Strengthening Northland Properties’ Network from Coast to Coast
As their expectations for wireless networks changed, CDW helped Northland Properties meet demands through our trusted expertise.
When checking into a hotel, guests always expect that the Wi-Fi works, and the way for a hotel to gauge whether the Wi-Fi is working well is when there are no guest complaints. And that’s exactly what Northland Properties aims to deliver – seamless guest experiences from arrival to departure at each of their properties across Canada.
Consumer expectations of Wi-Fi speed and reliability have increased drastically over time and the task of upgrading 83 properties across Canada to meet this demand is no small feat. “Guest expectations have changed over the years,” said Farshad Nasimi, Vice President, IT Operation and Security at Northland Properties. “The previous standard per hotel room was just one device, now it’s 3.5. People come to our properties and they use their own video game stations, they have tablets, they have different mobile devices and computers.”
On top of adapting to guests’ Wi-Fi expectations, Northland Properties is an ever-growing Canadian hospitality group and a trusted name in hotels, restaurants, sports and construction. They are undergoing rapid expansion and need their wireless and wired networks to keep up with the pace.
Having worked with CDW Canada on past projects, Northland Properties turned to their trusted technology advisors to tackle this task. “CDW is our first and biggest business partner in terms of IT,” said Nasimi. “We knew they would be up to the task and be able to source the products we needed on our timeline.”
A trusted IT advisor: understanding Northland’s specific needs
Northland Properties first started working with CDW in 2015. Over the years, Northland Properties has engaged several CDW solution architects and specialists, which solidified CDW’s role as their trusted IT advisor. As trust grew, Northland Properties began working with CDW on more service engagements, with a focus on security. Now, CDW is currently working on Northland Properties’ seven- to 10-year project of updating their wired and wireless networks for their hotels and restaurants across the country.
In the early stages of the project, CDW was able to identify the gaps in Northland Properties’ network at the time and highlight areas of improvement, ultimately showcasing Cisco Meraki products as the right solution for the job. The process was very structured and established the needs of Northland Properties from a technological perspective. Understanding the evaluation criteria and scalability requirements, as well as current and future challenges, enabled CDW to confidently recommend Cisco Meraki as the solution.
Sourcing and implementation became difficult during the global pandemic. “We were faced with increasing demand as well as supply chain issues,” said Nasimi. “CDW worked with us to meet our needs and help us find the best solution
possible.”
Despite ongoing supply chain issues, CDW was able to source and deliver Cisco Meraki solutions to meet Northland Properties’ rapid timeline. A variety of Cisco Meraki access points, including MR76, MR44, MR70, MR36H, MR36 and MR34 models, were installed to create a wide area network providing enterprise mobility management with integrated security and guest access, along with PCI compliance reports. Additionally, the technology allows cloud management for quick deployments and sends real-time alerts reporting any network problems and automatic firmware updates.
MS120, MS125 and MS410 network switches were installed, ensuring that the system is easily manageable, can perform with standard or full power switches and all devices can connect to the network. A further advantage of this technology is it provides a noiseless work environment, making it perfect for hotels.
“The Cisco Meraki access points and switches give us the benefit of complete visibility and control of our networks,” said Nasimi. “If an issue arises, we’re able to take care of it quickly, so our guests can enjoy a secure, fast and reliable connection to our networks.”
CDW also integrated Meraki Systems Manager, a system manager technology that allows Northland Properties to enact device management from an endpoint perspective, providing a better end-user experience and security based on roles rather than devices.
“We always put the customer's best interests first and our team wanted to provide a quality solution that would be easy to manage and keep continually up to date,” said Stephen Just, Field Account Executive at CDW Canada. “Cisco Meraki provides numerous benefits and is the ideal solution for Northland Properties. From important operational requirements like mobility, licence management and cloud management to small details like noiseless work, the solution is perfectly tailored to the customer's needs.”
How the new network helped reduce Wi-Fi complaints
After implementing Cisco Meraki solutions across Northland Properties’ hotels, restaurants and resorts, customer and guest satisfaction was noticeably improved, even if they didn’t fill out a comment card. Complaints about spotty Wi-Fi and poor signals were significantly reduced, providing guests with the positive experience befitting of a Northland Properties location.
“Our goal is to provide a seamless experience for our guests,” said Nasimi. “In this case, no news is good news – we have not received any complaints from our guests about the Wi-Fi recently.”
How CDW is helping Northland build their network of the future
Part of CDW’s role as Northland Properties’ trusted IT advisor is looking beyond the immediate problem and implementing solutions to stay ahead of future needs. For example, since the Cisco Meraki solutions are software defined and cloud based, Northland Properties can do testing and start gathering data on how their spaces are being used. These insights will enable Northland Properties to make well-informed decisions across all of their offerings, ultimately tailoring better experiences for their guests.
Going beyond what is required today and thinking about what will be required tomorrow is a major contributing factor to the trusted relationship between Northland Properties and CDW.
“If you're working with a company, no matter the size, at the end of the day you're going to rely on your account manager. CDW did a great job and we work with good people. The level of professionalism has been amazing and is one of the reasons that we will stay with CDW for many years,” said Nasimi.