From Basement Storage to API Automation
INDUSTRY: Marketing
"Retriever takes all of the headache out of shipping and retrieving company hardware. While it works well in the portal, the API connection is what really unlocked things for us. Automating our shipments has been game-changing for us." — Mathew Gonzalez, SANDOW
What IT Hardware Challenges Did SANDOW Face as a Fully Remote Company?
Before partnering with Retriever, SANDOW, a fully remote global marketing and media firm, faced a fragmented and inefficient hardware management cycle. Without a centralized office or warehouse, corporate assets were scattered across the private residences of three different IT team members.
This decentralized approach created a logistical burden. Provisioning hardware for new hires was a constant "scramble" to ensure devices arrived before start dates. Conversely, offboarding was equally taxing; IT members had to manually chase former employees for returns, confirm shipments, and provide tracking updates. Beyond the administrative drain, team members’ homes were cluttered with unorganized inventory waiting to be restored, cataloged for damage, or redeployed.
How Did Retriever Automate SANDOW’s IT Hardware Logistics?
SANDOW turned to Retriever to transition from a manual, home-based storage model to a streamlined, professional asset management system. By leveraging Retriever’s infrastructure, SANDOW successfully offloaded the physical burden of hardware logistics, including shipping, retrieval, and inventory auditing.
The turning point for SANDOW’s workflow was the integration of Retriever’s API. Rather than relying on manual entries within a portal, SANDOW was able to connect Retriever directly into their existing internal systems. This connectivity transformed hardware management from a series of high-touch chores into a background process. Now, when a team member joins or leaves the company, the logistics are triggered automatically, eliminating the need for IT to act as a courier service or warehouse manager.
How Did Retriever Automate SANDOW’s IT Hardware Logistics?
The shift to Retriever has fundamentally reclaimed time and physical space for the SANDOW team. By automating the most tedious aspects of the lifecycle, SANDOW has achieved a massive reduction in administrative overhead:
90% Reduction in Management Time: After a seamless API setup that took half the time of their previous monthly manual efforts, SANDOW now spends only 1/10th of the time they once did on hardware shipments.
Total Elimination of Logistics "Scrambles": The company no longer handles manual tracking, shipping confirmations, or constant follow-ups with remote users.
Reclaimed Physical Space: IT team members have cleared their homes of hardware inventory, as Retriever now handles the storage, restoration, and cataloging of devices.
Automated Scalability: The API integration has turned onboarding and offboarding into a "game-changing" automated workflow that saves the team hours every single month.
Frequently Asked Questions About SANDOW’s IT Hardware Automation
How did Retriever automate hardware shipping for SANDOW’s remote employees?
Retriever automated SANDOW’s hardware logistics by connecting its platform with SANDOW’s existing workflows through the Retriever API. This allowed hardware requests to move into Retriever automatically, reducing the manual work SANDOW’s IT team previously handled for shipping, tracking, and equipment recovery.
What happened to company laptops when SANDOW offboarded remote employees?
Before Retriever, SANDOW’s IT team manually contacted departing employees, confirmed shipments, and tracked returned equipment. With Retriever, the return process became part of an automated hardware workflow, reducing the amount of manual coordination required from IT.
Why did SANDOW use Retriever’s API integration?
SANDOW used Retriever’s API to automate hardware logistics instead of manually managing each request. The integration allowed Retriever to become part of SANDOW’s existing IT workflow while reducing repetitive administrative work for its IT team.
How much time did SANDOW save by automating IT hardware logistics?
SANDOW reduced the time spent managing IT hardware logistics by approximately 90% after implementing Retriever. Automation reduced the manual work involved in hardware shipping, tracking, and recovery so the IT team could spend more time on other responsibilities.
How did Retriever solve SANDOW’s hardware storage problem?
SANDOW previously stored company hardware at the homes of three IT team members because the fully remote company did not have a central office or warehouse. Retriever provided a centralized solution for hardware storage and logistics, removing the need for IT employees to keep company equipment in their homes.
How did Retriever help SANDOW manage device restoration and inventory?
Retriever gave SANDOW a centralized way to manage returned hardware and maintain visibility into its device inventory. This helped replace the fragmented process of storing and managing equipment across individual IT team members’ homes.
