If you’ve ever dialed local emergency services you’ll understand the importance of a robust telecoms infrastructure. But when you’re International SOS (ISOS), the world’s leading integrated medical, clinical and security services organization, ensuring a robust global infrastructure becomes essential to the health of the company and its clients.
ISOS provides expertise, advice and emergency assistance to a range of different organizations during periods of critical illness, accident or civil unrest. They include businesses, governments and non-governmental organizations (NGO) looking to protect their mobile employees.
The work ISOS does encompasses security training, preventative travel assessment, support for developing travel security risk policies and evacuation plans. It also provides technology to track and communicate with remote employees in the field.
The challenge
After a period of significant growth, ISOS employed over 10,000 staff in 80 countries operating 27 assistance centers and 35 clinics – but the company’s IT and telephony infrastructure was fragmented. It had variable security standards, and management of the legacy of multiple network and security service providers was both complex and costly.
This complexity disrupted ISOS’s control over its network and application performance, which had an impact on end-user productivity. To deliver a better customer experience, it needed a reliable and secure global communications network.
“Our network of assistance centers are the lifeline of our business where every call is an emergency and every response can be lifesaving. A robust, secure and reliable infrastructure is the centerpiece for effectively reaching the ones who need us,” said Richard Davies, Group CIO, International SOS.
The solution
Orange Business offered the global reach and international expertise ISOS required. To meet ISOS’s requirements, Orange deployed a fully managed, integrated and optimized WAN delivered over Business VPN. This helped improve visibility and control globally. Orange also took control of ISOS’ networks across 50 countries, replacing the 30+ suppliers the company had used with a single provider, offering standardized SLAs.
To help improve ISOS’ customer-facing operations, Orange developed a centralized call center architecture for 27 global assistance centers, (including provision of a managed IP telephony solution to replace its previous distributed PBX).
In addition Orange replaced multiple security standards and providers with a single system providing centralized governance and control. This included seven secure Internet gateways with auto failover, a customized service help desk and a 24/7 Security Operation Center.
“Reliable contact center operations and state-of-the-art telephony infrastructure are critical components of our services. We have entrusted Orange to manage this infrastructure and ensure the best user experience with dependable technology,” Davies said.
The outcome
The solution has improved network uptime and service reliability. The provision of a centrally-controlled security policy has reduced security incidents. The global unified system has helped reduce costs, enhanced application performance and improved end-user experiences. Management, productivity and reliability improvements are tangible.
One key gain as a result of the decision to outsource to a single global provider is that ISOS’s internal IT resources are now freed up in order to focus on other technology challenges and opportunities.
“The Orange partnership in transforming our network and making it secure through redesign and consolidation will ensure a reliable and optimized service to our members. With global risks of civil unrest and terrorism, our assistance centers need to be available 24/7/365 to provide assistance, safety and security to members,” Davies said.
Read more on how Orange Business can enhance your organization’s network here, and take a look at our infographic explaining the value of hybrid networks.