Charles Chapetrasthuk calls himself a “jack of all trades.”

He runs the day-to-day office operations at Toronto law firm Ross & Associates, which is a corporation with two lawyers, Nathan Ross and Andrew Kowalsky.

The law firm deals in a wide range of issues, such as criminal, civil, family and labour law, as well as cases of discrimination, human rights, and landlord and tenant disputes.

“I do a lot of different things here,” says Charles, who has worked at the company for the past five of its seven-year history. “I sort of keep the place going.”

In addition to his office duties, Charles also goes to tribunals and deals with pension issues and other matters that do not require a lawyer or court proceedings.

“I like being able to help people,” he says. “And I have had great success for our clients.”

Charles admits he also has an eye for finances and has a background in business.

“I am a numbers person,” he says. “My mom wanted me to be an accountant. I am good at it, but I hate it. It is too dry and boring. So what I do now is a lot more fun.”

And it is Charles’ business acumen that led him to start questioning the firm’s phone bill.

“I started looking at what we were paying for our telephone service and it was ridiculous,” says Charles. “We make a lot of out of town calls and between the general service fees and the long distance charges we were spending way too much money. It just didn’t make sense from a financial point of view. So I started looking for better deals.”

Charles did some checking around and decided that Allstream Small Business offered a far more competitive rate than the competition.

“Allstream Small Business has a great long distance package,” says Charles. “So you can choose the number of minutes you typically use for a set monthly fee. This way you have a much better sense of what your bill will be.”

Allstream Small Business offered additional value because Ross & Associates could choose from among four service bundles that vary in size based on the scope of the company’s telecommunications needs.

While Ross & Associates make quite a few long distance calls, the reality is the company is still small enough that they only require basic telecommunications tools: a few phone and fax lines. As a result, the law firm could choose a bundle tailored to these requirements and that fit within their budget. They didn’t have to pay for services they wouldn’t use.

Charles purchased a basic Phone 500 bundle with two phone lines, two calling features of his choice, and 500 U.S. and Canadian long distance minutes. It also includes a business listing in the local White Pages.

Allstream Small Business also allows clients to customize their bundle by adding individual features that can be purchased separately. So Charles was also able to tailor the bundle to the law firm’s specific requirements by adding an additional phone and fax line to the basic package.

“Overall, I would say we are saving a good 30% to 40% on our phone bill,” he says.

And switching over to Allstream was easy. Ross & Associates did not have to change their phone number nor sign an annual contract.

The firm gets one simple monthly bill so Charles has to spend less time on his least favorite task: accounting.

Allstream Small Business has given Ross & Associates a simple, flexible and affordable telecommunications solution.

And that ultimately means Charles can spend more time doing what he likes most: helping clients win cases.