Microsoft 365 plays a crucial role on the Proximus shop floor. Creating documents, flexibly organising meetings and running efficient collaborations are all things for which Proximus staff rely on the Office 365 apps. But Proximus wouldn’t be Proximus if it did not set out to try and raise the bar even higher. What if the good people at Proximus were to (pro)actively make the most of the latest developments and take up new applications? Something which Proximus management had been wondering about. They found the answer in Xylos and our personalised Digital Coaching service.
Proximus Talent & Learning Manager Magali Vekemans, working in tandem with HR Assistant Ann Rongy and the Digital Coaches, was responsible for a story that turned into a shining success.
Digital Coaches: requesting first aid with Microsoft 365
At Proximus, the Digital Coaches were renamed as: ‘Dr Digitals’. After all doctors are helpful experts in their field. Courtesy of their know-how of Microsoft 365 applications, the on-call doctors not only introduce Proximus workers to useful tools, they also teach them how to use them to efficient effect. How? Through workshops, inspiration sessions, coaching tracks as well as a comprehensive offering of training courses provided by Proximus. To complete the circle, Proximus also decided on OASE, Xylos’ digital always-on adoption platform, which offers over 1,000 videos as well as animations, tips and webinars on Microsoft 365. A medicine that is going down well.
On-call Dr Digitals
Consisting of a team of four dedicated trainers, the Dr Digitals act in response to the needs of Proximus staff. They see to it everybody gets the opportunity to hone their skills with the Microsoft 365 applications whilst providing individual assistance and personal advice. The accessibility and availability of these Dr Digitals (by mail, Teams, phone, etc.) means there is a low threshold for people to ask questions and learn new things, regardless of their level of knowledge.
Every day, the Dr Digitals stage two workshops or inspiration sessions of two hours each, one in French and one in Dutch, enabling everybody to learn in their own language. The subject of the sessions runs with what is going on within the organisation: how to use your mailbox more efficiently, how to use Windows 10 more ergonomically, which app to use for calendar and task management, and so on.
Working (together) in the cloud
First, the Digital Coaches gave extensive and practice-led sessions on OneDrive to step up ‘working in the cloud’. Successfully so!
In 2020, Proximus started out with the integration of Teams, with the Dr Digitals playing a key role in the adoption process.
“We opted for a phased implementation of Teams. In close collaboration with our in-house IT Department, the Dr Digitals organised appropriate training sessions at every stage that were geared to our organisation and the needs of our people”, Magali Vekemans explains.
Digital Coach service: service tailored to your organisation
“That’s the nice thing about the Digital Coaching service. Xylos’ coaches fully integrate at Proximus, they operate within our environment using their own personal Proximus accounts. Which means all sessions are wholly geared to our systems, acting in response to the hassles and headaches our workers come up against. The coaches speak the same language as our people”, the Talent & Learning Manager goes on to say.
Alongside the regular workshops and inspiration sessions, staff can get in touch with the Dr Digitals for individual coaching and advice.
“We have seen a huge rise in the need for coaching after spending the last two years largely working from home”, Magali says. “Dr Digital was there for our people, something which was very much reflected in the evaluations! The fact that you are able to get a quick and pertinent reply to specific questions results in massive gains in terms of time and convenience.
The Dr Digitals are considerate of who you are, what you do and what you need in order to personally assist you with tips and tricks. When colleagues find out that a clear explanation about a feature in Excel such as VLOOKUP or the new XLOOKUP will save them hours of work a week, it’s worth its weight in gold!”
A great help for team leaders too
Our team leaders too soon discovered the added value of the Digital Coaches. They invited the Dr Digitals to their team meetings to head up training sessions that are entirely geared to their working situation. Need to create a new team in Teams? Not a problem! Have a quick brainstorming exchange with the Dr Digital about the structure and etiquette of communications. Next, schedule a training session for your team and you get an efficient collaborative environment where everybody feels comfortable.
Be inspired by the Digital Coach service
There is nothing to stop your organisation from calling on the Xylos digital coaches too! Contact Kristien De Geest at kristien.de.geest@xylos.com for a no-obligation appointment.
