{"id":38895,"date":"2021-07-14T11:21:30","date_gmt":"2021-07-14T18:21:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cirasync.com\/?p=38895"},"modified":"2026-01-22T14:05:40","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T21:05:40","slug":"the-arc-of-schuyler-non-profit-solves-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cirasync.com\/de\/case-studies\/the-arc-of-schuyler-non-profit-solves-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Arc of Schuyler Non-Profit Solves with Rapid Response and Faster Decision-Making"},"content":{"rendered":"

Executive Summary<\/h4>\n

The Arc of Schuyler<\/a>, a non-profit organization based in Schuyler County, New York, provides support and resources to persons with disabilities. It also operates several residential homes and the county\u2019s public transit system with seven bus routes.<\/p>\n

The Arc of Schuyler made a technology shift by switching from Microsoft Exchange to Office 365 in 2016. This created a communications gap for its employees, who need up-to-date contacts and calendars on their iPhones at all times as they use smartphones as a primary management support and decision-making tool. Wendy Shutter, Director of IT and Business Services at The Arc of Schuyler, explains, \u201cTo boost our productivity, we wanted to share contact groups and calendars on staff iPhones.\u201d The Microsoft Office 365 solution does not provide automated Global Address List (GAL) and calendar sync.<\/a><\/p>\n

Shutter identified the requirements for the solution: an automated, robust, cloud-based SaaS product that could be quickly implemented with minimal user training.<\/p>\n

Challenges<\/h4>\n

The technology shift to Office 365 revealed a challenge: the lack of an automated sync between Office 365 and contact lists and calendars on business smartphones. The manual uploading of contact lists to each manager\u2019s smartphone is a time-consuming and error-prone approach and the employees did not have access to shared calendars. \u201cI couldn\u2019t give users full access,\u201d notes Shutter, \u201cBecause they may accidentally blow away whole calendars, and we were also losing contacts.\u201d If a staff member declined an all-hands appointment, it could block the meeting on a shared calendar, which other employees<\/a> needed to attend.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople were complaining they didn\u2019t have their contacts and department meetings on their iPhone,\u201d says Shutter, \u201cSo I was in a hurry. We are believers in technology if it helps. But. shared calendars on iPhones were not helping us. Still, we could see the potential benefits they held.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCiraSync is a phenomenal time-saver. Now managers pull out their smartphones, check calendars that are always correct, and make scheduling decisions on the spot without waiting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wendy Shutter, Director of IT & Business Services, The Arc of Schuyler<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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\u201cOur leadership team carries iPhones. Our contact lists include emergency responders, support organizations, internal and external maintenance teams. Now, I can push each specific list selectively to those who need it \u2013 to the nursing staff, for example.\u201d Wendy Shutter, Director of IT & Business Services, The Arc of Schuyler.<\/p>\n

CiraSync Powers Granular Control and Fast Incident Response<\/h4>\n

During a Google search, Shutter came across CiraSync and liked the granular control the solution offered, such as the ability to designate what information individual employees could see. Shutter decided to deploy CiraSync and test its capabilities. Her verdict, \u201cPhenomenally easy to use and understand.\u201d Next, she set up a collection or grouping of all smartphone users<\/a> and then one for nurses.<\/p>\n

\u201cCiraSync has enabled me to clean up a lot of messes, and handle all our permission issues easily,\u201d says Shutter. \u201cI can control which groups see which calendars, such as clinical appointments and maintenance review dates.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shutter also established emergency personnel lists so that if a county bus is in an accident, employees can reach the Department of Transportation and all necessary responders immediately. \u201cIt\u2019s a whole new world of regulations and certifications with required notifications of incidents to the right people,\u201d she says. \u201cCiraSync means we don\u2019t have to hunt for phone numbers in a crisis, whether it\u2019s medical or maintenance-related.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Fast Adoption with Excellent CiraSync Technical Support<\/h4>\n

CiraSync support has been fast and accurate, making the adoption easy. \u201cCiraSync brought a major change and big-time savings for those who provide services at The Arc of Schuyler,\u201d Shutter says. \u201cAt our Monday meetings, when the executive team must decide when to get something done, we just pull out our iPhones, overlap the calendars to figure out timing and make decisions quickly, and immediately update the appointment<\/a> on our shared calendar.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n