Gold award makes Richmond Systems’ remote-access software portal solution top of the class
An independent report https://richmondsys.com/product-review has praised leading UK IT vendor, Richmond Systems’ richdesk solution as the ideal support tool for schools, colleges and academies in the age of COVID-19.
Broadband-Testing, Europe’s foremost independent network testing consultancy, were commissioned to conduct an in-depth, no-holds-barred review of the ITIL-compliant support system following the release of version 15 in June 2020. The report has awarded richdesk a coveted ‘Gold Award’, demonstrating that the improved and additional functionality in v15 has resulted in the ultimate, ‘COVID-proof’ solution to today’s educational provider support requirements.
Welcoming the ‘Gold Award’, Eric Wright, Managing Director of Richmond Systems said: “For over 30 years, we’ve led the way with gold standard solutions for helpdesk and cross-platform remote access and control. Our education provider clients have given us some great feedback on v15 as they adapt to a post-COVID world. Our Gold Award shows that the comprehensive support at the heart of the richdesk concept can transform the way schools and colleges work on a day-to-day basis.”
Reviewed against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, as schools, colleges and universities re-open, the report recognises that the need for total flexibility in the way that services are provided to staff, students and learners. With home and remote-working now key considerations in the face of more potential lockdowns, the report commends richdesk saying ‘As well as providing a complete, end-to-end solution, not just for IT operations, but all aspects of a business, features such as the Customer Support Portal (CSP) are the most comprehensive we’ve yet encountered at Broadband-Testing.’
Broadband -Testing used a ‘real life’ scenario of an academy trust to test richdesk’s flexibility. It found that the latest version goes far beyond the traditional IT helpdesk, and into the realms of HR, estates, facilities as well providing home and remote with effective tools and support to resolve issues and queries. As Richmond Systems have ‘continued to develop, perfect and adapt the technology to fit contemporary requirements’ the result is an industry-leading customer support solution that works across myriad sectors and industries and is perfectly placed to help educational organisations deal with the challenges of the post-COVID world.
Simon Eades of Herefordshire-based Wigmore School Academy Trust has been using richdesk to support several local schools. He said: “richdesk is at the heart of our customer service operations. My team provides support services across multiple sites and we rely on richdesk to react fast to issues and deliver quick fault resolution. Crucially, richdesk doesn’t release updates without extensively testing first and we’re already seeing the plus points from the latest version. The ability to integrate the portal and helpdesk function with the remote access tools is excellent. Given the need for remote access because of COVID-19, this is exactly the sort of innovation that will help those of us working in the education sector to meet the challenge of ‘the new normal’”.
Key points cited by the report for the granting of a ‘Gold Award’ include:
• Praise for the inclusion of remote-access software in v15, citing the Instant Access and Anytime Support solutions as game-changing customer support components in the wake of the pandemic.
• Remote-control software works most effectively within the total context of a support system, not in isolation. Richdesk combines this functionality alongside classic elements such as asset management and automated interaction with data sources such as Active Directory (AD), enabling customer service teams to support their user base with ease.
• The unrivalled portal function, richportal is an integral part of the richdesk offer, ‘offering a complete, end-to-end self-service process’. The portal function enables staff and customers to manage support activity and source information through a fully customisable, workflow-driven web interface.
• Extended automation throughout richdesk and richportal helps reduce potentially overwhelming demands on support teams as a result of increased home working and learning as effective self-help functionality powers productive, pro-active remote working.
• Simplicity – ‘What Richmond Systems has done right here is to not only provide every element that is required, but apply that concept to the company as a whole – not just the IT element – and, equally importantly, keep everything as simple as possible.’
Steve Broadhead Founder and Director of Broadband-Testing, commented: “A combination of the impact of COVID-19 and the ‘new normal’, on the back of the significant repositioning of ITSM from last year’s ITIL V4 update as a “life cycle process” means that a service desk solution nowadays needs to be much more than a trouble ticketing system for IT problems. Richmond Systems has a solution that covers every base in the “we don’t care who the staff are, where they are working from and what they are using” camp and excels in helping the users help themselves. Having spent the first five years of my IT life supporting thousands of users across multiple locations, it’s not exactly difficult for me to see the benefits of this approach!”
Notes for editors
About Richmond Systems
• Richmond Systems have been at the forefront of remote access and help desk software for more than 30 years. They are tried and trusted providers of on-site and remote implementation and training services, delivered by highly-qualified consultants who understand service management.
• With industry leading technology, security and customer service that’s second-to-none, Richmond’s solutions support everyone – from mobile service providers, freight distributors, retail support systems, to councils, schools and hospitals.
About richdesk
• Read more about how Wigmore School uses richdesk across multiple sites here: https://richmondsys.com/case-studies-info/2017/2/21/wigmore-school
• ITIL-complaint, richdesk is a trusted team member to businesses, helping them to improve the support they offer so they can put customers first.
• Intuitive, flexible and customisable, richdesk grows with businesses to give them the support they need, when they need it.
• A Cloud-based, annual subscription service that’s quick and cost effective to implement, richdesk integrates business support services in one customer-friendly portal.
o Easy to use – there’s no need for an army of consultants to get richdesk up and running.
o Cost effective – the subscription model means customers only pay for the number of licences they use, allowing them to keep their running costs under control.
o No hidden extras – Richmond will never charge for additional functionality – it’s already built in.
o View the benefits of richdesk here.
About Broadband Testing
Broadband-Testing is Europe’s foremost independent network testing body and consultancy organisation for all technologies, software and services, from endpoint to cloud and DC.
Broadband-Testing provides a range of specialist IT, networking and development services to vendors and end-user organisations throughout Europe, SEAP and the United States.
Broadband-Testing is an associate of the following:
Broadband-Testing Laboratories are available to vendors and end-users for fully independent testing of networking, communications and security hardware and software.
Broadband-Testing Laboratories operates an Approvals scheme which enables products to be short-listed for purchase by end-users, based on their successful approval.
Output from the labs, including detailed research reports, articles and white papers on the latest network-related technologies, are made available free of charge on our web site at HTTP://www.broadband-testing.co.uk
Broadband-Testing Consultancy Services offers a range of network consultancy services including network design, strategy planning, Internet connectivity and product development assistance.
For more information about this media release or to request an interview, please contact Olivia Lacey of OKL Associates, email: olivialacey@hotmail.com tel: 07944 224489.