How Arrow saved time by automating device management

Arrow is one of the largest privately-owned telecommunication and IT service providers in Australia. They offer managed service provider (MSP) services and industry-leading tools to help their customers communicate more effectively, enhance collaboration and maintain a secure environment. 

Opportunities for improvement 

Arrow needed a solution to simplify and streamline their own device management to increase productivity and enhance security. They were looking for a solution to save time so that they could focus more time on their customers.   

Manual processes 

Manually managing, troubleshooting and securing employee devices was inefficient and took up valuable time.

Application management    

Arrow relied on a remote management tool for application updates and operating system patching. While this gave them some control, processes were slow, and required repetitive tasks to be done by the team. The IT team still needed to understand how to package and deploy each application update, how to script them and how the switches worked, which presented a major bottleneck. 

The service team would frequently receive tickets with application requests and updates. 

“It was almost simpler beforehand to just walk around and install apps for everybody.”

Time drained fixing bugs 

The team spent a lot of time investigating bugs and vulnerabilities flagged by alerts before they could apply the necessary remedies.

Inconsistent Operating System versions 

Cumbersome processes resulted in times when not every device was on the same OS version. 

The IT team invested valuable time troubleshooting issues and deploying patches. 

Tied to the office 

Compromised devices could only be rebuilt in the office. Employees work remotely and are distributed throughout Australia, so the process of shipping, rebuilding and returning devices impacted productivity and employee experience.  

The solution 

Arrow rolled out Devicie to manage their fleet of desktops and laptops. Arrow has complete visibility and control of the status of each device. 

“The biggest thing that we're saving is time. That's a lot of time we get back during the week to be able to support our customers, instead of worrying about all the tasks that come with endpoint management.”

Automated application management  

51 applications are updated automatically. Updating applications is completely automated, so the service desk team have more time to focus on external customer service. 

The team have confidence in the solution and don’t have to spend time refining processes. “It's just done,” says Brian. 

Patching problems a thing of the past 

A standardised OS version is maintained across the entire fleet and patches are uniformly applied to all devices.  

“Now that everything is on the same policy and it's automated, we don't really need to worry about when we're going to do an upgrade, it will just happen at an appropriate time. That makes things a lot easier for us. It's one less thing to worry about or to think about.”

Compliance made easy 

Near real time reporting allows Arrow to proactively monitor the status of each device. 

If an application is compromised, Arrow can view the dashboard, see which devices are running a vulnerable application and easily isolate those devices. Having visibility on patch status and the fleet's overall state allows Arrow to easily understand their compliance position. 

“It just makes compliance so simple.”

Remote device management 

Devices can be updated or rebuilt remotely, so team members can be back up and working within an hour.  

“A prime example is the 3CX breach that happened to the industry. We were able to very quickly jump into the Devicie dashboard, understand who, if anybody had the 3CX affected app installed and then instantly identify and isolate that machine,” says Brandon. 

Achieving operational efficiency  

The service desk team has more time to focus on adding value as a business partner to their customers. 

“It changes our engagement with our customers from a reactive engagement to more proactive engagement. Having everything in place already means we can have more meaningful conversations with the customers about how they can improve their security posture.”

Next steps 

Arrow now recommends Devicie to their own customers, so they can streamline device management, uplift security and save time.