The story

Nearly a Century of Heroic Work Started

to meet the needs of children suffering from burns, orthopedic issues, cleft palates and more, Shriners Hospitals has truly lived up to their slogan “Love to the Rescue” since 1922. With such critical work, 22 hospitals in North America and over 6,000 employees, staying connected 24/7 is a matter of life and death in many scenarios. That’s why Shriners looked to establish a long-term partnership with a telecommunications provider back in 2009.

The First Partnership

Initially, Shriners partnered with a major Avaya business partner to manage its PBX system. This partner could provide support for the system, but Shriners needed more. Given the large financial investment, Shriners needed a partner who could not only support the Avaya system investment but prolong it.

By 2012, it was clear that this partner couldn’t provide Shriners with what it needed. The contract came to an end, and Shriners came to Continuant. Continuant, as it turned out, was not only able to provide them with quality service but could do so with no pressure to upgrade and no set end date or end-of-life. Still, the best was yet to come.

A Powerful Partnership

Not long after taking the spot as the healthcare provider’s communications service partner, Continuant began proposing a long-term roadmap to a Cisco UC solution. Sure enough, Shriners began making the transition in 2014. Already accustomed to and impressed with the Continuant experience, the people at Shriners trusted its proficiency with both Avaya and Cisco for this transition.

In transitions like this, the most critical factors are a seamless switchover and protected investment. If Shriners (a Nonprofit organization) was going to invest in Cisco, we had to ensure that every penny spent would be maximized. This required personalized onboarding, timely release updates, and 24/7/365 Support, not to mention an Enhanced SLA (possibly the only one of its kind in the industry).