The challenge:
Our client, Northamptonshire Police, had undergone a transformation programme to unify its IT teams with those of Northamptonshire Fire & Rescue Service.
This move brought about significant benefits for both organisations, while challenging previous ways of working.
Benefits included cost efficiencies, an increase in head count, sharing of technology and systems, automation, and more efficient ways of working.
However, there were a lot of unknowns across both organisations, which saw a need to address security vulnerabilities as a matter of urgency and tackle extensive technical debt.
The aim was to create a unified digital and technology department across the police and fire services, which would help enable combined services across both organisations.
The solution:
Initially, we worked to understand the roles and responsibilities of a combined police and fire service looking at new team structures and encouraging existing employees to embrace new ways of working.
We evaluated the ways of working across both organisations and how well they were being followed, as well as how existing processes fitted into those methodologies.
We were then able to establish best practice and how they tied into methodologies, frameworks, governance, and controls.
We provided strategic support, insight and governance at all levels – enterprise, business, HR, technology and security – via our extensive pool of consultants.
The results:
Our team formed a Governance and Assurance Board, which acted as a critical friend to the police and fire service throughout the whole of their programme.
The Governance Board consisted of:
A programme manager who brought the two organisations together in terms of process, people and HR, staffing and tooling, over an 18-month period.
A HR/transformation consultant, who led cultural change across the two organisations.
An enterprise architect, who looked at how to pull the police and fire services together.
A security architect, who analysed how the organisations need to work together with some set form of identity management and direction.
This team was able to offer support and advice, as well as overseeing workshops and technical delivery, and building resource plans and scopes of work. Our blend of senior partnership and ability to rapidly deploy existing resources into and out of the programme, along with our proven expertise working alongside the police and fire services, set us apart as their partner of choice.
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