Dimensions turned to Nasstar when it wanted to upgrade its ageing IT infrastructure, as well as consolidate its multitude of existing suppliers to just one in order to ensure total flexibility and greater cost efficiencies.
Dimensions
Dimensions is one of the country’s largest not-for-profit organisations geared towards helping those with learning disabilities, autism, challenging behaviour and complex needs.
CLIENT
Dimensions
INDUSTRY
Public sector
SERVICE
Managed IT
The client
Withover7000membersofstaffsupportingpeopleandtheirfamiliesacross750sites,DimensionsplaysanactivepartinhelpingcommunitiesUK-wide.
The challenges
ThehugechallengeofsupplyingITandnetworkservicesto750sitesacrosstheUKwascatchingupwithDimensions’ageingnetworkinfrastructure.
With slow and sluggish bandwidth, the network was becoming insufficient for Dimensions and those it supports. The company was struggling under the weight of 22,000 support tickets a month and on average 1,000 “password reset” calls a week. Most importantly for Dimensions, legacy systems and poor network infrastructure was negatively impacting the support it could offer to those under its care, as well as the efficiency of its staff.
The network was unreliable to the point of almost being unusable, and for those who depended heavily on it for learning, support and regularity compliance, this was a critical element that needed addressing - fast.
Our goal
Thenetwork,therefore,requiredacompleteupgradetosupporttheevolutionoftheorganisationandprovidetheflexibilitythatwasnecessarytodeliverafuture-proofandscalableITstrategy.
Wanting to reduce capital expenditure and eliminate the complexities of running on-premise systems, Dimensions placed an emphasis on making a strategic move to one single partner, as opposed to the 40+ it had at the time.
To utilise Cloud-based services, further reduce hardware costs and improve collaboration, Dimensions also required a more efficient communications solution which would need to support high call volumes and could reduce waiting times, as call handling from staff and outside agencies was under pressure with an increasing number of enquiries into Dimensions’ regional offices.
The outcome
Find out how our expertise could transform your organisation.
Robust network infrastructure
Dimensions now has a robust Network Infrastructure with high-speed connectivity, with staff reporting that line speeds are already 100x faster.
Omni-channel unified communications solution
Its omni-channel Unified Communications solution and fully-scalable Contact Centre allows the company to deliver a more streamlined customer experience; with its Service Users typically having special needs and often being visually or hearing impaired, joining up their methods of communication makes it much easier for Dimensions to quickly assist them.
Cost-saving benefits of Skype for Business
An unexpected cost-saving benefit was that by using Skype for Business to deliver its training, Dimensions has reduced the amount spent on this crucial task by two thirds. Approximately 80% of its staff are not native English speakers, and previously the company’s trainers had to travel to each of the 750 individual sites to deliver essential training in the staff members’ native language to ensure vital information on lifting, drugs and more was not “lost in translation”. Delivering this training remotely means that Dimensions’ travel costs for training have been virtually eliminated, allowing the company to redirect this money back into delivering its life-changing services.
Use of Microsoft Teams for document management
Additionally, the use of Microsoft Teams to upload and update complex documents such as care plans means that staff members can fill in these forms in their own language, with Teams translating questions and answers as necessary to help avoid mistakes.
Consolidation of suppliers and Managed Services
Best of all for Dimensions, by consolidating all its suppliers and selecting leading managed services specialist Nasstar to manage all its services, multiple challenges could be addressed at once whilst striving for maximum cost efficiencies, safe in the knowledge that the company is supported 24/7.
What Dimensions has to say...
"This was no “ordinary” tender; we provided an exhaustive brief, containing 72,000 line items across 750 sites. We didn’t want to have “suppliers” anymore – of which there were over 40 – and instead wanted to work with just one partner that would truly understand our needs, culture and desired outcomes. Nasstar were the only company that we considered able to demonstrate this, and we felt that Nasstar wanted to do a good job for us, rather than just make money."
Mark Verrier
Head of IT
•Dimensions