Services
We will launch you along the right trajectory, and be your trusted partner along the way.
We work with small and midsize enterprises.
Browse our Services Menu above to learn more.
Trajectories (Case Studies)
The Client: iQnekt
In January 2023, Shantalla was engaged by Irish-owned US tech startup iQnekt Inc. to help with the launch of iQnekt across the US. Currently in development, the iQnekt app is planned as a single super-app that helps users connect all of their accounts and services using a unique secure bank-grade application.
Following an initial needs analysis phase, Shantalla was contracted to provide support in three key areas: Strategy development, ecosystem management and project management.
Strategy: The Shantalla team worked with the iQnekt leadership team to develop a Corporate and a Go-To-Market Strategy that is aligned with the US consumer market and with the needs of US merchants.
Ecosystem Management: Key stakeholders needed to be consulted at the federal, state and municipal level, while ecosystem partners needed to be engaged and onboarded.
Project Management: Shantalla provides iQnekt with ongoing project management services across a number of different projects and business activities.
Ger Dempsey, Chairman & CEO of iQnekt Inc. said “I would like to take this opportunity to highlight that Shantalla is an amazing partner for iQnekt. We view them as an extension of our leadership team, and indeed they kickstarted our US launch by bringing vital stakeholders to the table quickly and efficiently. Paul and his team helped us to immediately feel at home in New York and provided a brilliant experience from day one. We were introduced to so many people, and made so many great contacts that it quickly became clear New York would be our HQ location. I would like to thank Paul and his team for their superb support and I look forward to working with Shantalla in the years ahead.”
The Client: A vibrant brick-and-mortar nonprofit, 10+ years in existence, located in an up-and-coming NYC waterfront location.
Key Driver: Ownership of the premises in which it operated, in this ideal location, was deemed essential to the organization's sustainability and relevance to the community it served, abstracting it away from the vagaries of the hyper-aggressive NYC property market, where living precariously from lease to lease was the only other option.
The Problem: The organization carried a mortgage debt of USD1.1M on its premises. It serviced that debt by amortizing it over 30 years through recurring five-year terms. This allowed it to meet its monthly payments in the short term, but did little or nothing to help it reduce its debt principle over time, and forced it to re-negotiate with its lender every five years to avoid a balloon payment. This approach left it vulnerable to potentially unfavorable terms each time the balloon payment loomed. As it was, the mortgage debt, serviced by a monthly payment of USD10K, was a tremendous strain on resources and it made no business sense to continue to carry it. However, the organization's existing business model was not sufficient to generate a surplus which could eliminate it.
The Solution: Since the organization was the beneficiary of enormous goodwill from its funding base, and deemed essential to the community it served, Shantalla saw there was opportunity to bring all sources of funding into a conversation to support a viable solution. Shantalla developed a plan that facilitated all funding entities to work together, negotiating a joint solution whereby the organization's debt was eliminated, leaving it to then focus entirely on its mission.
No longer carrying burdensome debt, it has grown to become an even stronger, highly sustainable, enterprise.
The Client: New York manufacturer/supplier, US Food Service Industry.
The Problem: The client, with annual sales of USD500M, was coming under increasing pressure to trade electronically with its trading partners, a set of powerful national and regional distributors. The legacy paper-based and faxing systems needed to be retired. However, setting up one-to-one electronic relationships with each distributor was prohibitively expensive.
The Solution: Shantalla introduced the company to two fledgling electronic trading exchanges, each supporting an affordable single-integration and data format which could be leveraged to trade with multiple customers, and persuaded the company to participate in it. It was a one-to-many solution, replacing the high cost of one-to-one electronic trading relationships. Shantalla then worked with the company to convince many of its trading partners to also use these exchanges as their trading platforms. This made perfect sense to the distributors because it accelerated the on-boarding of many of their smaller trading partners to electronic trading. With the participation of the industry’s major distributors, and in due course several major manufacturers and suppliers, these electronic trading exchanges quickly reached critical mass in transactions, and sustainability for its industry-specific solution.
Shantalla also helped its client by specifying ERP system modifications, overseeing its integration to the electronic trading platforms, training users and creating documentation.
“By adopting Shantalla’s recommendation to participate in a set of hub-and-spoke platforms, we solidified our relationships with our distributor-customers, and made it easier for them to do business with us. This provided us added confidence we’d retain their business, and helped us ward off the threat of white labeling.” -CEO.
The Client: Leading Foreign NGO in Suicide and Self-Harm Prevention
Shantalla was engaged by an Irish NGO to help establish its operation in the US.
Following an initial needs analysis phase, Shantalla was contracted to provide support in three key areas: Strategy development, ecosystem management and project management.
Strategy:The Irish NGO has a strong track record in providing accessible services and counseling to people with self-harm ideation. The Shantalla team worked with the client’s leadership team to develop a strategy to meet non-profit compliance, achieve services certification, source a physical location and initial staffing, and to develop a community outreach program, all of which would allow it to bring much-needed assistance to the suicidal in the US.
Ecosystem Management: Key stakeholders were consulted, and alliances were formed, with service providers within the target community. Professional services were sourced, and a partnership with a New York nonprofit was negotiated to provide the client with an affordable physical location.
Project Management: Shantalla provided the client with project management and executive services across a number of different functions until the client was fully self-sufficient.
”There was so much to consider and get done, it was overwhelming. Without Shantalla’s launch strategy and support, we would never have been able to gain a foothold in New York, and be able to do the work we do here.” -CEO
