“We believe that the saving by deploying Microsoft Lync 2010 instead of buying a new PABX will be around £2 million over five years.” Adrian Wells, Assistant Director of IT Infrastructure, The Open University The Open University (OU)—which specialises in distance learning —is the biggest university in the United Kingdom (U.K.). It needed to reduce costs and improve communication among its 5,000 office-based academic and administrative staff, giving them access to features such as instant messaging and presence awareness. The OU is deploying Microsoft Lync 2010, which will save the University around £2 million over the next five years, as well as helping to cut travel and subsistence costs. Business Needs The OU is a global pioneer in modern distance learning, having served the educational needs of 1.78 million people since its foundation in 1969. Based in Milton Keynes, the University employs 3,500 academic and administrative staff at its headquarters, with another 1,500 at national and regional centres across the U.K. Clear and efficient communication is critical for the University to maintain high- quality services to its 250,000 students. But with its existing private automatic branch exchange (PABX) scheduled for renewal or replacement at the end of 2012, the OU wanted to explore options that had the potential to offer benefits to staff, at the same time as reducing costs and the University’s carbon footprint. Adrian Wells, Assistant Director of IT Infrastructure at The Open University, says: “The OU wanted to move towards an IP- based system for telephony rather than an upgraded version of what was already in place. However, some products required a Power-over-Ethernet system, but with the OU green agenda this wasn’t a realistic choice because of energy consumption. Another option was to look at an integrated unified communications system.” A unified communications platform was potentially a valuable tool for a distributed workforce spread across different regions in cross-functional teams, and with many individuals working from home. Wells says: “Geography is less relevant in the digital age, and a unified communications solution would reduce communications barriers, help fulfil the OU’s commitment to environmental sustainability, and reduce costs. We were interested in functions such as instant messaging, desktop sharing, presence awareness, and integrated email.” Solution The OU uses a lot of Microsoft technology, and with unified communications included in the Microsoft Campus Agreement for low-cost volume licensing of software, choosing Microsoft was a cost-effective decision. In 2009, the OU tested Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, but decided to wait until 2011 to deploy Microsoft Lync 2010. The rollout of Lync 2010 began with instant messaging and presence awareness, moving on to full enterprise telephony for the whole campus, and national and regional centres. Its aim is to replace the existing system completely. Wells says: “The additional features in Lync 2010 closed the gaps in our communications system, especially with Customer: The Open University Web Site: www.open.ac.uk Customer Size: 5,000 Country or Region: United Kingdom Industry: Education—Higher education institutions Customer Profile With more than 250,000 students currently enrolled, The Open University— founded in 1969 and based in Milton Keynes in the United Kingdom—is recognised as a world leader in modern distance learning. Software and Services Microsoft Office − Microsoft Lync 2010 − Microsoft Lync for Mac 2011 − Microsoft Office 2010 − Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 For more information about other Microsoft customer successes, please visit: www.microsoft.com/casestudies Microsoft Lync Customer Solution Case Study Open University Makes Major Saving over Five Years with Unified Communications