“Our competitive strategy depends on deploying Windows Intune to manage 1,200 tablets used by our independent sales contractors to improve our in-home sales process and win more business.”
Steven Creaney, Senior .NET Developer, Empire Today
Empire Today installs flooring and window treatments. It is using Windows Intune to manage more than 1,200 tablets running Windows 8.1 RT and a proprietary app that helps its sales force streamline in-home service. The solution replaces a paper-based process, enabling a standard, efficient method of generating quotes, and capturing orders. Empire expects to win more sales, save money on increased material accuracy, and boost its competitive advantage.
This case study is for informational purposes only.MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.
Document published April 2014
Business Needs
Empire Today built its home furnishings business on efficient shop-at-home convenience, including free, in-home estimates and next-day installation on in-stock products. To solidify its reputation for expedient, professional service, Empire wanted to improve the in-home sales process by providing its 1,200 independent sales contractors with mobile technology. Until recently, these reps carried binders of product information and used paper to draw diagrams, calculate floor space, and create sales contracts for the customer to sign.
“We wanted to standardize the sales process and make it easier for reps to capture data for calculating material requirements to ensure increased accuracy of quotes,” says Gabe Whitehouse, Program Director, Information Technology at Empire Today. “We envisioned creating a mobile app that would remove ambiguity for the order management team who has to decipher handwritteninstructions. We wanted to easily deploy and update the app, including updated state-specific contractual regulations, and we also wanted to reduce paper costs.”
Empire needed to find the right mobile technology platform to accomplish its goals, including a mobile device running an operating system that worked with its IT environment and matched in-house development skills. “Our sales force consists of independent contractors, so we didn’t want to create user IDs in our internal domain and manage them within our Active Directory solution,” says Paul Connolly, Chief Information Officer at Empire Today. “Nor did we want to add more hardware to our datacenter.”
With more than 1,200 tablets in the hands ofindependent sales contractors across the United States, Empire would need a mobile device management solution that reduced the support burden on Empire IT staff. “The more that we could automate app installment and updates on the devices, the better,” says Phil Kohler, Director Applications Development and Architecture at Empire Today.
Solution
Empire turned to Windows Intune, a cloud-based mobile device management solution, to centrally manage a fleet of Nokia Lumia 2520 tablets running the Windows 8.1 RT operating system and a touch-enabled app called PrecisionQuote™. Empire is using the Microsoft Azure cloud environment to host a separate domain and an Active Directory solution for its independent sales contractors. The license for Windows Intune includes the Configuration Manager component of Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 data center solutions, which Empire will use to deploy the app and any subsequent updates.
“We evaluated iOS and Android-based devices, but the complexity of developing on those platforms and integrating the devices into our environment defeated that option,” says Steven Creaney, Senior .NET Developer at Empire Today.
Empire evaluated AirWatch for mobile device management, but felt that using the Microsoft solution to deploy and update the app was a more streamlined process than that offered by AirWatch. Empire also wanted to work with one vendor.
“Microsoft provided the operating system for the app that matched our development expertise and the separate, cloud-based environment that we needed,” says Connolly.
Empire worked with Magenic, a member of the Microsoft Partner Network, to help build the app. “Magenic’s expertise in the Windows RT modern app platform and design practices was one of their biggest strengths, allowing us to build a solid piece of software,” says Connolly.
The company worked with another Microsoft Partner, Peters & Associates, to provision the Azure environment with Configuration Manager and Windows Intune. “The team from Peters & Associates was invaluable in helping us set up a complete, unified device management system in the cloud,” says Connolly.
Empire will deploy the Lumia tablets with built-in 4G LTE from Verizon and running the PrecisionQuote™ app to all sales reps by the end of 2014.
Benefits
Empire is using its mobile technology solution from Microsoft to achieve a new service paradigm that builds on its reputation for efficient, professional, in-home service.
“Our competitive strategy depends on deploying Windows Intune to manage 1,200 tablets used by our independent sales contractorsto improve our in-home sales process and win more business,” says Creaney.
“Without Windows Intune, it would have been extremely difficult to achieve our goal,” adds Kohler. “We would have had to hire approximately 20 people to support the sales force and the mobile devices.”
Simplified Mobile Device Management
Windows Intune and Configuration Manager work together to simplify mobile device management, including remote wipe of tablets, hardware and software inventorying, and automatic app installation and upgrades. Empire can use this combination of software for any future apps that it develops. “With Windows Intune, we can provide a mobile app for our installation contractors and better support bring-your-own-device strategies,” says Kohler.
Delivered Cloud Computing Efficiency
By using Azure, Empire doesn’t have to purchase, provision, and manage additional servers at its datacenter. “Working within the Microsoft Azure environment, we expedited the test and development cycle for our mobile technology solution. Going forward, it will be easy to scale the solution; if we need another server, all it takes is a few clicks on the Azure portal,” says Connolly.
Improved Sales Process
With access to real-time product data, and precise digital diagramming, Empire’s sales forcewill use the PrecisionQuote™ app to generate more digital quotes and orders which will helpEmpire be even more efficient in serving its customers. And because the app makes it easy to generate more options for the customer to choose from, Empire expects to win more sales.
“We are confident that the mobile productivity gained with Microsoft technology will put us in a more advantageous position than any competition out there,” concludes Creaney.
This case study is for informational purposes only.MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.
Document published April 2014