Sevagram is a prominent provider of residential, welfare, and elderly care services in the regions of Heerlen, Maastricht, and Heuvelland in the Netherlands. Distinguished as the only care organization in Limburg to hold the prestigious Golden Planetree Person-Centered Care certification, Sevagram is dedicated to continuously improving the care and well-being of its clients and patients.
Challenges and Needs
Sevagram relied on an outdated Citrix environment coupled with Microsoft Office 2010 for collaboration and daily operations. While this setup was robust in its time, technological advancements rendered it inefficient, leading to accessibility challenges and hindering productivity.
Dietrich de Lannoy, the Project Leader of Information Management & ICT at Sevagram, recognized the pressing need for a more accessible and user-friendly digital workspace to bridge the gap between healthcare services and ICT. Understanding that care professionals required an intuitive platform for easy access to essential information and applications, he aimed to enhance the digital workplace to make it more organized and readily accessible for all employees.
Digital Workspace Transformation
To address these challenges, Sevagram sought the expertise of their implementation partner Advantive. During the search for a suitable digital workspace, Advantive recommended Ichicraft Boards as a potential solution.
Advantive introduced Ichicraft Boards to Sevagram as a promising solution that could meet their needs for a modern digital workspace. To evaluate its capabilities, a proof of concept was established and presented to the management for approval.
To tailor Ichicraft Boards to the specific needs of different employee groups, eight personas were developed, each representing a target group within Sevagram. For each persona, a board template was configured, focusing on the applications that are automatically provided to each group. This ensured that employees received a personalized experience, with easy access to the tools most relevant to their roles.
Implementation Approach
Recognizing the importance of meticulous planning in a large care institution, Sevagram, with the guidance of Advantive, proceeded through a structured implementation process:
- Planning and Design: Developed a comprehensive plan that included the creation of personas and board templates.
- Developing a Migration Strategy: Crafted a strategy to transition from the old ICT environment to a new cloud-based infrastructure.
- Realization and Technical Preparation: Set up the technical aspects of Ichicraft Boards and prepared for deployment.
- Training and Change Management: Educated staff and managed the organizational change to ensure smooth adoption.
- Go-Live Deployment: Launched Ichicraft Boards across the organization in a ‘big bang’ approach.
Advantive configured all the board templates and launched Ichicraft Boards alongside Sevagram’s ICT partner. In addition to setup and deployment.
The entire implementation spanned one year, primarily due to the need to migrate from the old system to the new cloud environment.
Sevagram is a large care institution where changes must be carefully prepared. Dietrich emphasizes the need to ensure a smooth transition for all employees
‘We use board templates extensively. Each template corresponds to a persona representing different target groups within Sevagram, ensuring that each employee has access to the applications and information most relevant to them.’”
— Dietrich de Lannoy, Project Leader of Information Management & ICT at Sevagram.
Key Features and Usage
Ichicraft Boards is now utilized across the entire organization, from management and staff departments to frontline care professionals. The platform serves as the main starting point for employees, automatically launching on every workstation. Key features include:
- Quick Access to Essential Applications: Customized per persona, employees have immediate access to the tools they need for their specific roles.
- Easy Navigation to Favorite SharePoint Sites: Facilitates collaboration and information sharing across teams.
- Centralized Organizational Messages: Keeps everyone informed about important updates and announcements.
- Persona-Based Board Templates: Eight different board templates were created to cater to the unique needs of various employee groups within Sevagram.
Results and Benefits
Since adopting Ichicraft Boards with the assistance of Advantive, Sevagram has experienced several positive outcomes:
- Enhanced Accessibility: Employees access applications and SharePoint sites more efficiently, reducing time spent searching for resources.
- Improved Productivity: The modern platform streamlines operations, allowing staff to focus more on patient care and less on navigating complex systems.
- Positive Employee Feedback: Staff members have expressed satisfaction with the new digital workspace tailored to their needs.
“During preparations and after the go-live, employees let us know in various ways that they are happy with the new digital workplace featuring Ichicraft as the start screen,”
— Dietrich de Lannoy, Project Leader of Information Management & ICT at Sevagram.
Conclusion
Sevagram’s collaboration with Advantive to implement Ichicraft Boards underscores the significant impact that modernizing digital workspaces can have on large care organizations. By enhancing accessibility and tailoring access to essential tools and information through persona-based board templates, Sevagram has improved operational efficiency and employee satisfaction. The organization is now better equipped to continue its mission of providing exceptional care and well-being services to its clients and patients.
