Carlton County
A Savance Workplace Case Study
Organization: Carlton County, MN
Industry: Government
Customer Since: 2015
Headquarters: Carlton, MN
Product(s) Used:
Information Systems Specialist Sr.
We didn't really consider a different system at that point. It looked like EIOBoard was exactly what we were looking for, and that turned out to be the case.
It is also easy for users to update their statuses, and for co-workers to see if other workers are in office, on vacation, out sick, or working from home. Being able to see co-workers' statuses and contact info at-a-glance is really helpful.
- In the Public Health and Human Services departments, employees work outside the office a lot. […] EIOBoard is so helpful for co-workers and supervisors to know where people are at all times of the day.
County Greatly Improves Interdepartmental Communication with Savance Workplace
A Savance Workplace Case Study
Previously, we had to walk over to someone’s desk to see if they were even working in the building.
Background:
Formed in 1857, Carlton County is a county in the State of Minnesota, and part of the Duluth, MN-WI Metropolitan Statistical Area. The most recent census, in 2020, lists the population of Carlton County as approximately 36,000 people. From a Government perspective, the County consists of 15 different units, which all work closely with one another for Carlton County to be running smoothly at all times.
Problem:
Carlton County needed a better way to keep track of employees across departments, a way to be able to keep everyone informed of coworker statuses and current locations. “Previously, we had to walk over to someone’s desk to see if they were even working in the building,” says Thomas Shay, Senior Information Systems Specialist at Carlton County. “Additionally, employee contact information was kept on paper.” It was obvious that a modernized, more efficient solution was in order.
Search:
To find a solution to its problems, Carlton County turned to the Internet. “We were looking for an online system to be able to tell everyone if employees were in office or away from office,” Thomas Shay explains, “but we also wanted an easy way to find contact information for users.”
After some Internet research, Carlton County came across Savance Electronic In Out Board (EIOBoard), and that’s where the search ended. “We didn’t really consider a different system at that point,” explains Thomas Shay. “It looked like EIOBoard was exactly what we were looking for, and that turned out to be the case.”
Solution:
Carlton County has been a user of Savance Electronic In Out Board since 2015. The fact that it can be used on multiple devices, including computers and smartphones, continues to be important to the County. “We like that it’s easy to use for workers. We all have it on our computers and County-owned cell phones. Some users that don’t have County-owned cell phones are also able to put it on their personal phones,” Thomas Shay explains.
“We like that it’s easy to use for workers. We all have it on our computers and County-owned cell phones. Some users that don’t have County-owned cell phones are also able to put it on their personal phones”
What we can learn from Carlton County’s use of Savance Electronic In Out Board is how easy it can be for an organization to implement a system that greatly improves processes and workflows. “We made the decision to go with Savance because the EIOBoard system is easy to set up and manage when it comes to security, locations, departments, and so on,” says Thomas Shay. “It is also easy for users to update their statuses, and for co-workers to see if other workers are in office, on vacation, out sick, or working from home. Being able to see co-workers’ statuses and contact info at-a-glance is really helpful.”
Since Savance Electronic In Out Board serves as the basis of other Savance Workplace solutions, it would also be very easy for Carlton County to add features like Visitor Management, Access Control Integration, or Emergency Mustering in the future.
Results & Benefits:
Since implementing its Savance Workplace system, Carlton County has seen improvements when it comes to several different areas, including efficiency, time-savings, and overall communication. “We have 15 different units at the County and they all work closely with each other,” says Thomas Shay. “The Savance system makes it easy to contact co-workers.”
“For me, as an IT specialist, it saves me a lot of time in my job […]. It makes my job so much easier to know if someone is in office, working from home, out sick, or out on vacation. I love this program.”
As a more direct example, Shay mentions a couple of specific departments, and how Savance Electronic In Out Board is particularly useful when it comes to employees working off-site. “In the Public Health and Human Services departments, employees work outside the office a lot. The comments section in EIOBoard is so helpful for co-workers and supervisors to know where people are at all times of the day.”
For Thomas Shay, EIOBoard also saves him a lot of time in his own job role. “For me, as an IT specialist, it saves me a lot of time in my job. I have to contact so many users everyday to help with IT issues, and it makes my job so much easier to know if someone is in office, working from home, out sick, or out on vacation. I love this program.”