The Solution
In selecting a project partner, Dave Belson, ILT Manager at MLC, says, “We did our due diligence beyond just price checking because, for us, it’s not simply a dollar figure transaction. Compnow delivers extra value.”
An order was to be placed for 519 units, combining the latest Surface Go for junior school students, and Surface Pro 8s for senior school students. But as step one of the rollout, teachers were given the new devices, and trained in their use and how to best support students. Vanessa says,“This period of review was to make absolutely certain the Surface devices would be the best fit for our learners.”
The staff deployment was the first major project with Compnow and “when we were placing our order it was in the context of device shortages. Compnow helped us sleep at night as they used their national buying power to pull together the numbers we needed. They communicated with us all the time about how they would make things happen if there were delivery delays.”
“We couldn’t have been happier with the alacrity of the service and support. It gave us full confidence to fulfil the student rollout,” Dave says.
The 12-business day implementation project saw Compnow enrol and monitor the deployment of the devices. Using Microsoft’s Intune cloud-based endpoint management solution, all devices were asset tagged and scanned into Compnow’s automated deployment system for registration. The AutoPilot feature in Intune was used to pre-configure each machine and install the MLC environment’s software. An onsite test verified the AutoPilot enrolment could be replicated at Compnow’s Engineering Department.
The sealed and re-boxed devices were delivered to MLC in time to hand to students on day one of the rollout.
“They do an inordinate amount of work to ensure ‘out of the box’ means exactly that. From the ordering and financing arrangements, to the device setup and provisioning, and on-time delivery — it could not have gone any smoother,” Dave says.
“It should be emphasised how supported our team felt leading up to deployment.” At rollout, Compnow was onsite to assist with any unforeseen issues, “They’d done such quality work behind the scenes, we didn’t end up needing them.”
A support and maintenance agreement was put in place to ensure continued lifecycle success. To efficiently capture the project’s details, for both Compnow and MLC’s ongoing management of the new fleet, the deployment process was fully documented and a checklist created.
The warranty and onsite repair arrangements work seamlessly. A Compnow bespoke portal has streamlined end to end customer needs. “I don’t have to phone or email, I don’t have to get sign offs or raise purchase orders. Anything I need from repairs and finances through to purchasing is a click away on the portal,” Dave says.
“And now, its Compnow’s after-sales that really tells the story. Their account manager drops in and hot desks with us once a fortnight. We throw bits at him and he uses the opportunity to check on how we’re going. He tells us what other schools are doing and suggests things to us — but doesn’t push.”
