XCD works with Peterborough City Council for outstanding ROI

This project saw XCD system specialists working closely with Council teams to tailor their implementation to public sector specifications. Mobile accessibility has enabled employees to work more efficiently and flexibly, saving both time and money.

“Local councils are facing huge pressures to save money. We have teams of experienced employees, who are good at their jobs. We want to retain our staff whilst making better use of valuable skills. We need to work more effectively moving forward” said Richard Godfrey, Assistant Director, Digital Peterborough, Peterborough City Council.

Huge savings – time & money

Historically, many of the council’s HR processes and procedures were paper-based. Over 100 of these tasks have now been automated. This allows employees to spend less time on paperwork and more time on the crucial elements of their jobs which really make a difference to the general public. The organisation can now ensure it utilises employee skills to the absolute maximum, resulting in an increase in end user satisfaction.

“We are here to serve our community and so automating processes and enabling staff to work anywhere, from any device, means services will improve.” continued Godfrey.

The Digital Peterborough Campaign

Peterborough City Council is leading the digital revolution of the Public Sector under its “Digital Peterborough” campaign. Their aim is to transform the way they deliver services to their local community by partnering with a number of leading technology partners, including XCD, Salesforce, Box, Transversal and Arcus Global.

Tailored Technology from XCD

The XCD solution is a perfect fit, meeting the council’s requirements of an employee-centric, self-service system. Furthermore, the council was one of the many organisations undertaking a move of all critical systems onto Salesforce’s Force.com platform, so XCD was an obvious choice.

XCD system experts took the standard, out-of-the box solution and worked alongside Peterborough City Council to develop the system to specifically fit their needs. The Public Sector HR model is complex, but mainly rule-based, as the majority of contracts, salaries, leave, benefits and pensions are standardised.

“We could see the immediate benefits that automation would make right across the organisation, for HR, Managers and Employees. We were in the perfect position to take on this challenge because the Force.com platform enables us to implement four times faster compared to traditional software, and our clients have their data stored in the Salesforce UK data centre.” said Chris Mitford-Slade, founder of XCD.

ROI

• Immediate benefits/efficiency gains across the council (for HR, Managers and Employees)
• Improved reporting capability with 24/7 up-to-date data available
• Improved access to information to support a more mobile workforce using current communication tools – phone, tablet, PC, from anywhere via the cloud
• HR’s workload has become far more manageable and CIPD skills put to better use
• Less chasing is required due to the approval process and automated email alert reminders

Future benefits for the Public Sector

The Peterborough City Council model represents a tailored HR technology solution that is applicable to the entire public sector. Other UK councils will be able to utilise the design built and benefit from a reduction in the length of their implementation projects by harnessing this expertise.

“It has been a pleasure to work with XCD, it has felt like we were working with our own in-house development team. We’ve been able to tailor the solution and mould the new system as if it were a bespoke project just for PCC.”  said Jan Paxton, HR Analyst, Peterborough City Council.

“Digital Peterborough” is a long-term project and XCD will continue to work in partnership with the team.