Hansa Products | The Onboarding Process

Manufacturing
6/28/2023

Introduction  

Established in 1980, Hansa Products is an innovative family business based in Hamilton. They are renowned for designing and manufacturing specialist wood and brush chipper machines that are of the highest quality and durability.

Background  

Hansa’s Managing Director, Martin Vogel, explains that “Although our previous provider had helped to establish a sufficient IT structure and always had our best interests in mind, we had outgrown the services they offered.”

Hansa required proactivity, “Rather than ‘firefighting’ on a daily basis, we needed a managed service provider who had the processes, systems, and solutions in place to pick up any issues or concerns before they failed”, says Martin.

Initial interactions with their Account Manager, Senior Engineer and wider IT Partners Team helped to build confidence, explains Martin, “We were seeking a provider that wasn’t solely focused on pushing their solution, instead understanding and adapting to the needs of our company.”

“We could see that IT Partners had a strong company culture embedded throughout, which aligned with ‘The Hansa Way’. This was evident by the manner in which their team communicated to us at all stages of the process”, says Martin.

Taking Action

Martin emphasises that all changes and solutions were well explained, “Whenever we spoke to someone from IT Partners, they made sure information wasn’t too technical, enabling us to develop a satisfactory level of understanding.”

All possible measures were taken to minimise the impact of the change. In a planning meeting, “The process was clearly laid out and discussed before any action was taken. This helped us to determine time frames and ensure we were well informed to manage the change internally”, says Martin.

Martin explains that “An in-depth understanding of our needs, quality solutions and exceptional communication” were the key factors that enabled the transition to run smoothly.

This was supported by having expert engineering resources carry out specialist tasks, such as the implementation of a new Firewall.

The Outcomes

Martin highlights that the onboarding process was “Excellently managed, leading to a stress-free transition. I thought something wouldn’t go to plan and that we would encounter downtime, but we didn’t. This was exceptional.”

Very few road bumps were faced during the onboarding process, which Martin attributes to the “Fantastic work of our Account Manager and Senior Engineer who work exceptionally well as a team. If one isn’t available, the other is.”

A commitment to continuous improvement and embracing change has paid dividends for Hansa, “We now have an elevated level of confidence in our IT systems and no longer need to live in fear of what is going to fail next”, says Martin.

Since the completion of onboarding, Martin says that Hansa has noticed some significant differences, “We now have trouble-free IT, and everything works as it should. Previously I was concerned about the 24-hour, global IT risks for Hansa. The proactive nature of IT Partners now means this risk is significantly reduced.”