The partner
Based out of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Intega IT is a boutique managed service provider that has been serving small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) with forward-looking, scalable services for over 20 years. The company prides itself on maintaining a customer-first philosophy and delivering the best solutions possible with highquality support so Intega IT clients can have complete protection and peace of mind.
“I’d say we’re not your traditional IT team,” says John Robinson, Intega IT President and CEO. “We speak to our clients in a way that they understand, and have built a great reputation for protecting their businesses with tailored, proactive solutions.”
No stranger to change, Intega IT has transformed over the years, staying ahead of the evolving IT landscape. Initially operating as a break-fix company, delivering as-needed support to clients, Intega IT now operates as an all-in MSP—including managed cybersecurity services.
The challenge
Cyberattacks have been on the rise in the SMB space. While traditional firewalls, spam filtering, and antivirus software may have delivered adequate protection in the past, Intega IT knew that these defenses wouldn’t stand up to the tactics and techniques used by modern attackers.
What’s more, the damage from a single incident is now much more severe, potentially leading to prolonged downtime and exposed data, among other risks.
“There’s just too much at stake,” explains John. “There’s reputational damage to us. There’s reputational damage for our clients. So, we want to make sure that we’re offering the best protection.”
Intega IT knew they would need to make a strategic shift in their business to continue providing the best solution possible for their clients. They made the decision to transition their service to a single-tier model with comprehensive cyber protection that would keep pace with the changing threat landscape, and significantly minimize risk for their valued clients as well as themselves.
“It’s absolutely critical to us that we demonstrate to our customers that we’re delivering a fantastic solution to them,” observes Simon Cutler, Director of Operations at Intega IT. “It’s not just about putting tools in place to meet cyber insurance requirements. It’s about delivering a robust, trusted service as well.”
To achieve this, Intega IT began the search for a managed detection and response (MDR) partner that could offer expertise, world-class technology that easily integrates with their existing operations, and 24/7 cybersecurity protection.
The solution
Intega IT began exploring options and vendors in the MDR space.
The team knew they wanted a solution that would help them take a more proactive approach to security. They looked at well-known names such as CrowdStrike, Fortinet, and others, but when they found Field Effect, they knew they had the right solution and team for the task at hand.
The team at Intega IT liked what they saw—Field Effect MDR’s all-in-one approach and coverage for all critical elements were a particular standout, not to mention automated threat detection, round-the-clock monitoring, and threat hunting. Simplified threat alerting and Field Effect MDR’s Suspicious Email Analysis Service (SEAS) also stood out as major benefits.
“When I first met Field Effect, I immediately got that confidence it was a company we could work with and build a partnership rather than just a vendor-customer relationship,” shares Simon.
Beyond its impressive technical features, Intega IT liked that Field Effect MDR took a proactive approach to cybersecurity to stop disasters before they happen. Features like 24/7 vulnerability scanning provided Intega IT with peace of mind that their clients are secured from every angle.
Field Effect’s customer-centric attitude paired well with Intega’s focus on partnership and building strong customer relationships, further confirming that Field Effect MDR was the solution they wanted to deliver.
“Relationships with our customers are important to us. It helps us to be much more successful when we have partners that have the same standards and align with our goals,” says Simon. “Field Effect has that.”
The results
With Field Effect MDR driving its security suite, Intega IT was able to launch a more holistic service offering, allowing the company to stand out against competitors by providing a single level of top protection.
“We looked at a good-better-best model, but the risk was too high,” says John. “We have the best MDR solution available on the market, in my opinion, and I think that it’s a disservice to our customers to take out services. So, we decided it was all or nothing.”
Intega IT mandated a service update to their existing client base and converted 96% of their existing client base to the new offering, increasing the revenue per client by an average of 30%.
“The relationship with Field Effect has been perfect for allowing us to not only become more successful, but to align everything we need for delivering first-class service to our customers,” says Simon. “We’ve managed to secure new agreements with our existing customers...and now that we’re leading with security as our primary focus, it’s enabled us to gain a lot more interest from new sales leads and new prospects and convert those into actual new clients.”
As a Field Effect partner, Intega IT has also gained hands-on sales and marketing support. This, combined with the company’s new competitive offering, has helped Intega IT increase its total close rate from 50% in 2020 to 90% in 2021.
“It didn’t matter if it was a two-minute phone call, a quick text, or a full-blown essay email, the Field Effect team is so prompt and reliable,” says Meghan Connolly, Account Manager and Lead Business Development Representative. “It was phenomenal, and our clients appreciate it so much.”
Selling Field Effect MDR as part of Intega IT’s holistic approach gave the team an edge over their peers who offer cybersecurity as a “bolt-on” service.
“With Field Effect MDR and Intega, it’s an all-in-one offering,” adds Meghan. “Field Effect makes it incredibly easy to sell cybersecurity.”
