A phone system that couldn't be trusted

Citac's previous hosted phone system had become a serious operational liability. International calls to African clients were failing regularly - a critical issue for a business whose entire client base operates across the continent. At one point, the team was unable to place a call to their own bank in Switzerland.

The problems went beyond call quality. The softphone software was slow and unresponsive, frequently making it impossible to access the dial pad or answer incoming calls. The team was missing a significant number of inbound calls simply because the system couldn't keep up.

When issues were raised with the provider, it often took days to receive a response, and solutions were rarely satisfactory. Support was only available during office hours, and on more than one occasion, critical out-of-hours problems went unresolved until the following week.

As Chantal Bailly-Chaplin, Finance Manager at Citac, puts it:

"We were paying for a system we simply couldn't rely on."

The result was that staff had started bypassing the office phone system entirely, defaulting to their expensive mobile phones to make sure calls actually connected. Telecoms costs were rising while the service was getting worse.

The solution

Citac was already a GTN mobile customer, and that existing relationship played a significant role in their decision. The mobile service had been consistently excellent.

When Citac began exploring a replacement for its office phone system, GTN's approach stood out immediately. Because Citac was still under contract with their previous provider, GTN took the time to walk through the options clearly, so the team could make a fully informed decision without pressure.

A free system demo and a thorough Q&A session gave Citac confidence in the 8x8 hosted platform before committing. There were no surprises, no hidden costs, and no unanswered questions.

"GTN demonstrated outstanding service from the quotation stage onwards. The final quotation was clear, transparent, and detailed, outlining commitments, costs, and service level agreements with no ambiguity."

The deployment: on-site, personal, and painless

Once Citac gave the go-ahead, GTN managed the full transition. The number porting process was handled seamlessly, and Sophie from the GTN team visited Citac's London office to install the soft client applications on every PC, configure the system, and deliver in-person training for the entire team.

The deployment took approximately two weeks, with no disruption to day-to-day operations and no challenges during implementation.

"Sophie visited our office to deliver in-person configuration and training for all the team, taking the time to ensure that every question was thoroughly answered."

Results

The difference since implementation has been remarkable.

International calling resolved.

Zero problems since the switch, including calls to clients in Africa. The persistent problem was eliminated immediately.

Ongoing proactive support.

Sophie offers guidance on mobile usage during international travel, advising on billing zones and suggesting cost-effective options like bundles or eSIMs to prevent unexpected charges.

Team behaviour changed.

Staff switched back to the office system as their main choice over costly mobile phones. Its intuitive and reliable design led to natural adoption without any need for direction.

Cost came down.

Citac reduced overall telecoms costs due to competitive pricing, improved call routing, and decreased reliance on mobile calls, resulting in tangible savings.

Self-service and transparency.

Chantal notes that the new customer portal is more user-friendly, enabling independent management of features like spend caps and settings, along with clear and transparent billing for easier reconciliation.

"On the occasions we have needed assistance, GTN has responded immediately and, importantly, followed up afterwards to ensure everything was fully resolved."

What made the difference

For Citac, the GTN experience was defined by three things:

1. Transparency throughout the sales and quoting process

2. A hands-on deployment that left every team member confident with the new system

3. Ongoing support that goes beyond reactive troubleshooting

As Chantal puts it:

"All the team, in particular Raj, Sophie and Kyle, provide excellent service tailored to our business needs."

Whether it's 10 users or 500, the approach is the same. Every business gets a named point of contact, a clear implementation plan, and a team that follows up after go-live to make sure everything is working as it should.

As Chantal summarises:

"The combination of competitive pricing, reliability, proactive customer service, and tangible cost savings makes GTN a partner we would confidently recommend."