Beers with Engineers Connects The KR Group with Customers

beers with engineers
The KR Group team and their customers gathered at Founder’s Brewing Company in February to enjoy beer, appetizers, and conversation.

The KR Group doesn’t just want to be your trusted IT professional; they also want to build a relationship with you.

It’s great that our engineers know how to help you with your IT needs, but adding a personal layer to that relationship is even better.

To foster relationships outside of sales and engineering, The KR Group hosts quarterly happy hours at Founder’s Brewing Company, called Beers with Engineers.

Every few months, The KR Group sets up in the Centennial Room in Founder’s Brewing Company from 3 to 6 p.m. Our current and prospective customers are invited to enjoy beer, appetizers, and conversations.

As a bonus, any attendee who brings a qualified guest (meaning not their spouse or coworker) is entered to win two six-packs of Founder’s beer to share with their guest.

The KR Group CEO Matt Keeler describes Beers with Engineers as a chance to meet customers and discuss struggles and experiences.

“It’s a laidback time to connect with current and prospective clients on a more social level,” added The KR Group Partner and CIO Phil Rienstra. “These events help clients view us as real people and vice versa.”

The low-pressure environment also allows customers to realize all of the products and services available from The KR Group without feeling like they’re being sold to.

“Most customers don’t realize the depth of our engineering capabilities,” Keeler explained. “If we worked on a phone system with them in the past, they may not realize we can also provide them with a security assessment.”

Among the chatter of IT updates and news, you can typically find a round or two of euchre to join. You can also grab some KR Group pens, pop sockets, or even bottle openers.

beers with engineers
The KR Group Senior Account Manager Andy Van Dokkumburg starts a game of tabletop football during Beers with Engineers.

While the beer and food is undoubtedly a highlight, as a team, we especially enjoy the chance to share it with our customers who do and don’t drink beer.

“Maintaining relationships with our customers is always top of mind,” said Marketing and Sales Manager Maggie Damitio. “Beers with Engineers is like a quarterly ‘thank you’ to our customers.”

And from our customers’ perspectives, the value is apparent.

Consumer’s Credit Union Vice President of Technology Bob Dunning is a longtime attendee, and for him, Beers with Engineers offers an opportunity to connect and share ideas with likeminded people.

“I love being able to sit down with The KR Group’s partners and senior engineers as well as the IT community in general,” he continued. “We’re often facing the same uphill battles, dealing with the same security and software issues, and this is an opportunity to share ideas.”

beers with engineers
At left, Consumer’s Credit Union Vice President of Technology talks to The KR Group Partner and CISO Bob Barrett, at right, during February’s Beer with Engineers.

Dunning continued that in IT it’s easy to get in your silo, but Beers with Engineers allows a change for him and other IT professionals to reach out and swap ideas for dealing with common issues and ultimately propel their businesses forward.

“It’s a big support group for folks dealing with IT needs and security,” he said.

On our side, we enjoy seeing those kinds of conversations take place and being a part of them.

The KR Group’s CISSP Jamey Wofford said he finds Beers with Engineers to be a good chance to also catch up on topics unrelated to IT, even if the conversation always winds up back on technology.

“It’s a great opportunity for The KR Group and customers alike to discuss technology issues, projects, and trends from an engineering perspective, which gives the event less of a sales-driven mood,” he continued.

Damitio shares similar views with Wofford on the event.

“Beers with Engineers is a great environment to address any questions or concerns that customers may have about their IT environment or to just chat!” she said. “I love that some customers walk in with quotes and questions in hand, but I also love that I can spend time connecting with our customers about their kids and hobbies and not just business.”

Damitio encourages attendance from those who are interested in meeting other local IT professionals, have specific IT needs they want input on, or want to meet The KR Group team.

We kicked off our 2020 Beers with Engineers in February, but we still have three more planned for the remainder of the year.

If you need a password to register for the events linked above, you can contact The KR Group or reach out to your sales representative or an engineer via email.

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