Case Study

Conference of Independent Schools turns to Scalability for transition
to remote work

CIS Ontario, an association that represents 48 independent schools in the province, is ahead of the curve in having staff work from home. Even prior to the pandemic, it permanently closed its office – with Scalability’s full suite of cloud-based financial services paving the way.

For CIS Ontario Executive Director Sarah Craig, the shift to virtual offices is all about recruiting the best people possible. “We’re a provincial association and we didn’t want to restrict hiring to one geographic area.”

The Organization

CIS Ontario promotes excellence in education and provides professional learning opportunities for faculty at member schools. It has a small staff of three, plus one part-timer.

The Problem

The association had an office in the Toronto suburb of Whitby. However, that was limiting its ability to attract staff from across Ontario. In addition, its paper-based bookkeeping was inefficient and did not serve member schools well.

The Solution

In September 2019, CIS Ontario terminated its lease on office space and went fully remote. Scalability helped them transition from a desktop bookkeeping system to one that is cloud-based, leveraging software tools Xero and Dext. Invoices are sent electronically, and member schools pay by e-transfer. It’s simple, fast and efficient.

The Results

CIS Ontario is delighted by its transformation to working remotely and to cloud-based bookkeeping with Scalability. Sarah cites the following benefits:

·       It can hire the best people from anywhere in Ontario

·       By closing its office, CIS Ontario saves on rent, copiers, landline phones and office supplies

·       Payments are made digitally – quickly and easily. Previously, the executive director had to sign up to 150 cheques per month

·       The Scalability account manager provides expert advice and is seen as part of the team

·       The board’s finance committee audit runs smoothly because all the accounting data is instantly available. There’s no more combing through paper files

To learn more about how Scalability can help your organization achieve its goals, please contact us for a free consultation.