Business Systems (UK) Ltd

Teleware ConnectPro for Microsoft Teams

ConnectPro is a fully integrated Microsoft Teams advanced call handling application, that allows users to create and manage call queues and call handlers within Teams. With real time statistics and integrations in to 3rd party systems such as CRM, and meaningful data insights with integration into PowerBI.

Features

• Integrated Teams application
• Self management of users through integration with active directory
• Real time statistics (calls in queue, handling time etc)
• Queue management – queue time, overflows, distribution type, ring times
• 3rd party app integration such as PowerApps
• Roles based access control
• PowerBI historic reporting
• Agent readiness states
• Outbound dialling with CLI customisation
• Message of the day for queues

Benefits

• Improve work efficiency through real time agent management
• Get better insights from historic reporting on call activity
• Improve first contact resolution through better collaboration tools
• Enhances hybrid working throughout contact centers, reducing attrition
• Scalable solution with the ability to add/remove users easily
• Increase productivity through 3rd party app integration such as CRM
• Reduce costs with simple deployment model, set-up in minutes
• Easy to use, leveraging Microsoft Teams calling

£36 a user a month

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at tina.coster@bslgroup.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 14

Service ID

135277809075059

Contact

Tina Burton
07824425316
tina.coster@bslgroup.com

Service scope

• Software add-on or extension: Yes
• What software services is the service an extension to: Microsoft Teams with Phone system add-on licence
• Cloud deployment model:
  • Public cloud
  • Hybrid cloud
• Service constraints: Requires Microsoft Teams with Phone system add-on licence
• System requirements:
  • Microsoft/Office365 active tenancy
  • Requires an Internet Connection
  • Microsoft Teams licences with Phone system licence add-on

User support

• Email or online ticketing support: Email or online ticketing
• Support response times: 98% of support phone calls are answered within 5 seconds by our Customer Service centre. They will log a case and assign the priority of the query or problem. Typically Business Systems provide technical 1st response within 20 minutes for Support related issues. Response times differ outside core business hours due to the automated routing of calls. A 24 hour facility is available where cases can also be logged 24/7 (calls are routed to the Out Of Hours Team; emails would be logged and picked up the first business day). Tailored support is also possible e.g. manned 24/7 help desk.
• User can manage status and priority of support tickets: No
• Phone support: Yes
• Phone support availability: 24 hours, 7 days a week
• Web chat support: No
• Onsite support: Yes, at extra cost
• Support levels: 1. Premium; Full support, 2-hour response & 6-hour resolution SLA for P1 faults (24 hours a day, 365 days a year). 4-hour response & 12-hour resolution SLA for P2 faults (08:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays), 8-hour response & 3-day resolution SLA for P3 faults (08:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays), 16 hour response SLA for P4 service request/questions (08:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays). ; 2. Enhanced; 4-hour response & 8-hour resolution SLA for P1 faults (24 hours a day, 365 days a year). 8-hour response & 16-hour resolution SLA for P2 faults (08:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays), 16-hour response & 3 day resolution SLA for P3 faults (08:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays) No SLA’s provided for P4 service requests/questions (09:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays). ; 3. Core; 4-hour response P1 faults (09:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays). 8-hour response for P2 faults (09:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays), 16-hour response (09:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays) No SLA’s provided for P4 service requests/questions (09:00 - 17:30 Mon-Fri, excludes UK bank holidays).
• Support available to third parties: Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

• Getting started: Through the implementation of a tailored program and Project Management Methodology, the Project Manager will ensure the project is governed through a controlled number of stages. It will be structured, documented and accessible with defined deliverables at each stage. Project governance, as agreed with the customer will be applied. Once the solution has been built we carry out end user training sessions for respective user roles - either call handler, supervisor, or anyone accessing reporting or recording interfaces.
• Service documentation: Yes
• Documentation formats:
  • PDF
  • Other
• Other documentation formats: Video
• End-of-contract data extraction: If call recording is required there are a number of options available for extraction of data at the end of the contract. This will be discussed with the Business Systems account manager assigned to the contract.
• End-of-contract process: At the end of a contract the service is decommissioned on a pre-defined date, after which point the application is no longer accessible.

Using the service

• Web browser interface: Yes
• Supported browsers:
  • Internet Explorer 11
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Firefox
  • Chrome
• Application to install: Yes
• Compatible operating systems:
  • Android
  • IOS
  • Linux or Unix
  • MacOS
  • Windows
• Designed for use on mobile devices: Yes
• Differences between the mobile and desktop service: ConnectPro is an extension to Microsoft Teams which is accessible via Desktop client, mobile client, and most web browsers. Application is supported through all access methods where an internet connection is present.
• Service interface: No
• User support accessibility: None or don’t know
• API: No
• Customisation available: Yes
• Description of customisation: Administrative users can manage end user roles and capabilities through the ConnectPro interface. Users under a 'supervisor' class profile can add, edit or delete individual hunt groups or teams of users as well as manage users/call agents within each group/team. In addition they can modify the outbound presented CLI for each group, the call distribution methods and the group/team name. Supervisors may also enable/disable and upload a message of the day which is played to callers upon reaching a queue.; Data sets are provided that allow users with PowerBI skills to customise reporting dashboards to their requirements.

Scaling

• Independence of resources: Teleware's cloud-based environment enables resilience and scalability using a multi-tenanted infrastructure. We automatically scale up and down based on the demands of users, this is achieved by blending data centre architecture and Microsoft Azure technology capabilities. Both datacentres connect to the Azure Cloud utilising Express Route connections with full diversity and availability across both UK regions. Session Border Controllers (SBCs) reside within the Teleware datacentres and accredited by Microsoft to provide Microsoft Teams Voice. The SBCs provide multiple points of PSTN ingress and egress through multiple carrier partners connected at each datacentre

Analytics

• Service usage metrics: Yes
• Metrics types: We undertake Service Reviews with our customers. covering statistics for the service and network availability. These are trended over a 13-month period and measured against SLAs. The frequency of reviews can be altered to suit customer requirements, statistics will be made available within the first working week of each month. This can include bespoke utilisation and other data reports, performance reporting to SLA and other key metrics such as uptime. We also provide customers with access to reports through PowerBI templates. Reporting provides customers with an up-to-date view of how Teleware is performing against their agreed contractual SLA’s
• Reporting types:
  • Regular reports
  • Reports on request

Resellers

• Supplier type: Reseller providing extra features and support
• Organisation whose services are being resold: TeleWare

Staff security

• Staff security clearance: Conforms to BS7858:2019
• Government security clearance: Up to Security Clearance (SC)

Asset protection

• Knowledge of data storage and processing locations: Yes
• Data storage and processing locations: United Kingdom
• User control over data storage and processing locations: No
• Datacentre security standards: Complies with a recognised standard (for example CSA CCM version 3.0)
• Penetration testing frequency: At least once a year
• Penetration testing approach: ‘IT Health Check’ performed by a Tigerscheme qualified provider or a CREST-approved service provider
• Protecting data at rest: Encryption of all physical media
• Data sanitisation process: No
• Equipment disposal approach: A third-party destruction service

Data importing and exporting

• Data export approach: Reporting data can be downloaded to local infrastructure where the customer has resource available to set this up via PowerBI
• Data export formats: Other
• Other data export formats: ODATA
• Data import formats: Other
• Other data import formats: ODATA

Data-in-transit protection

• Data protection between buyer and supplier networks: TLS (version 1.2 or above)
• Data protection within supplier network: TLS (version 1.2 or above)

Availability and resilience

• Guaranteed availability: We commit to a 99.99% uptime availability for the platform. As standard we provide service and support in respect of faults relating to the cloud service, for which the SLA is as follows: Severity/Priority Level 1 (Complete loss of all Services to all Identities) - covered 24x7 has a 2 hour response target and a 4 hour fix target. Severity/Priority Level 2 (Loss of all services to a group of Identities) - covered 24x7 has a 4 hour response target and a 8 hour fix target. Severity/Priority Level 3 (Minor cloud service faults not included in the above) - covered 09:00 – 17:30 Monday to Friday, excluding Bank Holidays. Has a 8 hour response target and a 20 working days fix target
• Approach to resilience: Teleware software is built on a cloud based environment. This enables resilience and scalability using a multi-tenanted infrastructure. Using this architecture model allows the Teleware system to automatically scale; up and down based on the demands of the users, this is achieved by blending data centre architecture and Microsoft Azure technology capabilities. Both the Teleware datacentres connect to the Azure Cloud utilising Express Route connections with full diversity and availability across both UK regions. Teleware South connects to the Azure UK South region and Teleware West connects to the Azure UK West region utilising dual resilient gigabit connections at each datacentre. The SBCs provide multiple points of direct PSTN ingress and egress through multiple carrier partners connected at each datacentre. The replication of SBC and interconnectivity at both datacentres, as well as diversity between carriers ensures that the failure of any component or interconnect will not affect service availability
• Outage reporting: E-mail notifications are issued to nominated customer contacts in the event of any outage that may affect that customers subscribed services from Teleware. We aim to inform customers of a major incident within 20 minutes of it occurring and will circulate updates each hour until resolution. Once a resolution is found Teleware will circulate a Root Cause Analysis (RCA) within 5 working days, outlining the cause, time; service was affected, the actions taken to restore service and what the follow-on actions will be to ensure the incident doesn’t reoccur. Teleware will work to standard resolution SLA’s. BSL will use the contacts specified by the customer for incident notification

Identity and authentication

• User authentication needed: Yes
• User authentication: Other
• Other user authentication: ConnectPro uses single sign on linked to a users Microsoft 365 credentials and associated security controls
• Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: Roles based access controls exist within the ConnectPro application, customers nominate individuals to have administrative access control and they are then enabled to assign roles to individuals within the organisation (agent, supervisor etc). Access to support can be restricted to nominated customer contacts where required.
• Access restriction testing frequency: At least every 6 months
• Management access authentication: 2-factor authentication

Audit information for users

• Access to user activity audit information: No audit information available
• Access to supplier activity audit information: No audit information available
• How long system logs are stored for: At least 12 months

Standards and certifications

• ISO/IEC 27001 certification: Yes
• Who accredited the ISO/IEC 27001: LRQA
• ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date: 09/02/2024
• What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover: Microsoft Teams as this is external to our organisation
• ISO 28000:2007 certification: No
• CSA STAR certification: No
• PCI certification: No
• Cyber essentials: Yes
• Cyber essentials plus: Yes
• Other security certifications: No

Security governance

• Named board-level person responsible for service security: Yes
• Security governance certified: Yes
• Security governance standards:
  • ISO/IEC 27001
  • Other
• Other security governance standards: ISO9001
• Information security policies and processes: This is governed by our ISMS Technical Services policy which details the processes and controls in place covering information security including: Access controls for physical access to computer rooms, data centres, or offices. Logical access controls based on active directory, with suitable policies in place covering password rules and constraints, as well as controls around requesting access and defined processes for user-IDs and privileged IDs. This also covers Network access which governs internet, wide area networks and firewalls. Hardware process are defined around laptops, PC's and mobile devices for staff as well as physical servers hosted in Teleware data centres, all covered by system hardening standards through anti-virus and anti-malware, vulnerability scanning (external and internal), network performance monitoring, configuration scanning, audit logging and Microsoft Operations Management Suite (OMS). These are underpinned by senior management approved processes around change control, asset management, remote access, disposal and backup.

Operational security

• Configuration and change management standard: Supplier-defined controls
• Configuration and change management approach: A change control process document is utilised which defines the technical change within technology environments (infrastructure, software, etc) this process is followed by all personnel unless prior authorisation has been provided by emergency stakeholders where the process cannot be followed for unexpected reasons. We define 2 key groups of staff “Change Advisory Board” (CAB) and Key stakeholders. The CAB is comprised of technical staff and key decision makers who evaluate changes to the production environments. The CAB is focused exclusively on reviewing Change Requests for risk and unintended consequences and agreeing for changes to be performed to production environments
• Vulnerability management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Vulnerability management approach: We employ external vulnerability scanner services to scan our platforms. The NOC conducts monthly tests using Qualsys SSL labs server test. All scans are maintained and initiated by the NOC according to the maintenance calendar. Scan results are compared to established baseline and where differences and issues are identified, raised as risks. Risks are prioritized as High, Medium, and Low status as indicated by the; tool that has identified it (Intruder, SSL Labs, or PEN testing). The following resolution targets relate to each severity: High - Immediate Medium – 1 month Low – 6 months Informational – Discretionary
• Protective monitoring type: Supplier-defined controls
• Protective monitoring approach: Teleware services are managed by a NOC. The NOC utilise multiple monitoring systems to maintain the confidentiality, availability and integrity of the service, these include Pager Duty, to alert our operatives; of critical and alert situations. PRTG network monitor to measure capacity and alerts for all servers, virtual servers, routers, switches, LANs and WANs. OCOM SIP monitor to measure call performance. Automated; diallers to ensure the integrity of end-to-end call routes, Azure security centre to ensure that security baselines are adhered to, and Intruder, a vulnerability scanner which monitors the external surface of the platform; for security vulnerabilities.
• Incident management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Incident management approach: We have a defined process for managing incidents as part of our ISO27001. The ISMS management team are responsible for responding to and managing incidents. The plan includes strategies for managing the media, ensuring all response during an incident are documented and minimising risk. The plan is tested every 6 months.

Secure development

• Approach to secure software development best practice: Conforms to a recognised standard, but self-assessed

Public sector networks

• Connection to public sector networks: No

Social Value

• Social Value:

  Social Value

  • Fighting climate change
  • Covid-19 recovery
  • Tackling economic inequality
  • Equal opportunity
  • Wellbeing

  Fighting climate change

  Business Systems are a recognised Carbon Neutral Organisation reducing our footprint from 27 tonnes of carbon emitted in 2022 to circa <0.19 tonne in 2023. Business Systems holds an ISO 14001 certification, and we monitor and measure our environmental performance and compliance through regular Environment, Sustainability, and Governance (ESG) audits.; ; By communicating environmental best practice and offering comprehensive staff training, Business Systems promote sustainable behaviours across our workforce and encourage improved environmental performance across the work we deliver for our customers. ; ; We are committed to supporting the areas we work in, making every effort to enhance the lives of individuals by supporting environmental projects and volunteering our time to help communities. We actively encourage all of our employees to get involved in a wide range of local community initiatives. ; ; We expect our supply chain partners to mirror our continued commitment to environmental practice. Our supplier selection process requires all prospective suppliers to demonstrate how they operate in alignment with the principles of ISO 14001.

  Covid-19 recovery

  Business Systems prioritises the safety and wellbeing of its employees, customers, and third-party suppliers above all else. In line with guidelines regularly published by the Government and applicable health authorities, we have completed COVID-19 risk assessments of all business activities and locations. ; ; We have identified risk mitigations which continue to improve workplace conditions and support the COVID-19 recovery effort, whilst helping to reduce the spread of COVID-19. This includes migrating the organisation to a home-working business model throughout the pandemic, holding workshops on running remote teams effectively, and on fostering “virtual” collaboration. ; ; Supporting and positively influencing the physical/mental health and wellbeing of our staff is at the core of our business culture, with additional support available to employees affected by COVID-19. In addition, we run a range of team-building exercises and will include voluntary work in the local community (related to Covid-19). We already offer workshops to educate the local community in areas relating to voice/speech technology, and raising awareness on health and wellbeing for the contract workforce, including around loneliness and isolation caused by COVID-19. Any identified issues will be acted upon swiftly.

  Tackling economic inequality

  Business Systems values its employees and is committed to recruiting, training, retaining, and supporting them. Our first core value is ‘People First’, and we strive to be an outstanding employer. We believe in providing a safe, diverse, and inclusive work environment that fosters personal and professional growth. To achieve this, we offer competitive salaries and benefits packages, and a robust platform of training, development, and career progression. We have invested in industry-leading tools to support our managers to hold productive conversations with their team members, and to collect weekly actionable engagement data through pulse surveys.; ; Many of our team members have been developed through the organisation, from entry level to senior management (including C-Suite). We are continuing to invest in training and development to create further opportunities to develop our team, as well as creating entry-level opportunities across all areas of the UK. By working closely with universities and internship schemes, we are able to provide work experience and summer internships and have a successful apprenticeship scheme in place.; ; We track staff turnover rates and conduct exit interviews to understand how we can continue to be a better employer. We also engage regularly with review platforms including Glassdoor to allow candidates to gain genuine insight into how our people experience life at Business Systems.

  Equal opportunity

  Business Systems is committed to promoting a gender pay balance and creating an inclusive workplace that values diversity. We understand women are disproportionately represented in low-paid occupations and are proud to have attained Living Wage Employer status. As part of this, we undertook a supply chain audit and remediations to ensure all employees and suppliers are paid a fair and liveable wage. We measure and monitor our success by tracking the representation of women in leadership roles, and by conducting regular engagement surveys. We assess the engagement data by gender, allowing us to identify deltas between men and women and create appropriate resolution plans.; ; Our modern approach to hybrid/flexible working supports underrepresented groups who have traditionally found it difficult to attend an office, including those with disabilities/long-term illnesses. We support our teams to work in locations that enable safety and productivity, whether at home, on site with clients, or in an office. Our office in the City of London is fully accessible and is adjacent to the step free entrances to Bank Station. We provide support to all employees through our Employee Assistance Programme, including a 24x7 support line as well as numerous resources and wellbeing plans. We monitor and measure our success by conducting regular engagement surveys. ; ; We are also committed to increasing the representation of LGBTi+, BAME, and other protected characteristic groups in the workforce. To achieve this, we provide an inclusive work environment that values diversity and promotes equality. We monitor and measure our success by tracking the representation of diverse groups in our workforce and conducting regular engagement surveys, including questions specifically related to diversity and inclusion. This data is segmented by self-reported gender, sexuality, and ethnicity, allowing us to draw insights into deltas between these groups and target specific interventions to improve the employee experience.

  Wellbeing

  Business Systems values the mental health of our employees and is committed to promoting a healthy work-life balance. To ensure staff mental health is promoted, we provide an Employee Assistance Programme which includes mental health resources and support programs. We conduct regular employee engagement surveys which specifically include questions related to mental health, stress, anxiety, and burnout to ensure that we can identify and proactively manage these concerns.; ; We have signed up to the Mental Health at Work Commitment, demonstrating our commitment to the health and wellbeing of our team, and have implemented a Mental Health First Aider programme. We also encourage our team to regularly share wellbeing content and articles on our dedicated Wellbeing Teams channel. We encourage an open dialogue around workload, stressors, and other challenges so that we can make changes to support any team member who needs it. We include wellbeing as a regular topic at town halls and workshops throughout the year. ; ; We have invested in enhanced data analytics to enable team members and managers to proactively schedule time to focus, to learn, and to take a break. Our team can use this data to identify interruptions out of hours, longer or less productive meetings, or other insights that help bring meaning to their work. We monitor and measure our success by conducting regular employee engagement surveys that feature targeted questions related to mental health.

Pricing

• Price: £36 a user a month
• Discount for educational organisations: No
• Free trial available: No

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at tina.coster@bslgroup.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.