Real Impact for Lean and Modern Government

In the face of declining budgets, we are all challenged to do more and new with less – wanting to be more agile, streamlined, cost-effective and, in public sector, more citizen-friendly. In this post we have put together some case studies and tools to help you think about how your organisation might do more for less…

Use the latest productivity tools

Save on operational expenses and increase productivity by using up-to-date tools that enhance your employees’ flexibility, mobility, agility and responsiveness.

Read about Scottish Borders Council who faced severe budget pressures and wanted to cut costs by minimising travel and giving its employees tools for flexible and remote working. The council replaced its telephony system with Microsoft Lync 2010 and now plans to extend the solution to 10,000 users. The Lync 2010 deployment to the entire corporate staff is expected to save the authority £1 million over the next three years.

Alternatively, read about the London Boroughs of Havering, Newham and Waltham Forest who have joined forces to develop a shared citizen services platform using Microsoft technologies. In the first phase of the development, cashable savings of £1.6 million have already been achieved in Havering and Newham has realised £12 million savings through joint working and its customer access programme for “digital by default” services. Citizens now conduct many more transactions online, including council tax, parking permits, and housing benefit claims.

Simplify and streamline with the cloud

Microsoft’s extensive cloud offerings are designed to allow you to operate in a hybrid environment and make the transition to cloud on your terms.

Wiltshire Council has embraced cloud computing for its staff. The council is the first in the U.K. to complete an enterprise-wide implementation of Microsoft Office 365 for 4,500 employees. Since 2009, it has cut IT spending by 25 per cent to just £15 million (U.S.$22.7 million) a year by investing in the Microsoft platform, office productivity technologies, and cloud-based solutions.

Microsoft cloud services have been on the CloudStore as part of the G-Cloud Framework since its inception. Services are available directly from Microsoft or via its many SME partners. Try those services – Office 365, Azure, Dynamics CRM and Intune – for free now.

Streamline your datacentre operations

Use of Microsoft private cloud solutions can reduce costs and enable flexible, mobile working. Read how Newham Council, Leeds City Council and Isle of Man have benefited from use of Windows Server and Systems Centre solutions here.

Learn more about saving money with a private cloud solution from Microsoft.

Ensure business continuity with robust security and up to date solutions

Mitigate security and compliance risks and reduce unforeseen out of pocket costs with infrastructure that’s security-enhanced, reliable, and operationally efficient.

End of support for Windows XP is on 8 April 2014. An IDC white paper discusses why remaining with Windows XP is no longer a good business decision. XP migration questions are also answered on our special website.

Have a comment or opinion on this post? Let us know @msukingov.
Have a question for the Microsoft in Government Team? Please e-mail us at ukps@microsoft.com.

You can also find great government IT solutions, case studies and other news on our website: www.microsoft.com/uk/government