Advanced Business Solutions

bksb

At bksb, we write, develop and supply ed-tech products with the the ambition to improve English, maths and Digital Skills globally through assessments, learning and exam preparation.

Features

• Courses covering Functional Skills, GCSE and Digital Skills
• Utilising AI, machine-learning and big data to ensure accurate assessment
• Learning content mapped to curriculum
• Progression measures
• Exam practice modules
• Group and Learner management
• Detailed reporting
• Integrations with third party systems
• Available anytime on any device

Benefits

• Industry leading assessments to monitor learner start points
• Time saving software for education institutions
• Seamless integrations to support cross-functional delivery
• Automated procedures saving tutors time, improving efficiency
• Reliable assessments give confidence learners are given the required support
• Individual learning plans giving learners bespoke, streamlined learning journeys
• Valuable data to provide evidence for inspection and funding streams

£1,496 an instance a year

• Free trial available

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Skills Framework for the Information Age rate card

  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 bidmanagementteam@oneadvanced.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 13

Service ID

422741074512110

Contact

Bid Support
0330 343 8000
bidmanagementteam@oneadvanced.com

Service scope

• Software add-on or extension: No
• Cloud deployment model: Public cloud
• Service constraints: None
• System requirements: Current web browsers required ie; Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge

User support

• Email or online ticketing support: Email or online ticketing
• Support response times: Priority 1 - Target within 1 hour; Priority 2 - Target within 4 hour; Priority 3 - Target within 8 hour
• User can manage status and priority of support tickets: No
• Phone support: Yes
• Phone support availability: 9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
• Web chat support: No
• Onsite support: No
• Support levels: Standard availability service levels of a minimum of 99.5% will apply, dependent on contracted services.; ; Support is provided around a priority and escalation system. When an incident is reported, a priority level is established based upon the information provided, understanding business impact is essential. Target service levels and response times are assigned based on an initial appraisal of the problem but can be revisited at any time by the client. The escalation procedure is designed to progress each call as efficiently as possible. OLA's are in place for escalations beyond support into the development and professional service teams.
• Support available to third parties: Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

• Getting started: Consultancy and training is provided.
• Service documentation: Yes
• Documentation formats:
  • HTML
  • PDF
• End-of-contract data extraction: Export to Excel and HTML
• End-of-contract process: Customer's unique URL is closed

Using the service

• Web browser interface: Yes
• Supported browsers:
  • Internet Explorer 11
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Firefox
  • Chrome
  • Safari
  • Opera
• Application to install: No
• Designed for use on mobile devices: Yes
• Differences between the mobile and desktop service: Mobile is cut-down version of desktop service, usually used by curriculum staff. Back-office/admin staff use the desktop service.
• Service interface: No
• User support accessibility: None or don’t know
• API: No
• Customisation available: Yes
• Description of customisation: Content, reports, terminology, validation rules and permissions can be customised through the Desktop Service administrator account.

Scaling

• Independence of resources: Elastic service which will respond automatically to customer demand.

Analytics

• Service usage metrics: Yes
• Metrics types: Platform activity and progression
• Reporting types:
  • Regular reports
  • Reports on request

Resellers

• Supplier type: Not a reseller

Staff security

• Staff security clearance: Other security clearance
• Government security clearance: None

Asset protection

• Knowledge of data storage and processing locations: Yes
• Data storage and processing locations:
  • United Kingdom
  • European Economic Area (EEA)
• User control over data storage and processing locations: No
• Datacentre security standards: Managed by a third party
• Penetration testing frequency: At least once a year
• Penetration testing approach: ‘IT Health Check’ performed by a CHECK service provider
• Protecting data at rest: Encryption of all physical media
• Data sanitisation process: Yes
• Data sanitisation type: Explicit overwriting of storage before reallocation
• Equipment disposal approach: A third-party destruction service

Data importing and exporting

• Data export approach: Via reporting.
• Data export formats: CSV
• Data import formats: CSV

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: 99.95%
• Approach to resilience: Implemented behind load balancing technology which manages increased traffic and prevents downtime by increasing service capacity alongside demand.
• Outage reporting: Via customer support

Identity and authentication

• User authentication needed: Yes
• User authentication: Username or password
• Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: We use strong authentication processes throughout but as a minimum: password with minimum length/character policies; MFA.; ; In some circumstances, additional security such as IP restrictions/device restrictions also apply.
• Access restriction testing frequency: At least every 6 months
• Management access authentication:
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Identity federation with existing provider (for example Google Apps)
  • Username or password
  • Other
• Description of management access authentication: IP Restrictions

Audit information for users

• Access to user activity audit information: Users contact the support team to get audit information
• How long user audit data is stored for: At least 12 months
• Access to supplier activity audit information: Users contact the support team to get audit information
• How long supplier audit data is stored for: At least 12 months
• 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: BSI
• ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date: 30/06/2021
• What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover: A11.2.6 Delivery and loading areas (as we do not have any)
• 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
• Information security policies and processes: Range of policies in compliance with ISO27001

Operational security

• Configuration and change management standard: Conforms to a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v3.0 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
• Configuration and change management approach: In summary, the impact/effect of the change will be assessed where the change could impact:; ; - System and service availability.; - Ability to meet service level agreements.; - System and service capacity and resourcing.; - Business continuity and Disaster recovery plans.; - The effectiveness and operation of security controls.; - Compliance with the Security Policy, as well as legal, regulatory and contractual requirements.; - The impact on existing certification or testing scopes.
• Vulnerability management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Vulnerability management approach: Critical: Stop what you are doing, if you can push a temporary fix (e.g. disable responsible feature) do so immediately. Attempt to apply a permanent fix within one hour. If the fix is complex, there should be 1 working day assigned to fix the issue.; ; High: Within a maximum of 2 working days.; ; Medium: Within a maximum of 5 working days.; ; Low: Within a maximum of 30 working days.
• Protective monitoring type: Supplier-defined controls
• Protective monitoring approach: We have deployed AWS Guard Duty to detect and alert for any malicious activity inside the virtual infrastructure, this is monitored 24/7/365 by the Advanced SOC (Advanced are the parent owners of bksb Limited). We also monitor network traffic using tools such as Elastic.
• Incident management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Incident management approach: We have incident management policies in line with ISO27001. ; ; Comprises of three distinct processes: (1) Security EVENT Management, (2) Security INCIDENT Notification process, and (3) Security Incident MANAGEMENT process. These processes interact to create the end-to-end Security Event and Incident Management Process.

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

• Fighting climate change:

  Fighting climate change

  We are committed to building a better tomorrow for our staff, customers and wider community through outstanding environmental sustainability performance. Our vision is underpinned by five core principles: ; ; 1. To protect the environment by reducing our carbon footprint.; 2. To reduce the environmental impact of our operational activities through effective management of our estate.; 3. To create and maintain a positive environmental sustainability culture.; 4. To maximise the positive impact of our sustainability actions through effective communication, collaboration and partnership.; 5. To fulfil all environmental compliance obligations and seek to exceed regulatory requirements.; ; To achieve this vision, we have a multi-step sustainability strategy, containing details of the overarching objectives, performance targets, key performance indicators and implementation mechanisms. It is continuously reviewed to ensure it is as strong as it can be. Our success also relies on effective engagement with staff, utilising and developing their skills, knowledge and understanding. ; ; We are proactive in the property management of our offices, maintaining pressure on landlords and staff to ensure energy efficiency. Home working is facilitated and encouraged, and unnecessary travel is minimised by the delivery of consultancy, training and implementation services remotely, where appropriate. Reducing the amount of paper we generate is a key focus, and we use recycled paper - which we then recycle ourselves. We have also taken steps to recycle other materials such as plastics and cardboard. We comply with WEEE regulations and recycle our electrical items. ; We are focused on our transition to a Cloud service company ensuring our customers have solutions which are future proofed and don’t require costly or energy inefficient hardware.
• Covid-19 recovery:

  Covid-19 recovery

  Advanced has a documented Health and Safety policy regarding Covid-19 Arrangements, which focuses on handwashing, hygiene, self-isolation and social distancing. ; ; We encouraged working from home, opening our offices only when government guidance was updated and promptly carried out a Covid-19 risk assessment. Our HR system was updated for employees to confirm their vulnerability status, allowing us to tailor support. ; ; Social distancing measures were introduced in our offices, e.g., staggered arrival and departure times, a one-way walking route around the office and workstations at a 2-metre distance. We continue to operate a desk booking policy to ensure an audit trail and line manager clearance. ; ; Working from home is undoubtedly challenging and may have a negative impact on the wellbeing of our employees. We hosted a wide range of virtual communal events throughout, to allow our staff to stay connected to each other e.g., quizzes, coffee mornings and time allocated for informal catch ups. ; ; We have also made changes to our approach to visiting customers on-site. Where appropriate, training and consultancy can be provided virtually.
• Tackling economic inequality:

  Tackling economic inequality

  Advanced is committed to tackling economic inequality. We are renowned for our recruitment processes which seek to eradicate biases that can perpetuate economic inequality. We hire for potential rather than based on experience. ; ; Our commitment to tackling economic inequality is also exemplified in our pay reporting transparency. In addition to the legal requirements to produce a Gender Pay Gap Report, we have also released our Diversity Pay Gap Report to ensure accountability and so that we can take steps to address economic inequality.
• Equal opportunity:

  Equal opportunity

  Cultivating a diverse workforce and inclusive culture is a priority for Advanced. Diversity of experience, age, race, ethnicity, culture, gender and sexual orientation provides a wide range of talent from entry level through to our leadership teams creating richer perspectives and a powerful frame of reference. ; ; Not only is it right to recognise and celebrate differences, and ensure everyone has the opportunity to thrive, but creating a culture that is genuinely committed to a meritocratic workplace is important to our success. Ensuring all our employees understand and engage with our values, and have the opportunity to realise their full potential, is fundamental to our business. ; ; Last year, we released our first Diversity Pay Gap that extends beyond the legal requirement for gender to ethnicity, sexuality, education, disability and socio-economic status. This data provides transparency and will aid us significantly on our journey to creating a fair and equitable workplace for all. ; ; Advanced is delighted to have been announced as one of the top 100 Diversity Leaders of 2020 across UK businesses following an independent survey carried out on behalf of the Financial Times. The award assesses diversity across gender, age, ethnicity, disability and sexual orientation, and ranks organisations in Europe on the extent to which they offer diverse and inclusive workplaces. The survey focused on two broad areas, looking at the scale in which employers promoted diversity within the workforce, and identifying companies that stood out when it came to encouraging diversity and equal opportunities. ; ; Advanced is renowned for its innovative recruitment process, which seeks to eradicate bias – unconscious or otherwise – when hiring. In our recruitment, we use tools that give us additional insight into intellect and attitude, and remove CVs from the interview process, so managers go in without preconceptions.
• Wellbeing:

  Wellbeing

  We take wellbeing very seriously at Advanced, all employees have access to the following initiatives to promote wellbeing: ; ; Our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a 24/7 phone line where our employees can speak to a trained professional regarding any matters. Whether that is related to their current workload, or whether it is related to their finances for example. This service is 100% confidential. ; ; Advanced continually run mental health webinars/sessions to show our employees what stress looks like and how to manage it, and we have recently announced the Friendly Faces scheme which is a network of colleagues who are open to listening and signposting. We will be running training for employees who wish to take part and make space for wellbeing conversations. ; ; The Wellbeing hub on our internal website is central point for resources, such as the Thrive app to which our employees have an access code. In addition, the Hub is a link to our partnership with Perks at Work who offer discounts and classes for wellbeing, fitness, and meditation. ; ; Our offices have been made more friendly and accessible than ever before as part of our office changes brought on by the new, flexible ways of working. All our offices now contain a ‘wellbeing room’, sharp boxes for needles and free sanitary products in all bathrooms (available to guests as well as our staff). ; ; We understand that working from home and being separated from one another is undoubtedly challenging and in some cases may have a negative impact on the wellbeing of our employees. ; Throughout the pandemic, we hosted a wide range of communal events virtually, to allow our stuff to stay connected to each other, even though they weren’t in the office together. Some of the events were quizzes, coffee mornings and time allocated for informal catch ups.

Pricing

• Price: £1,496 an instance a year
• Discount for educational organisations: No
• Free trial available: Yes
• Description of free trial: Capped at 10 learners with a 2 week duration.

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Skills Framework for the Information Age rate card

  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 bidmanagementteam@oneadvanced.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.