As a Google Apps Authorized Reseller and a Google Referred Partner for Google Apps Training, Dito has developed long-standing relationships within the marketplace and has become a complete solutions provider assisting numerous companies transition to the cloud. Dito’s team is comprised of Google Apps subject matter experts (SMEs), industry leading Google Apps Trainers, Lean Six Sigma experts and a strong software development group. Dito achieves a high-level of efficiency in its business practices, ensuring consistent and exceptional results with a focus on the clients’ needs first.

TheHomeMag® is a leading local home improvement direct mail Magazine. The Magazine is the Franchise, and its success is directly connected to each Publisher - its franchisee. Its franchisees publish their local edition of TheHomeMag® by leading their team of sales consultants and office staff toward the best publication each month. TheHomeMag® is the leading advertising vehicle for home improvement professionals.

Challenge
TheHomeMag needed to provide increased reliability and collaborative capabilities to its nationally distributed franchisees. Its existing FuseMail and Outlook solution did not offer the ability to support branches remotely, a requirement for the support staff at the corporate offices and a critical component of growth.

Solution
Having made the decision to use Google Apps, Dito and TheHomeMag's IT Manager, Steve Aldrich, decided to use a phased deployment of Google Apps Premier Edition, rolling out the service to nationwide offices in 4 phases over the course of one month. Starting with the planning stages of the deployment, Google Apps Training Sites as well as Getting Started Guides were created and distributed by Dito to help transition employees. During later phases, Dito provided user and group provisioning along with ongoing support for the duration of the user migrations. The approach led to an extremely successful adoption rate, since the users were well prepared and supported during the transition.

Result
TheHomeMag is experiencing tremendous growth and the transition to Google Apps is providing economies of scale which allow the company to continue to provide first class support across its growing user base.

"The workflow improvements are already paying dividends, and the ability to have everything right there in one interface makes supporting the franchisees and their staff a breeze," says Aldrich.

In regards to the transition, Aldrich notes that "Better than 90% of our users have converted to the Google Apps web interface, leaving behind Outlook and other desktop email clients. The first few days of trepidation gave way to resoundingly positive feedback. This conversion took folks by surprise at just how easy it was."

Chris Goebel, president of the company, says, "TheHomeMag has a win on its hands with this conversion. We are now looking forward to the ability to support the next wave of growth for our franchise, as well as the continued growth of our franchisees' businesses."

Cast Iron Systems is a leading SaaS / Cloud integration company with thousands of customer integrations connecting cloud applications with the enterprise. Cast Iron for Google Apps is a ready-to-go solution that provides everything needed to integrate Google Apps with the rest of the enterprise in just days. Cast Iron has added support for the Google Secure Data Connector to let enterprises connect hundreds of on-premise and SaaS applications to Google Apps.

The Schumacher Group is the third largest and fastest growing emergency medicine practice management company in the US. They manage 2,500 physicians who care for 2.8 million patients each year in over 150 emergency rooms across 20 states.

Challenges

Over the past few years, Schumacher’s CIO Doug Menefee has been searching for a secure, efficient and cost-effective way of providing emergency room information to the thousands of providers that they manage. Providers wanted to monitor and measure their performance in the emergency room over time relative to other doctors in the same facility. They also wanted easy access to this information from anywhere at anytime. Schumacher saw offering this service as a source of competitve advantage in the emergency practice management business.

Doug looked at number of ways to solve the problem but they proved to be complex and costly. The large enterprise portals and integration products that he investigated cost millions of dollars and had low ROI. He also looked at custom coding the whole thing but realized that this would not be scalable or reliable over time.

Solution

Schumacher chose Google Apps as the portal for the providers and Cast Iron for Google Apps for the back-end integration. With support for gadgets in Google Apps, Schumacher's providers could view and interact with visualizations of their performance history right within the browser.

Cast Iron for Google Apps provided everything Schumacher needed to exchange data between the gadgets and Schumacher’s multi terabyte data warehouse that contains this provider data - complete integration functionality, including the Google Secure Data Connector and pre-configured Cast Iron connectivity to their backend systems.

The solution works in three steps:

1. When a doctor logs in and wants to view the data, the gadget sends request to Cast Iron via the Secure Data Connector
2. Cast Iron performs OAuth validation and then extracts data from the backend systems
3. Cast Iron transforms the data and sends it back to gadget using the Google Secure Data Connector

Results

Providers and doctors get access to emergency room data via Google gadgets from anywhere, anytime through a secure login. Providers and doctors can use gadgets to chart and compare their performance against others in their community and in the hospitals, which helps them identify and address areas for improvement. Offering this information to the providers via Google and Cast Iron is a competitive advantage for the Schumacher Group and helps differentiate them in the emergency medicine management industry.

“Cast Iron for Google Apps has enhanced the way we develop and deploy our secure provider portal, by providing a cost effective and flexible option. The solution developed by our staff using Cast Iron and Google provides valuable feedback to our clinical providers enabling us to improve the quality of healthcare provided during challenging economic times,” says Doug Menefee, CIO of the Schumacher Group.

For more information, watch this video from the Schumacher Group or visit www.castiron.com/google/demo.

SheepDog Inc. is a technology solution provider that ensures business productivity. Through its ability to advise a wide array of clients on information technology (IT) and connectivity issues, SheepDog Inc. is known for helping organizations to better integrate and manage their electronic information systems.

SheepDog Inc. recently partnered with Pictou Mutual, a locally owned and operated insurance company in Pictou County, Nova Scotia. Pictou Mutual hired Sheepdog Inc. to provide email, file sharing and communication solutions via Google Apps.

Challenges

With a small staff, Pictou Mutual was wary of a large investment in its technology needs, yet secure, reliable email and improved communication among its staff and independent agents were must haves. The need to share files and remote access were also top priorities. Their existing POP3 mail server infrastructure was unreliable and indequate; however, Pictou Mutual did not have the resources to upgrade it.

Solutions

Sheepdog supported Pictou Mutual through the transition to Google Apps. Sheepdog customized Google Apps to meet Pictou's requirements, and provided training services to enable their users to get the most out of Google Apps. Sheepdog also created a custom application (a comprehensive insurance policy management system) built on the Google App Engine.

Results

Since Sheepdog Inc. provided Pictou Mutual with Google Apps , its focus has been on growth, adding five new staff and a second location. With a connected staff and reliable electronic communications system, both collaboration and service provision have improved.

“Because of Google Apps, we are better organized, more efficient, and technology is no longer an issue. In fact, implementing Google Apps has proven to be a huge catalyst for growth,” says Phillip Robichaud, Branch Manager.

Mr. Robichaud added, “Sheepdog is the most effective consulting firm I have ever worked with. We highly recommend the team to anyone looking to integrate Google Apps into their business. They will handle everything start to finish.”

SheepDog Inc. is a technology solution provider that ensures business productivity. Through its ability to advise a wide array of clients on information technology (IT) and connectivity issues, SheepDog Inc. is known for helping groups to better integrate and manage their electronic information systems.

SheepDog Inc. recently partnered with Paq’tnkek, a First Nation community in Antigonish County, Nova Scotia, that employs just under 100 people. Paq’tnkek hired SheepDog Inc. to build an information technology strategy that would allow them to better service its 500 community residents.

Challenges

Before the introduction of Google Apps, the Paq’tnkek Band office was operating with no centralized information technology system. Employees were using a myriad of email service providers and had little IT support for their low-capacity computer networks. The office became inundated with spam mail and frequent email outages, which left the Band administration unable to manage its day-to-day activities easily, effectively, and securely.

Solution

SheepDog Inc., using Google Apps, consolidated information technology services for Paq’tnkek. For the first time, all employees were on the same email and file sharing system. SheepDog Inc. provided all technical support during the transition to Google Apps, and using on-site training, readied Paq’tnkek staff to take over the management of its improved Google Apps network.

Results

SheepDog Inc. and Google Apps have enabled Paq’tnkek to be more efficient and effective in delivering services to its members. With a reliable and secure email system and the ability to share and collaborate on files, the community is better equipped to operate its daycare, health centre, and other crucial social services.

“We now consider email an effective business tool. Before Google Apps and Sheepdog, we avoided e-mail because of concerns about security, reliability and spam,” says John Prosper, Band Manager. “Sheepdog provided us with exactly what we needed – Google Apps.”

One of the first 10 Google Apps for Enterprise partners worldwide and initial contributor to the Google Apps Open Source provisioning toolkit, SADA Systems, Inc. has developed a proven track record in implementation of Google Apps solutions. SADA works with a diverse client base to create custom, leading edge solutions that strategically meet client business objectives.

Founded in 1950, Denver Seminary offers a number of masters and doctoral level programs for clergy, counselors and other faith workers. The Seminary is home to nearly 900 current students and has graduated over 4000 alumni.

Challenges

Prior to adopting Google Apps, Denver Seminary did not provide its students with email accounts. Staff and faculty email was served through Microsoft Exchange however the Seminary did not see that as an appropriate solution for student email. Denver Seminary chose to use Google Apps Education Edition to fulfill this need and turned to SADA to help with deployment and implementation.

Solutions

SADA first reviewed Denver Seminary's existing IT environment. They assisted Denver Seminary with the sign up and initial account setup for Google Apps Education Edition. SADA then configured the seminary's MX/DNS records, and set up a Dual Delivery system for staff members already on Microsoft Exchange. SADA deployed its Google Apps User Provisioning/Synchronization and Web Single Sign-On tools. Each of these tools allows Denver Seminary IT staff to provision and synchronize Google Apps accounts through it's Active Directory (AD) and gives the Seminary's users access their Google Apps accounts with their AD credentials.

Results

By implementing Google's and SADA's solutions, Denver Seminary has an email solution that comes with lower IT administration costs, higher user satisfaction, and increased productivity. This peace of mind allows Denver Seminary IT focus on more strategic initiatives.

"SADA Systems was a pleasure to work with," says Jason Adams, Director of IT for Denver Seminary. "I am impressed by their relationship with Google, something I didn't feel other vendors had. They brought experience and knowledge which was extremely important and helpful in getting us up and running."

He continues, "We are using SADA's fully hosted solution - they took care of everything, there was very little for us to do. And with the few resources we have that makes a huge difference - without breaking our bank! I would recommend SADA Systems to everyone looking to deploy Google Apps in their environment."

One of the first 10 Google Apps for Enterprise partners worldwide and initial contributor to the Google Apps Open Source provisioning tool kit, SADA Systems, Inc. has developed a proven track record in implementation of Google Apps Education Edition solutions. SADA works with a diverse client base to create custom, leading edge solutions that strategically meet client business objectives.

Kent State University was founded in 1910 and has grown to become one of the largest regional education systems in the country. In addition, to the main Kent campus, the university has seven other campuses throughout Ohio.

Challenges

In many ways this Google Apps implementation presented a different set of challenges - an immense number of users who required the ability to migrate both contact and email data from Kent State's legacy platform to Google Apps. Provisioning 120,000 Google Apps users wouldn't be difficult, but migrating their data in a batch process would be inefficient, and problematic. Kent State University requested SADA's assistance with the following:

• Development of a self-service, on-demand mechanism where users can opt-in to migrate their existing email and contacts to Google Apps.
• Consulting on Google Apps deployment best practices, go-live checklists, as well as overall oversight around project success.
• Working on strategies to integrate Google Apps provisioning with Sungard's Luminis, an educational portal platform and its sister application, the Banner enterprise resource planning solution for educational institutions.

Solutions

SADA worked with Kent State to develop a strategy that addressed the needs of their students, faculty, and staff, as well as the stringent requirements of their IT department. These included:

• Development of a secure, custom self-service solution that allowed users to migrate their existing email from the University's legacy email platform to Google Apps. In order to accommodate a significant number of users who could simultaneously use the self-service migration tool, SADA worked with Kent State to build a system to handle multiple simultaneous connections (up to 500), residing on a load-balanced and clustered, LAMP-based and virtualized infrastructure.
• Overall project management and consulting services, and guidance/assistance for Kent State University and their other vendors about Google Apps deployment best-practices.
• Continual maintenance and support for the self-service migration solution following deployment.

Result

With SADA's assistance and the development of a custom platform, Kent State University was able to smoothly and effectively implement Google Apps allowing them to gradually transition away from their legacy email platform. Improvements to efficiency while streamlining administration have made big improvements to productivity, and freed up the university's own IT department to focus on mission-critical and value-oriented projects.

"One of the important aspects of the plan was allowing users the option to move their old e-mail and contacts list to their new Google account. For this critical component of the project, the university called upon the expertise of SADA Systems to help create a unique opt-in solution that allows users to migrate their e-mail from the same self-service Web site," says Roberta Sikula-Schwalm, Associate Vice President for Information Services, Kent State University. "For the individual user, it’s as simple as checking a box, and their old emails and contacts show up automatically in their new Google email accounts."

Ms. Sikula goes on to praise the process: "The result to date has been extremely successful. So far, more than 19,000 individuals have chosen to activate their accounts early, just two weeks following the project launch. SADA has provided invaluable assistance as an implementation partner in working through technical questions regarding the migration, and the Kent State community seems pleased with the new features they are accessing through their Google Gmail accounts."

One of the first 10 Google Apps for Enterprise partners worldwide and initial contributor to the Google Apps Open Source provisioning tool kit, SADA Systems, Inc. has developed a proven track record in implementation of Google Apps solutions. SADA works with a diverse client base to create custom, leading edge solutions that strategically meet client business objectives.

King, Krebs, and Jurgens is a New Orleans, Louisiana based law firm that was founded with a mission to provide their clients with high quality legal services while remaining cost efficient.

Challenges

Before switching to Google Apps, King, Krebs, and Jurgens were providing email to their employees through Microsoft Exchange 2003. The firm requires email accounts for over 100 employees, email delivered to two domains, and dual-delivery support for both domains to their existing Microsoft Exchange Server and Google Apps. As with most law firms, retention of correspondence and email was mission critical due to compliance laws and other regulatory requirements. Migration of old email messages to Google Apps was an essential component of the project for King, Krebs, and Jurgens.

Solution

King, Krebs, and Jurgens opted to deploy Google Apps Premier Edition. SADA worked with King, Krebs, and Jurgens to develop a strategy for an Enterprise level deployment that would address the specific needs of their organization, including:

• User Provisioning and Sync Tools using Active Directory as the Identity Management system of choice.
• Email and contact data migration for existing users accomplished through IMAP migration and other methods.
• Enhanced dual-delivery for MS Exchange 2003, which allows email sent to recipients on the legacy system to receive email in both Google Apps and MS Exchange.

One of the first 10 Google Apps for Enterprise partners worldwide and initial contributor to the Google Apps Open Source provisioning tool kit, SADA Systems, Inc. has a proven track record in implementation of Google Apps solutions. SADA works with a diverse client base to create custom, leading edge solutions that strategically meet client business objectives.

Virgin Mobile USA is a mobile telephone company that is a joint venture between Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group and Sprint Nextel. The service operates on Sprint's CDMA-based Personal Communications Service (PCS) network. As of year-end 2007, Virgin Mobile USA has over five million subscribers. Virgin Mobile selected SADA Systems as their partner of choice for their Google Apps needs.

Challenge

Virgin Mobile users, dispersed across the U.S., were already power Google Apps users. Virgin Mobile's corporate office had highly customized the Google Start Page and deployed it as a central and important communication portal for all employees. They required an SSO capable, custom log-in page which not only would simplify user management, but would also protect 100% of Start Page content from all anonymous and non-authenticated users.

Solution

Custom Design and SSO Enablement

SADA was tasked with deploying an SSO solution and designing an attractive landing page at par with Virgin Mobile's standards and meeting their strict branding standards. Additionally, SADA's solution had to be simple, elegant, and easy to implement and use.

Hosted SSO Solution

It may have taken weeks for Virgin Mobile to allocate and deploy a server for the SSO log-in page. SADA was able to provide a full turn-key, mission critical hosted environment within three days.

Result

With only minimal help required from any Virgin Mobile IT resources, SADA was able to provide the entire solution from discovery to design, testing, and full deployment. Now, when someone attempts to access any Google Apps related links, they are directed to the custom log-in page. Nothing is visible to the public without authentication.

"The SADA guys were terrific. The project price was reasonable and the turn-around time was only 2 weeks," says Lisa Freeman, Director of Virgin Mobile USA's HR & Communications. "When we ran into a minor snag, the whole team was all over it and on the horn with Google in no time flat to problem solve. We got great service and attention, and they definitely displayed a sense of urgency when it was required. It definitely felt like we were an important client that they were driving to please and that our project, though small, was still one that they wanted to put a lot of attention behind. Their follow-up was also solid and we had updates every step of the way. We had what felt like a highly personalized level of service. We had a great experience with SADA and would definitely use them again."

Schools-On-I-Net offers a centralized web-based database solution for school management, communications, academics, educator collaboration and parent engagement. Schools-On-I-Net was built by RK Solutions, LLC., a privately held information technology consulting, outsourcing, and development firm founded in 2000.

Yavneh Academy of Paramus, New Jersey is a modern orthodox Jewish day school, providing its students with a superior Judaic and secular education for over 60 years. Yavneh’s educational foundation is built on torah sh’bichtav, torah sh’baal peh, mitzvoth, middot, ivrit and Eretz Yisrael.

CHALLENGES

Yavneh Academy required an upgrade to the school email system primarily for advanced spam control. The goal was to provide accounts for teachers, students and their parents that had industry leading spam filters as well as advanced email features such as group/contact management, auto-draft, POP/IMAP/Mobile Device support, and Hebrew text support. In addition, the email system needed to interface with the school management program so there would be one point of data entry for managing demographics and user accounts and one point of access to academic and communications systems for all users.

SOLUTION

RK Solutions, LLC presented Google Apps for Education as a solution for Yavneh Academy and as a direction for the Schools-On-I-Net application as a whole. Key factors for the decision were a) the capability to integrate features (Single Sign On API, Contacts API, User API), b) the spam control offered by Gmail, c) the additional functionality of Gmail, and d) the ability to expand integration to other Google applications (Calendars, Docs, Sites, Chat...) RK Solutions acted as the integration specialist, integrating Google Apps for Education APIs with the Schools-On-I-Net product. User, Group and Single-Sign-On API's were utilized to provide a seamless integration of functionality and user experience. In addition, RK Solutions utilized Gmail API's to provide migration services, synching emails from two other accounts for faculty and staff users. RK Solutions managed and executed the deployment of Google Apps for Education for the Yavneh Academy user community.

RESULT

Yavneh Academy was able to provide Google Apps for Education accounts for its 2,000 users. The Google Apps accounts for yavnehacademy.org interface seamlessly with the Schools-On-I-Net product. When users login to their web account on Schools-On-I-Net, they see the number of unread messages in their Gmail account, and are able to click on that link for single sign on authentication to their Gmail account. When users send emails from the website on Schools-On-I-Net, the email gets inserted into their Gmail’s sent folder, showing recipients in the BCC field. Adding, editing and changing users is also seamless and instantaneous. A user added to the Schools-On-I-Net system is automatically added as a user account in Gmail. Duplicates are avoided by Schools-On-I-Net. Plans to implement additional applications, such as Calendar, Docs and Sites are in the works.

“RK Solutions implemented Google Apps for Education for Yavneh Academy as an answer to our needs, which included: a safe open email system, minus the spam, an email client that supported Hebrew text, mobile devices, POP/IMAP, ability to manage groups and contacts, and cross browser support,” says Chani Lichtiger, Director of Technology at Yavneh Academy. “RK Solutions delivered with professionalism and care. They planned the project, devised the migration strategy, implemented the integration of Schools-On-I-Net with Google Apps for Education and completed the migration services. We look forward to the continued integration projects they have planned using Google Apps for Education for our school.”

One of the first 10 Google Apps for Enterprise partners worldwide and an initial contributor to the Google Apps Open Source provisioning tool kit, SADA Systems, Inc. offers deployment and customization solutions for Google Apps. SADA specializes in Google Apps implementations for ISPs, Portals, and organizations who want to implement Partner Edition for their subscriber and member base.

IKANO Communications is an IP solutions provider of aggregated networks and private-labeled services to ISPs, organizations, and businesses, with over 1000 domains and 350,000 subscribers. IKANO decided to implement Google Apps Partner Edition in order to achieve significant cost savings, reduce administration overhead related to managing similar systems, and provide best-of-breed email and collaboration tools to their subscribers. IKANO plans to offer Google Apps Partner Edition as well as Tier 1 Customer Support for their subscribers and organizations.

CHALLENGES

IKANO Communications needed assistance in building a bridge between Google Apps and their current billing platform to provide value-add services such as email to their subscriber base while reducing administrative costs to manage infrastructure. Additionally, IKANO required a system which would seamlessly integrate with their existing provisioning and account management systems, and decrease the risk of customer churn by migrating as much of their existing data as possible over to Google Apps. It was critical that IKANO provide users a near seamless migration experience during the transition period of email dual delivery - to both the old platform and to Google Apps.

SOLUTION

SADA worked with IKANO Communications on a project to migrate 6 of their key domains, and 20,000+ users to Google Apps. SADA developed a strategy to address:

• Dual delivery
• Bulk provisioning of existing accounts.
• Integration to the existing billing and provisioning platform for creation of new accounts.
• Email and Contacts migration for existing users.
• IMAP-based email migration for existing users.
• POP3 activation and forwarders-configuration so a sub-set of users can continue to access mail the same way they are accustomed to.

The results of the project would set a standard and develop a methodology for the migration of all other domains and users to Google Apps. SADA utilized the open source provisioning toolkit as a basis for the mass provisioning portion of the project, a code base to which SADA was the original contributor.

RESULT

The methodical approach to implementing Google Apps at IKANO resulted in lower than expected impact on their call centers during the migration process. The Google Apps solution implemented by SADA will help IKANO Communications save 25% in overall infrastructure maintenance and management costs of providing Google Apps services to their subscribers.

"We are extremely pleased with the development and project management services SADA Systems, Inc. provided to IKANO. They listened to our needs and delivered on their statement of work. We look forward to our continued collaboration and partnership with SADA regarding future ISP business developed on the Google Apps Partner Edition, " says Douglas Pollei, VP Internet Strategy and Corporate Development, IKANO Communications Inc.

Appirio delivers services and products that help medium and large enterprises accelerate their adoption of on-demand solutions. As a Services 2.0 pioneer, Appirio has a proven track record of designing and implementing complex and mission-critical systems using Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions such as Salesforce.com and Google Enterprise. Salesforce.com is a leading worldwide Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider.

Challenge

Salesforce.com chooses to run its business using SaaS applications wherever possible. In keeping with this philosophy, salesforce.com has deployed Google Apps across its entire global business. They chose Appirio to train their employees on the new applications so they could get up and running quickly. Appirio is strategic partner of both salesforce.com and Google. Salesforce.com employees are intimately familiar with the benefits of SaaS applications, as the company pioneered the space and uses its own solutions internally. Yet, like many companies today, salesforce.com traditionally relied upon on-premise office productivity and communication software for day-to-day business activities such email, chat and word processing. They'd also seen the limitations of these solutions. When Google Apps became available, the company quickly grasped the collaboration and cost benefits that these new applications could offer employees.

Solution

Salesforce.com chose to roll out Google Apps Premier Edition to all of its employees because of the powerful communication and collaboration features found in Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Talk, Google Docs, and Google Sites. The salesforce.com IT team, who was responsible for the internal deployment, worked with Appirio to develop project requirements and to implement a change management plan that would ensure all the various groups within salesforce.com could quickly see the benefits of the new applications. Appirio developed a customized Google Apps training course to help a range of users from senior executives to help desk personnel get comfortable with the new applications and take advantage of their unique capabilities in a shorter period of time.

Results

In less than a month, Appirio conducted 25 on-site and recorded training sessions designed to reach salesforce.com's almost 3,000 employees. Ninety-five percent of those responding to a survey following the training sessions said they'd recommend the class to others. Salesforce.com employees have already begun to explore new ways to use Google Apps, giving them unique insight into an innovative product that salesforce.com now resells to its own customers as Salesforce for Google Apps.