SSC ONS: Separated IT environments

SSC ONS

Where IT cooperation used to be found in shared IT environments, Sound sees an increasing need to unbundle these shared IT environments (including shared Microsoft tenants and workplace equipment), between municipalities and other agencies. Security, information security and the need for greater flexibility are considerations here.

Sound has set up the new workplace of SSC ONS from this point of view. ONS is a Dutch acronym for “Government and Service”. It is a Shared Service Centre which assists government organizations in the region in the field of IT, Purchasing & Contract Management and Personnel & Payroll Administration. Its partners are the Municipality of Zwolle, the Municipality of Kampen, the Municipality of Dalfsen, the Municipality of Westerveld, the Municipality of Zwartewaterland, the Province of Overijssel, and the IJsselland Environment Service.

Increasing complexity

SSC ONS had the desire to create perspective and flexibility in the IT field by unraveling its IT environment. The goal was to create a future-proof workplace for employees. Examples are the transition to new technologies such as a cloud workplace, cleaning up the application landscape, and the transition to a different method of collaboration such as MS Teams. The employee is the central point where these developments come together. Because of the varying digital maturity of these employees, the adoption by the end users is a complex and important success factor. Finally, these types of IT projects have a significant financial scope and risks, where in a strongly budget-driven environment, there is little margin for overspending. This combination results in a complex project and a potential risk for the continuity of the (IT) services of an organization.

Assignment Sound at SSC Ons

For our client, Shared Service Center Ons, Sound has executed the project management of the disentanglement of the SSC Ons IT environment from the Zwolle area. All applications have been made accessible in a new cloud workplace environment. The 200 employees have a laptop in use where old equipment was replaced. A differentiation (personas) was made between various groups of employees with their specific characteristics. An own Microsoft tenant (a container in which all online services of Microsoft are stored) with more functionalities has been taken into use to be able to work more productively and more securely. The email and data files (Sharepoint and network disks) were transferred to OneDrive and MS Teams, the new collaboration environment in the new tenant.

Jeroen Gerritsen, Team Manager IT Policy at SSC Ons says the following about the cooperation with Sound and the impact of the project:

“With the switch to our own tenant, we can make better use of the opportunities that Microsoft 365 offers and therefore work more productively and efficiently, but especially more securely. This applies to all users, our own staff as well as external parties. With the delivery of laptops to our employees, we are ready for the new reality of working after the pandemic. Sound has led this transition to the finish line to our complete satisfaction. The tenacity and transparent way of communicating are two important distinguishing aspects.”

Results

The achieved result for SSC Ons is a successful transition to its own ICT environment. This includes:

  • All 200 employees have a new laptop with this cloud workspace in use where old equipment has been taken.
  • An own Microsoft tenant (a container in which all online services of Microsoft are stored) with more functionalities has been taken into use to be able to work more productively, more efficiently, and more securely.
  • The e-mail and data files (SharePoint and network disks) have been transferred to the new OneDrive and MS Teams collaboration environment.
  • Company applications have been made accessible in the new cloud workplace. And all this within the predetermined budget.

Contact

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