Note: Company Rebranding
Please note that the company name "SRS" mentioned in this case study refers to our former branding. We have since rebranded to "Stratify IT." While the name has changed, our commitment to delivering exceptional services remains the same. For the most current information, please visit our website or contact us directly. Thank you for your understanding.
Inwood Community Services
Inwood Community Services (ICS) is a non-profit started in 1979 by a group of residents in Inwood-Washington Heights, led by John J. Foley, CSP, then pastor of the Church of Good Shepherd. Over more than 35 years it has grown to over 100 employees, running counseling, literacy, youth services, and prevention programs for children, adolescents, adults, and families.
Within Community Board #12, ICS stands out for the range of its programs, including two certified treatment clinics, while keeping its grassroots, neighborhood roots. Much of that comes down to a long-serving board and staff who stay.
SRS worked with ICS from 2006 to 2014 across a range of IT and network projects. The sections below cover what that involved.
Email System (Microsoft Exchange)
- Productivity: a full Microsoft Exchange email system gave ICS a reliable platform to communicate on.
- Email management: SRS advised on cutting spam and tightening email security, so staff spent less time on junk.
Secure Remote Access (VPN)
- Flexibility: staff could work securely from anywhere.
- Data security: traffic was encrypted in transit, protecting sensitive data and meeting regulatory requirements.
- Collaboration: people could reach shared files and join meetings regardless of location.
- Cost: the VPN used existing internet connections instead of expensive dedicated remote-access hardware.
- Continuity: staff could keep working remotely if the office was disrupted.
Database Security
- Data protection: stronger controls reduced the risk of a breach.
- Access control: user accounts and group permissions kept the wrong people out and data intact.
- Compliance: the controls helped ICS meet the regulations it operates under.
- Trust: showing it took data security seriously reassured clients and stakeholders.
- Lower risk: the measures cut the odds of data loss and the reputational damage that follows.
Workstation Optimization
- Performance: faster workstations meant smoother day-to-day work.
- Efficiency: tuning resources cut slowdowns.
- Less downtime: catching issues early kept people working.
- Longer life: good maintenance pushed back the cost of replacing machines.
- Better experience: responsive machines made the work less frustrating.
Network Expansion
- Room to grow: more network capacity let ICS add workstations as it needed them.
- Productivity: better access to shared resources helped people work together.
- Collaboration: the larger network supported real-time teamwork.
- Bandwidth: the expansion eased congestion and kept performance steady.
- Future-ready: the setup left headroom for later growth.
Backup and Disaster Recovery
- Disaster recovery: reliable backups kept the organization running if data was lost.
- Data protection: critical information was safeguarded.
- Confidence: ICS could trust that recovery would work.
- Less downtime: recovery was faster, so outages were shorter.
- Compliance: backups addressed regulatory requirements and cut data risk.
- Peace of mind: staff knew the data was safe and available.
Internet Connectivity
- Reliable access: SRS resolved the connectivity problem and gave ICS a stable connection.
- Productivity: online work and collaboration ran without interruption.
- Less downtime: a quick fix kept disruptions short.
- Cost control: the issue was resolved without unnecessary spend.
- Better service: smoother online interactions improved the experience for the people ICS serves.
Resolving Subtle Operational Issues
- Performance: fixing small but real problems smoothed out workflows.
- Productivity: output rose and downtime dropped.
- Risk: addressing the issues protected operations and reputation.
- Satisfaction: the people ICS serves had a better experience.
- Decisions: more reliable data supported better planning.
Bottom Line
From 2006 to 2014, SRS handled the range of IT work ICS needed: network setup, database security, workstation tuning, troubleshooting, and on-site support. The result was a more reliable IT setup and, with it, better productivity, security, collaboration, cost control, and continuity for the organization.
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