OfficeLabs Ltd

AI Assistant Agent Chatbot

A fully customisable virtual assistant, or interactive agent, that leverages advanced conversational AI through natural language processing (NLP). This intelligent digital assistant excels in roles ranging from a virtual customer assistant to a knowledge retrieval agent, delivering streamlined, responsive service across multiple sectors.

Features

• Advanced NLP for accurate understanding and responses.
• Engages users, captures essential lead information.
• Recommends products based on user preferences.
• Integrates with APIs for enhanced functionalities.
• Retrieves information from a vast knowledge base.
• Chatbot deployment in Azure included in service costs
• Provides initial support and escalates complex issues.
• Collects user feedback through interactive engagements.
• Offers a customisable interface to reflect brand identity.
• Adapts to various devices, ensuring functionality and appeal.

Benefits

• Enhances user interaction with intelligent responses.
• Converts visitors into leads with minimal effort.
• Drives sales through personalised product suggestions.
• Expands capabilities with seamless external API connections.
• Answers FAQs and provides detailed explanations swiftly.
• Ensures access to up-to-date information.
• Reduces wait times and improves customer service quality.
• Effortless Azure deployment included.
• Maintains consistent brand experience across all platforms.
• Ensures optimal user experience on any device.

£950 to £1,600 a unit a day

• Education pricing 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 hello@officelabs.co.uk. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 14

Service ID

437610727147188

Contact

Graham Bidwell
01392 24 0 365
hello@officelabs.co.uk

Service scope

• Software add-on or extension: Yes, but can also be used as a standalone service
• What software services is the service an extension to: Flexible deployment: Extendable to Azure or use client-preferred deployment methods.
• Cloud deployment model: Public cloud
• Service constraints: Our service, deployed on Azure, operates without significant constraints. However, occasional maintenance by Azure may occur, though it's typically scheduled to minimize disruptions. We strive to provide reliable service while ensuring minimal impact on our clients' operations.
• System requirements: No system requirements

User support

• Email or online ticketing support: Email or online ticketing
• Support response times: Our standard support plan responses to new cases within one working hour, Monday to Friday, excluding English public holidays and weekends. Extended SLAs and weekend support are available for an additional cost.
• User can manage status and priority of support tickets: Yes
• Online ticketing support accessibility: WCAG 2.1 A
• Phone support: Yes
• Phone support availability: 9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
• Web chat support: No
• Onsite support: Yes, at extra cost
• Support levels: Standard Support Access: Support via email and phone and system updates. Response Time: Responses to tickets within one working hour. Cost: Maintenance and support package is priced at 25% of the overall project cost per year with a 1-year minimum commitment. Monday to Friday, excluding English public holidays and weekends. Extended SLAs and weekend support are available for an additional cost.
• Support available to third parties: Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

• Getting started: Online Training: We provide a series of interactive online training sessions led by our expert trainers. These sessions are designed to help new users understand the fundamentals of the software, ensuring they can start using it effectively right from the start.; ; User Documentation: User manuals are provided that cover all aspects of the software, from basic operations to advanced functionalities.
• Service documentation: Yes
• Documentation formats:
  • HTML
  • PDF
• End-of-contract data extraction: Our chatbot solution is built with a strong commitment to privacy and data security. We ensure that the setup is done on the client’s infrastructure, meaning all interactions and data processed by the chatbot remain entirely within your control and premises. We do not store any data on our servers. Any API integrations required for the chatbot's functionality are configured to interact directly with your data systems, ensuring that all sensitive information is managed and stored by you, adhering to your security policies and compliance requirements. Azure, our chosen deployment platform, provides robust infrastructure and services for hosting applications and storing data, maintaining high levels of security and privacy for our clients' data.
• End-of-contract process: The price of the contract for our chatbot solution includes comprehensive customisation of the chatbot's design, functionality, and integration capabilities according to your specific requirements. This encompasses the initial setup where the bot is tailored to align with your brand identity, language preferences, and desired features such as API integrations with your existing systems. Additionally, ongoing deployment costs, including Azure infrastructure expenses, are covered by the contract, ensuring transparent and predictable pricing for our clients.; However, additional costs not covered in the initial contract price include the use of a backend model API, unless the large language model (LLM) is hosted on your own server or you choose to manage the hosting independently.

Using the service

• Web browser interface: Yes
• Supported browsers:
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Firefox
  • Chrome
  • Safari
  • Opera
• Application to install: No
• Designed for use on mobile devices: Yes
• Differences between the mobile and desktop service: Interface scale differences between mobile and desktop views. All content and functionality is the same.
• Service interface: No
• User support accessibility: WCAG 2.1 A
• API: No
• Customisation available: Yes
• Description of customisation: The customisation of this chatbot is designed to be highly flexible, allowing it to adapt seamlessly to various business needs and user preferences. Initially, the bot can be tailored by our team to align with your company's brand identity. This includes adjustments in visual elements such as color schemes, fonts, and chatbot avatars, ensuring consistency with your corporate style guide. Beyond aesthetics, the functionality can be customised through the integration of specific APIs, enabling the chatbot to perform a wide range of tasks, from booking appointments to retrieving real-time data.; ; Additionally, the chatbot's linguistic capabilities can be tailored to support multiple languages, making it suitable for global businesses looking to provide localised customer support. We also configure the bot’s conversational flows and responses to cater to different sectors and user interactions, whether it’s handling straightforward customer queries or engaging in more complex business processes.; ; Post-deployment, users can request updates or changes, which our team can implement to refine functionalities or update the system according to evolving business needs. For clients with in-house technical capabilities, we provide access to the underlying code, allowing your developers to make adjustments directly and ensure the chatbot continues to meet your strategic objectives effectively.

Scaling

• Independence of resources: To ensure consistent performance, our chatbot service employs scalable cloud infrastructure, advanced load balancing, and resource isolation, depending on your deployment choice. These strategies dynamically adjust and distribute resources to handle varying demands without affecting individual user experiences. This setup guarantees that the activities of one user do not impact another, maintaining smooth and stable service for all.

Analytics

• Service usage metrics: Yes
• Metrics types: The metrics for our chatbot service can be exported via an API, enabling you to define and analyse specific performance indicators. This API allows for the extraction of data such as user engagement rates, conversation completion rates, lead conversion rates, and user satisfaction scores. By integrating this API with your analytics tools or data warehouses, you can customise the metrics and generate detailed reports tailored to your business needs, helping you optimise the chatbot's performance and impact effectively.
• Reporting types: API access

Resellers

• Supplier type: Not a reseller

Staff security

• Staff security clearance: Other security clearance
• Government security clearance: Up to Developed Vetting (DV)

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: Yes
• 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 CHECK service provider
• Protecting data at rest:
  • Physical access control, complying with CSA CCM v3.0
  • Physical access control, complying with SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
• Data sanitisation process: Yes
• Data sanitisation type: Deleted data can’t be directly accessed
• Equipment disposal approach: Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v.30, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001

Data importing and exporting

• Data export approach: Data from the chatbot can be stored in any database you choose, ensuring flexibility to meet your specific needs. For exporting data, users can easily customise and manage the process to retrieve data in their preferred format. This ensures complete control over how data is handled and used.
• 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: Our service level agreement (SLA) for availability is aligned with Azure's standards, ensuring a high level of uptime for our chatbot service. Azure typically guarantees 99.9% uptime for its services, including web apps like our chatbot deployed on their platform. In the rare event that we do not meet this guaranteed level of availability, Azure provides service credits to compensate customers. These credits are calculated based on the duration of the downtime and the terms outlined in Azure's SLA. This ensures that users are fairly compensated for any disruptions to service beyond the agreed-upon uptime threshold.
• Approach to resilience: Our chatbot service benefits from Azure's robust datacenter infrastructure, ensuring high availability and minimal downtime. With automated failover and redundancy, our service remains reliable even during unexpected challenges, providing users with a seamless experience.
• Outage reporting: Our service employs a multi-channel approach to reporting outages, ensuring clients are promptly informed of any disruptions. Through API integration, users can seamlessly incorporate our outage reporting system into their existing monitoring tools or dashboards, enabling real-time updates on system status. Additionally, clients can opt to receive email alerts directly, providing timely notifications of detected outages. These alerts serve as critical communication channels, empowering stakeholders to take swift action to address any issues. By offering both API integration and email alerts, our service enables clients to stay informed and proactive in managing potential disruptions, thereby minimising the impact on their operations and ensuring continuous service availability.

Identity and authentication

• User authentication needed: No
• Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: Access to management interfaces and support channels is restricted through role-based access control (RBAC) in Azure. This ensures that only authorised personnel can manage and monitor the chatbot service, enhancing security and compliance.
• Access restriction testing frequency: At least once a year
• Management access authentication:
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Username or password

Audit information for users

• Access to user activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long user audit data is stored for: User-defined
• Access to supplier activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long supplier audit data is stored for: User-defined
• How long system logs are stored for: User-defined

Standards and certifications

• ISO/IEC 27001 certification: No
• 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: Policy owners report to the Chief Information Officer who in turn reports to the Business Owner.; Policies are easily accessible.; Policy Owners are audited on a regular basis.; Automation is used where appropriate.; Policies are acknowledged by workers.

Operational security

• Configuration and change management standard: Supplier-defined controls
• Configuration and change management approach: The ITIL Change Management Continual Process Improvement methodology is used to manage change.; ; All changes are considered and assessed on business and security impact by the Change Advisory Board before implementation.
• Vulnerability management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Vulnerability management approach: Potential threats are rated on risk, likelihood of occurrence and potential impact of the threat.; Patches are developed, tested and released as soon as approved.; Threat sources:; https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/; https://protection.office.com/
• Protective monitoring type: Supplier-defined controls
• Protective monitoring approach: By leveraging Microsoft 365's robust security features alongside OfficeLabs' dedicated security practices, the goal is to ensure a secure and resilient service environment. This integrated approach not only helps in early detection of potential compromises but also enables swift and effective responses, minimising the impact on operations and maintaining trust.; ; Incident response is within one hour during office hours. Within four hours at any other time.
• Incident management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Incident management approach: At OfficeLabs, our incident management processes are designed for efficiency and clarity, structured around the following key components:; ; We maintain standard operating procedures (SOPs) for frequent incidents like data breaches or service outages, enabling quick and effective responses.; ; Users can report incidents through dedicated email addresses, a secure online form, or our support desk, all monitored continuously.; ; We keep stakeholders updated throughout the incident resolution process and provide detailed final reports outlining the incident, resolution steps, outcomes, and preventive measures for the future.

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

  OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. We provide flexible working solutions for our customers and our people that enable people to reduce their carbon consumption. Many of our people live considerable distances from our Head Office and our customer locations, and our solutions ensure that business can be conducted without the need for travel. Transport accounts for 21% of carbon emissions in the world, with road transport comprising 75% of that total. Covid lockdown restrictions reduced UK carbon emissions from transportation by 19%. Our solutions – as exemplified by our working practices, provide both the mechanism and proof that flexible working IT solutions can make a significant contribution towards fighting climate change by enabling our people and our customers to reduce their need for travel and energy intensive office space.

  Covid-19 recovery

  OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. During Covid-19 lockdown, OfficeLabs saw a steady increase in custom from organisations who needed to implement the remote-working solutions we use and supply. During that period, OfficeLabs increased its permanent workforce by 25% and utilised contractors for workstreams that offered only short-term prospects. Since the end of Covid-19, OfficeLabs has increased its permanent employee numbers by 400%, doubling the workforce in the past 18 months alone. Some of the greatest aspects to our business, is that we have been able to provide permanent employment for three groups of people who are most affected by barriers to employment: those with disabilities and other chronic conditions for whom commuting would have been a barrier to work; those living in rural communities and not served by public transport or good road networks, and parents of school-aged children, for whom child arrangements may be either non-existent or beyond economic viability. OfficeLabs solutions promote the same ethos and capability to our customers so that they may be able to retain or recruit employees who might otherwise have been unduly impacted by Covid-19. OfficeLabs are able to demonstrate the value and efficiency of our work model and technology by using the products and services we supply. Our technology helps UK and international organisations provide viable employment opportunities to those who for whom outdated systems and working practices prevented flexible employment according to their circumstances.

  Tackling economic inequality

  OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. During Covid-19 lockdown, OfficeLabs saw a steady increase in custom from organisations who needed to implement the remote-working solutions we use and supply. During that period, OfficeLabs increased its permanent workforce by 25% and utilised contractors for workstreams that offered only short-term prospects. Since the end of Covid-19, OfficeLabs has increased its permanent employee numbers by 400%, doubling the workforce in the past 18 months alone. Some of the greatest aspects to our business, is that we have been able to provide permanent employment for three groups of people who are most affected by barriers to employment: those with disabilities and other chronic conditions for whom commuting would have been a barrier to work; those living in rural communities and not served by public transport or good road networks, and parents of school-aged children, for whom child arrangements may be either non-existent or beyond economic viability. OfficeLabs solutions promote the same ethos and capability to our customers so that they may be able to retain or recruit employees who might otherwise have been unduly impacted by Covid-19. OfficeLabs are able to demonstrate the value and efficiency of our work model and technology by using the products and services we supply. Our technology helps UK and international organisations provide viable employment opportunities to those who for whom outdated systems and working practices prevented flexible employment according to their circumstances.

  Equal opportunity

  OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. With our Head Office based in Exeter, Devon, OfficeLabs are acutely aware that it can be difficult recruiting and retaining people whose personal circumstances may provide barriers to employment. Our IT solutions enable us to recruit and retain the people we need because of their capabilities regardless of their (protected) characteristics or personal circumstances. Our recruitment practices are based on capability and potential. We undertake all necessary background checks to ensure our people are not vulnerable to nefarious activities. People who might normally be excluded from employment or face insurmountable barriers to employment and/or progression are provided with flexibility, resources and support that they or their circumstances need to fulfil their potential. Our employment practices and IT remote-work solutions reduce personal, economic, environmental and social costs of working from a fixed location far from home. In 2020, we recruited our first person with multiple disabilities from a demographic that struggle with gaining and retaining employment, and with their input we became a Disability Confident Employer in 2022. Since 2021, OfficeLabs has doubled its workforce and seen its proportion of people with disabilities and/or from disadvantaged or minority groups increase to over 37%. Our approach to employee development is one of continual improvement, and we provide all our people with access to an array of training resources, and we fully encourage other developmental opportunities, such as charitable and voluntary work, and involvement in workstreams that complement their role and ambitions within the company. With more than 50% of our employees coming from demographics known to be under-represented in our industry, OfficeLabs is proud to be an equal opportunities employer.

  Wellbeing

  OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. OfficeLabs live and breathe the technology we implement for our customers: our people use the same technology to work from locations and in a manner that is appropriate for them. With our Head Office based in Exeter, Devon, OfficeLabs are acutely aware that recruiting and retaining valued people who live across the UK and work remotely can exacerbate issues such as loneliness and feelings of disconnect for some people. For many years, OfficeLabs have convened regular online meetings with all our people to counteract the reality of home-based work, and we expanded those to twice-weekly in 2022: the first is primarily work-focused, and the second is primarily social – a virtual water/tea/coffee meeting point. The Senior Leadership also conduct regular one-to-one discussions with all staff to ensure their wellbeing is met and provide support whenever needed. In 2021, OfficeLabs launched an annual company gathering that comprised events to involve all our people in developing the strategy and plans, and activities to foster camaraderie and develop healthy inter-personal relationships. We also listened to our people and re-engaged facilities that enabled home-based employees to work from other locations to overcome feelings of isolation when they need. In 2022, OfficeLabs introduced a health package for our people that includes access to emotional and psychological health services, and we introduced a pre-Christmas holiday event that brings our people together in a hearty activity that places non-technical people with technical people in light-hearted competition. In 2024, we launched an events series called “Connected Futures” that demonstrates to other organisations how we and they can implement modern IT solutions in a people-centric manner.

Pricing

• Price: £950 to £1,600 a unit a day
• Discount for educational organisations: Yes
• Free trial available: No

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 hello@officelabs.co.uk. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.