What Strategic IT Support for Non-Profits Really Looks Like

How Sands Turned IT Frustration into Freedom – and Found Space to Grow

A flexible IT transformation that gave a national charity clarity, control, and confidence to scale with purpose.

The Client’s Vision

Sands, the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society, is a national charity offering bereavement support, working with healthcare professionals to improve care standards and reduce infant deaths. Its operations span the UK through a mix of full-time staff, regional group workers, and volunteers.

When Sands first approached CYAN, their operations were being held back by a rigid, unreliable IT setup. Staff were losing confidence in technology, and downtime had become a daily expectation. They needed to regain control, but in a way that allowed for empathy, care, and long-term thinking.

The Challenge

Sands was working from a legacy, server-based network that had become unfit for purpose. Many of the applications critical to their work weren’t cloud-compatible, which limited access for a remote team and introduced significant fragility.

• Frequent downtime, often 30+ minutes per day
• Fragmented systems across departments
• Office dependency at odds with a mobile workforce
• Low confidence in support and resilience
• No headspace for strategic planning or scalable IT

It wasn’t just about fixing IT, Sands needed breathing space. A calm, secure environment in which they could reflect, refocus, and move the organisation forward.

Why CYAN

CYAN was recommended through the Charity IT Association (CITA) and selected following a competitive tender process. What stood out to Sands was our structured, understanding approach. Not just technical competence, but the ability to meet Sands where they were.

We listened first. Then we built a way forward.

I’ve dealt with many MSPs in my time — you guys are by far the best. You’re proactive, friendly and, most importantly, responsive.

The Journey Forward

Phase 1: Stabilise & Simplify

We began by moving Sands from their on-site infrastructure into a bespoke hosted desktop environment. This gave them immediate remote access across the organisation, with improved resilience and significantly enhanced security.

This change gave Sands room to breathe. They were able to close their physical offices and adopt remote-first working with confidence, while continuing to expand their team and improve service delivery.

Phase 2: Modernise & Empower

Once the foundations were stable, we guided Sands through a second transformation: migrating into the Microsoft Modern Workplace ecosystem. This unlocked long-term flexibility, simplified collaboration, and aligned their systems with best-practice tools.

What started as a rescue mission became a strategic evolution, delivered at the right pace, with care and clarity at every step.

You’ve willingly taken on tasks that go beyond your usual remit, and you approach them with openness and integrity. When something’s unfamiliar, you’re upfront, and you make it a point to find the answer. That’s exactly the kind of approach we value in a partner.

The Transformation

Sands now operates as a truly modern, remote-first charity. Confident in its infrastructure and focused on its mission.

We’ve replaced one outdated system with something ten times more capable — and we’ve done it with less overhead and more clarity.

Key outcomes:

• Reliable, cloud-based access to all critical tools and data
• Flexible remote working for a growing team
• Scalable Microsoft 365 environment
• Increased resilience and security
• Freed leadership time to focus on impact, not firefighting
• Ongoing strategic partnership to guide future decisions

Their technology is no longer something they tolerate. It’s something they trust.

In Their Words:

When I joined, I was dreading working with an external IT provider. But you’ve been the opposite of every bad experience I’ve had. You don’t treat us like a number — you act like a real partner.

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