INTRODUCTION
In 2004, the founders of Shopify started selling snowboarding equipment online. But they wanted to do more than just sell goods; they wanted to own their brand and build relationships with customers. There was no e-commerce tool that would enable them to do that, so they built it themselves. They soon realized other stores were in need of a hassle-free platform to build their retail business, and Shopify was born.
Today, Shopify is the leading multi-channel platform for online stores and retail point-of-sale systems, powering more than 800,000 businesses in approximately 175 countries, and generating $41B in gross merchandise volume in 2018 alone*.
THE CHALLENGE
In 2017, Shopify added 325,000 square feet of space to its headquarters in Ottawa, Canada. The goal was to create a more efficient, connected, and collaborative workplace, starting with room scheduling. Galina Tsyganovskaya, AV Infrastructure Specialist, Napoleon Soberanis, AV Build Lead, and their team were tasked with finding a new enterprise room scheduling solution that could integrate seamlessly with Robin® scheduling software, the company’s existing platform.
THE SOLUTION
The search for a room scheduling solution that met all their criteria for success led Galina and Napoleon to Crestron. “After learning Crestron TSW room scheduling touch screens would not only integrate natively with our existing Robin scheduling software, but would also eliminate the inconsistencies my team was experiencing when deploying, managing, and monitoring tablets, we knew that Crestron was the way to go,” says Tsyganovskaya. They subsequently decided to replace all tablets with Crestron TSW room scheduling touch screens.
Crestron touch screens, natively running Robin scheduling software, are mounted just outside each meeting space, so employees can immediately see if a room is available and for how long. They can conveniently book meetings on the spot, see the full schedule for the day, and even reserve a time for later in the day. They can also check-in, extend the current meeting, end a meeting early so the room is returned to inventory, and more.
Another benefit of the Crestron touch screens becomes apparent in the event of a power outage. Previously, Shopify’s IT staff would have to manually reboot every tablet and then reconnect them to the network. The Crestron solution eliminated this downtime.
TSW touch screens are also employed inside meeting spaces to provide fully integrated one-touch control of everything in the room including lights, shades, displays, audio, and video.
RESULTS
With the help of Crestron, Shopify has created a workspace that not only helps its employees be more productive, but also optimizes meeting space usage. The ability to natively run the existing Robin scheduling software on Crestron touch screens was critical to the project’s success, ensuring an easy-to-use, deploy, and maintain solution company-wide.
The room scheduling initiative was so successful Shopify added Crestron lighting and shading solutions throughout its headquarters, also conveniently controlled from the TSW touch screens.
A graduate of DeVry Institute of Technology, Doug has been in the Technology industry since 1976 and actively oversees Fearing’s daily operations. Along with his wife, Lois, and three others, Doug started Fearing’s in a 600 square-foot facility in Portage, Wisconsin. In the 25 years since, the company has grown to over 30 employees with offices in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Doug likes to say he’s a “TV Technician with a dream� going back to his history with the family’s original business-Fearing’s TV and Appliance.
Doug values time with family, watersports, hiking, snowshoeing and skiing. In addition to being a devoted member of his church, Doug serves as Board President for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County, Board member of Schools for Haiti and Scripture Chair of the Gideons-Portage camp.
A graduate of MATC, Lois oversees Fearing’s daily book keeping along with various HR responsibilities.
Along with Doug, Lois is deeply connected to community outreach, serving as a Board member and Fundraising Committee Chairperson for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County. She also serves on the Schools for Haiti Fundraising committee. In addition, Lois’ ongoing passion and commitment to provide care for the elderly comes from her 10-year history of working in a Reedsburg, Wisconsin Nursing home.
Lois enjoys singing, hiking, sunny days on the pontoon, and spending time with her 4 grandchildren.
Ehren drives Fearing’s technology by continually seeking out trends to enhance capabilities while supporting Sales, Engineering and Installation teams. Throughout his years with Fearing’s, Ehren’s talent and vision have joined forces to create a wide variety of projects and strategic solutions that exceed expectation.
Ehren loves music, family time, movies, nature, sustainability efforts and electric vehicles.
With 10 years with Fearing’s and over twice that long in the industry, Ben continues to lead, coordinate, and develop the Commercial AV team.
By consistently delivering an outstanding experience and outcome, Ben contributes to the Fearing’s legacy of long-lasting partnerships that truly make a difference. Whatever the Commercial AV need may be, Ben and team deliver at the highest level.
Ben is an avid fisherman and photographer. He enjoys coaching his sons and other youth.
Chris has been with Fearing’s for 20 years and in the industry for over 2 decades. As a Certified leader in Sales Acceleration and trained in EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating Systems), Chris successfully utilizes his skills to lead the Fearing’s Salesforce. Chris and team are motivated and driven to develop new client partnerships while continuing to reinforce loyal long-term relationships with ongoing Service excellence.
Married for 19 years with 3 children, Chris enjoys skiing, hiking, fishing, boating, hunting, camping and golf. He’s also been actively involved as a Youth Football and Softball coach for his family and others.
