Introduction - the requirement for a hosted desktop
Hollywater Ltd is a Guildford-based accountancy practice that specialises in fixed price accountancy services. The company prides itself on its exceptional customer service and works closely with customers to help them make the right financial decisions at the right time. Hollywater wanted to move to a virtual server solution that would enable expansion and provide flexibility, and therefore chose to work with Hosted Accountants to help them move their software into the “cloud” and to encourage a more mobile way of working, via their virtual hosted desktop as a service solution. Hollywater also wanted to move from an old tax and accounting software and to start hosting Digita Software. Hosted Accountants provide virtual hosted desktops and IT support to accountants across the UK, enabling clients to access a wide range of practice software from wherever they are, flexibly and instantly, whether using laptops, iPad, or regular desktops.
Background - what came before the hosted desktop?
As a small practice, expert in advising healthcare and technology clients throughout Surrey, Sussex and Hampshire, Hollywater Ltd recognised the importance of flexible technology in enhancing their services to customers. Director, Ellie Ervine, was keen to make their IT systems more flexible and to make use of the virtual server technology required to introduce mobile working. She was also looking for a provision to enable work to be easily subcontracted. Ellie had previously headed up the IT provision within the practice, and recognised a requirement for support in moving to a hosted desktop and hosted Digita software. Hollywater chose to work with Hosted Accounts due their specialist knowledge in hosted desktops and customer recommendations. Ellie explains: “As well as our requirement for desktop as a server solutions, I was also looking for some assistance with moving from my old accountancy software to hosted Digita Software. Hosted Accountants were ideally positioned to assist with this and provided a complete virtual server solution which was affordable for our practice.”
The hosted desktop solution
Hosted Accountants started working with Hollywater in January 2012, when in the first instance they mapped out customer requirements for the software transition and the new hosted desktop solution. Work then started on deployment of desktop as a server, and Ellie explains: ““Hosted Accountants are very helpful and knowledgeable. We were really impressed with how quickly it was completed.”
The benefits of a hosted desktop
Now deployed, staff have reported that they find the new solution much more stable and flexible and that it has really improved working practice. Ellie explains “Our new virtual server means that expanding the business will be much more simple, which is really important for us, as we gain more and more clients. The practice has actually grown in staff since we have started using desktop as a server and hosting Digita software, and this has gone really smoothly.”
Ellie adds: “Working with Hosted Accountants has been a really positive experience. They made it look really easy to move to a hosted desktop”. They are very friendly and helpful, and nothing is too much trouble.”