Overview
IT services provider Softwerx wanted to offer Cloud services to clients. The company worked with Rise, a firm that specializes in infrastructure-as-a-service, to develop its Cloud services. With the help of Rise, Softwerx reduces client’s IT costs and tailors services to their specific needs.

Responding to demand for Cloud services
Softwerx is an IT services and software development company that specialises in solving the business challenges of clients. The company is also a leading Microsoft partner. With many clients facing financial challenges, Softwerx wanted to help them work more efficiently and cost effectively. The company saw Cloud services as a way to do this. It also recognised that the increasing demand for Cloud services could help its business grow. Softwerx looked for a partner to help it tailor Cloud services to the needs of clients. Jonathan Holmes, Technology Consultant at Softwerx, says: “Initially, we looked at a number of different Cloud providers. We had a detailed list of criteria that included cost, flexibility and continuity of service.”

A Cloud partnership
Softwerx found the Cloud partner it was looking for in Rise, an infrastructure as a service company with a strong partner programme. For more than a decade, Rise has been a leader in the market for hosted IT and web services. Rise’s DataCenter on Demand platform offered Softwerx the opportunity to provide Cloud services, such as disaster recovery, online backup and a number of hosted applications. In short, Softwerx got everything it needed to provide Cloud services to its Clients. Adriaan Bekker, operations director at Softwerx, says: “We chose to work with Rise because the company met our criteria and offered a professional approach. Rise made an effort to understand our business and is willing to accommodate our customers’ unique requirements.”

Gains expert training and support
Softwerx found it easy to migrate customers IT infrastructure to the Cloud with Rise’s DataCenter on Demand. Holmes says: “DataCenter on Demand is a good technical match for us. It was easy to move to our customers to the Cloud because DataCenter on Demand is based on Microsoft technology.” However, Softwerx gained more than just a strong Cloud platform. “In addition, staff from Rise gave us the sales and technical training we needed to champion this new offering,” he says. “That is why Rise is the ideal partner for us and our customers.”

Helps customers reduce IT costs
Softwerx’s Cloud services help it solve the business problems of its customers. For many organisations, the main challenge is to do more with less. Bekker sees the Cloud offering a number of advantages for clients. He says: “The Cloud helps customers reduce costs, work more flexibly, reduce capital expenditure and significantly improve disaster recovery.” One of the first customers to benefit from Softwerx’s Cloud services is George Hay Chartered Accountants. The firm has already reduced its IT costs by 30 per cent.

Tailors Cloud services to customers’ specific needs
Softwerx is committed to meeting the specific needs of its customers, so it needed a Cloud platform that could support this ethos. The control panel in DataCenter on Demand makes it easy for Softwerx to deploy new services and to adjust services to the changing priorities of its clients. Consequently, it doesn’t take long for Softwerx to configure and manage IT infrastructure for clients. In addition, Rise’s pay-as-you-go model reduces the upfront costs of IT hardware for Softwerx and its clients. This means Softwerx can offer competitive pricing and structured billing, which appeals to clients across the board.