Citizen Watch and Dropbox for Business

Customer Stories

How Dropbox for Business keeps Citizen Watch ticking

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Published on July 17, 2014

 

It’s well known that end users love file sync and share services. But did you know that IT departments are often just as enthusiastic?

According to a recent report by Forrester Consulting, IT departments are the biggest users of file sync and share, with 95% of IT decision-makers surveyed saying they use it regularly.

Citizen Watch is one company that proves out this trend. The legendary timepiece company has been making watches since 1930, producing everything from light-powered watches to the world’s first dive watch with an electronic depth sensor. As a subsidiary, Citizen Watch for America oversees all of the company’s business dealings throughout North America and the UK.

If you assumed that such an established industry would be risk-averse and set in its ways, you’d be wrong. Citizen Watch for America boasts a talented, 14-person IT team highly committed to empowering employees with technology, to keep the business moving as quickly as possible.

For example, when they embarked on a website redesign, Citizen Watch realized they couldn’t meet their tight deadline if they kept struggling with FTP. They decided to give Dropbox a try instead, and adoption took off from there. Before long the team decided they needed a product tailored for companies, so they switched to Dropbox for Business.

Now, when Citizen Watch introduces a new model, authorized images can be easily distributed to dealers for promotion on their websites. But perhaps the biggest fans of Dropbox for Business are found in the IT department.

Dropbox for Business has not only eliminated the need to maintain FTP sites, it’s also become an integral part of the team’s project management processes. For the company’s selection of a new ERP solution, for example, IT worked closely with an outside consultant — using Dropbox to supply all the information needed to find the right fit.

In addition, the team is using Dropbox to upgrade its warehouse management system — sharing data on shipment types, maximum shipping volume, and volume of products being moved, all helping a systems consultant draft accurate requirement specs.

“Like most living documents, there are a lot of changes to our warehouse management specs — which would be out of control if we were using email,” said Gen Miake, IT Director of Development for Citizen Watch of America. “With Dropbox, everyone is assured that they have the current version of everything they need.”

Now with FTP issues and versioning concerns behind them, Citizen Watch can keep ticking right along.

Wondering how Dropbox for Business can help your company? Sign up for a free trial!