When working with children, especially children in need of extra attention and care, it is essential that you have the tools and equipment to do your job without anything getting in the way or in any way making it harder. An example of that is an effective meeting room manager that enables you to never worry about finding an available room, booking ad hoc meetings or no shows. Pace Center for Girls works to create a better future for young girls and women. Not only do we have the pleasure of working with them but we also had the chance to talk to Matthew Parks, Director of Information Services and give you the opportunity to get to know them too.
Pace Center for Girls was developed and shaped from the fact that the American justice system didn’t seem to have programs fit for girls. When trouble knocked on the door the girls were either placed further into the system or in programs designed for boys. Pace Center for Girls is an organization that helps girls and young women in need. They have a nationally recognized, research based non-residential program model that features a balanced emphasis on academics and social services.
We are a non profit and our headquarters is situated in Jacksonville, Florida. Our mission is to save girls' lives. We take girls in with traumas and help them rebuild and reincorporate into society and school. Everything is voluntary and we partner up with the different school districts and follow their curriculums, Matthew explains.
The work that Pace Center for Girls do for the community in general and for the girls in particular is not only important but essential. While having such paramount duties and huge responsibility it’s necessary that everything around you runs as smoothly as possible and for that Pace Center for Girls has turned to Meetio.
The challenge Pace Center for Girls encountered was similar to many of our customers. Many organizations face the issue of not knowing whether a room is booked or not, and because of that a lot of rooms go to waste and the flow of bookings and meetings is disrupted. Pace Center for Girls faced exactly that challenge, explains Matthew:
The first challenge we faced was availability, right. So, we booked the rooms through Outlook but that was it. There was no indication on whether that room was booked or not. Not even if it was spoken for in the next fifteen minutes or so. We had manual signs which we could slide open and close if it was occupied or not but that was still dependant on that person actually engaging in that activity.
Before Pace Center for Girls first found Meetio they tried a variety of different solutions. According to Matthew they had trouble finding an end to end solution:
I can tell you one thing, it’s the wild, wild west. There are so many solutions out there. I mean you can buy your own sign and you can try to find software to match it. Before we found Meetio we tried a lot of different things. For example, we bought a sign but couldn’t get onto the site and so on. The lack of standardization even in the conversation was difficult for us but Meetio has been the real deal from start to finish.
The fact that Meetio could offer a complete package with tablets, signs and software all in one was what won Pace Center for Girls over. Besides the complete solution Pace Center for Girls has really valued the support and simplicity Meetio has given them, Matthew explains:
Meetio really is an end to end solution. The only thing we’ve had to do ourselves is the installation but that was as easy as it gets. Everytime a single question has come up we’ve gotten help right away and it really hasn’t been any trouble.
If you were to speak to another organization in your situation, how would you advise them to get the most out of Meetio?
We thank Matthew for the talk and we look forward to our continued cooperation in the future!First of all, you will get a lot of useful help. We use the large sign which tells us what rooms are available. We especially love the indication colors, green means it’s free, yellow that an appointment is coming up soon and red that it’s taken. Second of all, make sure you don’t forget the human factor. Teach your coworkers about the system and make sure you create the best conditions possible. Thirdly, if you have any questions or if you’re in need of any help just contact Meetio, the reception is fantastic.
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