Adapting to the new world of hybrid work was made so much easier for SilverBridge thanks to customisable Visual Communications Solutions from Vox VC

The Industry

The innovative, complex world of ICT (Information and Communications Technology).

The Company

Founded in 1995, SilverBridge is an industry-leading life insurance and pension solutions software provider. One offering a digital suite of products designed to help companies modernise their core insurance systems while embracing the opportunities offered by new technologies to better position themselves in a digital world. Going beyond digital innovation, SilverBridge is a company focused on relationships.

“For us, a company is about more than just the products and services it provides. Instead, our journey centres around our people and developing a culture that encapsulates customer centricity, continuous improvement, and a genuine passion for helping everyone connected to the organisation,” as SilverBridge’s IT Manager, Gerhard Zeeman, explains.

The Challenge

As with every company making the transition from in-office to remote work environments during the pandemic, SilverBridge were faced with the issue of maintaining its strong company culture from a distance.

“Moving from an office to a work from home experience, we needed a way to have face-to-face meetings. We also needed a partner that could give us quality support, end to end. As we already had a good relationship with Vox before this implementation, we felt confident when they suggested we try a VC (Visual Communications) solution to help us collaborate and stay connected,” says Zeeman.

And any worries they might have had regarding implementation were also quickly resolved, according to Zeeman. “Our concern was that the VC experience would not be seamless, but the Vox team alleviated this by arranging for a demo first, which really helped to optimise the experience for us. And when the manufacturers were unable to supply us with our chosen equipment, the Vox VC team immediately sourced and supplied alternative equipment to provide business continuity while the stock challenges were managed.”

The Solution

To keep SilverBridge connected, not only internally as a company, but externally with a range of customers, the Vox VC team installed an MTR (Microsoft Teams Rooms) solution with integrated TeamsVoice to provide a comprehensive system, with VC collaboration and Voice PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) functionality. This has reduced the equipment footprint in the meeting room, as it allows a single system to perform multiple tasks.

Microsoft Teams Rooms systems go beyond having regular Teams meetings via desktop or laptops to create an inclusive, immersive meeting experience for all participants, no matter where they may be joining from – either in person in the boardroom, or online.

This is done by equipping a meeting space with the appropriate cameras, microphones, soundbars and collaboration screens that allow all meeting participants to not only be seen, but heard, equally, from all types of devices.

The Benefits

Ultimately, there were a number of elements that set the Vox VC team apart from the rest, as Zeeman reveals. “The Teams Rooms experience makes it easy for staff to collaborate. We love the fact that Vox supplies us with all infrastructure requirements and implemented QoS (Quality of Service) based on our needs. Vox also offers the option of monthly rental instalments as opposed to once-off payments, making the whole solution a lot more affordable and accessible.”

As a result, SilverBridge has also included another Vox VC offering into the mix: digital signage. With screens placed anywhere from the reception area to boardrooms, digital signage enables companies to create eye-catching, informative messages to keep everyone up-to-date in an instant. “We didn’t have digital signage before, but now that we do, everyone seems to notice. It definitely creates conversations about the content displayed. It’s also a lot easier and faster to display that content too,” says Zeeman.

Looking ahead, the partnership between Vox and SilverBridge remains assured. “What has been provided is not only what was expected, but an improvement on what we were using before. Vox is very open to having conversations about our system experience and future requirements. Right now, we’re in talks about optimising our network infrastructure and standardising the equipment and experience across all of our meeting rooms.”