
CSDP: Where long-term isn’t lip-service

There’s no doubt about it: changing the way a business works, and using software to help facilitate change, can make the difference between long-term success and failure.
While the notion that putting the correct tech in place will revolutionize for the better the way everyone works is indeed a great theory, the actual realities of doing it well are really very complex, requiring a long-term approach.
Unless the company you employ has the attitude and ability to be able to understand exactly how your organization functions, what it offers won’t ever quite fit the way you work, comply with your ideals and empower your specific methods.
If you choose an off-the-peg solution, it’s a given that there’ll be a certain amount of compromise between the way you’d ideally like your organization to work, and the way that the software or hardware will physically let you. Therein lies the difference between a supplier whose end goal is selling you a specific product, and one whose aim is to make your business better.
Trident Computer Resources, an IT maintenance & support company have found such a supplier in CSDP. Trident’s CEO, Steve Studley makes the following remarkable statement concerning their supplier-come-partner:
“A lot of my positive experiences are based on how the relationship ‘feels’ to me but CSDP works at the inner operations of fantastic companies large and small. Their CEO has made himself available to me on numerous occasions for discussion based on this experience. CSDP’s project managers are always willing to pass on their insights from multiple industries. All very high-level examples, [but these are] juxtaposed with the occasion I needed some help visualizing some data metrics and a CSDP programmer gave me an advanced Excel lesson. That’s good service!”
CSDP’s offering includes products that address inventory control, contact centers, reverse logistics, and scheduling, amongst others. But to consider the solutions as just consisting of software applications would be to miss CSDP’s credo. What the company offers is a special combination of consultancy, guidance, data gathering and, when apposite, software solutions.

Steve Studley, CEO, Trident Computer Resources
Whichever of the options may be deemed a good fit, they are subject to the CSDP’s pre-implementation phase. This process makes the difference between a costly wrong choice (or configuration) and an installation that will actually work in concert with a company’s ambitions.
CSDP’s heavy focus on learning about their clients during pre-implementation (before any software product is even suggested) didn’t surprise Steve Studley:
“Was I surprised? Absolutely not, it’s exactly what they stated they were going to do in our first sales conversation. CSDP made it very clear they would let us dictate the pace and help us where needed to get ready for ‘The Software’.”
Because Trident set its own speed, staff had the time and thinking-room, helped by the consultation process with CSDP, to consider their internal processes, and so, were able to correct and document well before implementation.
A common error that occurs when software solutions are chosen and placed into an organization, is the lack of consultation with the people most affected most by the installation: the day-to-day users. Those are the users the solution is meant to benefit, from loading bay to boardroom.
During Trident’s engagement with CSDP, Studley says, “Administrators and dispatchers in the each project stage were included to they could see what was been worked on. Their feedback was sought and acted upon by the CSDP development team during testing and implementation.”
CSDP’s involvement with Trident has become a long-term, two-way relationship. Why? Because of the way the company has worked alongside its client. The spirit of partnership is fostered by CSDP’s understanding of Trident’s particular requirements and overall business aims.
As Trident goes from strength to strength it is deploying a new web portal capability and has engaged key customers to become active beta testers during the roll-out – all while working alongside CSDP.
CSDP has altered Trident over time and delivered positive business results. The relationship continues, Studley says. “To this day, we feel they are as attentive as the very first day we met.”
Long-term relationships are often touted by marketing departments as some kind of unique offering. It’s refreshing to hear of a solutions provider who actually lives in that mindset.
To learn more about CSDP’s unique approach to implementing business and software solutions, get in touch with the company.