The Context

Our client is a city-centre marketing agency with a distributed workforce and a technically complex IT environment.

Like many creative agencies, their team rely on a mix of Mac and PC devices, manage terabytes of media files, and rely on specialist workflows to carry out their day-to-day operations.

As is the norm, the business had allowed their IT estate to grow organically. Over time, layers of legacy technology had accumulated, and the agency found itself battling outdated hardware and a sub-optimal setup

The estate still functioned, but it was fragile and increasingly exposed to risk. It also threatened the company’s growth ambitions.

This case study has been fully anonymised to protect our client. If you’d like to learn more - or want to be put in touch with the client directly - please get in touch.

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The Challenge

We start every engagement with a full-system audit that gives us a top-down overview of our client’s IT estate, and allows us to spot any hidden problems.

Auditing this client’s estate revealed compounding issues that were limiting performance and increasing risk:

The client’s core server had reached end of life and was no longer supported
Data governance was unclear, with legacy storage structures and growing backup demands
Email infrastructure was outdated and no longer aligned with modern collaboration needs
Internet connectivity and firewall capability were insufficient for high-bandwidth workflows
The business operated a mixed Mac and PC estate, complicating backup and server compatibility
A new broadcasting studio required guaranteed bandwidth prioritisation for live streaming
Legacy cabling throughout the building made it difficult to identify which connections were still in use
PCI compliance was required for card payment systems

Crucially, the client also needed a future-proof approach. They are on a growth journey, and needed to avoid short-term fixes that would introduce unnecessary cost and disruption as the agency scaled.

The Solution

We have a field-proven methodology for managed service provision, enabling us to provide phased support that

Addresses immediate needs
Builds a strong foundation
Supports future growth.

In this instance, we completed our audit and set to work developing a prioritised strategy that would enable the client to evolve their estate in-line with their growth; keeping costs affordable, and ensuring that they’d accounted for every eventuality. This approach allows us to address root causes rather than symptoms.

Our proposed solution involved:

Infrastructure modernisation

The existing (end-of-life) server was safely decommissioned and replaced with a modern solution designed to support both Mac and PC workflows. At the same time, a full data review was conducted to rationalise storage and improve performance; boosting efficiency across the business.

Cloud migration

Legacy Exchange infrastructure was replaced with Microsoft 365, providing improved resilience, simplifying collaboration and improving security, as well as reducing dependency on risk-prone on-premise systems.

Connectivity, security & performance

Like many other industries, marketing agencies rely on strong and fast internet connections. Internet connectivity was upgraded alongside the deployment of a Meraki firewall, which provides stronger security controls and allows for better network optimisation.

Bespoke Traffic Shaping

To support the agency’s new broadcasting studio, rules were configured to ensure that livestreaming data was prioritised during events. This allowed the agency to guarantee consistent performance to their client base.

Estate clean-up & compliance

While new systems were being installed and online, our engineers also undertook the complex task of stripping out redundant cabling left behind by historic clients. This process required careful unpicking to identify active connections, and remove obsolete infrastructure without disruption.

At the same time, new PCs were deployed, PCI compliance was implemented for card readers, and a structured device lifecycle process was introduced.

Ongoing support

We partner with clients for the long term, and this engagement is no exception. Today, our team continues to manage standard end-of-life replacements for devices, as well as onboarding new employees with pre-configured equipment, and providing strategic guidance as the client negotiates their growth journey.

The Results

The client now benefits from a stable, secure and scalable IT environment that supports complex workflows, improves efficiency and facilitates business growth.

We reduced operational risks by removing unsupported systems, improved collaboration and resilience by moving them to a cloud-based email system, helped them deliver reliable live-broadcasting and replaced their outdated infrastructure with modern solutions.

As the client continues to grow, we will remain fixed on the whole picture; offering advice and designing systems that work together to ensure that the client never has to systematically overhaul their IT estate in the future.

If you find yourself burdened by an aging or complex estate, get in touch today. A member of our team will be more than happy to help.