English Institute of Sport
A vital cog in a high performance machine: world class IT for the English Institute of Sport
Operating from 15 High Performance Centres across the UK and with practitioners often working overseas, the English Institute of Sport (EIS) delivers high quality sport science and medical support to 1,700 elite athletes. Since EIS was created, BT Engage IT has provided a complete outsourced IT and communications infrastructure, designed to help the organisation achieve its vision ‘to be the world leading provider of performance impacting sport science and medicine within elite sport’.
Solution
This activity assumed even greater importance following the UK's successful bid for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. "We have to provide 24/7 access to IT and communications to staff all over the world, often in very intense and demanding situations, from athletes indoor in gyms, outside on the water or in the snow to people abroad at training camps, in high altitude locations, and so on, " says Mark Richards, Head of Information Systems.
" We can rely on BT Engage IT to provide the service we need. We have to keep our systems running, and BT Engage IT does that. I have that peace of mind. "
Mark Richards, Head of Information Systems, English Institute of Sport
The fully managed service includes a secure data centre, wide area network to nine major regional sites plus broadband and wireless connectivity for satellite locations, 24/7 Service Desk support for users, remote monitoring and management, hardware break/fix, and change management activity, which can include BT Engage IT co-ordinating third parties.
Why BT Engage IT?
BT Engage IT helps EIS keep on top of its infrastructure, and is proactive too. Richards says collaborative working with BT Engage IT's Service Delivery Manager brings important advantages. "We've worked with the same person for years. He anticipates so many issues before they become problems and is very good at getting involved in projects, steering you towards the right solution when you have various choices." Richards adds, "We can rely on BT Engage IT to provide the service we need. We have to keep our systems running, and BT Engage IT does that. So I have that peace of mind."
“ BT Engage IT is an important part of our multi-disciplinary team – and, as such, is critical to enabling us to deliver performance impacting support to our athletes. When you see athletes on the medals podium, there's a big team of EIS people behind them, and a big support team behind EIS – which includes BT Engage IT. ”
Mark Richards, Head of Information Systems, English Institute of Sport
