Comprehensive implementation of Cloud solutions
Comprehensive implementation of Cloud solutions
Success story: The Regional Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management
Customer
The Regional Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management [WFOŚiGW] in Cracow has operated since 1993. It was established to manage public resources earmarked for co-financing investment ventures and other measures in service of environmental protection. The Fund actively sponsors and supports a variety of initiatives aimed to safeguard the habitat. The annual #ekoLIDERZY competition, conceived and spearheaded by WFOŚiGW, serves as one example of its innovative ideas. The competition rewards institutions which have distinguished themselves for their contribution to improving the environmental quality of the Małopolska Province.
Challenge
Since its inception, WFOŚiGW had relied on email and a landline telephone system for communication. Apart from the inevitable overload of users’ email inboxes, the existing system also produced a number of obstacles for the staff: employees could not communicate quickly and efficiently (by using Instant Messenger, for instance); they were unable to work on files from a remote location, synchronize their calendars, or readily arrange meetings. The IT infrastructure was confined to a local server room. As a public institution, the Fund places particular value on the integrity of the stored data; antithetically to such concerns, an IT infrastructure relying solely on local servers may compromise data security and fidelity in the event of a system failure or virus infiltration, to which local servers are more susceptible. Moreover, they are more burdensome to maintain.
Solution
Seiloc proposed and subsequently implemented the Google G Suite technology. At the same time, the employees’ email accounts were changed to Gmail, a system equipped with antispam and antivirus filters. The new infrastructure enabled the staff to generate files online, which could then be shared with and edited by their colleagues as needed. Sending a brief message no longer required writing an email: the use of instant Messenger instead has markedly streamlined the information exchange process. Employees could now also work remotely, whether using desktop units or mobile devices. Installation of the new infrastructure at WFOŚiGW did entail modifying some well-established work habits. To this end, the Seiloc training team organized courses for all the WFOŚiGW employees, customizing their scope to meet the needs of specific user groups and taking into account the considerable age gaps.
Benefits
WFOŚiGW staff now actively relies on Google Technology for their daily work routines: in addition to Gmail, they have come to rely on Hangout Messenger as a significant communication tool. Document distribution has been automated to facilitate its use and to allow for electronic-version-only generation of materials as needed for meetings. The planning of everyday tasks and conferences has been greatly simplified by means of the Calendar and Google Keep. Our G Suite has offered users immediate and independent access to documents and information. Subsequently, internal communication at The Regional Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management has gained speed, while the costs of maintaining and supporting alternative – and less effective – services have been reduced, and last but not least, the staff can finally work on mobile devices.