4th May 2021

I.T. IN THE PLATINUM GROUP - MAY UPDATE

Dear Team Members,

As a follow on from our March I.T. Update, work continues with the upgrading of our I.T. infrastructure across all sites, to ensure we keep up to date with modern technological advances and to future proof us as much as realistically possible in this fast changing digital age.

Since our last update, there's been plenty of I.T. related activity, so here's a brief synopsis of the work that the I.T. Department are currently involved with, in conjunction with Tim Kidney who is continuing to work with us a consultant and project leader:

Network Modernisation

Working with Whippet Networks, we have now installed brand new Cisco infrastructure to all sites. This means that your connections are now running over this new technology.

The next stage of the project is to configure the firewalls to ensure all traffic that heads out and in from the internet is managed and monitored. Going forwards, we can fine tune the network to increase speeds and stop all unwanted traffic from circulating between all sites. Once this stage has been actioned, we will be asking Whippet to take over the circuits that provide our internet connections so we have a single Network provider with whom we can log calls and in turn receive a quicker resolution to any problems experienced.

Disaster Recovery

The I.T. Team have started an internal project that will create a comprehensive Disaster Recovery plan for the business. Following on from reports of several large companies being the target of ransomware style hacks, we have started to identify key applications and functions across the business, which would need to be recoverable should any such attack occur here. These types of threats are becoming more prevalent across the world, hence the reason why we have invested in the latest anti-virus offerings from Sophos as well as looking to ensure the PC's are at the latest version and any applications used are also up to date and secure.

PC Project

Due to the Network modernisation project, the upgrades to all old PCs and those running Windows were put on hold temporarily, but will be re-starting in May.

New PC's will be deployed for any old and out of date models, and any Windows 7 devices will also be upgraded to Windows 10 to ensure we are compliant across the board.

Helpdesk System

Finally, the I.T. Team will soon be launching a product called Freshservice, the purpose of which is to provide a new Helpdesk system for logging and tracking I.T. incidents, problems and issues of all sizes across the Platinum Group. Once launched, this will mean that we will be asking team members to log calls using the email address helpdesk@platinummg.co.uk. We will then set a priority to the call, so that all urgent cases are dealt with first. You will be able to log into a portal to check on the progress of your ticket, add comments or close if no longer an issue. A separate email announcing this new system and advising you of the process will be communicated in the near future.

We will update you on a regular basis (as often as monthly) so you continue to be aware of the journey we are undertaking this year.

If you have any questions relating to the above, or if you have any suggestions, please do get in touch.

Please share with your teams as appropriate.

Yours sincerely