Independent insurance broker, Thompson Insurance, has future-proofed its business by moving its IT infrastructure to the cloud
…thus simplifying back up and access to critical data and enabling employees to work from home during the coronavirus lockdown.
The Birmingham-based business was founded in 1987 and its employees are trusted advisors to over 400 clients across the UK. Having previously outsourced its IT support to a company outside the Midlands, Thompson Insurance turned to local IT services provider Kidderminster-based OGL Computer as its technology partner to support an office relocation and the business’ expansion.
Growing needs
Adam Thompson, Development Manager at Thompson Insurance, explained: “Our previous IT service provider wasn’t able to support our growing needs. Our key objective was to choose a local IT company and one that can provide a personal and excellent service. Previously all our internal IT queries were filtered through me and I’d call our IT support, but now the team can pick up the phone and speak to OGL Computer to sort out the problem, delivering a much more efficient solution for us.”
A move to the cloud
Recognising that Thompson Insurance’s on-premise servers were getting old, rather than investing in additional hardware, OGL Computer recommended a move to the cloud to provide a more flexible, but still secure, solution. OGL Computer worked with Thompson Insurance to understand the team’s requirements before creating a Hosted Desktop solution, which provides centrally controlled access to all critical business data and applications, via the cloud, from any location with an internet connection, offering a more collaborative remote working environment.
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OGL Computer’s Hosted Desktop solution also removed the need to maintain individual high spec PCs pre-loaded with relevant applications and programs, as staff could use mobile devices such as tablets, laptops and phones to securely access everything they need.
A more flexible solution
Adam Thompson continued: “Moving to the cloud has been phenomenal, we love the flexibility of the solution. We thought it would be the perfect time to move to the cloud. We knew it was the way the world was moving, and we liked the idea of having a more flexible solution without worrying about physical backups and dating hardware. One of the difficulties we had was our insurance database software had to have a compatible and secure server structure, but OGL created a solution that matched our needs to ensure our internal processes worked smoothly.”
After its office move, Thompson Insurance’s decision to replace its former business operations with a cloud solution also meant that the team and clients weren’t adversely affected when the coronavirus pandemic hit. Using OGL Computer’s Hosted Desktop solution the Thompson Insurance team could continue operations through the recent lockdown and cope with potential obstructions, without any staff being furloughed.
Full access and security
While other insurance companies continue to work with traditional and on-site servers, Thompson Insurance’s move to the cloud means the team can access all of the information and documents that they need, from wherever they are, as the business’ data is stored securely in the cloud.
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Adam continued: “We’re a service driven business so it’s key that we can always access our data to help our customers. We can’t afford for our systems to go down, so we need an infrastructure and support team to make sure that doesn’t happen. The continued support from OGL is fundamental in our growth and future plans.
Lifeblood
“Delivering quality customer service and gaining new business is the lifeblood of all companies, but the only way we can move forward and achieve these goals is with the infrastructure and support in place. OGL, offering reliable and excellent service, is a critical part of the plan going forward.”
Jas Buray, Solutions Architect at OGL Computer, concluded: “Insurance brokers and other financial businesses cannot afford to have any downtime so cloud-based solutions, which are both flexible and secure, are key to ensuring that staff can work remotely if needed.
The flexibility of working from the cloud can improve wellbeing, as Thompson Insurance’s team could work whenever and wherever they were, but it is a simple way to also assist in increasing customer service too, thanks to the team being able to access client data quickly.”
Image: Adam Thompson, Development Manager, with Baljit Thompson, Director
