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Rubicon Strategy Inc

Always Looking Ahead

“Having NeoLore in place is like having a virtual CIO”

When a company enjoys early success, it often endures unexpected growing pains. Launched in 2018, Rubicon Strategy, a government relations and public affairs consulting firm, with offices in Ottawa and Toronto, quickly gained ground in a competitive field. However, an expanding record of achievements occasioned infrastructure challenges.

“Given the start-up environment, all the employees tended to do a little bit of everything,” explains Stephanie Delorme, Director of Operations. Stephanie oversees IT support. “Some of the issues that came up were basic—such as software compatibility, Wi-Fi and printers. But as we grew and onboarded employees and increased resources, I realized that much of it was beyond my scope and was taking up too much time.”

She decided to enlist outside help.

Welcoming and Friendly

“I started searching for an IT support firm,” says Stephanie. “First, it was important to us that the firm was local as we believe in supporting local enterprises. Next, we’re a small company so it made sense that the support firm had expertise handling the particular demands of a group of our size.”

NeoLore Network’s website provided a digital introduction. “I went through their site and was very impressed,” Stephanie comments. “I found it welcoming and friendly, and the chat function was great. I read the experiences of some of their clients and they provided relevant examples of the challenges facing us. It was reassuring to see that a lot of their clients had similar issues to ours. We chose NeoLore.”

“Their upfront, open approach to fees was unlike other companies we spoke to. Their costing model really made a difference.”

An upfront, open approach

As new technologies are released, small businesses, in particular, face integration issues. “We had a patchwork system,” says Stephanie. “For instance, recently we completed an email migration— and have a file migration to Microsoft 365 coming up. NeoLore informed us that not everyone was using an updated version of Windows. That’s the kind of issue I want identified. With NeoLore, the migration couldn’t have gone smoother.”

NeoLore’s solutions for small business infrastructures address such areas as reducing downtime, network security, overseeing the IT budget, and proactive management. To ensure that an IT infrastructure is optimized and configured for best practices, NeoLore provides current documentation about an entire network. A SWOT analysis reviews infrastructure strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Stephanie adds that NeoLore’s fee structure was ideal, helping them with their own financial planning. “Their upfront, open approach to fees was unlike other companies we spoke to. Their costing model really made a difference.”

Client Security

Similar to large enterprises, small businesses are vulnerable to cyber threats. From firewalls and passwords to regular data backup and anti-malware, NeoLore offers strategies and technologies to ensure protection. Given the nature of Rubicon’s business, cybersecurity is an ongoing concern. “For instance, security clearance can be
required for a number of our clients,” says Stephanie, “and NeoLore is helping us put systems in place. It’s part of the planning process: certainly we have immediate needs, but we also have to be always looking ahead.”

The Virtual CIO

Among the most prominent benefits of outsourcing IT support is that it permits a company to focus on what it does best. “NeoLore knows our business and can predict IT events before there’s a crisis,” Stephanie says. “That  reduces a lot of stress. You don’t have to worry. In the end, having NeoLore in place is like having a virtual CIO.”