Speech-Language & Audiology Canada
Achieving Flexibility, Security & Trust
“We have a good relationship with NeoLore… They know how to manage problems”
Speech-Language and Audiology Canada (S.A.C) is an Ottawa-based, national association that represents language pathologists, audiologists and communication health assistants. The association has over 6,400 members.
Dawn Wilson, chief executive officer of S.A.C., reflects on the impact COVID-19 had on operations. “The landscape in which we were working changed dramatically.” S.A.C. recognized the priority of reconfiguring their IT infrastructure. “We went through a request for proposal process to evaluate our needs and figure out who was the best company to support those needs,” says Dawn, “and NeoLore won that bid.”
“A Complex IT Project”
Generally, the pandemic has accelerated the adoption of digital technologies at the organizational level. “Our entire team had to work remotely and we had to totally revamp our IT,” Dawn says. “We had a server that had reached end of life status. I wanted to improve how we were looking at IT to manage a different solution for our server as well as a support remote working for our team.”
In July 2020, NeoLore began what Dawn characterizes as “a complex IT project.” She explains that the association “didn’t have the ability to pivot. We were not an organization that was ready for a hybrid work set up – and we didn’t have a plan for remote work.”
The project continued throughout the year and into February 2021. “There were some special challenges,” Dawn says. “On the implementation side, I think there was a lot to learn. We had a change of staff, which added to the difficulty. Looking back, I think it comes down to having effective communications all around.”
A Learning Curve
One challenge of establishing a learning curve is to adapt training to users’ IT skills. “NeoLore was dealing with people who were not subject-matter experts,” says Dawn. “NeoLore quickly learned what to do and what not to do. At the beginning of the implementation, I’d see a lot of Help Desk tickets. Now, I see very few.”
Dawn believes any IT project of substantial size is going have hiccups. “You have to consider that there was a massive change in IT infrastructure. A lot of issues that came up were due to a change in the mindset about how we were going to work and teaching people to adapt.”
“NeoLore quickly learned what to do and what not to do. At the beginning of the implementation, I’d see a lot of Help Desk tickets. Now, I see very few.”
The NeoLore Relationship
When considering the massive IT changes S.A.C. endured in a relatively constricted timeframe, Dawn judges the implementation to be “a huge success. We now have a Class A server that is accessible anywhere and is 100% secure. It’s really much more modern and a solid solution. It’s quite a change. Before, we had people dragging around desktop computers. Now we have flexibility and security.”
Managing Change
Dawn was impressed with NeoLore’s approach to problem-solving. “For example, let’s look at email migration. There were issues. NeoLore took our feedback and tried everything they could. When something goes wrong, I look at how it’s managed.
“In the case of NeoLore, I could be confident that I was going to get a response: the simple fact that I have direct access – and that we speak the same language – made a huge difference to us. As a CEO, if someone sends me a message, I’m alerted and respond within an appropriate time frame. NeoLore does the same thing.”
Building Trust
NeoLore prides itself on customer service, achieving outstanding results on satisfaction surveys. ”How a problem is resolved is just as important to me as the service and support,” Dawn concludes.
“We have a good relationship with NeoLore. They know how to manage problems – and it builds trust. They’ve been really good.”
