By transitioning email providers Warwickshire Council is expecting to see savings of £250,000.

Service options included Microsoft Office 365, Google, IBM, Exchange, and open source offering Zimbra via supplier Savv, with Google winning out on high cost-efficiency.

The council has now moved to a department wide roll-out of Google Gmail, the service transition will also allow the 4,500 council staff access to Google services including Google Docs, IM, video conferencing and greater archive space.

Cloud services provided by Google will meet suitable security accreditation for the majority of the council’s requirements. Tonino Ciuffini, CIO at Warwickshire County Council, said: “The real benefit has been instant availability of services. It reduces the time for delivery”.

The council is looking to future collaboration with G-Cloud services, with expectations on a major procurement contract being agreed on within the next 12 months.

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