The Confederation of Schools Trusts (CST) have had rapid membership growth in the last 4 years, driving the need to evolve their digital systems to improve efficiency, increase capacity, reduce manual processes and increase member value.
CST was founded in 2018 and now has over 1,000 school trusts as members. CST members are responsible for running 6,600 schools that educate over 3 million children across England.
This rapid growth has put enormous pressure on the original system capabilities, driving the need to rapidly evolve. When looking at this digital project CST wanted to make sure that they were planning for now, as well as, anticipating future needs and therefore looked for expert help to ensure the success of this project.
‘We wanted expert support on this journey to ensure that we made the right choice for our current and future members and for our team.’
Charis Evans – Managing Director – CST Professional Development Ltd
CST interviewed several consultancies whilst looking for the right fit. They were not only looking for an expert, but an organisation that could take an independent approach and could fully understand their members’’s needs. Chrysalis Digital was successful in this process and started working with CST soon after.
We valued the knowledge, rigour, and independence that Chrysalis Digital could bring to our discovery and tender process.
Charis Evans – Managing Director
After some early discussions it was quickly established that taking a step back, identifying the ‘why’ change, with a focus on business enablement, was the key place to start. CST didn’t just want a technology supplier but one that aligned to their values and culture.
‘Ben quickly established a rapport with our team, shaping positive conversations, systematically identifying our needs, and listening deeply to concerns about change.
Charis Evans – Managing Director
Taking a methodical approach ensured that CST were completely comfortable and clear on the digital change being mapped out. They were also able to establish a phased delivery of their chosen system. A key step in this discovery process was ensuring that all staff were involved from the very start, which is key to its subsequent roll out.
The technology suppliers have been selected. Chrysalis Digital have provided a highly experienced project manager to lead the development at CST, and sit on the project steering group, ensuring that there is continuity across the initial development and deployment. The list of benefits that CST anticipate through this digital transformation touch almost all areas of the business from improving member experience and member value, to increasing capacity and insight, to enhancing job satisfaction and opportunities for professional development across the team, , through to enhancing financial sustainability in the longer term..
The best thing about our experience with Chrysalis Digital was not that it showed us new needs, but that it brought order to our thinking and made us feel less daunted about tackling those needs that we know we have. They also delivered an excellent service for us within the original timelines and budget.
Charis Evans – Managing Director
Chrysalis Digital provides a digital transformation service designed to help build a more agile, efficient and innovative organisation. With its broad cross-sector experience Chrysalis has helped many organisations map their digital path and through careful planning and assessment, choose the right technology partners. Chrysalis Digital is 100% agnostic when recommending CMS and CRM suppliers to its clients.
For more information on understanding your member needs, please call Ben Sturt on 07469 768990 or email info@chrysalisdigital.co.uk