Stranded Oil Leverages Intermedia’s Communications and Collaboration Tools to Help Deploy a “Pajama Work Model,” and Save $100K Annually Along the Way

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When you think of  companies as distributed as those in the oil and gas industry, with remote fields, multiple offices, and employees always on the go,  most would agree that a cohesive and seamless IT infrastructure to support them is likely a pipe dream. . Then you add a pandemic into the mix, and companies like these have likely been feeling, well, stranded.

For Stranded Oil Resources Corporation (SORC), which recovers oil from mature oil fields, this luckily wasn’t the case. SORC’s IT Manager, Dustin Osburn, recently chatted with us to share his story about how cloud communications has helped his company to stay connected and collaborative during the pandemic, and has prepared it to be remote ready for the long run. .

SORC Was Well-Equipped to Work from Wherever

Because they have diverse work locations, with everything from  urban offices to very remote active wells, the company already operated under a work from wherever mentality. Their cloud communications suite, which included business phone, email, and file sharing all on the Intermedia platform, helped to get them there, and put them in the position to quickly pivot to a fully remote work model when COVID-19 hit.

“The pandemic was a catalyst for change, which we’d already been moving toward. We bundled all our communication services with Intermedia about four years ago. I’d already deployed laptops for most employees, so they grabbed what they needed from the office, even their phones, and went home to work,” Mr. Osburn said.

With all workers moving to remote, Mr. Osburn said the transition was rather easy. “I didn’t have to do much as the IT manager. Everything we’ve built with infrastructure and the Intermedia platform was ready to go. Really, it was just another day at the office,” he commented.

The Power of File Sharing: SORC Enjoys the Storage and Shareability of SecuriSync

Of all the tools from the Intermedia bundle, Mr. Osburn noted that SecuriSync, Intermedia’s file sharing and backup solution, was one of the most valuable. Stranded has a massive amount of large files and documents, including historical data on wells, which they need to keep for reference and regulatory reasons. SecuriSync serves as Stranded’s central document repository which allows employees to easily access, share, and collaborate on files, securely, from wherever they may be working.

Mr. Osburn noted, “Right now, we have two full terabytes of space, and 300 to 500-megabyte files are common. SecuriSync has made the ease of managing this so easy, which isn’t possible in on-prem. And in  remote areas, you can’t create a clean, temperature-controlled space for servers.”

Choosing Intermedia: Reducing Complexity and Saving $100,000

Mr. Osburn was a key decision-maker when the company decided to rethink their technology tools. He said the main goal was to cut IT spend. Before Intermedia, the company used multiple vendors for email, backup, server hosting, file sharing, and business phone. “We experienced a lot of issues with this model, including service outages. It was also very expensive,” he added.

In comparing options, Mr. Osburn found the ideal platform in Intermedia, and the cost savings were enormous. “Bundling through Intermedia, we immediately saved $100,000 a year,” he commented.

The migration over from many to one was also seamless. “In the first year, we had no downtime. We had a few growing pains, figuring out how to use everything. We had a few quick support calls and tickets with resolution within 24 hours. And we’ve had no problems since, no downtime at all,” Mr. Osburn said.

Another bonus of moving to a central platform is that users can log in with one password and one control panel. “It’s a lifesaver,” Mr. Osburn shared.

The Future of Work for SORC

Many companies are beginning to make decisions about the future of work. For some, a work from wherever model is a good fit. “We’ve discussed going back to the office, and management is happy with the pajama (remote work) model. We can do everything we need to do from wherever. The administrative team has always been mobile, so it’s working for us,” Mr. Osburn noted.

The company is centralizing operations and realizing savings by reducing its physical footprint, which they plan to invest back into their core business to fuel future growth. In addition, the ability to work from wherever allows Stranded to expand their recruitment pool and find great candidates from all over the country instead of being confined to certain geographies.

Watch the full interview with Mr. Osburn and learn more about how Intermedia has helped Stranded Oil to stay connected and collaborate with ease.