Shoes for Crews designs and produces one of the largest and most comprehensive slip-resistant shoe product lines in the world, with over 280 styles for men and women in the athletic, casual, dress and safety categories. Shoes For Crews is sold in over 40 countries worldwide and supplies workplaces with best-in-class, slip-resistant footwear that is recognized industry wide for grip, comfort, durability, value, and style.
Over three decades ago, the founder of Shoes For Crews, Stan Smith, observed a notable increase in workplace injuries caused by slips and falls. Recognizing the imperative need for a solution, Smith set out to create one. In 1984, the Shoes For Crews brand was established, introducing its groundbreaking slip-resistant out sole technology. Since its inception, the brand has played a crucial role in safeguarding millions of workers, while contributing to the reduction of workers' compensation costs for numerous businesses worldwide. Today, Shoes For Crews stands as the industry standard and a trusted leader in safety footwear solutions, serving over 150,000 companies globally. The brand remains steadfast in its commitment to delivering meticulously crafted footwear for teams, ensuring their protection every step of the way.
The IT team at Shoes for Crews wanted to automate updates from a cloud-based solution to replace their old WSUS server, and update all their software, including non-Microsoft applications. They needed to update all of the software on their laptops. Given the distributed nature of their laptops across Europe, leveraging a cloud-based approach eliminated the need for VPNs. The cloud platform allowed them to update their endpoints efficiently and monitor all devices, ensuring that updates were completed while quantifying progress through generated reports.
"The ease of use, the ease of navigation of the web-based interface, the reporting and oversight, and the hosted solution option in Patch Manager Plus Cloud is what we like the most."- Simon, Head of IT, Shoes for Crews
We were able to ensure that our estate was kept up to date and protected against vulnerabilities with the help of Patch Manager Plus Cloud, wherever they are in the world with relatively little input from the IT team. - Simon, Head of IT, Shoes for Crews
Before discovering Patch Manager Plus Cloud, the organization faced the challenge of requiring all its staff in Europe to connect to the VPN to update Windows and other Microsoft solutions via the WSUS Server. This imposed a substantial burden on the IT team, as they had to diligently chase after staff to ensure compliance. Adding to the complexity with laptops disconnecting to restart after updates resulted in consistently outdated reporting. Significant time and effort were expended to determine the status of laptops.
Moreover, the limitations of WSUS were apparent, as it proved ineffective in patching non-Microsoft products such as Adobe Reader or Chrome. Leaving these applications unpatched left the organization vulnerable to potential exploitation. The adoption of Patch Manager Plus Cloud emerged as a transformative solution, effectively streamlining the patching process and alleviating previous challenges.
"We can release the updates now and get real-time reporting as to the state of our laptops. The deployment configuration takes care of everything so we just need to test, and then approve and we can watch the reporting as laptops check in and receive their updates. It’s both time efficient and adds a level of security and assurance we could never have beforehand." - Simon, Head of IT, Shoes for Crews
"It’s great just to be able to release updates and watch the pie chart turn from red to green as the laptops pick up their updates, you always know exactly where your estate is in its update cycle."- Simon, Head of IT, Shoes for Crews
Shoes for Crews evaluated various alternatives, including Intune, during their search for patching solutions. However, none of the alternatives presented the comprehensive range of updates that Patch Manager Plus offered. The IT department at Shoes for Crews emphasized the critical role it plays in maintaining the smooth operation of the company. Recognizing the significance of IT in the overall functioning of the organization, they sought a solution that could meet their diverse needs and help them overcome their IT challenges.
With the help of Servaplex (an Irish partner of ManageEngine), Shoes for Crews has expanded its Patch Manager Plus Cloud license and also purchased ServiceDesk Plus Cloud.
ManageEngine Patch Manager Plus is a standalone patch management solution that offers patching for Windows, Mac, Linux, and over 850 third-party applications. It is available both in the cloud as well as an on-premises solution. Using Patch Manager Plus, admins can automate the patch management process and deploy patches across their network—be it LAN, WAN, remote offices, or WFH users. Not only that, the Patch Manager Plus mobile application also enables patch deployment and management while on the go, from anywhere around the world. Additionaly, this solution can also be integrated with third-party vulnerability scanners and ITSM tools to further strengthen the network security and enable collaboration between the teams—all from a single console.
*This case study was originally carried out and written by Servaplex.
