We’re doing better for our customers and that’s helping us a great deal."
“There have been no technical issues. It’s just moving the hardware around with the actual customers and getting those restore points going – it’s moving pretty smoothly. We’re also migrating over 1,350 SaaS licenses at the same time.”
Strict Vendor Policies Consider MSPs Last
MSPs continue to rely on hardware as an additional line of defense to protect data backups, but some vendors are requiring more money, time, and effort from MSPs to satisfy these use cases. Andrew Carey, the CEO of Shift IT Solutions, decided to leave Datto, a Kaseya company, after hitting the limits of their rigid device requirements.
“We had a Datto unit fail and put in a ticket for a replacement. In return, I got an email looking for a three-year agreement for a product that was already paid for and under warranty. I literally lost my mind.”
The response soured an already strained relationship where Shift IT Solutions had experienced similar surprises with Kaseya in the past. Andrew was frustrated by changes to the Kaseya billing portal that added unnecessary time and effort to previously automated tasks. He says, “Every single time we do a change, we have to email them and then chase them down to make the change and then get a refund when they bill us for the thing that was supposed to be changed.” While administrative burdens added up, complaints from technicians raised even further concerns, as - Shift IT Solutions’ technicians were losing faith in Datto solutions.
“Backup is one of the most important parts of our business. I’ve got individuals specifically responsible for ensuring that backups are happening and that anything related to backups is getting escalated – and they were no longer confident in the technology. That was keeping me up at night.”
Instead of managing faulty devices, navigating contracts, chasing vendors, and losing sleep over backup integrity, Shift IT Solutions wanted to empower its team to improve the value of its business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR) services for varying client environments. Andrew sought a new solution for Shift IT Solutions’ clients to ensure compliant and complete data security while simultaneously enabling productivity for rapid and reliable backup and disaster recovery (BDR).
Axcient x360Recover for BCDR + ConnectWise for IT Management = Co-Managed Backup
After vetting providers, Shift IT Solutions moved to the Axcient x360Recover and ConnectWise Asio platform for the combination of robust and compliant data security features, hardware-agnostic BYOD policies, and unified monitoring and management. With simple oversight through the unobstructed view of Axcient x360Recover-protected systems and health status information in the ConnectWise Asio dashboard, Shift IT Solutions can quickly identify, mitigate, manage, and recover from backup integrity threats with confidence.
Taking full advantage of the integration, Shift IT Solutions is utilizing the Network Operations Center (NOC) services included in the ConnectWise Asio platform. Andrew explains how Shift IT Solutions has augmented staffing by outsourcing its service desk to the ConnectWise co-managed backup team.
“I’ve taken all my guys – who have been with me for a while, hammering the living daylights out of the service desk – and turned them into customer service champions. They’ve all been promoted and are earning commissions based on performance. Now I’m not wasting resources incessantly hiring and we’re getting a lot more done faster. With the growth we’re looking at, I need to be onboarding customers, not training potential employees.”
After migrating 35% of its clients to Axcient x360Recover, Andrew says, “There have been no technical issues. It’s just moving the hardware around with the actual customers and getting those restore points going – it’s moving pretty smoothly. We’re also migrating over 1,350 SaaS licenses at the same time.”
Improving Client Experience with Smart Resource Allocation
Since switching to Axcient x360Recover and ConnectWise Asio, Andrew and the team at Shift IT Solutions are sleeping sound. ConnectWise NOC services are handling backup and server management, reboots, and restoration, allowing technicians to reduce technical debt and boost productivity for higher value activities. Transitioning its helpdesk to the NOC services team has resulted in significant wins for the MSP’s customer service capabilities.
"Our coverage is now 24 hours a day and 70% of calls are answered within 1 minute – which is way better than we were able to deliver previously. We’re doing better for our customers and that’s helping us a great deal."
While pricing wasn’t specifically a factor in making the switch, Shift IT Solutions is enjoying a less expensive partnership with Axcient and ConnectWise and was able to conserve costs by repurposing existing Datto hardware for Axcient x360Recover. Andrew also champions the response rate, communication, and consistency experienced with Axcient and ConnectWise, highlighting the value of a supportive BCDR vendor duo.
“The reason I signed with Axcient and ConnectWise is because they answer their phones. Operational issues can always be fixed with growth, but not vice versa. As long as I’ve got somebody I can call, that’s half the battle. Now, I know that I do.”
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