Case Study
US Aviation Group
How this successful Denton flight school and executive fixed-base operator gained structure and streamlined operations utilizing a co-managed IT partnership.
Company Name: US Aviation Group (US Aviation Academy & US Jet Center)
Location: Denton, Texas
Website: https://usaviationacademy.com
With over 100 aircraft, US Aviation Academy provides all of the training and learning tools every student needs to become an expert pilot or engineer. US Jet Center FBO is known for incredible fuel prices, warm Texas hospitality, laser focus on safety and security, and a culture of service.
The Story of US Aviation Group
US Aviation Group consists of the US Aviation Academy and US Jet
Center. US Aviation Academy is recognized for being in the Top 10
aviation academies, ensuring the utmost in quality training and safety. They take their academy students from never having flown before to being ready to work in the field of aviation; as they call it, “zero to hero!”
Justin Sykes, their Vice President of Accounting and Finance, is proud that they can train students from all over the world and have a global network of connections in the industry. Their US Jet Center division is an executive fixed-base operator offering a suite of concierge services. They are well-known for their low fuel prices, upscale amenities, and outstanding client support.
“Understand that your MSP is a business partner and part of your core business. They form a critical part of your infrastructure and make sure that you don’t have to focus on what you shouldn’t have to. There was a high level of trust with us from day one that Techvera did have that core competency.
Maybe you’re looking to replace your MSP or you’re looking to expand a bit or reinforce your IT team. Really consider Techvera. It’s worked really well in a blended model for us and even if I didn’t have Retty I would trust you guys to take care of the whole infrastructure.”
The Challenge
Due to their success, US Jet Center had just expanded to a new
building in the airport in 2017. Unfortunately, Mr. Sykes and his team
started to experience awful issues with their IP phones. Calls would not
stay connected, employees were frustrated, and the business was
losing customers and revenue because no one could reach them!
This led Justin to begin the search for help.
The Solution
Techvera was able to quickly remedy US Aviation’s phone issues to ensure they could conduct business. We were also able to clean up some issues left by their previous managed service provider. Ultimately, that led to a full IT partnership.
Working with US Aviation’s team, we decided that a hybrid, co-managed IT partnership would best meet their needs. US Aviation hired an internal IT manager to utilize along with Techvera’s services. They get the best of both worlds with this setup – instant response and close day-to-day supervision from Retty, and a larger team with vast experience and more resources from Techvera.
The Results
Justin noted that the relationship with their previous managed service provider was very informal and lacked structure. There was a helpdesk ticket process but it wasn’t commonly used and there seemed to be no consistency in how tickets were addressed. Techvera was able to bring that structure in and make it clear to their team how to get a hold of us when needed.
Now there is a culture where everyone knows how to get their problems resolved and doesn’t have to go through Justin to get things fixed. There is clear communication between our team and theirs. Justin doesn’t need to get involved in day-to-day issues and it’s freed up time to focus on his job and the growth of the business, which is just what he wanted.
Justin was able to re-focus on running and growing the business.
Communication improved along with visibility into daily operations and needs.
Regular updates, maintenance, upgrades, and monitoring boosted security.
Mobility is key during a global pandemic & beyond
We knew it was important to replace US Aviation’s local, on-premise servers and take advantage of cloud technology. This facilitated a move to Sharepoint and Office 365, which turned out to be a huge advantage when COVID-19 hit in 2020.
As the staff was in and out of quarantine and working from home, they would not have been able to do so seamlessly without that new focus on cloud and mobility. Without Microsoft Teams in particular, Justin doesn’t think they could have made it work. It’s been easy for employees to stay connected, communicate, and collaborate. They even implemented an entire checklist through Teams that allows them to manage each month’s projects.
Justin appreciates not having to deal with version control issues or figure out what everyone is doing no matter where they’re working from that day.
Conclusion
Better communication, greater insight and visibility, streamlined operations, increased security, and time savings are benefits the team at US Aviation Group have realized utilizing our co-managed IT service. They can easily handle big projects or fluctuations in service needs. And they know that no matter what comes their way, they will be able to provide for their clients and team.
The co-managed, hybrid IT model provides the best of both worlds
US Aviation’s internal IT person, Retty, is a big fan of the co-managed approach. Retty feels like he has a mentor and partner in us, in addition to unlimited resources. Being onsite, he is able to handle all the little issues that come up and get very quick resolutions, along with having a close relationship with their staff. He benefits from Techvera’s experience and resources by having our entire team to lean on and tap into for large projects, hiring, or needs outside his expertise.
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