Were we ready for Covid-19?

10 Jun 2020 03:59 PM

It’s easy to see why organisations have found the last few months a challenge. Trying to carry on delivering services whilst facing new constraints such as social distancing with – in many cases – staff working remotely. And all this at a time when IT systems need to be protected more than ever.

But the public sector has responded fast and has shown some remarkable agility to carry on performing and serving. How? Because the sector has been light on its feet, making the most of new technologies and digital enhancements to find better ways of doing things.

At O2, having worked closely with the public sector for 17 years, we understand the challenges it faces. And we work hard to provide it with superior connectivity across any channel it needs to get the job done.

Keeping your infrastructure safe

We’ve seen over the last 17 years that public sector organisations are often the first to innovate – despite more restrictive procurement rules and risk mitigation than the private sector. They might need to be extra vigilant with new ideas, but they’re also crystal clear with what they want to achieve, which has allowed them – and their partners like O2 – to create innovative solutions that get the job done.

Even before the past few months, the public sector was already preparing for digital transformation, taking steps to digitalise entire environments in a way that benefits both their staff and the country at large. That process is likely to pick up speed in the months to come.

Future-proofing your organisation

Uncertainty seems to be a constant these days and we’re working with all our public sector partners to combat that. First and foremost, we’re keeping – often disparate – teams, departments, organisation connected and talking, so they can carry on delivering essential citizen services.

But how about the longer term? What factors will the public sector need to consider over the coming months and years?

• Changes to working routines and behaviour.
  Organisations will need to plan around flexible hours and working from home. It’s set to become far more commonplace so organisations will need to provide the technologies that make it happen, making sure they can keep people connected and services running in the remotest of environments.
• A shift to cloud or digital-centric systems.
  There’ll be less on-premise data servers and more migration to the cloud. Systems like Microsoft Teams won’t just keep people talking, they’ll start to be used for training too.
• Increasing focus on cyber security.
  Cyber attacks have already increased, and if remote working continues to be the norm, then threats are likely to increase. Making sure your cyber defences are fit for purpose will be critical. These may be challenging times for the public sector, but its initial response has been heartening. Agile and quick to see new ways of doing things, these organisations are serving the country well. And at O2, we’re proud to have helped.

This is an advertorial in issue 19 of In our View. Read the whole issue here: https://socitm.net/download/higher-marks-for-homeworking-issue-19/

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