Few verticals have been forced to adapt more over the last two years than local government institutions tasked with serving the public. 

Local government is vital for delivering essential services, particularly to those most in need in our communities. The drive to adopt cloud-based technologies was certainly there before March 2020, but the transition undoubtedly accelerated. 

The pandemic may feel largely behind us, but that doesn’t mean the pressure on local government has eased. Rocketing energy prices, inflation, stretched budgets, and strikes are all contributing to further tough times.  

But in many ways, the innovation forced upon local government over the past couple of years has paved the way for further digital transformation. 

RingCentral has been investing heavily in its local government operation and works closely with IT services provider SCC. 

Olivia Harker, Local Government Branch Manager at SCC, said the two firms take a solutions-led approach to help local government through the plethora of challenges they face. 

“When we talk to local authorities, we think about four things,” she said. 

“What it means for the employee of the authority; what it means for the citizens; what it means for the green agenda; and what it means for the financial budget.” 

There are huge implications around each of these four areas. In terms of employees, local authorities have historically offered work flexibility. Still, the impact of the pandemic mean that private sector organisations are also doing the same – increasing competition and staff turnover in a highly competitive labour market. 

The fourth issue, relating to budgets, is arguably the most urgent in an increasingly challenging time. Like private sector companies, local government faces massive pressure from the sharp increase in energy prices. 

However, local authorities have very little ability to raise extra funds throughout the year. This means it’s financial benefit to have more employees working remotely. 

Ultimately, cloud technology can play a huge role in addressing each of the four boxes that local government needs to tick. 

“What we’re seeing is the need to enable flexibility with a hybrid workforce,” said Emma Westland, Senior Strategic Partner Manager at RingCentral. 

“The pandemic caught a lot of people out because they didn’t have the tools or ability to enable people to work from any location. This isn’t just about telephony, this relates to message, video and contact centre as well.” 

“Local authorities are looking at better ways to engage with different generations of citizens, giving them the ability to communicate in the ways that they want to and give employees more flexibility around where they work.” 

Framework for Success

A key component of SCC’s credentials in the public sector space is its strong presence on frameworks such as G-Cloud and Technology Products and Associated Services, according to David Phillips, Sales and Marketing Director at SCC Collaboration.  

Public sector authorities use these vehicles to procure technology, sometimes at a vast scale, so being on them is crucial to winning business. 

Phillips said that SCC is on some 30 public sector frameworks and has traded with 75 percent of local authorities in the UK. 

He explained that a driving force behind the partnership with RingCentral, which was revealed last year, was that SCC wanted a vendor partner to support its credentials in the meeting room space. 

This came soon after SCC Collaboration rebranded from SCC AVS to reflect its morphing from an audiovisual-centric unit of SCC into a full collaboration practice. 

“Rooms are becoming commoditised, so more of the focus of our business, and demand from customers, comes from the UC space,” he added. 

“Businesses are looking at how they collaborate across the board. We settled on RingCentral because they’re leaders in the market, and they have a pedigree that gives us confidence when we speak to customers.” 

Continued Growth

RingCentral has plans to continue investing in its public sector practice – not just within local government, but also through housing, central, blue light and defence. A key part of this will be further investment in channel partners, Westland said. 

“We’ve spent the last 18 months really investing in the public sector,” she explained. 

“A bit part of that has been focusing on the channels that can deliver this for us. 

“Working with SCC, which has such vast knowledge in this area, has given us the ability to go after these accounts together. They’ve been absolutely key for us.”  

  

   



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