
Improving the IT health of a 40+ year Iowa clinic

A trusted Iowa clinic faced several critical IT challenges, including:
- Gaining clarity on IT costs (including equipment, renewals and support) to proactively budget for the long-term
- Managing unexpected IT expenses, which required justification to the executive team before they could go ahead with the purchase
- Determining which workstations were incompatible with Windows 11 and which ones required upgrades
- Establishing a process to identify aging workstations and servers, to help ensure proactive replacements
- Resolving a lack of access to centralized information about IT equipment
- Implementing a structured renewal process to maintain system reliability
The Solution
The WIN team worked with the clinic to create a strategic plan to address each challenge. This plan included budgeting for their technology needs and implementing lifecycle management as a two-step process.
Step 1: Lifecycle Management
We applied lifecycle management to identify aging equipment and forecast replacement needs.
The report identified:
- Server and workstation name
- Serial number
- Operating system
- Warranty expiration date
- Last known user
- Whether the workstation runs Windows 11
- Vendor information
- Upgrade schedule for servers and workstations
- Access points, wireless access points, switches, firewalls, and replacement schedule
Step 2: Budget Integration
Using the lifecycle management data, we created a timeline and incorporated it into the clinic’s budget.
This process helped the clinic:
- Identify outdated equipment
- Plan phased replacements
- Develop a budget
The Results: A healthy outcome
The clinic was very pleased with the information provided in the report. They shared that these issues had been difficult to manage in the past.
By gaining full visibility into their IT assets and implementing lifecycle management, they could now:
- Determine which devices were nearing end of life
- Plan to replace equipment in phases rather than all at once or when the equipment fails
- Focus on strategic initiatives that align with their organizational goals
The collaboration between WIN and the clinic fostered a strategic partnership. With this new process, the clinic can move beyond putting out fires and instead invest in projects that will help them move in the direction their organization wants to go.
Overview
Benefits to the Client
Mitigate Risks
The clinic reduced risks to the company that can occur when using outdated equipment.
Increase Employee Satisfaction
Employees do not need to worry about equipment breaking down or not performing optimally due to reaching the end of life.
Cost Optimization
Lifecycle management helps ensure no unnecessary purchases are made. Buying ahead of time and in bulk also allows for more discounts.