Andromeda

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director at a real estate development management and construction company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

We needed a more robust IT provider that could handle our managed services needs and network infrastructure at our development and office projects. Our team needed a group with multiple layers of expertise, so we hired Andromeda Technology Solutions. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve had kickoff calls and rollouts of new security stacks with Andromeda Technology Solutions. They’ve communicated with our employees about contract negotiations. For implementation, they take the lead and guide us on the best practices for what we do. We’ve also had recurring meetings with different managers and departments from their side, depending on what area we’re targeting; they have subject matter experts associated with security, infrastructure, email, and other things. 

Andromeda Technology Solutions hasn’t purchased any hardware for us yet, but it’s one of the services they provide. The team recommends hardware improvements based on the industry's best practices. We haven’t made those purchases yet, but we’ll rely on their help when we acquire the hardware we need. Meanwhile, they mainly do remote work, and if they can’t, they send someone to do on-site work. The team also serves as our fractional CIO and offers network infrastructure management services. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve met a dozen of their teammates but primarily work with a customer success manager. They have members for tasks such as network upgrades, security stacks, domain blocking and filtering, and password management. I’ve interacted with 4–5 teammates, including Caitlin (Relationship Success Manager), Tela (IT Project Coordinator), Nate (LAN Technician II), and Dave (Remote Process Technician). 

How did you come to work with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

We hired a consultant to help us find a vendor and talk to 20 firms. Our team narrowed the list down to 10 and picked the top five. We interviewed three teams until we chose Andromeda Technology Solutions. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $10,000–$49,000 for monthly fees and implementation costs.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our partnership started in September 2023, and it’s ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We’ve gained better performance in terms of security, such as blocking spam and phishing attempts. We’ve avoided fraudulent websites and malware. 

How did Andromeda Technology Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

Our team has been truly pleased with Andromeda Technology Solutions’ responsiveness, and their timeliness has been great. If they need more time to resolve something, they let us know that they’re working on it. This is better than not hearing anything at all — that’s a huge improvement compared to our previous service provider. They also work under budget. 

For tools, they use a ticketing system to manage our needs. We use Zoom or Microsoft Teams for weekly recurring meetings and emails to communicate with our customer success manager. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I like that they’ve assigned a dedicated manager to us. We can go to that person when we have questions; she doesn’t always know the answer, but she can help find the right person from their team to answer us. 

Moreover, Andromeda Technology Solutions has true subject matter experts who are outstanding. Their communication is fantastic, and they’re great at helping us understand and do what we should be doing. We don’t have a strong IT background, and the team has been mindful of that. They’re thoughtful of the way they go about helping us improve what we’re doing. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Even though they work below our budget, some of the onboarding costs have been slightly higher than expected. Nonetheless, we’d have been happier if they’d given us a bigger range. To be fair, they’ve had to evaluate more items than expected.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a technology company that focuses on real-time video streaming. We provide a platform as a service to our customers across the globe. Our headquarters office is in Chicago, but we have a distributed team throughout the US and overseas.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

Our office was in a location where all the IT was managed for us, so we didn’t have our own IT infrastructure. We grew out of our workspace and needed to set up our office networks, including WiFi and separate VLANs for different parts of the office.

Although we’re very engineering-driven, we didn’t have internal staff, so we needed external expertise to help us manage and set up our headquarters properly.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We initially shared a space plan with Andromeda so they could see the setup. Our space was built from scratch, and the cabling had been done. However, we still needed to set up the firewall, all the policies, and how everything would be connected.

They set up the access points and firewall configuration and did all the wiring and cabling for the wireless Internet. They were on-site for two days for the installation. Then, we had a few weeks to go back and forth on minor issues.

So far, we’ve finished the majority of the initial setup and configuration. We’re ironing out a few remaining details, and then Andromeda will oversee ongoing maintenance to ensure everything is properly working with our network.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with four primary people from their end. First, we had a salesperson who sold us the project. Then, we’ve had a project manager and a senior network engineer. Now, we have a primary person for ongoing maintenance.

How did you come to work with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

We just searched online for Chicago-based IT firms.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $15,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We initially engaged with them in early May 2021. We have an ongoing support agreement for them to monitor our network over time.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

It’s hard to quantify the impact, but our engineering team saves time configuring and managing the network. Before, our engineers worked for several hours and didn’t make as much progress as we’d like.

How did Andromeda Technology Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

During implementation, there were some challenges due to COVID-19 and shipping issues, so the project didn’t go exactly as planned. We had longer timelines for hardware deliveries, but Andromeda addressed those issues as best as they could.

We typically used a combination of email and phone calls to communicate.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They put in a lot of effort to find the proper hardware despite being out of stock. Overall, the team goes above and beyond to find a solution for us on time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could improve their communication, both internally and externally.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

ClearCourse Consulting is a small but growing consulting business that specializes in Human Capital Management (HCM) solutions.  We’re an experienced group of HR and payroll professionals delivering comprehensive solutions to mid and large sized employers to help them maximize the ROI of their HCM investment. During the course of our work, we support organizations that are looking to either implement, expand, or stabilize their HR and payroll systems, so we deal with a lot of Personal Identifiable Information (PII) data that needs to be securely handled at all times.

As for me, I’m a project and operations manager for ClearCourse Consulting. While I consider myself to be fairly technical, I’m not an IT professional.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

We recognized that we needed a more robust technical solution to ensure we were properly safeguarding our devices and the data we work with every day. Our goal was to establish a networked solution to carefully control access to our environment and devices. In addition, we were after a fully outsourced IT solution that also delivered asset management, ongoing monitoring, and patching along with technical support.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Andromeda Technology Solutions (Andromeda) developed a networked solution for us that leveraged the Microsoft 365 suite, including Office 365, MS Azure Active Directory, and Intune. The main solution is now in place, and all of our PC’s are encrypted and leverage Andromeda’s security stack. Our next objective is to roll out our mobile solution that will allow resources to securely access Outlook Web through their smartphone whether it’s a personally-owned or company-provided device.

What is the team composition?

I primarily worked with four different Andromeda resources over the course of the project. Mike (Account Manager) was our main point of contact during the sales process, and he did a great job of listening to our requirements, explaining what Andromeda can deliver, guiding me through the contracting process, and then transitioning us to the implementation team to ensure our requirements were clearly articulated. Amanda (Project Coordinator) was our implementation project manager who helped coordinate all activity during the onboarding process. Michael (Jr. System Engineer) was our system engineer who designed the solution based on our requirements and worked directly with each ClearCourse team member to provision and encrypt devices after porting our Outlook service into Andromeda’s environment. Finally, Rachel (Service Advocate) helped implement our PII and cybersecurity training program along with our Darkweb monitoring service.

How did you come to work with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

Actually, I first heard about Andromeda through Clutch. I was trying to identify managed IT outsourcing providers that would tailor their solutions for small businesses such as ours. As I was conducting my research, I initially struggled to discern what managed IT service providers would be suitable vendors, but I found the Clutch site to be very useful to identify the target market for each of the vendors and developed a short list of providers to evaluate. After an extensive review of five managed IT service providers, Andromeda stood out as a provider who would meet our company’s unique needs.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent approximately $25,000, which is consistent with what we expected our first-year cost to be.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in March 2021, and we completed the main portion of the solution rollout at the end of May 2021. The last step is to complete the rollout of our mobile solution.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We haven’t been with Andromeda long enough to develop any key metrics to share. However, I routinely check in with members of the ClearCourse team every other week to ask how their experience has been with Andromeda, including the implementation process or any contact they had with Andromeda’s support desk. The consistent feedback I’ve received is that the Andromeda staff is very knowledgeable, friendly, and responsive. When a service ticket is submitted, a technician provides support directly to them within a reasonable amount of time.

How did Andromeda Technology Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

The overall communication was good. I felt that they did an effective job of organizing the work and keeping abreast of different challenges as they arose. Also, they helped articulate a plan that made sense and made the necessary adjustments when things didn’t go according to plan. We were in regular contact, and they would let me know what the next steps were and what the general turnaround time would be to complete each step. In turn, that really helped me with the change management aspects of the transition with the rest of my organization.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I think customer service is the key to it all, and as I read the various reviews I found on Clutch, I was really looking for a company that was able to deliver quality customer service to our resources as they needed it. As I proceeded through the vendor evaluation process, my assumption was that most managed IT service providers were proficient at delivering a secure network solution but the differentiator for me is the level of service Andromeda provides. They have not disappointed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think their onboarding process could be improved. It would be nice if they provided incoming customers with a questionnaire that would present various options based on the proposed technical solution or solicit unique requirements from you to minimize downstream changes once the solution is in place. For example, there are numerous configuration options within MS Outlook that a system administrator needs to establish that are unique to each organization.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My recommendation is that you carefully think about what your organization’s requirements are up front before you start the vendor evaluation process and then work to ensure each requirement and objective is met.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Paul Lauridsen: I’m the executive director for a community-based nonprofit that provides treatment for substance abuse and mental health.

Emily: I’m the administrative director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

E: Over time, our partnership has developed. Now they manage our server, our off-site data storage, basic IT needs, troubleshooting, and most recently, the development and maintenance of our website. They handle any integral software updates or IT projects we have.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

E: In our most recent project, they helped us migrate to Microsoft 365. We provided them with our employees’ user information, and they handled email access, domain registration, and more. We were updating all of our computers, so we started the project by identifying our uses, what their access needs were.

Then they developed a plan for each installation phase. They identified when we would switch over our email and when we would install the software. They were on-site for several days in order to install several pieces, troubleshoot, and train our team. To help us transition, they were available via phone or email to provide additional training for our team.   

What is the team composition?

E: We always deal with two specific people when it comes to planning. For our Microsoft 365 project, there were two other technicians working on-site.

How did you come to work with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

E: We’ve been with them for so long, it’s hard to remember. We always keep an eye open for service providers than can offer high-quality work for a good value.  

PL: We’ve had people solicit us, but they usually can’t provide the customer service we expect.

How much have you invested with them?

E: Our most recent project cost $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

PL: We’ve worked with Andromeda Technology Solutions for over 20 years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

PL: They were able to put everything together flawlessly. They are always there to support us when we need them.

E: They planned the project so our network would only be down after hours. As a result, we’ve never had an issue. Because they planned so well, only five people in our organization were affected went the site went down.

PL: Microsoft 365 was a significant step for us, and we’ve had very few problems since they got everything up and running. We’ve rarely had to follow up with them to make changes.

How did Andromeda Technology Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

E: We get the fastest response via email, and that’s their preferred communication method. We contact our project manager whenever we need help with something more than troubleshooting. Anything like installing a printer is done through their help desk.

PL: Andromeda Technology Solutions provides exceptional support. We’ve been solicited by other companies, but they’re never as responsive as Andromeda Technology. We appreciate how quickly they get back to us, no matter what the issue is. They handle even the smallest issues that come up.

What did you find most impressive about them?

E: I’ve been working with them for 20 years, and they have a genuine appreciation for what we do. Overall, the relationship we have with them is a key factor in the success of our partnership.

Are there any areas they could improve?

PL: Nothing comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

E: You can count on them. If you ask them for help, they will respond quickly.

PL: They have mechanisms set up to ensure strong communication with their clients. If you follow their practices, they’ll do their best work.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO and founder of a financial operations consulting firm for plastic surgeons and dermatologists. Revenue cycle management is our primary service line.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

As a vendor that works in multiple client systems, we have a complex web of IT and infrastructure needs. I’ve had bad luck in the past with IT vendors, largely on the customer service side of things. I was looking for a team that could handle our complexity, scale with us, and provide friendly customer service.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We engaged Andromeda Technology Solutions for a managed service contract to handle our ongoing IT needs. We’re a fully remote company and we were exiting an IT relationship that was quite negative. There wasn’t a vendor to vendor hand-off, so Andromeda needed to figure everything on their own.

Andromeda rose to the challenge and set realistic expectations. The team facilitated a very successful transition. On a day-to-day basis, they give us fractional CTO style advice on our tech stack, projects, and build-out.

We’re currently working on creating a remote environment for our servers. They’re also taking a look at our internal tech infrastructure from Google Calendar, SharePoint, and file repository standpoints.

What is the team composition?

We work with two client-facing individuals. We also work with an ongoing managed service team that consists of an account owner, a series of technicians, and a technical manager.

How did you come to work with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

They came to us through a referral. We did our due diligence but found Andromeda to be a strong culture fit. They have a family-oriented culture and they’re true to who they communicate themselves to be.

They were also appropriate for the size of our business as well as available to scale with us as we grow. Their work chart organization also gave me a lot of confidence that they’d be able to handle our needs.

How much have you invested with them?

The team is extremely fair with pricing. We’ll spend $25,000–$50,000 this year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2021, and our work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

They did a good job of getting to know us and our needs. They deliver what they say they’re going to do. The team has implemented solutions that have made our lives easier on a day-to-day basis.

The solutions are typically more cost-effective than what we’d been using in the past. I get better service, better communication, and a better tech stack, all while saving money. I don’t know what they could be doing better. They’ve been fantastic.

How did Andromeda Technology Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

I’d give them a ten out of ten. They’re on weekly meetings and they show up very organized. The team has an itinerary and they also send out summaries. There are very few delays or unexpected changes. When there are changes, they’re on top of communicating and recalibrating expectations.

They’ve got a portal for us where we can source tickets, see updates, and communicate. We also communicate via phone and email. Their communication has been the best part. The way they effectively explain how the relationship is going to go is excellent.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve gone through five IT companies in the past 10 years; Andromeda Solutions’ quality service definitely stands out. They’re not the cheapest on the market but I’m happy to pay a little more for their exceptional value.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they work as fast as they can and they’re reasonable with pricing.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I liked how they answered a lot of my questions upfront. It felt like I got to see how they operated before we started. Coming in the door and being the difficult client helped me see how valuable their team is.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of IT at Family Health Network, a company that insures Medicare patients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

I needed someone to assist me in building a website for the company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have three companies with three different websites. I went to Andromeda to get support in consolidating the three websites into one. We had a marketing team to work with them to design the website. They used WordPress. We’re about 80% completed.

What is the team composition?

I've worked with the project manager and the lead tech person.

How did you come to work with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

They worked with me at my previous company.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent between $20,000–$30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2019, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

They've been great to work with. Our marketing team has been working hand-in-hand to make sure it’s being built as we desire. According to them, the site is pretty good so far.

How did Andromeda Technology Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

The project manager is great to work with. She keeps us engaged and lets us know what's going on each step of the way. We use Basecamp which is very helpful and easy to follow. We communicate via email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication is good. They keep me posted with what’s going on.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their development team is offshore. If we need an update, we have to send it in time so they can have it ready by the next day. The time difference isn’t an issue but it’s something that’s there.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Get a good project manager from them and make sure you can work with the time difference. When you want to update, know where the timelines are so that you get it to them on time.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a digital marketing and social media public relations company, and I am the head of operations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

Our goal was to create and maintain reliable IT infrastructure.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their involvement covered reviewing all of our physical equipment and making sure that our network was running smoothly and securely so that everyone could transition to remote work. They have continued to maintain all of our systems as well since then.

If any of our computers or applications aren’t working properly, our employees will submit tickets to their team and those will get taken care of. We meet once a year to discuss client satisfaction and any changes that we want to make to the engagement.

What was the team composition?

I work with one of the owners as well as our account supervisor, customer success manager, and a number of technicians depending on what kind of tickets we submit and when.

How did you come to work with Andromeda Technology Solutions?

We were recommended to them by another company that we were partnering with at the time.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost is around $3,000 per month or about $75,000 in total so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our partnership started in March 2019 and is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

It’s hard for us to track specific results of their work because the network itself is fairly new, so we don’t have old speeds or issues to compare it with. They respond very quickly to all of our requests, however, and our calls and connections aren’t getting dropped the way they were at the very beginning of the partnership.

How did Andromeda Technology Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

We use a ticketing system to keep track of all of our work together, and that has been a really successful system so far. They are good about responding and communicating proactively whenever an issue is taking a little bit longer, and we hop on a phone call every once in a while, just to help make sure we’re all on the same page.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their knowledge of the industry is absolutely excellent. We have never had a problem that they weren’t able to find a solution for, which we really appreciate. Between that knowledge base and the timeliness of their responses, they make us feel as though we are in the best of hands.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they have been able to improve on anything that we’ve brought up to them, so I really don’t have any complaints.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Having a successful partnership with them doesn’t require any particular expertise or special touch. If you are unhappy with anything, make sure you voice that right away and get it addressed, but they are always more than willing to work with you to make sure you are totally satisfied.