Office for Public Management Ltd: Mobile communications key to remote working culture

Published 8th December 2008

Overview:
* Improved productivity and efficiency
* Easier collaboration for dispersed teams
* Mobile broadband underpins move to remote working culture

Industry: Public sector management consultancy
Number of employees: 84
Number of locations/offices: 1
Solution: T-Mobile MDA Touch Plus with Windows Mobile 6.0

Key Quotes:
“T-Mobile’s mobile communications package has had a massive impact on our working culture. We’ve experienced improvements in our staff’s productivity, efficiency and work/life balance.”
Geoff Page, Systems Manager, Office for Public Management Ltd

Company Background
Office for Public Management Ltd (OPM) is a public sector management consultancy whose aim is to create a positive impact on public services and to achieve improved social results. It helps organisations that want to make a greater social impact meet the needs of their communities and respond to change. OPM works with organisations across the public sector in local and central government and operates from one office in central London. In addition to its core consultancy work, OPM runs a range of seminars across the country and has an Analytical Studies Unit which publishes high quality research. OPM employs 84 staff.

The Challenge
When OPM was founded in 1989 its work was primarily centred around London and the Home Counties, however in the following years it has established a client base across the UK. Rather than operating offices from different parts of the country, which would be costly, OPM preferred to set up one London office as a central base with employees spread across the UK who work remotely. OPM wanted to enable its employees to work effectively on the move, and to have remote access to all the applications and systems they needed to work as usual.

“In the last 10 years we’ve seen huge changes in our working culture, meaning our consultants spend less time in the office and more time out on the road. Providing our consultants with the tools to work flexibly and remotely, makes their lives a lot easier, and the company more productive,” says Geoff Page, Systems Manager, Office for Public Management Ltd.


The Solution
OPM chose T-Mobile to provide 50 MDA Touch Plus devices with Windows Mobile 6.0 capabilities and 60 Mobile Broadband enabled data cards. Having access to T-Mobile’s Mobile Broadband network using a range of devices means that consultants can now quickly download and upload large attachments, such as Word, Excel or Powerpoint, which has proved useful when working on time sensitive collaborative projects involving a number of team members based out of the office.

The MDA Touch Plus device with Windows Mobile 6.0 capabilities enables consultants to quickly access applications such as Outlook while on the road, meaning they can scan emails, check contact details and update their calendar, without having to return to the office. Consultants now also have remote access to the company’s accounting system as a secure web-based application. This means consultants have access to all the key applications and office systems they need while out on the road, resulting in a decrease in the time spent travelling to and from the office, and in turn, increases in their productivity and time management.

“By synchronising our office network with the mobile devices, our staff have the ability to work as effectively out of the office as they do sitting at their desk. Offering the best mobile working tools to all our staff means we can also now recruit the best talent regardless of where they are situated in the UK,” adds Page.

Speed of response
The nature of OPM’s business means that projects requiring specialist areas of expertise will often involve team members spread across different parts of the country. The role of an OPM consultant involves large amounts of time spent writing proposals and reports, working on presentations and staying in constant contact with clients. At any one time, one consultant may be working on several projects, so having the right mobile communication tools in place to enable effective communication amongst teams and clients is therefore key.

“Our clients expect us to be able to respond to their queries as quickly as possible. By having easy access to T-Mobile’s Mobile Broadband network and with devices synchronised with the office, our consultants have the right tools in place to respond swiftly and efficiently to the vast majority of queries. Mobile communications also makes working in ‘virtual teams’ an easier process, and we have seen a real movement towards a less office based work culture. This change in working culture has been welcomed by our consultants, as it makes their jobs easier, and has improved their work life balance” says Page.

Improved support
OPM and T-Mobile worked together to make the implementation of mobile communications technology as smooth as possible. OPM has also experimented with a number of innovative projects to improve the experience of mobile working for its staff. OPM’s IT department works closely with T-Mobile to determine the feasibility of new projects and has established a great working relationship with the T-Mobile team.

“Both the technical and customer support offered by T-Mobile has been excellent. It is clear that they understand the unique needs and challenges of our business, and, we trust their judgement when suggesting solutions to problems or discussing potential new projects,” says Page.

The future
OPM sees mobile communications as an ongoing project which can improve business processes on a number of levels. It is currently trialling a system that will enable its office phones to convert voicemails to emails so that they can be pushed out to its staff working on the road using the T-Mobile devices with Windows Mobile 6.0 capabilities. Innovations such as this will take its move to a less office based culture closer to reality.

“We have been thoroughly impressed with the level of consultancy and experience offered by T-Mobile. As a business, we are acutely aware of the benefits offered by mobile technology in improving our working culture, and our continued relationship with T-Mobile will be to key to driving our mobile working strategy to the next level,” concludes Page.