Hands-On Approach Delivers Unanimous Support

Problem: The Northwest Regional Education Service District (NWR) provides a wide range of services to 20 Oregon school districts with over 96,000 students. One key responsibility is to implement and host HRIS, Payroll, and Accounting. NWR was using an off-the-shelf school management software system that was sorely outdated. As a result it was frustrating NWR's school-district customers. In fact, districts were threatening to move away from NWR's services.

Solution: NWR hired Marquam Group to first define and prioritize a wide-range of requirements, and then to establish an effective IT strategy and solution. Marquam met with the key stakeholders throughout the school districts, so they could provide meaningful input into the process. Next, the team identified and screened qualified vendors. Then Marquam Group facilitated product demonstrations to large numbers of users and coordinated an evaluation process.

This comprehensive process allowed Marquam to develop a solution that fit well with all of the school districts' diverse requirements. By getting the users involved, the team also gained unanimous buy-in on NWR's final choice. With solid backing from their customer base, NWR realized a significant cost savings through volume purchasing and technical support. Thanks to Marquam Group's hands-on approach, NWR now has the confidence and continued support of their customers.