Warwickshire County Council simplifies IT management and enhances employee experience with Microsoft Surface

In 2019, Warwickshire County Council chose to migrate to Microsoft 365 from another productivity suite. As part of this migration, the council standardised on Microsoft Surface devices as the best way to experience the Microsoft ecosystem. 

“At that time, we were looking to standardise on a single device to ensure consistency of user experience and to simplify IT support effort by not having to manage so many device variants across our estate,” recalls Stephen Lugg, Head of ICT Strategy at Warwickshire County Council. 

The switch to Microsoft proved a timely decision: the council was able to mobilise its pandemic response rapidly because it already had the technologies in place to support remote and hybrid working—not least Microsoft Teams and Teams Phone. 

The initial device rollout was a big success, both commercially and with users. Stephen Lugg reports, “We achieved the operational benefits in the IT operation to which we had committed organisationally.” 

The newly increased efficiency of the ICT team was especially useful through the pandemic when the freed-up time could be diverted to setting up safer desk spaces and supporting users as they made the switch to working remotely. 

Peter Wren, Head of ICT & Digital at Warwickshire County Council, confirms, “Having a single build across the Microsoft Surface platform gave us reliability, scalability, repeatability. It meant we could free up our resources to deliver a better service to Warwickshire.” 

A novel approach to financing end-user devices

The 2019 rollout was enabled, in part, by a leasing agreement—a new commercial model for Warwickshire County Council and one of the first of its kind in UK regional and local government.  

Andrew Harper, Head of Strategic Finance at Warwickshire County Council, said "The leasing option provided 100% financing without having to make a large upfront investment. Capital was conserved and used to finance other projects with potentially higher returns on investment.” 

“Additionally, the decision to lease protected against obsolescence, particularly in the case with IT equipment. We have the option to return at the end of the lease and replace with updated equipment, therefore, mitigating the risk of heavily investing in technology that might soon become outdated, which would then require further capital investment.” 

Although this model offered significant commercial advantages for the council, it meant that in 2023, four years after the original agreement, the entire end-user device estate was ready for a refresh. 

Choosing Microsoft Surface for a second time

The council’s ICT team had a responsibility to review the market to assess value for money and appropriateness of the available devices in 2023. “Our requirements were fairly similar the second time around,” recalls Peter Wren. “Collaboration. Functionality. Weight and portability. Touch screen.” 

Following a formal tender and bidding process, the team shortlisted three options. Peter Wren reports, “Looking at the cost of the device in isolation, Microsoft Surface probably wasn’t the first choice commercially, but when we look at total cost of ownership it is more convincing. Plus, additional Microsoft services like the White Glove Delivery Service made Microsoft Surface a better option.” 

The reliability—with no real issues with the devices and zero device failures during the term of the first lease—the transparent carbon footprint, the managed lifecycle and the ease of management added further commercial incentives to choose Surface. Therefore, the council chose to standardise again on Microsoft Surface. 

Warwickshire County Council also opted for a lease agreement again. Peter Wren explains: “Leasing a device has worked really well for us, especially in terms of our environmental objectives and our commitments under ISO 14001. We know that the devices are being disposed of responsibly, without having to get involved in managing that.” 

Enabling rapid rollout for five thousand users

With the financials in place, the next step was to work with the business to plan the device upgrade programme. Stephen Lugg admits, “I don’t think we can underestimate the potential impact across the business about a device exchange.” 

The new lease covered nearly 5,000 Microsoft Surface end user devices. The decisions to use the leasing model, the White Glove Delivery Service and the use of Microsoft Intune for endpoint management made it easier to roll out this number of devices across the council. 

“Without the support of our partners, Windows Autopilot and Microsoft Intune, we would have had to bolster resources and it would have been a twelve-month project,” estimates Stephen Lugg. “Instead, we were able to complete the rollout within twelve weeks.”

“We certainly couldn’t have done it at the pace and volume we did,” agrees Peter Wren. “We had a standard build, with Microsoft 365, Microsoft Teams, the things everyone would need every day. The white glove service turned up, took the old device, gave the user a new one. They would make some small changes for personalisation and the remaining applications they needed were deployed via Intune. It took about thirty minutes to an hour maximum; the users were fully supported and could start working immediately.” 

Stephen Lugg adds, “Because of the opportunity we took with Microsoft, we were able to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 at the same time—which enabled us to make even more time and focus resource on value add activity.” 

Users love the two-in-one form factor

Users from across the council love the form factor and quality of the Microsoft Surface devices. The high-quality cameras and microphone are especially useful when meeting remotely using Microsoft Teams and using Team Phone. 

“There was a clear preference for a two-in-one device from our users. They prefer the Microsoft Surface devices because you can use them as a laptop and a tablet,” explains Stephen Lugg. “It also means we haven’t needed to maintain a tablet estate—with Microsoft Surface, users need only the one device. That helps with our objective to reduce the burden and cost of IT management.” 

The versatility of the Microsoft Surface devices has another important advantage for the council, says Stephen Lugg: “It sends a really important organisational message that everyone has the same device—from the elected members, to the Executive team, to the apprentice that is just starting their first day on the job. We’re invested in people equally and everyone has the right tools for their job.” 

High-quality features and a robust build quality

The reliability of the Microsoft Surface devices has been another key factor in the team achieving its objectives to simplify the estate and drive efficiency. 

Peter Wren explains, “During our first lease, we did not see any failure of the devices. If we chose a cheaper device and it failed after a year or two, the manufacturer might turn around and say ‘we don’t sell those anymore, you need something else’. Then all our assumptions about ease of management and efficiency go out the window.” 

He adds, “With Microsoft Surface, we know the devices are reliable, functional and have enabled people.” 

A new way of working is enabled

In particular, the seamless functionality and the lightweight portability of the Microsoft Surface devices makes remote, hybrid, mobile working easier. 

Peter Wren states, “The move to Microsoft Surface Pro has enabled us to work in a way that was not really possible before. Remote, hybrid and mobile working might have been a hope before—but the reality is we’ve enabled that. And that’s not just a device thing—it’s the whole of the Microsoft suite of products.” 

User acceptance is very high. The ICT team no longer has users looking for alternatives to the standard solutions—a further step forward in simplifying and streamlining the management of the council’s IT estate. 

Tejay De Krester, Head of Change Programmes at Warwickshire County Council said, “As a Head of Service with both a busy and demanding home and work life, the MS tools and the Surface Pro devices combined with the authority's commitment to agile working has transformed the way I'm able to manage my life. I can work anywhere and at anytime, I'm able to communicate and share information quickly and to respond quickly as well. My working day is different, my stress levels are lower, my productivity levels are better and I have time to think.”

Teams Rooms with Microsoft Surface Hubs

The addition of Teams Rooms with Microsoft Surface Hubs, Microsoft’s large-screen, touchscreen whiteboard device, builds on the ease of use achieved for users and management.  

Stephen Lugg explains, “Creating Teams Rooms around the county was about continuing the benefits we’ve already seen. It’s one experience for our users, so using the rooms is easy for them. It’s a one-touch join and they have the familiar Teams workspaces to enable co-creation and collaboration in real time for everyone. They really do complement each other.” 

A catalyst for change 

In the first deployment, Warwickshire County Council undertook considerable adoption and change activities around the switch to Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Surface. Stephen Lugg advises, “This time around, there were no business change barriers because everyone knows and understands Microsoft modern workplace and the Surface devices.” 

Instead, the council has been able to focus on building on the advantages it has already delivered. Stephen Lugg explains, “The mobility and flexibility of this technology provision enables us to deliver and accelerate some of our key strategies, especially around workforce mobility and delivering efficiencies.” 

Microsoft will be a key partner in delivering this vision. Stephen Lugg explains, “We’re currently implementing Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power Platform as part of our drive to rationalise the number of applications. Moving workloads to Microsoft Azure will also help us to digitalise and drive further efficiencies.” 

In this way, Warwickshire County Council can advance its digital first approach with a commitment to enhance self-service options for residents and visitors and facilitate greater citizen engagement. 

A continuing partnership to drive innovation and success

“Microsoft was the right choice this time around,” states Peter Wren. “They proved a good partner to work with.” 

“We’re looking to exploit everything that is available and try new things to get the best value from our Microsoft investment,” agrees Stephen Lugg. “We work closely with Microsoft to ensure those opportunities are brought to us.”