SPECIAL FOCUS - Integr8 Group
SPECIAL FOCUS - Integr8 Group
SPECIAL FOCUS - Integr8 Group
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case study<br />
Staying<br />
connected<br />
<strong>Integr8</strong> plays a vital role in making sure<br />
that the Fidelity Security <strong>Group</strong>’s user<br />
group remains connected.<br />
WORDS Richard Morgan<br />
Fidelity Security <strong>Group</strong>, one of the largest South<br />
African security and cleaning group of companies,<br />
has outsourced the management, maintenance, and<br />
support of its entire ICT infrastructure to <strong>Integr8</strong> IT. The<br />
security services company has over 32 000 employees<br />
throughout its network of 54 branches in key regions<br />
in Africa that include Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia,<br />
Swaziland, and Mozambique. Its user network also<br />
stretches as far as Dubai.<br />
Bennie Strydom, sales director at <strong>Integr8</strong> IT, believes<br />
that the Fidelity <strong>Group</strong> is the largest security services<br />
operator in the country and says that <strong>Integr8</strong> IT plays<br />
a vital role in making sure that the company’s user<br />
group remains connected. “Our chief role is to ensure<br />
that the company’s extensive user group remains<br />
connected, is not affected by any downtime, and all<br />
the systems and infrastructure in place continue to<br />
operate at the highest level possible,” says Strydom.<br />
Changing agreements<br />
The <strong>Integr8</strong> <strong>Group</strong> has a service level agreement in<br />
place with the Fidelity <strong>Group</strong> that sees it contracted<br />
to provide outsourced services of all operations<br />
locally and internationally, a dedicated projects and<br />
compliance office, a full-time support service, and<br />
guaranteed uptime during critical payroll periods.<br />
Strydom says the service level agreement initially<br />
focused on stability and connectivity across the<br />
organisation. However, it has evolved<br />
over time to incorporate a higher level<br />
of service and support.<br />
“Because of the size of the Fidelity<br />
<strong>Group</strong>, managing their IT infrastructure<br />
internally became very challenging.<br />
The group selected <strong>Integr8</strong> IT to make<br />
sure that it keeps up to date with<br />
innovation to stay ahead by using<br />
technology,” he says.<br />
Getting things done<br />
For this to happen, <strong>Integr8</strong> IT has connected Fidelity<br />
to its Nerve Centre operation. This is a high-tech,<br />
centralised digital contact centre that is used to<br />
interact with and manage all of <strong>Integr8</strong> IT’s clients<br />
around the world. By being connected to the Nerve<br />
Centre, Fidelity has a stable network and an improved<br />
support infrastructure to ensure network uptime and<br />
availability for all its branches.<br />
“The immediate benefits of being plugged into the<br />
Nerve Centre operation includes around-the-clock<br />
surveillance of Fidelity’s infrastructure, proactive<br />
maintenance and management, offsite backup<br />
services, and national and international support,”<br />
Strydom continues.<br />
With the Nerve Centre, <strong>Integr8</strong> IT has a complete<br />
view of the group and is able to make sure that all<br />
their networks run smoothly and is able to identify any<br />
problems before they occur.<br />
Trusted partnership<br />
“As the trusted ICT services and support partner and<br />
advisor, <strong>Integr8</strong> IT offers the Fidelity <strong>Group</strong> the peace<br />
of mind to focus on its core business of providing the<br />
market with a total security system,” says Strydom, adding<br />
that the <strong>Integr8</strong> service offering includes the benefit of a<br />
dedicated projects and compliance office, which ensures<br />
that Fidelity has access to the skill sets of <strong>Integr8</strong> IT.<br />
“This includes the advantage of onsite technicians<br />
and maintenance staff, as well as skilled IT practitioners<br />
that can offer guidance and application of technology<br />
to ensure full compliance on systems as the company<br />
grows,” he concludes. B<br />
Bennie Strydom, sales director at <strong>Integr8</strong> IT<br />
“Our chief role is to ensure<br />
that the company’s<br />
extensive user group<br />
remains connected.”<br />
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