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Organization
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, North Carolina, USA
Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians (EBCI) is the only Indian
tribe in North Carolina that is federally recognized by the United
States government. Located in western North Carolina in their
traditional homelands, the tribe consists of 15,000 enrolled
members across 56,000 acres. Headed by Principal Chief Michell
Hicks, EBCI runs its own government with a legislative branch and
supreme court, as well as 400 unique programs including educational
and recreational services, housing, finance, healthcare, public
safety and sanitation, just to name a few.
LifeSize ResultsCherokee Indian Tribe Relies on HD Video
Conferencing Solutions to Help Their Community Thrive
A Customer Success Story
Challenge Solution Results
Because the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is spread out
across 56,000 acres of
land and has over 400 programs throughout the community, the
tribe needed an effective way to collaborate across distance.
After a rigorous evaluation process, the tribe turned to
LifeSize video conferencing solutions
for its firewall traversal, scalability and mobile support. EBCI
purchased LifeSize Room 220 for the chiefs conference room and
LifeSize UVC ClearSea for members of the chiefs leadership
team.
The tribe has begun utilizing HD video conferencing extensively
and it has served
a key role in solving some of EBCIs most challenging issues.
Browns goal is to equip every member of the tribe with a LifeSize
ClearSea account to facilitate even more collaboration across
divisions.
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Principal Chief Michell
Hicks
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2Challenge
Because the tribe is spread across a vast 56,000 acres in a
mountainous region, all of the various division headquarters are
dispersed among the
land. In some cases, traveling to a building only half a mile
away can take an exorbitant amount of time due to the rocky
terrain. Additionally, only seven deputies under the tribes chief
oversee all 400 programs. For the deputies to manage their
individual programs (and communicate with the chief on a weekly
basis), a robust communications ecosystem was needed for the tribe
and its many divisions to function seamlessly.
LifeSize is, and will continue to be, instrumental in the
vitality of our community.- Jeremy Brown, audio and video
administrator for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians
EBCIs chief continually seeks new ways to improve communications
throughout the community.
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3Solution
In order for the tribe leaders to communicate as efficiently as
possible, the IT team of EBCI turned to HD video communications
rather than audio or web
conferencing. However, finding the right vendor proved to be a
challenging task. After a long evaluation process, including
countless meetings with Polycom and Cisco, EBCI eventually chose
LifeSize and purchased LifeSize Room 220 for the chiefs conference
room, as well as LifeSize ClearSea to share with leaders in the
tribe.
The number one feature that we were looking for was a solution
that could easily connect inside and outside of network. Since we
have a medical division, confidentiality and security are of the
utmost concern and we have nicknamed our network, Fort Knox, said
Jeremy Brown, audio and video administrator for the Eastern Band of
Cherokee Indians. In fact, LifeSize was the only vendor that could
even do a demo without us having to open our firewalls. Cisco
couldnt even do that, even after opening a couple of ports.
LifeSize was truly the only vendor that could provide us the peace
of mind we needed and allowed us to traverse firewalls with
ease.
Brown also felt that scalability was a key factor in the
decision making process. We were blown away by the fact that we
could start small with our purchase and buy more as needed.
LifeSize UVC Platforms ability to buy a single port at a time was a
huge selling point for me. Its hard to say exactly how many
licenses we need at any given time, and LifeSize gives us the
flexibility to let us buy only what we need and keep the costs
low.
Finally, Brown knew that in order for the tribes leaders to
communicate as effectively as possible the solution needed a robust
mobile component. I especially liked the fact that LifeSize UVC
ClearSea supports so many different mobile devices. When someone
calls, all of your enabled devices ring at the same time. Whether
Chief or one of his deputies is on their phone, tablet or laptop,
they will never miss a critical call, said Brown. Every building
tribe-wide is equipped with its own WiFi network. That, along with
LifeSize UVC ClearSea, ensures that connectivity is never an issue
and Chief can connect with his colleagues at a moments notice.
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Delivering the Ultimate Communication Experience
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this document is subject to change without notice. LifeSize is the
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Results
After implementing LifeSize Room 220 and LifeSize UVC ClearSea
across the Cherokee
community, the tribe is using video communications extensively.
For example, the attorney general uses her LifeSize UVC ClearSea
solution almost every day and believes the technology is critical
for maintaining the success of the tribe. Recently, EBCI was
involved in a legal matter that required an extensive amount of
lobbying to the state government. Through the use of video
conferencing (rather than traveling to and from Raleigh, North
Carolina and Washington D.C. for meetings), EBCI believes they
saved nearly $15,000 in that single case alone.
Additionally when a rock slide blocked the citys main
thoroughfare, its casino (the communitys lifeline) was blocked and
visitors were unable to attend. Because the casino accounts for
nearly 85 percent of the tribes collective income (and funds
medical care, public safety and sanitation, among other programs),
the rock slide made it nearly impossible for the community to
function. For this reason, the chief and his leadership team called
FEMA for federal aid. They were able to speak to the national
agency over HD video conferencing to get the necessary support the
community needed.
LifeSize is, and will continue to be, instrumental in the
vitality of our community. Our plan for the future is to provide a
LifeSize UVC ClearSea account to as many tribal employees as
possible, said Brown. We are believers in HD video conferencing and
we recommend it to anyone who is looking for a natural, reliable
way to connect and build relationships across distances.
When a rock slide blocked the tribes main thoroughfare, EBCI was
able to work with FEMA using LifeSize video conferencing technology
to gain federal aid.
2013