Thomas Barr | Director of Member Engagement and Operations
WATCH THE VIDEOThomas Barr, Director of Operations, is responsible for working with members and staff to ensure that everyone’s technology needs are covered. When he joined Local First, they were already using a VoIP phone system, but he realized that their current provider was not keeping up with what they needed, and started to research other phone service providers.
Since Local First AZ has a commitment to working with local businesses, one of the first things Barr began searching for was companies local to Arizona. Previous providers had originally started in the state, but then had been bought up by national companies, which did not directly align with the organization's mission.
In the past two and a half years since Thomas Barr has joined the team, they have grown from 7 full-time employees, to 20 full-time employees and 5-10 interns. Although Local First AZ is a non-profit, they are growing as quickly as a private company, and need to keep up with the fast-paced world of their members. Local First's nature lends itself to working remotely. Between events and visiting partners, employees are always on the go. More employees needed extensions and access to their phones while away from their desks, which they couldn’t get from the provider they were using.
After being referred to Nextiva by another business in their network, Barr did some probing to find out if the company offered the features they were seeking. “Nextiva was able to offer us more features at a lower price than our previous provider, including voicemail-to-email, more extensions, and a better overall network,” Barr stated. After looking at online reviews, examining Nextiva’s website, and comparing prices, he decided that they were a partner Local First AZ could trust, and could also be trusted to recommend to their clients.
Local First made the switch to Nextiva in July 2015. The time from the initial phone call to being completely up and running was only 10 days, including porting, the process of switching a phone number from one carrier to another. Barr recalls the process as being simple and without any complications. The Nextiva technicians Barr worked with had everything configured in no time, from hardware, to extensions, to voicemail-to-email.
“Everything was smooth. There were no headaches!” Barr was happy to share. “Nextiva’s employees were extremely helpful, and the entire process was fluid and easy.” Barr continued to explain that Nextiva’s service has worked exceptionally for Local First AZ since its implementation, saying, “Our administrative staff was happy right away. Everyone easily transitioned.”
In addition to receiving Amazing Service with Nextiva, they have also saved money by switching service providers, while gaining additional features. “Nextiva helps you compete with the fast-paced world of today,” Thomas Barr explained. “The phone quality is more clear than I’ve ever experienced before.”
