AnswerOn Business Objects Upgrade Case Study
"Through Instant Access, WCI Consulting resolved small issues that would have taken hours to figure out on our own"
– Darrel Holladay, AnswerOn
Situation
AnswerOn, a marketing consulting firm that examines client data through SAP BusinessObjects to determine how to increase customer satisfaction and decrease churn rate for its clients. In late 2012 AnswerOn went through the process of upgrading from version 3.1 to 4.0 with the help of WCI Consulting, a Dallas-based business intelligence (BI) consulting firm.
The upgrade went smoothly but throughout the process small issues were encountered that didn’t warrant full consulting spend and elaborate work-around applications were established to solve minor concerns. Realizing that a temporary fix wasn’t going to be sustainable, Darrel Holladay, a Business Analyst from AnswerOn, decided to explore options for a solution that provided SAP BusinessObjects support and training in a manner that was financially viable, could deliver rapid problem resolution and was simple to use.
Holladay found the perfect fit in Instant Access from WCI Consulting. See other companies WCI has been able to help.
Solution
“It’s really accessible and has been helpful in answering the 5 second questions… how do I do this or that? Instead of spending hours on Google or a BusinessObjects board to figure out how to solve these small issues.” - Darrel Holladay, AnswerOn
Waiting for a response to a question that came up days ago just wasn’t an option. AnswerOn knew that they wanted quick and accurate ongoing support, but only when it was truly needed. Through Instant Access from WCI Consulting, AnswerOn was able to get support, training and consulting all in one platform that was easily accessible and affordable.
What appealed to AnswerOn is that Instant Access really was the complete package. After several months of use the highlights, as said by Holladay, include:
Rapid Response
“Nothing but good experiences so far, all the questions get answered quick and a reply is sent within the hour.”
Extensive BI Knowledge
“If I come to a problem, and the consultants don’t know the answer right away they will find someone who does. There's hasn't been anything that has stumped them.”
Comprehensive Answers
“The instructions were super detailed and walked us through the best practices to get up to date on the latest service patch. Even my wife who doesn't know business objects could have followed the instructions.”
Convenience
“It’s really accessible and has been helpful in answering the 5 second questions… how do I do this or that? Instead of spending hours on Google or a BusinessObjects board to figure out how to solve these small issues.”
Success
As a result of implementing Instant Access, AnswerOn has experienced:
Increased End User Adoption – Since users get responses to issues while they are in the midst of performing a task the retention rate of the steps involved to solve a problem is increased. And if something does come up, Instant Access is there when the end users need it, so the intimidation of making a mistake is diminished.
Improved Departmental Efficiency – Time is saved on looking through support forums and knowledge bases so resources can be redirected to ensuring the needs of the client are being met.
Enhanced Client Satisfaction – AnswerOn relies on the data presented by SAP BusinessObjects software and when minor issues slow down the productivity of the system, the clients and the entire business suffers. With Instant Access, concerns are addressed before they can even become a threat.
