Alliance Strategies is a leader in global cultural exchange programs, spanning multiple brands including Alliance Abroad, GeoVisions and Wild Packs. Since 2017, Hanover CRM has been at the heart of their digital transformation, helping the organization replace legacy systems, streamline global operations, and support strategic growth. The partnership has evolved into a long-term collaboration grounded in innovation, flexibility, and trust.
Our partnership started in 2017, when a colleague met Hanover at a conference. As Thiago da Silva, AAG’s IT Tech Project Manager, recalls, “They understood our language - SEVIS, DS-2019 forms, batches. We felt instantly that they ‘got’ our industry,” says Thiago. Quickly Hanover CRM became their chosen platform.

Technology That Understands the Industry

From the outset, Hanover CRM’s biggest strength was its domain knowledge. “Other vendors just didn’t get it. Hanover already knew the fundamentals of J-1 visa operations,” Thiago explains. This foundation enabled faster onboarding and meaningful collaboration from day one.
Initially, the system’s interface lacked polish, but it functioned where it mattered. “It wasn’t beautiful, but it did what we needed,” Thiago says. Since then, significant UI improvements-particularly to external portals-have been initiated, with ongoing work to align aesthetics and functionality across user types.

Transformational Features That Save Time and Reduce Errors

Among the most transformative features was the templated “TIPPs for Interns and Trainees” function. Previously, staff manually transferred information from the system into the SEVIS system. Now, template libraries save hours of repetitive work. “It’s one of those things where people who joined recently don’t realize how it used to be,".
Another standout improvement was automated interview scheduling. Formerly an Excel-driven process, the new system allows partners and companies to book structured time slots through the CRM portal. “We eliminated countless errors and inefficiencies,” he adds. Upcoming enhancements include a Microsoft Teams integration and a Calendly-style scheduling interface.

A Culture of Collaboration and Shared Success

Both teams agree: collaboration is the secret sauce. “This is by far my favorite part,” says Thiago. “Working with the Hanover team feels like working with family. We use Asana, videos, screenshots-everything is organized and transparent. I feel really engaged.” Rob Burchell from Hanover adds, “They embrace technology not as a necessity, but as a strategic advantage. That mindset makes them a joy to work with.”
Despite the volume of requests and the intensity of project cycles, mutual respect runs deep. The partnership is supported through daily communication, weekly developer calls, annual in-person meetings, and ad-hoc collaborations at conferences. “We’ve grown together through acquisitions, leadership changes, and territory expansions,” Rob explains. “Hanover has been a constant.”

Project and Retainer Frameworks That Enable Agility

Alliance Strategies and Hanover manage their workload through a dual system: monthly retainers for ongoing operations and custom projects for larger, strategic initiatives. Thiago oversees a complex Asana setup with hundreds of tickets, split by priority, impact, and complexity. “Each ticket includes criteria, videos, and test recommendations. We can go from development to production in days,” he says.
Larger projects - such as launching new brands or adding integrations - are scoped independently. Alliance Strategies uses a project brief template, while Hanover estimates time and cost, setting up a dedicated board. “It’s agile, clear, and lets us plan with confidence,” Rob says.

Lessons from Challenges: Flexibility and Resilience

Early in the project, hardcoded business logic caused issues as requirements evolved. Both teams learned to build low code/no code automations and empower administrators to make changes without developer intervention. “Now, we can do many things ourselves - like trigger simple notifications - without needing code,” says Thiago.
Inevitable staff turnover and loss of developer knowledge proved an emotional and logistical challenge. “We were worried, but it happens. The Hanover team bounced back stronger, the knowledge has been distributed now,” Thiago reflects. Alliance Strategies has experienced growth and built strong onboarding tools, training libraries, and internal wikis to support new hires.

Strategic Vision and Innovation: What Comes Next

Alliance Strategies and Hanover are already looking toward the next generation of collaboration. One major initiative is the development of a RESTful API which pulls data out of Hanover to a central repository - one which Alliance Strategies can work with Hanover, or other vendors, to attach to other systems such as data lakes and app technology. “In this AI era, data is the new petroleum,” says Thiago. “We generate so much - now we’re bringing it together to drive automation, insights, and growth.”
Prototyping is also changing how features are developed. “We’re building internal MVPs using Hanover APIs. Once validated, these can be transformed into full system features more efficiently,” Thiago explains. This approach brings code, not just specifications, to Hanover for final implementation.As Alliance Strategies continues to expand, they’re also open to working with additional vendors. Thiago says, “If we can handle the small stuff, Hanover can focus on the big, exciting projects. Everyone wins.”

Conclusion: From Vendor to Partner

Over eight years, Hanover CRM has gone from being a software provider to a strategic technology partner helping Alliance Strategies scale, adapt, and lead. Together, they’ve weathered complexity, embraced innovation, and built a model of collaboration that’s as robust as the software itself.
As Thiago puts it: “We made it feel like it’s our system. When people do something repetitive, we automate. When there’s a workaround, we improve it. That’s the mindset. And Hanover gets it.”