Case study: Faster, smarter, Cloud-managed devices for Covéa’s hybrid workforce

Covéa Insurance is the UK subsidiary of Covéa Group, a European leader in insurance and reinsurance. They offer a wide range of home, motor, and commercial insurance backed by great service.

With its head office in Halifax and regional offices across the UK, Covéa operates as a hybrid organisation with a substantial home-based workforce. The organisation prides itself on its progressive culture, promoting diversity and inclusion, and engaging in community initiatives. Covéa’s strategy is ‘Doing what really matters’, depicting their approach to delivering the best service for their customers.

The Challenge

The organisation faced mounting challenges, tackling an ageing device fleet and maintaining devices for its many work-from-home employees. Windows 10 end-of-life was also looming (October 2025), adding to the need for a device refresh.

Covéa recognised the opportunity to address its device management procedures. Traditional on-premise management had become unsustainable for its hybrid workforce; remote employees could experience some downtime when their devices were shipped to and from the office for maintenance and rebuilding. Additionally, Covea’s management tools were still partly reliant on devices being on-premise.

With its service to colleagues and customers being of key importance, Covéa responded by choosing to invest in a modern, Cloud-first approach to device management and support whilst providing new Windows 11 devices to all employees.

The Solution

Covéa partnered with Ultima after a formal procurement process that considered multiple providers. While pricing and compatibility were important, Ultima stood out for its flexibility in delivery and logistics, and its ability to provide pre-provisioning services and support the transition to a fully Cloud-managed environment.

Covéa’s existing relationship with Ultima, through previous Microsoft 365 projects, helped reinforce trust and confidence in their capabilities.

Ultima’s device management solution included:

• Device rollout: Procurement and deployment of 1,200 Dell devices, chosen for compatibility with Covéa’s existing peripherals and support capability.
• Cloud management transition: Moving from hybrid management (SCCM + Intune) to fully Cloud-managed devices via Microsoft Intune.

• Windows Autopilot: Autopilot used to enable out-of-the-box provisioning, allowing employees to self-build devices in an hour or so.

• Flexible logistics: Ultima supported both home and office deliveries, adapting to changing employee availability and requirements.

The Results

The engagement delivered the following results:

• Project timeline: Procurement began in January 2025 with the main rollout taking place between July to October 2025
• Improved agility: Covéa’s devices can now be remotely wiped and rebuilt in an hour, eliminating multi-day downtime
• Cloud-first environment: Employees rarely need VPN access as most services are fully Cloud-based.
• Enhanced user experience: Windows Autopilot provided a streamlined, efficient setup process that ran smoothly for its employees
• Operational efficiency: Reduced logistical complexity through flexible delivery and collection processes.

What Covéa say about Ultima

‘Ultima delivered a complex rollout and supported our transition to a fully Cloud-managed environment. With the changing requirements of our hybrid workforce, Ultima’s ability to adapt its logistics was exactly what we needed to make the project succeed. Regular communication and transparency helped us collaborate and overcome any issues throughout.’ – Paul Ali, Senior Project Manager, Covéa Insurance