Case study · IT distribution
Interlink Group: a private cloud, Microsoft 365 and AI for purchasing decisions
The distributor of new, refurbished and second-hand IT equipment moved from the servers at its head office to a private cloud, on its own servers, in a data center. It works in Microsoft 365, and the AI agents we built compare supplier offers with prices on the local market.
- Since 2005a RezolvIT client
- 30+people, across 3 locations
- 3 monthsof implementation
In short
What did we do for Interlink Group?
Interlink Group has more than 30 people across three locations and has been a RezolvIT client since 2005. In three months, we built the company’s own infrastructure in a data center and added Microsoft 365, AI agents and 24/7 IT support.
The challenge
The physical servers sat at the company’s head office, the data was scattered, and supplier offers were compared with market prices by hand.
The solution
A private cloud on Interlink’s servers, in a data center, with backups in secure locations, plus Microsoft 365, three AI agents and 24/7 IT support.
The result
The company has full control over its data, and the purchasing team decides based on market prices, not just on experience.
The challenges
What were the challenges?
Interlink sells new, refurbished and second-hand IT equipment. In second-hand, the margin is made when buying: a batch from a supplier is a good deal only if its price matches what the market is paying at that moment.
- The physical servers sat at the company’s head office: a power cut or a fault there could stop all of the company’s work.
- All three locations depended on the servers in a single place.
- Data on stock, sales and prices was scattered across applications, Excel files and emails, and reports were put together by hand.
- Supplier offers, long lists of models and configurations written in different ways, were compared by hand with prices on the local market.
- The company also needed support outside working hours.
The decision
How did we choose the solution?
We’ve worked with Interlink since 2005, so we started from an infrastructure we knew. Together with the management and the purchasing team, we settled four questions.
Public cloud or its own infrastructure?
Its own infrastructure: a private cloud on Interlink’s servers, in a data center. The company keeps full control over its data, and the servers no longer depend on head office.
Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace?
Microsoft 365: email, files and Teams in one place, with two-step verification and centrally managed permissions.
A general AI assistant or the company’s own agents?
Agents built around Interlink’s workflows, each with access only to the data it needs. They prepare the decision, and people make it.
In what order?
First the infrastructure and Microsoft 365, to put the data in order, then the AI agents. 24/7 support started on day one.
The implementation
What did we implement?
The same team coordinated every stage, alongside the company’s IT person.
Its own infrastructure, in a data center
Instead of the servers at its head office, Interlink now has its own infrastructure in a data center: a private cloud on high-performance servers, with virtual machines (VPSs) for the company’s applications.
Data center →Security and backup
A firewall, secure access from all three locations, two-step verification and 24/7 monitoring. Backups are kept in secure locations, separate from the servers.
IT security →Microsoft 365
Email, files and Teams, in Microsoft 365, with permissions by department. The move happened outside working hours, so people could work as usual.
IT productivity →The internal data agent
It brings together the data on stock, sales and prices and answers the team’s questions, so reports are no longer put together by hand.
AI automation →The market and offer agents
One tracks the prices of second-hand equipment in Romania. The other reads supplier offers and compares them with the local market: what’s worth buying and up to what price.
24/7 IT support
Helpdesk, monitoring and on-site interventions at head office and the other locations, alongside the company’s IT person, whom we stand in for while they’re on leave. Every month, the management receives a report.
IT support →
The rollout
How did the implementation go?
The project took three months. The moves were done in the evenings and on weekends, so the company could work as usual.
Month 1: the plan and the infrastructure
The audit, the plan and the infrastructure prepared in the data center, with security and backups set up before the data was moved.
Month 2: the move and Microsoft 365
The applications and data moved to the private cloud, and email and files to Microsoft 365. The team received short instructions for the new tools.
Month 3: the AI agents
The agents were tested on the company’s real data and offers, alongside the old method, until the purchasing team trusted their recommendations.
Since then: 24/7 support
We monitor the infrastructure day and night, step in at head office and the other locations, and send the monthly report.
Results and conclusions
What changed, and what did we learn?
After three months, Interlink has its own infrastructure in a data center, under the company’s full control, and AI agents prepare its purchasing decisions.
Before
- Physical servers at the company’s head office
- Data scattered across applications, Excel and email
- Supplier offers compared by hand
- Support only during working hours
After
- A private cloud on the company’s servers, in a data center
- Backups in secure locations
- Email, files and Teams in Microsoft 365
- AI agents for data, the market and offers
- 24/7 IT support, alongside the company’s IT person
Control over the data decides the architecture
A private cloud on the company’s own servers, in a data center, is as flexible as any cloud, but the data stays under the company’s control.
AI comes after the data
AI agents only deliver results on data that’s in order. That’s why the infrastructure and Microsoft 365 came first.
AI prepares the decision, people make it
The agents compare offers with the market, and the purchasing team decides what to buy and at what price.
One team for everything
Infrastructure, security, AI and support come from the same team, with a single contact person.
Testimonial
What does the client say?
Cristian Tunsoiu, General Manager of Interlink Group, on the project and on working with RezolvIT.
“We’ve worked with RezolvIT since 2005. They set up a private cloud on our own servers, in a data center, so our data stays under our control, moved us to Microsoft 365 and built AI agents that compare supplier offers with market prices. Now we decide faster what to buy, and when a problem comes up, at any hour, someone answers.”
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