Much of our work has come from word-of-mouth referrals and we are delighted that many of our clients have agreed to support our marketing initiative and tell you what they think of us!
BC Gas, Vancouver, BC - Brenda Zagrosh, Project Manager
A public gas utility required a custom billing system
"Penelope set up a multi-utility billing system by customizing Access for us. The system had to allow a flow of information from the customer, to measurement, to billing. It's a very complicated thing. Penelope did an awesome job on it."
"Our new system saves money and makes us more efficient. The time we spend on billing went from a week of work each month to just one day of work. We're also able to provide better customer service because we have their information at our fingertips. All around, the new system has been awesome."
"The best thing was the way Penelope made sure she understood our business before she went to work. She knows the business end of things, not just the technical end. You can hire a 'techie' any time, but to get someone who understands your business and tells you what you need -- that's so important."
Associated Engineering, Vancouver, BC - Angel Pelayo, IT Coordinator
A custom project management and invoicing system helped this firm increase it's cash flow
"Our challenge was keeping track of what stage our projects were at. Now, we know exactly who is handling a project at any time. And one of the biggest benefits has been invoicing. Last year was the first where we were current in our billing."
"Marc is able to establish trust and rapport. You knew if you needed something you could always call him. He's also very good at drawing ideas out of people. He had to talk to a number of different people in our group, all with different concerns. Marc was able to tie it all together, and they're all very satisfied with the database."
"When I work with suppliers, it's very important to me that they understand the needs I want. Usually it takes time to build a supplier relationship, but with Marc it was easy. He's very good at drawing ideas out of people, and he met a number of diverse needs when he built our system. Marc is able to establish trust and rapport; you knew you could rely on him."
Seaboard Life Insurance, Vancouver, BC - Joan Rush, Former VP Legal
A large insurance company became an industry leader with an innovative compliance system which tracks their numerous legislated reporting requirements
"The compliance system we had developed allows us to audit as we go -- to know who is in compliance with policy. The great thing is that it was designed with an an incentive for people to use it, so they've largely adopted it, and it has contributed to a positive culture shift in the company."
"Our new system is a trend-setter in our industry. Everyone has policies in place to ensure compliance, but everyone has the challenge of auditing whether people are following the policies. Since IDT built our new system, regulators have referred other companies to come and see what we're using."
"Highly innovative, with an excellent grasp of the business risk issues we needed to address."
Pure Technologies, Calgary, AB - Jack Elliot, General Manager
A high tech company gained control of it's contact management using ClientMasterTM software
"We had no contact management system -- everyone had their own list. There was duplication, wrong information, no way to tell which addresses were correct, and so on. Now, our employees all use the system and we're all working from the same information. Our remote employees can even get the latest client data updated through the internet."
"IDT provided us with one of their off-the-shelf systems and customized it to our needs. The program allows to share all client information, so if anything is updated, everyone's list receives the new version. Even our company literature and templates are updated, automatically. The new system even tells us if we've already sent a particular information piece to a specific contact. It makes us both more efficient and more professional."
Metropolitan Hardwood Floors, Richmond, BC - Paul Anderson, President
A rapidly growing Western Canadian distributor and retailer of quality hardwood flooring from Quebec and Scandinavia needed help tracking sales leads, purchase orders and inventory
"Penelope helped us to simplify our ordering system. Before, we could get the information, but you had to do a bunch of reports and basically compare them by hand. It was inefficient, time consuming, and required a lot of effort. She was able to grab the information and bring it together."
"With our new inventory system, we're able to run the business better. We were ordering the wrong quantities in many cases because we couldn't see the status of the information we had. The really big, big problem was that this tied up a lot of cash. Our new system also means we can give the customer better information on the status of their wood. It makes us more professional."
"Penelope is extremely professional, and one of best suppliers I have ever worked with. And, she has worked in business. She didn't have the attitude of a programmer; she had the entrepreneurial style to understand how management and owners were thinking. And she understood the business case for what we were doing."
"IDT is the best-kept secret in Vancouver...one of the best suppliers I have ever worked with."
Creative Wood Industries, Maple Ridge, BC - Duane Shaw, Production Manager
A specialty wood products manufacturer developed a comprehensive purchasing, production and inventory costing system
"Information at your fingertips is what business is all about today. We can make quicker decisions, because we have more timely information than we did prior to when IDT created our new system. Having that information also helps people in different departments better understand what's going on. It just means better decisions all around."
"With our new system from IDT, our control is much more timely. On raw materials, our control is infinitely better. We always know where we stand. And we're like a lot of businesses -- as lean as we can be at every level. So it's really nice to know we can close the door for ten minutes if there's a problem, pull up the information we need, and solve it."
"I've worked with Marc for about four years. He's very knowledgeable about what he's doing. He figures out your business, and comes up with solutions, so he's worth more than just a programmer. And he's really into what he's doing. He takes a lot of pride in his work, and his work ethic is fantastic".
"I really appreciated IDT's ability to give accurate estimates on the amount of time that would be needed for a particular project -- and that's probably not easy when you're talking about building databases. It makes a big difference to work with someone who's accurate. For example, we decided to make some changes before working on our Y2K upgrade. If these changes were going to take too long we wouldn't have been able to do them in advance of the upgrade. That's just an example of where it's important to work with contractors like IDT."
Fireplace Products International, Delta, BC - Deborah Millichamp, Marketing Manager
A successful manufacturer of fireplaces found an efficient way to manage a complex network of dealers and distributors
"IDT basically started us from a zero knowledge base. They built our new database system, and then trained us on how to use it. Because of the training, our own people feel confident working with the system -- they can update it, or even change how it works to meet their needs. This training means we're able to do more with our new database -- be more creative with it and use it more ways."
"Marc is very down to earth, and he communicates in normal, non-technical language. There's none of that 'technological mystique' talk that makes people uncomfortable. This was really important when he trained people to use the new database he built for us. He used humour, and a lot of progressive praise; in effect, he was investing in their confidence. That means we not only have the new system, but we're able to make the best use of it too."
"Our new database system is very interactive. It allows us to pinpoint a dealer's accomplishments and sales and make decisions right away that once would have taken us a week. Basically, this means we're more accessible to our customers, and provide better service to them."
