NHS 365 – A magical cure or the answer to a problem that doesn’t exist?

By mid-September NHS organisations will have access to a special licensing programme that has been agreed between Microsoft and NHS Digital.

Named N365 (NHS 365). The agreement gives the NHS a choice of Microsoft 365 plans and provides an opportunity for NHS organisations to increase productivity and collaborative working across health economies, improve the way devices are managed, optimise how applications are deployed and strengthen security.

Microsoft licensing is renowned for being complex. Microsoft and NHS Digital have constructed a compelling commercial offer that is comprised of two customised Office 365 plans (that can be mixed and matched), with further bolt-on options that extend to device security and management. In addition, organisations can choose if they want services hosted within a big shared NHS central tenant or within their own. But is this initiative the magical cure needed to solve current challenges around remote working, cybersecurity concerns and help the NHS to cope with the increasing demand for services? Or is it simply an answer to a problem that most NHS organisations don’t have right now?

N365 a Magical Cure

At an IT level there is a sense of optimism about the programme, but the general emphasis has been around ‘what do we get with the investment?’ rather than ‘what can we achieve with the investment?’, which despite the special discounts from Microsoft is still significant for most.

It’s no secret that technology alone is not enough to deliver success. Without adequate planning, design, process, implementation, resourcing and training, the opportunity that comes with this promise of improving productivity, revamping IT processes and bolstering security, runs the risk of becoming ‘shelf-ware’ that falls short on delivering the level of organisational change that the investment warrants.

The first challenge is understanding how the features, benefits and values of the agreement (which are still unclear) can be mapped to requirements, challenges and future vision – not the opposite way around. Identifying the needs of the organisation, right down to departmental and role level, and mapping each to the correct technical delivery and support models is paramount to any workspace strategy. Organisations that operate a methodical approach to this opportunity will soon realise that the license agreement alone will only partially help with the unique, complex, and ever-changing requirements and pace of the NHS, not to mention that a wider thought process is needed to deliver successful change at scale.

From fast-moving ward environments, out-patient clinics, community care and remote consultations – an effective strategy must be built for the now, with the ability to adapt easily to new requirements, systems, regulations and the unexpected, without going back to the drawing board each time. One example is the long-term vision of ICSs (Integrated Care Systems). As the NHS strives for integrated care pathways across different NHS entities, local government and private care providers, it feels like this NHS-exclusive offer already puts a technology barrier in place across non-eligible organisations instead of enabling integration. A frictionless public-services identity that enables collaborative working and provides multi-way access to information and resources is what’s really needed to support this.

The N365 licensing agreement provides a foundation to build upon but it is by no means the only piece of the puzzle. Understanding what it can help you deliver, how it can meet your requirements and, perhaps most importantly, where it may leave gaps in executing against your strategy is essential, particularly on the shared NHS tenant. Understanding these gaps and what else may be needed to deliver the value you hope to achieve will help you to avoid the pitfalls that we, unfortunately, foresee many falling into.

As limitations of the agreement are exposed, many organisations will start to consume services from other providers, either in other Azure tenancies or from other cloud providers. With this comes inherent risk – what did once have the promise of enabling NHS organisations to work more closely together, may actually cause greater fragmentation.

In order to deliver a successful transformation, additional technology, capabilities and processes must be included in a considered way ensuring you form a holistic workspace strategy that provides speed of access to systems and data, operational excellence and meets NHS security and compliance requirements.

We believe that NHS organisations looking to take advantage of the new Microsoft agreement should:

• Gain clarity on what N365 actually provides and how it can, or cannot, meet the overall workspace and organisational requirements
• Adequately plan for exactly what is needed to execute or develop your workspace strategy, with agility to meet the diverse and changing user requirements across health and care economies
• Don’t just “engage” with end-user communities but take their lead – the success of any workspace strategy must deliver on the current needs as well as future work aspirations
• Develop a technology and operational roadmap that is aligned to the expectations of the organisation, strategic objectives and vision
• Ensure the correct operating model and processes are put in place to deploy and secure devices whilst managing DSPT and Cyber Essentials compliance across the estate

The agreement is a big step forward, and a great thing for the NHS but it is by no means a one-size-fits-all or a magic wand that will bring success overnight – it is a journey that must be embraced end-to-end for the true value to be realised.

If you would like to learn more about the N365 agreement or have any questions please get in touch.