Microsoft 365 at Volunteering Matters

[vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_single_image image=”2330″ img_size=”full” style=”vc_box_rounded” css_animation=”none”][ult_animation_block animation=”No Animation” animation_duration=”3″ animation_delay=”0″ animation_iteration_count=”1″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]Volunteering Matters (VM) bring people together to overcome some of society’s most complex issues through the power of volunteering. They partner with communities to overcome adversity – tackling social isolation and loneliness, improving health, developing skills and opportunity and making sure young people can lead change. VM approached Smartdesc as they wanted to move away from ageing on-premise Remote Desktop services to a modern, agile technology platform that can grow and adapt with their needs.[/vc_column_text][dt_fancy_separator line_thickness=”2″][ultimate_spacer height=”10″][dt_vc_list dividers=”false”]

Challenge

In the face of the global Covid-19 pandemic, VM’s outdated Remote Desktop setup was no longer fit for purpose. As VM were also involved with the national Covid-19 response, moving to Microsoft 365 was an ideal fit. As a charity, they would also benefit from greatly reduced software costs, and better adaptability to the new distributed ways of working from home.[/dt_vc_list][ultimate_spacer height=”10″][dt_fancy_separator line_thickness=”2″][ultimate_spacer height=”10″][dt_vc_list dividers=”false”]

Solution

Smartdesc helped the VM team plan and design a new platform, with Teams, SharePoint and OneDrive at the heart of the organisation. Smartdesc migrated data away from Remote Desktop servers into the dynamic Microsoft 365 ecosystem, moved all machines  to Azure Active Directory for centralised, cloud-based access control, and provided staff training to all 100+ members of staff.[/dt_vc_list][/ult_animation_block][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][ult_animation_block animation=”fadeInDown” animation_duration=”2″ animation_delay=”0″ animation_iteration_count=”1″][ultimate_ctation ctaction_background=”#ffcfbf” ctaction_background_hover=”#ffe5dd” ctaction_padding_top=”30″ ctaction_padding_bottom=”30″ ctaction_padding_left=”18″ ctaction_padding_right=”18″ highlight_margin=”margin:2px;” el_class=”borderRadius”]

Michael Joseph, Chief Finance Officer, Volunteering Matters –

“Moving to Microsoft cloud services enabled us to adopt flexible working far more effectively during the pandemic. Having previously relied on static servers and fiddly VPN connections, it has been a breath of fresh air to fully embrace M365. Our IT partners, Smartdesc, have been instrumental in helping us with this move, indeed we couldn’t have done it without them. Their affinity with the Not-for-Profit sector has proven invaluable at such a challenging time for charities in general.“

[/ultimate_ctation][ultimate_spacer height=”30″][vc_single_image image=”2331″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][/ult_animation_block][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row margin_top=”-90px”][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1699009127693{margin-top: -10px !important;}”][vc_column_text]The legacy finance application was also moved away from a proprietary system to one built upon Microsoft Dynamics Business Central, opening the door for improved automation and integration.[/vc_column_text][dt_fancy_separator line_thickness=”2″][ultimate_spacer height=”10″][dt_vc_list dividers=”false”]

Results

The charity is now running a fully cloud-based infrastructure, that scales up and down – without the need to ever do mass upgrades again. Software is always up-to-date, and VM benefit from new features and functionality as it is rolled out across the Microsoft ecosystem. M365 has greatly simplified operations, allowing seamless remote working from anywhere, just at the time when it was needed most, as we all had to pivot to new ways of working. Other benefits to the charity include:

• Future-proof, scalable platform, with continuous updates and a consistent user experience.
• Highly resilient, removing single point of failure servers and outdated Remote Desktop experience.
• Centralised cloud management of Users and Devices, without the need for any VPN.
• Microsoft Teams acting as a central collaboration hub for voice, video and file sharing.
• Microsoft non-profit grant scheme provides licensing that reduces operating cost.
• A Microsoft Partner that specialises in the sector and works collaboratively as a trusted advisor.

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