OfficeLabs Ltd

Information Management as a Service for Microsoft 365

IMaaS is a service to deliver comprehensive information management and information security for Microsoft 365 including data held in SharePoint, Teams and OneDrive. Delivering information security, architecture, documents, records, life-cycle management. Tenancy configuration and data structure to advanced data governance and compliance management using Microsoft 365 tools.

Features

• Home site with latest news & events
• Advanced data structuring for efficient information organisation and retrieval
• Comprehensive governance capabilities, including lifecycle management and retention policies
• Automation of routine tasks to streamline information management workflows
• Policy Centre
• Real-time monitoring and reporting for proactive risk identification and mitigation
• Security groups and permission configuration
• Document tagging and taxonomy configuration
• Integration with Microsoft 365 Apps
• Option of MS-Teams or SharePoint focused approach depending upon needs.

Benefits

• Fast deployment of a SharePoint portal
• Central control of policy documents
• Central control of template documents
• Simple news and events publishing
• Designed with organisation branding
• Business social media for enhanced communication
• Compliant to Microsoft standards and best practices
• Increased productivity through streamlined information management processes
• Enhanced data security, protecting sensitive information from cyber threats
• Simplified compliance with regulatory requirements, reducing legal risks

£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

781747525232976

Contact

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

Service scope

• Software add-on or extension: No
• Cloud deployment model: Public cloud
• Service constraints: None
• System requirements: Modern browsers

User support

• Email or online ticketing support: Yes, at extra cost
• Support response times: Our standard support plan aims to respond to new cases within one working hour, on Monday to Friday excluding English public holidays and weekends. Extended SLAs and weekend support can be offered at 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 is 0900-1700, Monday to Friday, excluding English public holidays and weekends. We will respond within one hour of receiving a request. Our support team are experienced cloud support engineers. Maintenance and support package is priced at 25% of the overall project cost per year with a 1-year minimum commitment.
• Support available to third parties: Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

• Getting started: Subject matter experts and trainers are available to provide either on-site or remote support at any UK location
• Service documentation: Yes
• Documentation formats:
  • HTML
  • ODF
  • PDF
• End-of-contract data extraction: All user data can be exported
• End-of-contract process: Contract includes software licenses, training, support, initial configuration and documentation.

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 differences but all content is the same
• Service interface: No
• User support accessibility: None or don’t know
• API: Yes
• What users can and can't do using the API: RESTful, SOAP
• API documentation: No
• API sandbox or test environment: No
• Customisation available: Yes
• Description of customisation: Branding, theming.; Architecture.; Templates.; Permissions.

Scaling

• Independence of resources: Hosted on Microsoft Azure platform

Analytics

• Service usage metrics: Yes
• Metrics types: Governance status
• Reporting types: Real-time dashboards

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
  • European Economic Area (EEA)
• 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: Analytics can be exported
• Data export formats:
  • CSV
  • ODF
• Data import formats:
  • CSV
  • ODF

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: Microsoft 365 SLAs usually promise 99.9% uptime. This means that Microsoft commits to having its services operational and available to users for at least 99.9% of the time each month.
• Approach to resilience: Given the complex nature of cloud computing, Microsoft is mindful that it's not a case of if things will go wrong, but rather when. We design our cloud services to maximize reliability and minimize the negative effects on customers when things do go wrong. We have moved beyond the traditional strategy of relying on complex physical infrastructure, and we have built redundancy directly into our cloud services. We use a combination of less complex physical infrastructure and more intelligent software that builds data resiliency into our services and delivers high availability to our customers. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/compliance/assurance/assurance-data-resiliency-overview
• Outage reporting: Public Dashboard: Microsoft provides a Service Health Dashboard within the Microsoft 365 admin center. This dashboard is accessible to all users with administrative privileges and displays real-time information about the status of various services within the Microsoft 365 suite. It details any ongoing issues, past incidents, and advisories, providing a comprehensive view of service health. API: Microsoft offers the Microsoft 365 Service Communications API as part of Microsoft Graph. This API allows administrators to programmatically access the service health information and integrate this data into custom applications or dashboards. Email Alerts: Microsoft 365 administrators can set up email notifications to be alerted about service incidents and advisories directly. These alerts can be configured within the Microsoft 365 admin center to notify relevant personnel promptly when an issue is detected, allowing for swift action to mitigate any impact.

Identity and authentication

• User authentication needed: Yes
• User authentication:
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Username or password
• Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: Role based access
• 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 owner reports 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.