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CrystalBlueSurfacesontheBanksoftheCharlesRiver
HeadOfTheCharlesRegatta®,theworld’slargest
two‐dayrowingevent,hasselectedWhaleback
SystemsasitstelephonyproviderfortheannualNew
EnglandfallspectaclethattakesplaceonBoston’s
CharlesRiver.TheRegattahasdeployedWhaleback’s
CrystalBlueVoiceservice,amanaged,commercial‐
gradebroadband‐basedtelephonyserviceforsmall
andmediumsizedbusinesses,atitsCambridge
headquarters.TheRegattautilizesCrystalBlueVoice
atitsadministrativeofficesthroughouttheyear.
Duringraceweekend,Whalebackexpandsthe
solutiontoprovideend‐to‐endtelephonyserviceat
theRegattaoperationsheadquarters,includingthe
organization’sinternationalmediacenterandits
merchandise,sponsorshipservicesandrace
committeeoffices..
“Whaleback’svoiceserviceoffersauniqueblendofhardware
andservicesthataddressourkeyoperationalneeds—an
enterprise‐classtelephonyservicewithreliabilityandrich
featuresthataregroundedinoperationalflexibilityand
simplicity,”saidFredSchoch,theRegatta’sExecutive
Director.“ItissimplewithWhaleback.Wecanconcentrate
onstagingaworld‐classeventwhileWhalebackmanagesthe
telecomserviceandequipment.Wedon’thavetopurchasea
PBXandphonesandworryaboutunloadinganoutdated
pieceofequipmentinafewyears,andwecaneasilyand
cost‐effectivelyscaleourtelecomserviceduringrace
weekendwhileavoidingcostlylineactivationfees.”
MigratingfromCarrierServicesTheRegattahasuniquerequirements.Yearlong,thisnon‐
profitorganizationrequireshighlyreliablephoneservicesto
supportitsfundraising,planningandoperational
requirements.“Oursponsors,contributors,donors,
volunteersandbusinesspartnersneedtobeabletoreach
ourstaffthroughouttheyear,butgiventhatoursolepurpose
istosupportanannualevent,wehaveadramaticincreasein
ourphoneneedsasweapproachraceweekend,”said
Schoch.“Inthepast,weneededtoprovisionmanyextra
phonelinestosupportoperations,administrationandour
mediacenter,andwealwayshadproblemsgettingthemin
timefromthephonecompany.”
TheorganizationhadantiquatedAvayaphonelinesinplace,
andtraditionallyreliedonCentrexservices.Afterlastyear’s
Regatta,anewapproachwasneededandmanagement
evaluatedalternatives.
“Whalebackpresenteduswiththeadvantagesandbenefits
oftheCrystalBlueVoiceService,andasweresearchedour
alternativesitbecameaprettyclearchoice,”statedSchoch.
“WedidourduediligenceonVoIP,andwereoriginally
concernedaboutcallqualityandreliabilityuntilWhaleback
demonstratedthequalityoftheserviceandexplainedhow
theWhalebackNetworkOperationsCenterwouldconstantly
monitorend‐to‐endperformancetoensurewewouldbenefit
fromthereliabilityweneeded.”
www.whalebacksystems.comWhalebackSystems|2InternationalDr,Suite150|Portsmouth,NH03801(603)812‐0400|[email protected]
BenefitingfromVoIP“Implementationwassmooth,andthecallqualitywas
excellentrightaway,”saidSchoch.“CrystalBluedelivereda
lotmorefeaturesthanwewereaccustomedtofromour
Centrexservices.Traditionalfeaturesthatourcarrier
supportedlikecallforwardingandcallerIDweresimilarly
supportedbyCrystalBlue,butweimmediatelybenefitedfrom
newfeatures.Forexample,ourvoicemailsareautomatically
emailedtoussowecanrelyonasingleinboxforvoiceand
emailmessages,whichhasbeenablessing.Icanlistentomy
voicemailsfrommyBlackBerrywhenI’mtraveling,which
makesmemorereachableandproductivethroughoutthe
day.”
Top‐NotchServiceandSupportInlatesummer,theRegattabeganstaffinguptosupportthe
Octobereventandeasilyaddedadditionallinesandphones.
“WemadeitcleartoWhalebackupfrontthatourneedfor
phonelinesincreasesdramaticallyaroundracetime,and
Whalebackagreedtosupportourbusyseason,”saidSchoch.
“Whalebackprovidesuswithtop‐notchserviceandsupport,
anditscustomerserviceorganizationsrespondsrightaway
wheneverwehaveaquestionorneedadditionallines.”
ScalingtoSupportaTwo‐DayEventAstheRegattarampsuptosupportthistwo‐dayannualNew
Englandtradition,managementdoesn’tmissthepast
problemsofscalingupcarrierservicesforashortduration.
AccordingtoSchoch,“Addingnewlinestosupportoperations
wasanightmare.Wewerecompetingforattentionfromthe
phonecompanywithstudentsreturningtoBostonand
Cambridge,andthephonecompanieswereoverwhelmed.
ButWhalebackisnimbleenoughtoscaletosupportthe
aggressivedeploymentofnewlinesandnewphones—even
thoughmanyoftheseservicesareonlyusedforafewdays.”
Hecontinued,“Inthepastwehadtopaysetupchargesto
establishnewphonelines,andthenhadtopayamonthlyfee
forphonesthatwouldonlybeusedforafewdays.But
Whalebackallowsustoeasilyandcost‐effectivelyadd
capacitytosupporttherace,andwecanincreasethe
visibilityoftheRegattabyprovidingreporterswithamedia
centerthatincludesnationalcallingthroughouttheevent.”
SchochestimatesthatCrystalBluesavestheRegattaover50
percentannuallyovertheorganization’spreviousrelianceon
carrierservice,andthattheRegattahasbeenabletoreduce
itsinternationalcallingchargesby70percent.“Iheartily
recommendCrystalBluetoothernon‐profits,”hesaid.
“Whalebackoffersacreativemanagedserviceforsmall‐and
medium‐sizedorganizationsthatreducestelephonycostsand
providesenhancedcallingfunctionalityandscalability.”
