Case study: Teams transformation at Kent County Council

Simplified and cost-effective cloud telephony made easy with Microsoft Teams Direct Routing from Gamma and Trustmarque

Background

Previously, Kent County Council was using both the online and on-premise versions of Skype for Business, with approximately 5,000 users on each platform. The solution was approaching end of life at the end of July 2021 the Council knew they would have to quickly migrate all existing users to an alternative telephony solution. A decision had already been taken to migrate to Cloud Telephony in order to experience the commercial and operational benefit of removing any on-premise equipment

The Challenge

The task was immense – migrating 20,000 numbers from Skype for business to a new network provider, as well as maintaining service levels.

The Council did not wish to adopt a ‘Big Bang’ approach and therefore moving the numbers straight onto the new solution was not an option. Instead, they sought a phased but seamless transition to a new platform.

“Migrating 5,000 users quickly and seamlessly was no mean feat. But Gamma and Trustmarque worked so well together, we felt that we were in safe hands. The project was executed quickly and efficiently, our telephony solutions are now simplified, and we can operate within a fixed budget.”

Stuart Cockett, Interim Head of Kent Public Services Network

The Solution

Kent County Council had already made the investment in E5 licensing for Microsoft Teams, the Council made the strategic decision to capitalise on this investment by enabling Teams for external as well as internal voice calls. Implementing Microsoft Teams Direct Routing was therefore the most natural and cost-effective solution.

Additionally, the Gamma Microsoft Teams Direct Routing solution, being a highly resilient, carrier grade service, was the perfect choice for the Council offering business continuity at an individual Direct-Dial-In (DDI) level, along with enhanced Inbound reporting, fraud protection and competitive tariffs.

Yet with the numbers now sitting on the Gamma network, Trustmarque was able to manage the migration of the numbers from SIP to Microsoft Teams Direct Routing in smaller phases. A user would leave work on Friday using Skype for Business and begin work on Monday on MS Teams, with no disruption to the workday. To ensure success, Kent County Council and Trustmarque held regular project reviews with key stakeholders. In addition to Kent County Council and Trustmarque, this project team included Gamma, Cantium, Microsoft and Support to Win.

The Result

Gamma was able to complete the number port in advance of expected timings, meaning the bulk of the migration to Teams telephony was established within two months. This was a quick and efficient roll out, and Kent County Council’s telephony solutions are now simplified. The new telephony solution is expected to bring commercial benefits and inclusive minute tariffs provide a fixed budget.

Trustmarque and Gamma

Trustmarque’s Enterprise Connectivity team and Kent County Council, worked diligently alongside the wider project team to fully understand all requirements, whilst carefully planning the migration activities.

Trustmarque has a long-established partnership with Gamma and this relationship gave Kent County Council access to the number one SIP provider in the UK and, importantly, direct access to their experienced Managed Porting team.

Gamma is considered a key strategic partner of Trustmarque and our strong working relationship was a significant factor in the successful implementation of Microsoft Teams Direct Routing.