MoD Eases Data Management Headaches With Linkspace

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is getting to grips with handling the huge amounts of data it generates when it deploys British armed forces overseas.

To this end it has begun using Linkspace software from cloud software provider Ctrl O, to manage its global deployments more effectively.

And even better in these budget-conscious times is the claim that the deployment of the cloud-based software within the MoD came in under budget and was operational four times faster than first thought.

Data Management

Linkspace is the flagship product from Ctrl O and is a cloud-based data management application that is available via the Government’s Digital Market place.

Essentially, this software as a service (SaaS) can offer potential customers a secure and flexible framework for capturing, sharing and protecting their data.

The software was apparently developed in the UK by a team headed up by a former Royal Navy IT specialist.

The Linkspace software could be used for example to manage a business process, or to link people to data to information to actions.

However, the MoD is using Linkspace to store practical and financial data for defence engagements across the globe. This information needs to be simultaneously accessed and updated in real-time by hundreds of users around the world, as the deployments take place.

Before it began using Linkspace, the MoD kept in numerous spreadsheets to hold operational information and finances of its defence engagements. This resulted in poor data integrity and limited ‘version control’, as there was not ability to simultaneous edit those spreadsheets.

And keeping track of all the changes also presented a headache for MoD staff.

With the Linkspace software however, the MoD is now able to manage and securely share data, as well as co-ordinate projects, tasks and records across many sites and 600 users around the world.

Another useful features is that individual users or groups, who need to monitor movements in key areas, can now receive automatic email notifications of specific data changes. The data can be downloaded or uploaded or analysed in different locations, thanks to the ability to create user-configurable reports and csv documents.

G-Cloud Success

“Deployed globally by the Ministry of Defence, Linkspace saved 90 percent of the original budget estimate and was deployed four times faster than they originally anticipated,” explained Dr Richard Sykes, VP EuroCloud, and chair of the Cloud Industry Forum. “This was the clearest example of G-Cloud delivering success for the Ministry and for the taxpayer.”

“The Ministry of Defence opted to configure Linkspace themselves, setting up the alerts and views they needed, which gave administrators a thorough understanding of the system, especially of how the data could be filtered and displayed to make it more useful,” added Andy Beverley, the MD of Ctrl O.

“This was possible because Linkspace is customisable by teams, can be accessed from anywhere and can be deployed instantly, without the usual heavy investment in bespoke software or lengthy on boarding process,” said Beverley.

“It enables departments to manage data around their particular business processes and evolves as needs change, while the robust nature of the product and its highly granular access control meet the most stringent security requirements, such as those required by the MoD,” he said.

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