The UK Government’s Department for International Development (DFID) has introduced Google Sites, part of the company’s suite of apps, to assist with the delivery of global relief and aid programmes.
DFID is using Google Sites to provide workspaces where staff and local partners can share and access documents and collaborate when delivering aid and development projects anywhere in the world with the help of Google for Work Premier Partner, Ancoris.
“We can set up sites very quickly, ensuring we are responsive when we need to get the infrastructure in place to support a new programme or team,” said Julie Gray, Intranet Customer Delivery Manager, DFID. “And because it’s an intuitive tool, people don’t need much training to be able to use it and can quickly get the information to the right people at the right time. That’s very important to us.”
The initial roll-out saw DFID migrate around 40 collaboration sites, extracting data from its previous system and loading it into new templates developed by Ancoris. One such site which DFID staff use on a daily basis, helps to manage the procurement and transfer of goods and equipment being sent overseas, including emergency supplies being distributed to Sierra Leone.
“The public sector is showing great interest in Google Apps for Work as a collaboration product suite across internal staff, business partners and external contacts,” David McLeman, CEO, Ancoris, told Development Finance. “Government departments and agencies are increasingly deploying Google Apps because of the need to reduce costs and move to digital by default without the need for significant infrastructure investment.”
A steep rise in cost was one reason why DFID changed the pre-existing system. The department put the project out to tender on G-Cloud, and awarded it to Ancoris four weeks later.
“Procuring Google Apps through G-Cloud, which encourages the use of SMEs like Ancoris, has given DFID the chance to work with a smaller partner rather than a large system integrator and it’s been a really positive and constructive experience,” explained Richard Franklin, Service Delivery Manager, DFID. “Ancoris’ hands on approach ensured we met our migration deadline and delivered a working solution to the business.”
Going forward, DFID is starting to explore the other tools available within Google Apps. Some staff are now using Google Drive to securely share and collaborate on documents, and trialling Hangouts within DFID’s UK offices.