CalTech

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive VP, CFO, and COO of the State Bank of Texas, a $2 billion institution located in Dallas, Texas.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with CalTech?

We’ve been outsourcing our network management for several years. Before working with CalTech, we were using a different service provider for hosting our network, but we weren’t completely satisfied, so we decided to look for a different partner in the market.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

CalTech handles all of our network, servers, and IT issues. Their team hosts our servers in their data center, and they help us manage our software subscriptions on a monthly basis. They’ve also purchased hardware and software on our behalf when needed. Thus, their services are both on-site and remote.

In addition to managed IT services, CalTech also helps us with our cybersecurity. We’re running under their one-defense program, which is the most important service they offer to us because, as a financial institution, we’re always at risk.

What is the team composition?

One of the main teammates from CalTech we’ve worked with has been Cal (Former Director of Strategic Partnerships). However, he moved on to a different division. Now, we work closely with a different person who has taken over Cal’s former position. Additionally, Chris (Former Tier 3 Engineer) has been our assigned IT technician for most of the engagement. We’ve also worked with other teammates within CalTech who have been on our calls and helped us answer tickets.

How did you come to work with CalTech?

Whenever we’re looking for a new partner, we rely on a local bankers association, as well as other associations, to get referred to companies familiar with our industry. When we were looking for a new partner, another bank referred us to CalTech, and they presented a proposal. Still, we contacted a few other bidders, and after talking with their different clients, we ultimately chose CalTech.

How much have you invested with them?

We pay them around $35,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with CalTech in November 2016, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

CalTech’s service has been perfect; we’ve never had issues with downtimes, bugs, or network speed. We have federal IT examinations by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the state of Texas. The number of issues found during those examinations is now significantly less than it was before working with CalTech.

How did CalTech perform from a project management standpoint?

CalTech has always delivered on time and on budget. We typically have weekly meetings to keep everyone on track and stick to the schedule. We use email and phone to communicate, and we also have a ticketing system.

If our internal IT team has an issue they can’t handle, they use the ticketing system to escalate the issue to CalTech. Their response time is very good. We can assign a priority level one, two, or three to our tickets, so if we have major issues, CalTech responds within seconds.

What did you find most impressive about them?

CalTech’s understanding of financial institutions is outstanding. They understand our regulations, and when new regulations come out, they keep abreast of those.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything CalTech could improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Assign a high-level team member on your side to work with CalTech.