Microsoft Office 365Customer Solution Case Study

Software Company Uses Cloud-Based File Sharing and Conferencing for Global Support

OverviewCountry or Region: GermanyIndustry: IT/Healthcare

Customer Profileifa systems AG is an industry leader in developing software that helps ophthalmologists and their staffs maintain electronic medical records and other practice management activities.

Business SituationTo support installation teams that travel to customers around the world, ifa systems needed easy, secure access to email and files from any place, at any time.

SolutionWith one simple login, Microsoft Office 365 brings Outlook email, Lync Online conferencing and chat, and SharePoint file sharing to installation teams in any country or time zone.

Benefits Email and virtual conferencing Easy document sharing Minimal IT support

Office 365 gives us an environment we can use around the world. Now we can connect every time, at every place, to check emails, have online meetings, and reach our SharePoint files.

Heiko Zeumer, CIO, ifa systems AG

Ophthalmologists turn to ifa systems to capture diagnostic information from specialty equipment and create more complete records, so they can focus instead on protecting their patients’ vision. However, ifa itself struggled to maintain secure, remote access to email and important documents for its own employees. Facing the limits of a small IT staff, the software company realized it needed to move infrastructure and administration to the cloud in order to support its remote installation teams.

Using a single login, ifa employees can now access Office 365 from a variety of mobile devices for Outlook email, calendars, and contacts. In addition, ifa employees, of which about 80% work remotely, can easily collaborate with desktop sharing and IM through Lync Online. ifa’s IT team no longer works weekends to maintain on-premise hardware, and administration is as simple as sending an invitation.

SituationLike the doctors it serves, ifa systems AG excels in one specialty: developing software for ophthalmologists. ifa systems is trusted by more than 10,000 professionals around the world for its industry-leading software for electronic medical records and practice management.

Headquartered in Frechen, Germany, the company has grown to about 150 employees since its launch in 1984. The group’s specially trained teams travel throughout Europe, the U.S., China, and Australia to complete on-site software installations at clinics and practices of every size. Although roughly 80% of its employees work remotely at times, ifa systems struggled to provide email and file sharing that could be accessed securely from any country. “We needed a stable platform and access to our email and documents at every time and place we were,” says Heiko Zeumer, CIO of ifa systems.

Once the installation teams reach a customer’s clinic, they need to stay in touch with colleagues back at headquarters to share information about the project’s status, get help troubleshooting, and view instructions or other documentation. However, ifa’s technicians ran into problems using international phone services and getting to email. Trying to coordinate among multiple staff and disparate documentation became a time-consuming challenge.

To compound the problem, ifa’s three-person IT department simply did not have enough time to maintain secure, remote access to its on-premise Microsoft Exchange and SharePoint systems. When the company expanded with a new office in

the U.S., maintenance became even more complicated. Zeumer says ifa wanted to reduce the company’s reliance on its headquarters by outsourcing some of its IT infrastructure to the cloud. “We don’t want to support the ongoing maintenance and upgrades associated with running our own servers if there are better alternatives,” he says.

SolutionIn 2012, ifa systems transitioned all 150 employees to Microsoft Office 365, an online service which unites familiar Microsoft Office applications with email, calendaring, collaboration, and communication solutions. ifa learned about Office 365 from its IT partner Utilitas, and the decision was easy. According to Zeumer, ifa wasn’t interested in other cloud-based solutions. “The best provider for the product was Microsoft,” he says.

Because Office 365 includes Exchange Online, ifa’s installation teams can log into their Outlook email, calendar, and contacts no matter where they are, as long as they have an Internet connection. Field employees can also log in from a wide array of smartphones and tablets, including Windows Phones, Android phones and tablets, iPhones, or iPads.

To better facilitate the step-by-step process ifa’s technicians follow, the company worked with Utilitas to implement a project management application for SharePoint Online, another component of Office 365. Now, members of the installation teams can simply check off the status of tasks that need to be performed at each site, and anyone contacted to assist has an accurate picture of their status without launching a flurry of emails . The application has helped minimize problems during installation,

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shortening the time required and reducing the cost.

With Lync Online, colleagues can quickly reach each other through virtual conferencing, desktop sharing, and IM. “Previously, we had no screen sharing, and it was difficult to initiate meetings,” says Zeumer. “Now, I can see that my colleague is online and we can do a screen share and chat. It’s much easier.”

The company’s three-person IT team, which started the migration to Office 365 on a Saturday, was pleased to find that employers were up and running by Monday morning. Today, new workers receive an invitation and basic instructions about how to log into Office 365, and they’re ready to go.

BenefitsOffice 365 gives ifa one place to reach all the information and tools employees need. It has also freed up the company’s IT group to focus projects the business values highly. “We are exploring applications to automate other processes currently managed on paper with applications on SharePoint Online, like vacation tracking and contract management,” explains Zeumer.

Connect Any Time, Any PlaceZeumer says that today, all a technician needs for a successful installation is an Internet connection. “Office 365 gives us an environment we can use around the world,” he says. “Now we can connect every time, at every place, to check emails, have online meetings, and reach our SharePoint applications and files.”

Global CollaborationAs ifa sells software to more and more ophthalmological practices around the

world, Lync Online makes it easier than ever to share information and support. “We can now tap into our knowledge base worldwide,” says Zeumer. “Before, our conference solution allowed only eight users. Now, we all have headsets and can use Lync to talk to each other whenever we need to.”

 Less Demand on ITMaintaining on-premise systems used to strain ifa’s IT resources. “With the opening of an office in the U.S., we worked a lot on the weekends for routine maintenance,” says Zeumer. “We no longer have to work after hours to manage our email and collaboration tools.” Also, with infrastructure and security managed in the cloud, Zeumer says he no longer has to search for product keys, scramble to purchase new licenses, or train users on new features. “We set up a new user with basic credentials, and all the licensing administration is done, along with provisioning Lync, SharePoint and Exchange with a few simple clicks. We’ve even set up departmental administrators to take care of the routine requests.” As ifa continues to expand into other markets, Zeumer says he’s looking forward to less administration and more support for his end-users. “Office 365 is easier to administer, it’s easier for our employees to use, and we don’t need to plan for maintenance. It’s just easier for everyone.”

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Microsoft Office 365Microsoft Office 365 brings together cloud versions of our most trusted communications and collaboration products—Microsoft SharePoint Online, Exchange Online, and Lync Online—with the latest version of our Office desktop suite and companion web applications for businesses of all sizes.

Office 365 helps save time and money, and it frees up valued resources. Simple to use and easy to administer, it is financially backed by a service level agreement guaranteeing 99 percent reliability. Office 365 features robust security, IT-level phone support, geo-redundancy, disaster recovery, and the business-class privacy controls and standards that you expect from a world-class service provider.

For more information about Microsoft Office 365, go to:www.office365.com

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For More InformationFor more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers in the United States and Canada who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:www.microsoft.com

For more information about Utilitas GmbH products and services, visit the website at: www.utilitas.net

For more information about ifa systems AG products and services, visit the website at: www.ifasystems.de

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published April 2013

Software & ServicesMicrosoft Office 365 Exchange Online Lync Online SharePoint OnlineMicrosoft OutlookInstant Messenger