Streamlined Lifecycle Management

The Challenge

As today’s modern workforce continues to grow more distributed—spread across various campuses and neighborhoods and every imaginable time zone—the logistics around device management have likewise grown increasingly complex, with IT leaders now tasked with maintaining a vast ecosystem of remote assets for their organization.

One commercial manufacturing company, comprised of 1,400+ sales and customer service professionals located across the nation, experienced this challenge firsthand. Onboarding/offboarding, asset tracking, device inventorying, secure data handling, ongoing compliance adherence—all of these critical activities (and more) were made difficult by the decentralized makeup of the company’s workforce. For an organization intent on remaining efficient, accelerating deployment, and lowering total cost of ownership (TCO) for their numerous employee devices, these logistical hurdles represented an obvious operational problem, one they were determined to solve.

To do so, they turned to Sterling™ and to our suite of Lifecycle Hub services.

The Solution

Utilizing our network of Configuration, Integration, and Distribution (CID) Centers—strategically located, like the client’s own workforce, all across the country, thereby granting us efficient, nationwide coverage—Sterling implemented a specialized Lifecycle Hub solution for the customer, the result of which was simplified asset management, reduced IT workloads, and reduced overall costs around their device ownership.

Our work with the commercial manufacturing company was broken out into five key areas:

Asset Management

We procured, tagged, and warehoused new hardware at our North Sioux City, SD, CID Center as well as delivered a comprehensive asset management system that provided the client with detailed logs regarding deployment, damaged units, and reserve inventory. These efforts allowed the organization to retain seamless control of their technology assets.

Ready Devices

Our expert team proactively managed the company’s various device requirements by collaborating with the customer’s internal IT team to assemble and securely ship customized, “ready-day-one” kits made up of computers, monitors, and other peripherals. Disseminated directly to new hires wherever they’re located, these helpful kits ensure day-one productivity for every newly onboarded employee.

Break/Fix Services

Sterling helped minimize repair-related downtime with our rapid Break/Fix services: Upon device failure, a pre-configured replacement was expedited from our cache of inventory (often fulfilled with next-day delivery) while the faulty unit was returned to a Sterling CID Center for repair and future deployment.

Device Refreshes

Our Lifecycle Hub services naturally extend the lifespan of devices, but we also made sure to proactively develop a strategic refresh plan with the customer, so that their employees will have the latest technology solutions available to them in the future.

Asset Recovery and Recycling

When applicable, we enacted secure recovery efforts to retrieve devices for the client and sanitize all data in accordance with NIST standards. This kept confidential data secure and allowed for the device to be re-imaged or safely recycled to meet the company’s Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals.

A Results-Driven Outcome

Throughout the project (which is ongoing, continuing to this day), Sterling’s elite services professionals empowered the commercial manufacturing company to achieve faster device deployment and repair, simplified their catalog management, and enabled continuous employee productivity. Combined, these efforts reduced ownership costs, boosted organization-wide performance, and freed up the client’s internal IT staff for larger, more strategic initiatives—which, in turn, led to quicker product development, a better work environment, and an enhanced user experience for their own clientele.

By working with Sterling to tackle the logistical challenges of their remote workforce, the organization now enjoys key benefits such as streamlined device onboarding/offboarding, unified asset tracking, enhanced inventory, secure data handling, and rigorous, on-demand compliance support.

Modern Management Made Easy

Logistical challenges, as the commercial manufacturing company discovered, don’t have to be an impediment to the attainment of your organizational goals. With our Lifecycle Hub services, Sterling helped shoulder the burden of their device management, which allowed the customer to focus on the projects and initiatives that mattered most. Their processes—and by extension, their staff—are now more efficient and productive and, even as the definition of the modern workplace continues to evolve, are truly positioned for long-term success.

These results are not just exclusive to this one company, either. A recent Forrester case study regarding Lifecycle Hub solutions like Sterling’s illustrates the benefits of such services, with marked improvements in ROI (30% over three years), a 35% savings in support costs over that same three-year period, 75% less device downtime, and 50% reduction in shipping costs. All of which demonstrates the immense value of a Lifecycle Hub solution, both from a financial and time-savings perspective.

Liberate your own staff from the complexities (and minutia) of device management and enjoy the same operational benefits as those listed above. By partnering with Sterling, you’ll save your organization time, money, and resources—all while ensuring your devices remain secure and optimized throughout the entire duration of their lifespans. Explore Sterling’s full range of Lifecycle Hub offerings today by clicking here.