Project Description

Havelock Housing

“The solution has addressed issues that had become a part of the way we work. We had become used to network outages and system delays, accessing our network via VPN and putting up with aging hardware. Now, we can securely connect from anywhere, we have reliable IT and our user experience has vastly improved.” 

Jay Jayashankar, Head of Corporate Services, Havelock Housing

About Havelock Housing

Havelock Housing has a rich history. The site was originally a hostel for public servants. In 1983, the Australian Federal Police took control of the building, leading to a 16-week picket by community groups advocating for affordable housing and highlighting homelessness in the ACT.

A settlement was reached, initiating an inquiry into homelessness and in 1988, the Havelock Housing Association took over the building, providing affordable accommodation.

Today, Havelock Housing is one of the largest Community Housing providers in the ACT, offering affordable accommodation for individuals with low incomes.

The Situation

mcrIT was brought in to assist Havelock Housing with their IT challenges. Prior to their involvement, Havelock Housing had a single individual managing their IT.

Their software systems were outdated causing issues with CRM syncing. Their telephony issues, network outages and unreliable Wi-Fi were causing interruptions for users, and it was clear that a single individual would not be able to provide the IT support the business required.

Havelock Housing needed a partner to streamline their applications, centralise and secure their data, and provide network stability.

The mcrIT Solution

mcrIT conducted a health check and identified areas for improvement. Havelock Housing had outgrown their current setup and were looking for a partner with a service desk and specialised skills to support their IT needs.

The solution provided by mcrIT included:

  • Migrating email to Office 365
  • Migrating file data to SharePoint
  • Enhancing security measures
  • Implementing Teams Calling
  • Setting up Microsoft 365 Backup

“mcrIT took the time to explain the various Microsoft licensing options. We needed to understand the reasoning behind upgrading to Microsoft 365, including improved security and better collaboration for our teams. They found the right hybrid option that meant we could keep our applications on premise, while moving our e-mail and collaboration tools to the cloud” 

Jay Jayashankar, Head of Corporate Services, Havelock Housing

“We have actually saved money by moving to mcrIT. Standardising on a single platform, Microsoft 365, rather than using many different applications and tools has reduced our monthly IT costs” 

Jay Jayashankar, Head of Corporate Services, Havelock Housing

Office Move

mcrIT also assisted Havelock Housing with their recent office move, in which 7 rooms within the building were freed up to make space for tenants.

mcrIT Consulted on the priorities for the move and offered project management support, ensuring a scope of work including responsibilities for all parties was provided for the project. All aspects of the move were considered including network, telephony, internet and resources like access to printers.

“mcrIT’s project management helped with a very smooth move to our new office space. Everything was set up in advance so that there was no delay to our team.” Jay Jayashankar, Head of Corporate Services, Havelock Housing

The Outcomes

By engaging mcrIT, Havelock Housing significantly reduced the disruption to their services.

“mcrIT provides us with a very professional service. The service desk has a portal to track tickets. This was a real differentiator for us and provided the visibility we had been lacking.” Jay Jayashankar, Head of Corporate Services, Havelock Housing

Since partnering with mcrIT, the outcomes include:

  • No longer being dependent on one person for IT support
  • Reduced downtime through telephony upgrade to Teams Voice
  • Simplified IT through standardisation of systems
  • Move to the cloud reduced the need for on site management and maintenance
  • Reduced support calls through Service desk process and automation that ensures tickets are attended to in a timely manner
  • Reduced monthly costs through standardising on Microsoft 365

“With the support of mcrIT, we have enhanced our security through the move to Microsoft 365. This has helped to provide updates to the board about the enhancements in cyber security” 

Jay Jayashankar, Head of Corporate Services, Havelock Housing