BoldFont Communications
Customers of IT Solutions Provider Enjoy Boost to Bottom Line

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The Setting

BoldFont Communications, Inc. is a comprehensive Information Technologies (IT) solutions provider specializing in Windows-based PC networks for business. The Minneapolis, Minnesota-based company has made a name for itself by providing quality, reliable hardware, software, and professional services to an impressive client list featuring many Fortune 500 companies.

IT Manager Alex Hansen is an integral part of BoldFont’s success. Hansen has been in IT for nearly 20 years, and with BoldFont for 12.

The Challenge

As the IT Manager at a corporation positioning itself as a technology expert, Hansen is seen by his clients as the “go to” guy when it comes to the knotty problems of PC networks. Because of drops in productivity and concerns over loss of company confidential information, BoldFont customers began asking Hansen if he knew of a way to obtain records of employee Internet and PC activity.

“Typically, if you believe something inappropriate has been going on, it has been,” said Hansen. “To satisfy customer needs I set out to find the best monitoring solution and one of the first considerations was to find a product that would be comprehensive in the types of activities it records.”

A hardware-based keystroke logger was considered briefly, but on closer examination it became apparent that more activity needed to be recorded if BoldFont customers were to achieve their goals.

Search for a Solution

“I came across an article recommending SpectorSoft,” said Hansen, whose first activity monitoring software purchase was Spector Pro. In what was a focused single-seat investigative situation, Spector Pro was highly successful at capturing the exact information sought.

Not too long thereafter, when another customer required larger-scale network monitoring, Spector CNE (Corporate Network Edition) was the logical next step because of its ability to Record, Archive, and Review PC and Internet activity from a central location.

Discoveries

Hansen especially likes Spector CNE’s PC screen snapshots feature, which provides the equivalent of an easy-to-review, VCR-like digital surveillance tape.

“When you view Spector CNE snapshots you can tell how well people work … who works slow … who works fast,” Hansen said. “And it’s not just PC skills … you can actually see them thinking. “Using the snapshots, I can view a day’s activity in 15 minutes. If you know what you want to look for, the process can go pretty quick. Seeing the activity is so valuable we chose to install an additional hard drive just to collect Spector CNE data. If, when reviewing the snapshots I see something I want to focus on … keystrokes, email, whatever … Spector CNE lets me do it.”

And focus he has. Several scenarios convinced BoldFont and its customers of the power and value of Spector CNE.

	In one case, a high level employee at a BoldFont customer gave notice … nothing very dramatic on the face of it. Shortly after learning of the individual’s decision to leave, however, management became suspicious of the employee’s activities and intent. “It was suspected that he was planning to take customers to a competitor,” Hansen said. “SpectorSoft’s software allowed us to intercept the drafting of word documents and emails that revealed his intentions with a competing firm. With this information, the company was able to take steps to perform damage control, and no customers were lost.”
	In a second case with the same customer, the company’s owner felt he was losing money on a certain individual but didn’t feel he had sufficient information – specifically visual evidence – to confront someone who appeared to be a major problem. “Using Spector CNE we were able to show he was a hobbyist spending most of his workday time researching his hobby and blogging,” said Hansen. “Having the findings in hand allowed owners to confront the employee. He was told to either change the behavior or be fired, dramatically increasing his output.”
	Another BoldFont customer used Spector CNE to keep an employee from dropping a bomb … almost literally. The company in this case is a Defense contractor involved in work surrounding a well-known high-tech Air Force aircraft. Hansen relates: “There was confidential information stolen related to the Stealth Bomber program. It was not treason, but another firm was trying to take the contract.” Thanks to Spector CNE – also known for its unrivaled stealth – the plot was uncovered before those involved had a chance to pull it off.

Spector CNE’s lineup of features and capabilities is so impressive that Hansen often speaks of the software program in the same breath as a tape backup, a mission-critical network hardware item few successful business operations would consider being without.

“A tape backup gives you data,” said Hansen. “But it doesn’t provide activity. With Spector CNE, you get the activity you’re looking for.”

Although data backup certainly remains a foundation of PC network system maintenance and recovery, simple raw data pales in comparison to activity when monitoring is the goal because data is static, while Spector CNE provides information that is dynamic and interactive.

Awareness

“People are aware that we can perform some type of monitoring, but they are not sure how we’re doing it. It’s such a great tool, you don’t want to give it up,” Hansen said when asked how much information is shared with monitored employees. “When we find information or uncover activities, we usually just say ‘we have been hearing this’ or something like that.

“At one customer site, when we rolled out a new network, we did program the display of a logon notice informing users that their new Windows environment was secure. A monitoring clause was included.”

IT managers or network administrators can use an operating system feature to provide such a notification, or simply enable a function included within Spector CNE.

Spector CNE: The Software of Choice

Hansen believes Spector CNE provides a quick return on investment and helps business save money by overcoming what used to be seemingly insurmountable obstacles such as employees goofing off for hours surfing the Internet, propagating sexual or racially charged emails, engaging in personal chats, leaking company confidential information, or violating copyright law by downloading audio and video files.

	“Spector CNE is saving our customers money,” said Hansen. “In one instance, productivity increased about $60,000 a year right away. And in another, the organization likely saved much more than that in future revenue because it was able to keep a key client list from being taken. “The software pays for itself -- and quickly. And these are not fuzzy savings you don’t really see. With Spector CNE, you spend your money and you get your money back right away … in the bank. Often, when I suggest a new tape backup or recommend a software update, it’s like pulling teeth to get it. But when owners find out how much data can be gathered with Spector CNE, it’s not hard to sell.”
	“Spector CNE has helped clients justify cutting employees who were losing the company money, even stealing. It has also identified employees worth their weight in gold.”
	“If more owners knew what their employees were doing, those employees wouldn’t be working for them anymore.”
	“It’s amazing how much management uses IT when we dramatically improve the overall company bottom line.”

Thanks to the powerful combination of BoldFont IT expertise and Spector CNE activity monitoring software, customers of BoldFont know EXACTLY what’s going on … and they are grateful … all the way to the bank.

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For more information about BoldFont Communications, Inc. please visit www.boldfont.com.

For more information about Spector CNE, please visit www.spectorcne.com … or for more information about SpectorSoft and its other dependable, full-featured PC and Internet Activity Monitoring Software products, please visit www.spectorsoft.com.

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