Parkwind avoids MS Teams sprawl thanks to the Team Governance App

Photo credits: Vedran Horvat and Menno Mulder

Parkwind relies on AXI for the implementation of the Team Governance App and the development of its Microsoft 365 applications

Parkwind, specializing in the development and production of offshore wind energy, is increasingly using MS Teams. Convinced that good governance on this platform is crucial for maintaining manageability, they proactively opted to use AXI's Team Governance App. This has certainly paid off. Today, Parkwind enjoys a manageable IT workspace and environment without excessive growth. Moreover, they saw AXI as a suitable IT partner for the development of several additional applications, such as an application for tracking lessons learned and a new Document Management System (DMS). Talk about a successful collaboration.

Parkwind wins over with wind energy

Parkwind N.V. is a Belgian international company, founded in 2012, that makes offshore wind energy available. They own 201 turbines with a capacity of approximately 771 megawatts. They provide 800,000 families with energy every year, thus contributing daily to a sustainable future.

Preventing Sprawl and Keeping MS Teams Manageable

In 2020, Parkwind employed approximately 115 people. All of them were already working with Microsoft 365. SharePoint, for example, was used as a Document Management System and Skype for Business as an (internal) communication tool. Several early adopters within the company had also created a few teams in MS Teams for collaboration. The IT team anticipated that MS Teams would be used more frequently and wanted to anticipate this. "It happened quickly. New teams (with channels) were created for every small or large collaboration, teams without an owner, etc. We wanted to prevent sprawl and keep MS Teams manageable in accordance with our information management guidelines," says Helmoed Van Cauwenberge, Information Coordinator & Data Protection Officer at Parkwind. Therefore, the organization chose to collaborate with AXI in 2020.

Implementation of AXI's Team Governance App

After a thorough analysis of Parkwind's working methods and a definition of its needs and requirements, the Team Governance Application was implemented. The tool prevents team overgrowth by generating templates when creating a team, triggering an underlying approval process (whether automatic or not). Moreover, the tool provides a clear overview of the number of teams in an organization and which teams are shared with external parties, are dormant, or have no owner. In short, it was the solution Parkwind was looking for. After implementation, AXI organized training on using the app, and support was provided in case of issues or ambiguities.

Even before we implemented Teams in 2021, we discussed the application's governance with our IT team," explains Katja Van Remoortere, IT Services Manager at Parkwind. "This governance is a combination of processes and systems that should lead to efficient access rights management, operational efficiency for our users, and a controlled way to store and share company data. With AXI's support, we've arrived at a solution that provides a streamlined framework for both our IT staff and our users."

Structured Collaboration

Meanwhile, the collaboration between AXI and Parkwind has grown into a sustainable, proactive relationship. Parkwind relies on AXI for both M365 consultancy and second-line support. "This comprehensive AXI 365 agreement allows Parkwind to continuously rely on M365 consultants and system engineers," says Nicolas De Zutter, M365 Consultant at AXI.

And it doesn't stop there. AXI also supports Parkwind with, among other things, the development of new applications through custom or low-code development, the automation of time-consuming and repetitive processes (Power Automate), and proactively informing them about M365 developments.

Two Microsoft 365 applications in the spotlight

AXI developed an application to better track lessons learned. This strategic application allows Parkwind to centrally manage knowledge and optimally utilize it for new projects.

"The expertise, proactiveness, and original perspective of the AXI consultants make our collaboration a success. AXI succeeds in capturing our ideas and translating them into an IT tool. That's why we look forward to continuing to work with partners like AXI in the future," says Helmoed Van Cauwenberge, Information Coordinator & Data Protection Officer at Parkwind.

Parkwind will use the DMS with lifecycle management features to review and approve ISO business documents that require official review or approval by various internal roles. This includes QA, HSSE documents, and templates.

"Parkwind ensures we are challenged and stay sharp. We are always looking for the best possible solutions for their needs," says Nicolas De Zutter. When Parkwind wanted to develop a new DMS to better and proactively manage policy documents such as policies and procedures, they revisited the market to gain an objective understanding of which type of DMS (off-the-shelf, custom, etc.) would be most suitable. "They didn't automatically choose SharePoint or a Power Platform solution because AXI was their preferred M365 partner. Ultimately, AXI emerged as the winner in terms of both solution and partner."