Shared Services Connected Limited (SSCL) is a leader in critical business support services for the largest government departments and agencies, the Ministry of Defence, Police and CITB across the UK.
After a year of dynamic change and growth — including celebrating its 10th birthday, SSCL is positioned to continue its transformative journey into 2024. A key driver in our futureproofing of service delivery and enhancing our offers to clients is the emergence of hyperautomation that includes AI and automation tools.
The use of this new technology builds on transformation projects that are already delivering more efficient and reliable services to customers. This year, we have designed and deployed multiple award-winning projects that have effectively revolutionised how organisations process information, deliver services and support their own customers.
From implementing digital transformative solutions to streamlining workflows, we continually improve our service delivery and optimise resource allocation for both our business and our clients.
The heart of transformation is new technology
We recognise that omnichannel and speed-to-resolution are key in today’s hyper-connected world and delivering exceptional customer service is paramount. Customers are keen to choose how they interact with our teams and solutions to get the answers they need fast. SSCL specialises in moving time-consuming manual processes to automated and intuitive solutions to improve accuracy, efficiency and compliance.
Throughout 2023, SSCL delivered an award-winning digitisation project. A perfect example of collaboratively working with our clients throughout the process, we used our own team’s transformational knowledge and harnessed clients’ feedback. To date, over 260,000 digital forms have been processed following the introduction of our digital solution, and for context this is approximately 5,000 forms processed per week — totalling over £3bn in payments.
Since its deployment, the solution has had profound transformational success; it has revolutionised how we process forms and how our clients process their information too. The new solution’s success has given clients the confidence to promote the use of digital forms with their internal users and encourage critical business and cultural change.
A holistic approach
We deliver automation, robotics, vetting and artificial intelligence services to our clients. We know that client expectations, business challenges and technology are ever-changing. That’s why we continually optimise the use of innovation and technology in our services.
SSCL recognises that to build on the success of the last 12 months, we must continue to harness the potentials of hyperautomation and that the future of business processing lies in new technology, new ways of working and transformation.
By adopting and embracing new platforms that offer customers the opportunity to make a significant shift in the way businesses operate, SSCL is helping clients to meet their service demands, plot their next steps and successfully deliver the public services for today and tomorrow.
Both SSCL and our parent company, Sopra Steria, are continuing to make significant investments in the latest technologies and industry partnerships, which include AI and Robotic Process Automation (RPA).
Investing in Hyperautomation for the future
SSCL’s investment in automation solutions has had a positive impact on how we deliver our services, but what about the future?
There are elements of shared services that continue to be manual. We understand that continuous improvement goes hand-in-hand with growth and recognise that hyperautomation will be supported by new technologies in this ever-evolving, hyper-connected world.
Enhancements, including AI, are providing an evolution in user experience and SSCL’s development of business transformation programmes delivers an enhanced user experience for business critical (back-office) services. These advancements are helping to drive productivity of UK civil servants, and ultimately deliver operational savings.
Security as standard
We have over 10 years’ experience working with a wide range of government clients and understand the need for confidentiality in all areas of our business. AI has the potential to revolutionise how we work, enrich our interactions with technology and create new opportunities for our colleagues.
However, new technology can pose new threats, and as with all our systems we continually assess for security risks. SSCL’s investment into automation and AI-enabled technology will employ a robust programme to ensure our security measures are of the highest standard and good practice is in place throughout every touchpoint within our organisation.
Keeping it human
It’s not just technology that SSCL is investing in — it’s people too. At SSCL, our people play a key role in delivering our strategy for our clients — they are the DNA of our organisation. We consider them a fundamental investment to building a more robust and dynamic business for the future.
Our 3,100-strong team of highly skilled experts possess a unique blend of public and private sector experience and are well-placed to understand our clients’ needs and priorities. By using automation for some parts of the process, our services maximise human impact in the places it matters most. That includes being the decision-maker when using AI tools.
Our people touch the lives of 550,000 public sector workers across the UK every year and their knowledge and commitment has helped save taxpayers over £750 million to date. As we continue to futureproof our organisation, we look at enhancing all aspects of the business — from the technology we use to the people we recruit.
SSCL empowers our colleagues to benefit from the value new technologies bring; meaning our customers have a more seamless and personalised customer experience:
Our groupwide journey has started with training offered in a multitude of areas and a colleague development hub.
SSCL has a working environment where colleagues are involved in decisions that affect them and feel trusted and supported when creating suggestions and ideas.
Everybody has a part to play and a say in how SSCL meets its future demands.
Our customer’s needs are constantly developing, and we are striving to enhance our product offer to exceed expectations and meet demand. We recognise that to deliver on these demands there needs to be considerable investment in more advanced AI and conversational analytics.
Leveraging the power of hyperautomation, SSCL and Sopra Steria are delving into data analysis to uncover valuable insights that empower businesses to make more informed decisions. We are well-positioned to assist clients in not only succeeding but exceeding!
As AI continues to shake up the business landscape, Sopra Steria and SSCL are embracing the transformation and leading the way for the future, ensuring they continue to be successful for their customers in this evolving digital landscape.