by SC Publisher Shannen Hayes
Zebis, the longtime IT provider to FISH of SANCAP, recently donated a unified communication (UC) system to the organization. The $14,000 phone system provides modern capabilities and avoids vendor restrictions that could delay repairs and restrict future upgrade-ability.
“Pressures from the health pandemic placed on FISH were exceeding the capabilities of their phone system to the point where the team was having to work around limitations,” explained Zebis CEO Matthew Reed. “To make matters more difficult, the phone system was experiencing malfunctions and, at times, most of the office phones would fail to make or receive phone calls.”
Reed further explained the phone system, at the time, was not part of the IT department. “This had become a big issue for FISH and the best answer was an ‘open’ system that is free of vendor restrictions; however, these can be very costly,” he said.
“We have been providing IT resources to FISH for a decade and know the essential work they do, which requires a reliable communications system,” Reed continued. “We wanted to fill this need when they were unable to assign the necessary budget due to their other high-priority needs during this time.”
As the phones at FISH continued to fail, Zebis took over that responsibility and replaced the system with a modern UC platform valued at $14,278. In addition to using a desk phone, UC systems allow the use of computers, smartphones, tablets, etc. – all seamlessly working together.
“This means one working from home can simply open the FISH UC app and start working on the phone just as if they were sitting in the office,” said Reed. “Web meetings and dial-in conferences can easily be scheduled along with a plethora of other functionality.”
FISH has been using the new UC system for a while now and Assistant Executive Director Maria Espinoza said she really likes being able to easily keep the switchboard open on her computer to quickly see who is on the phone and to whom they are talking. Plus, the new system will save the organization thousands of dollars every year.
“If you are a larger company with a complete in-house IT department, you don’t use traditional phone service,” said Reed. “Since FISH has such a department through our fractional offering, we can provide that same advantage resulting in savings realized every year.”
From ensuring children receive vital resources to providing essential services such as assisting with job placement, educating, the well-known food pantry, and many other resources, it’s an understatement to refer to FISH’s vast array of services as “diverse.”
“We’re so grateful to Zebis for their contribution,” said Executive Director Alicia Tighe-Orgera. “FISH is on the frontlines of crisis response, whether it’s a pandemic, hurricane or an individual who has run into hard times. For us, reliable and adaptable communication is critical in order to be able to respond to those we serve and Zebis continues to ensure that we are keeping pace with the demands of our community through our technology and communications systems.”
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