Select Education investment in new technology pays off

Select Education plc, the UKís largest education recruitment consultancy has reported substantial benefits following the installation of new communications technology throughout its nationwide network of offices.

The company, which is part of the global Vedior group, has invested in a network based on secure IP virtual private networks to improve efficiency and security. The technology uses tunnelled data across business-class DSL lines to provide flexible, reliable and economical connections between all the companyís sites in the UK.

Lee Smith, ICT manager at Select Education, says the main benefits the company has seen are increased flexibility and lower costs. ëWe are running the links over DSL with virtual private networks into over 30 sites throughout the UK. Bandwidth capacity is up to 8 times greater, so there is a much faster connection. At the same time we have benefited from considerably reduced communication overheads.í he commented. All computer terminals throughout the Select Education network are now serviced centrally ñ so no computer processing time is used at branch level, which has also increased efficiency throughout the business.

The introduction of the new technology has been welcomed by Chief Executive Bob Wicks. He commented, ëWe are always looking at new ways of improving services to the 16,000 schools and colleges we work with each year. Even though this technology is very much ëback-of-houseí, it has had a major role to play in speeding communications with offices so raising service levels. Not surprisingly it is also very popular with consultants and business managers as it frees them up to concentrate on what they are good at ñ building the business.í

Select Education is planning to continue its investment in technology during 2005.