Suffolk Mind improve flexible working with Intune

Suffolk Mind mental health charity provide support and information to people across the mental health continuum. The charity have more than 80 staff working in Suffolk with varying requirements to access the organisation's data, from Office documents and email to financial accounts and clinical data.

"We were seeking a solution to increase the security of our devices and Intune fitted the bill, as well as the opportunity to improve our access to data and applications." explains Sarah Slade, Digital Development Manager at Suffolk Mind who went on to add: "Colleagues were logging on to their computers and then having to log in to further resources, primarily our shared application server. This was causing network performance issues due to high traffic."

A plan to enhance the charity's IT provision was already in place when the COVID-19 lockdown came into force and this requirement was prioritised once colleagues began working from home.

"Working with Strident, we identified that about 50% of our users required access just to Microsoft 365 apps and documents. Using Microsoft Intune, we can simplify the login experience for these users and connect them to all the resources and data they need through one log in. In addition, this frees resources on the shared application server for remaining users and, once fully implemented, will improve performance too."

Security and simplification

Suffolk Mind have trialled Intune with a handful of users before it is rolled out across the charity. "It has worked very well and given us confidence for our broader plan which will eventually see all devices accessing our system via Intune, potentially enabling an expansion of our 'Bring Your Own Device' policy so that personal devices can also be used for colleagues that choose that option." adds Sarah.

Microsoft Intune ensures that policies are applied as unobtrusively as possible, and these only relate to accessing charity data. "By putting these policies in place, we can be reassured that security is in place without making it complicated for users. If a colleague accesses work email in a coffee shop, for example, Intune can ensure this done via a secure VPN so we know the data is being kept safe."

As Microsoft Gold Partners, Strident have proven expertise in delivering a modern flexible working IT infrastructure for your business. To find out more, contact us on 01473 835 280.