“Increasing efficiency and cutting costs throughout the organisation will result in significant savings. In short, we’ll be able to use our funds to do more good.”

Father Jacek Dziel, Director, Caritas, Gniezno Archdiocese

Caritas in the Gniezno Archdiocese needed an easier way to coordinate projects and communicate between multiple locations. As a charity, it’s important that most of the organisation’s money goes towards charitable work, so IT services needed to be as cost effective as possible. Microsoft Business Productivity Online Standard Suite provided the tools needed for better communication and collaboration between the head office and Caritas branches in Gniezno.

Business NeedsCaritas in the Gniezno Archdiocese, Poland, runs a children’s home, a home for mothers and children, a community centre, and the Guardian Angel Home. People with disabilities receive care and support at the Good Samaritan Centre, Vocational Therapy Workshops, and the Activity Integration Centre. Caritas runs programmes in nine locations. The most distant from the Gniezno headquarters is the community centre in Chodzież. Every afternoon it looks after about 30 children, providing two meals, and helping with homework and putting on additional activities.

All Caritas projects are coordinated from its office in Gniezno. When Chodzież City Council announces a tender for managing a project, representatives from the different facilities prepare the proposals, and work with the main office to finalise documentation and financial information. Some of this can be done by telephone or fax—other tasks require a visit to the main office. Each year Gniezno Caritas supports about 50 project applications submitted by branch offices. Sometimes public authorities organising the tender need more information on the projects. The director at the Caritas head office manages all queries, so he needs easy access to the materials submitted.

Caritas had an electronic system in place to help manage documentation. But, with most funds directed at providing assistance to people in the community, its IT systems were out of date. Father Jacek Dziel, Director of Caritas at Gniezno Archdiocese, says: “IT use was restricted to our main office. People in the branch facilities did not have access.” The organisation needed an easier, more cost-effective system that would allow all offices to share information.

SolutionWhen Microsoft Poland suggested Microsoft Business Productivity Online Standard Suite package free of charge, Dziel was eager to try it. Microsoft Gold Certified Partner eBusiness.pl carried out a pre-implementation analysis and established what challenges needed to be addressed. In addition to planning and implementing the project, eBusiness.pl also provided support and training. Rafał Warmbier, Chair of the eBusiness.pl, says: “This solution is relatively simple, but, even so, we make sure we don’t just leave clients without support. For every project, we act as advisers first—and implementation comes second.”

Now Caritas has access to all of the applications included in Business

Customer: CaritasWebsite: www.caritas.orgNumber of Employees: 45Country or Region: PolandIndustry: Nonprofit—Charities and philanthropic services

Customer ProfileCaritas in the Gniezno Archdiocese is one of many branches managed by Caritas Poland. It focuses on helping children and families.

Software and Services Microsoft Online Services− Microsoft Business Productivity

Online Standard Suite− Microsoft Exchange Online− Microsoft Office Communications

Online− Microsoft SharePoint Online

Microsoft Office− Microsoft Office Live Meeting

For more information about other Microsoft customer successes, please visit: www.microsoft.com/casestudies

Microsoft Online ServicesCustomer Solution Case Study

Charitable Organisation Uses Cloud Computing to Improve Communication and Collaboration

Productivity Online Standard Suite—Microsoft Exchange Online, Microsoft SharePoint Online, Microsoft Office Communications Online, and Microsoft Office Live Meeting. These tools are delivered online and do not require Caritas to carry out maintenance of equipment, management of the system, or security. Users access the tools they need with a simple online sign on. The suite of online services supports communications and simplifies access to up-to-date versions of documents, improving organisational efficiency and making it easier for Caritas branches to carry out their charitable activities.

For Caritas, an important part of the solution is a comprehensive email system including shared calendars. With Exchange Online, members of the organisation have access to email from any location, using any device connected to the internet. Michał Mierzejewski, Product Manager at eBusiness.pl, says: “The calendars make communicating important information—for example, the start of new projects or a visit from the bishop—easier and faster.” As a result, all of the members, even those in the most distant locations, are kept up to date about what’s happening in Caritas throughout the Archdiocese.

BenefitsBusiness Productivity Online Standard Suite has changed the way Caritas Gniezno functions. It is no longer necessary to inform all interested parties in the organisation about every amendment made to a document. When Caritas takes part in a project tender, the director has immediate access to all related documents. Document sharing simplifies distribution of information about new legislation and amendments to existing laws.

Easy access to documents. By using SharePoint Online services, Caritas created a secure online space where members of the organisation can share the documents required each time a project application is submitted. Now, when one of the branches needs an up-to-date registration document, it logs on to the system for immediate access. “Everything that’s needed—contract provisions, reports, and cost estimates—is available,” says Dziel.

More efficient meetings. Occasionally, facilities managers meet to discuss issues. “Organising meetings is not easy because of the various responsibilities people have and the lack of access to individual diaries,” says Dziel. “Using the Live Meeting tool, Caritas can organise virtual conferences. Now it’s easy to plan meetings with the participation of all the managers, and even easier to organise teleconferences, which cut down on time spent travelling.”

Improved communication. “It would be difficult to overstate the value of a comprehensive email service. This is a fundamental tool for every type of activity. Using the services without having to maintain the hardware and worry about updating software is very helpful,” says Dziel.

Reduced costs. Live Meeting tools make it possible to use available resources better and make decisions faster, from multiple locations. Dziel says: “The Gniezno Archdiocese is only one of the Caritas locations so the cost is relatively small. However, we’re testing it here to roll out to the other locations all over the country. Increasing efficiency and cutting costs throughout the organisation will result in significant savings. In short, we’ll be able to use our funds to do more good.”

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published March 2011