Today we don’t think twice about carrying our social lives, grocery lists, newspapers and a thousand other things in our pockets everywhere we go.
So why not bring the office with you too? If you’re in an industry that relies on employees being mobile, the pocket office is essential to remaining competitive—so creating the pocket office is exactly what OnPoint CFO & Controller Services, PC did.
Staying On Point
OnPoint is a company that provides professional services (think accounting, virtual office and facility management) to many different types of clients. Since so much of their work is done remotely or while on the road, OnPoint needed to set up a perfect “pocket office” solution that matched their specific needs and the rigorous demands of their industry.
Needless to say, security is a huge concern for a company dealing with tons of confidential information. Effective collaboration is also critical for a company that services different clients that need access to their own data 24/7. But accounting is an industry that has been traditionally behind the curve when it comes to technology, and OnPoint wanted to address those issues to keep a competitive edge and better service its clients.
OnPoint founder and president Brian Clark wanted to break down barriers and provide his clients with real-time access to information from PCs, tablets or phones. He summarized their needs in three points: “Collaboration, access to company data from a smartphone and security.”
Collaboration
Brian and his clients both needed secure access to their data at any time, regardless of location. Brian used to spend a big part of his day dealing with client requests for financial statements, loan information tax returns or other documents. OnPoint switched to Office 365 to manage their data and after setting clients up, they no longer need to go through Brian and his team and instead, have easy and direct access to their data anytime they need it—saving OnPoint valuable time and money.
Access to company data from a Smartphone
Brian used to rely on an iPhone, but it didn’t meet his business needs. Specifically, it didn’t allow him to multitask with his clients’ data or manage multiple businesses with one device—two pain points he desperately needed to address in his pocket office. The integration of Windows Phone with all the other Microsoft services, like Office 365, enabled Brian to conduct his business from anywhere and address the issues other devices could not.
Now he is able to provide expertise and collaboration in real-time without being in the same office as his customers or employees.
Security
OnPoint recognized that no other platform could provide the enterprise-level security his clients demanded. With a business model that requires his clients to trust his company with their financial information, Brian needed the ability to manage access within his company too. The ability to set differing levels of access in Office 365 (and SharePoint) was a huge selling point.
Microsoft’s experience building systems that provide the level of security OnPoint needed enabled Brian and his company to maintain a huge advantage over the competition. “For me, it’s less about hard ROI right now and more about the value that I’m providing my customers. From a competitive point of view, that really differentiates us from other service providers.”
Enter the Pocket Office
By moving their data to Office 365 and equipping their employees with Windows Phones and Windows 8 devices, OnPoint’s investment in their pocket office enabled a collaborative and secure environment that keeps them one step ahead of the competition and allows them to get more work done on their own terms. For a team whose bread and butter is flexibility and security, a pocket office solution was the perfect fit.