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With the growing threat of cyber attacks in the public sector, hiring talented IT security professionals is no longer a want, but a need.  Unfortunately, people with those skills can be hard to find outside urban talent hubs.  As such, the skills gap is one of the biggest challenges for local government IT.  Clackmannanshire Council (Clacks) has undertaken a digital transformation to solve that.

Results

Aside from time efficiency and heightened safety practices, Clacks' new working model has had some unexpected benefits;

  • Thanks to Teams, their colleagues can engage in conversations with central Scottish gov without needing to travel to Edinburgh, shaving off 4 hours of transportation time and eliminating the unnecessary fuel and environmental costs.

  • It’s triggered a major conversation within the public sector about using remote working to solve recruitment issues and fill talent gaps.

We enjoyed working on this project, demonstrating yet again how powerful tech can be, when you use it as a tool to enhance operations, rather than replace them!

M365
Suite
Tech as a tool

Clackmannanshire Council's new working model has triggered major discussions about using remote working to solve recruitment issues and fill talent gaps.

-4
hours
Time efficiency

Thanks to Teams, they can have meetings with central Scottish gov. without needing to travel to Edinburgh, saving time and money. 

200
miles
Nationwide recruiting

The manager was able to relocate over 200 miles away to South Shields and continue doing the same great work as before – setting a strong precedent for remote working within the organisation.


Woman working from home in garden

Challenge

At the start of the pandemic Microsoft granted Clacks some free Microsoft 365 licenses, allowing them to experiment with various tools that could help them to deliver more essential services. They piloted Microsoft teams for meetings, and immediately reaped the benefits; scheduling became more effective, waiting times reduced and efficiency increased allowing the team to do more with less.

Clacks decided to take the next step towards transforming their working practices – deploying M365 across their whole organisation. boxxe was called in to help.

Plan

With simplicity and efficiency driving the project, our role was to help Clacks navigate Microsoft's tricky licensing model and develop a secure, remote work-capable infrastructure so that their team could work together safely and effectively. 

Approach

Deploying a M365 suite is no easy feat – especially for an organisation so unfamiliar with remote working practices. Fortunately our MoD-certified Microsoft specialists are well placed to make the whole process easier!

Working with the council’s IT Team Manager, we explored the different scenarios they might face when hiring or procuring new equipment and then how best to navigate the licensing model in each case. 

With an understanding of their key needs and deliverables, we set to work deploying Clack’s new remote working infrastructure with military level hosting. 

Outcome

Clacks now has a new remote working model, supported by military-grade hosting, transforming team collaboration. This cutting-edge system not only boosts productivity but also heightens security to unprecedented levels. Military-grade hosting ensures a secure digital setup, safeguarding sensitive data while enabling seamless teamwork across various locations. This new approach enhances efficiency, strengthens security, and fosters exceptional team cohesion, setting a new benchmark in remote work dynamics for Clacks.

I know that no matter what the challenge might be, I can go to boxxe and say, ‘I’ve got this issue here.  What are your thoughts about it?’ and get a solid answer back.  I’ve never had to go back and question them.

John Allan
IT Team Manager
Clackmannanshire Council

Get in touch

Want to more about how we supported Clackmannanshire Council with remote working?

Call us on the number below or fill in the form to speak to a Microsoft specialist and find out how to get more value from your Microsoft investment.

0330 236 9429
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