The Client –
Established in 1936, Papanui High School is currently the fourth-largest high school in Christchurch. with an enrolment of more than 1,550 students, employing 120 teaching staff and 60 support staff. As a public school, Papanui (PHS) receives funding from the New Zealand Government but its executive and staff retain the autonomy to manage their own logistics. It’s a large, complex, fast-moving organisation with almost 2,000 stakeholders on-site every day.
Papanui High School has previously worked with BDL and Toshiba for photocopiers as well as engaging them for a full service solution.
Business Distributors Limited (BDL) is a family-owned and operated company serving businesses of all sizes in New Zealand since 1973.
Proudly partnering with Toshiba, their dealership is based in Christchurch with offices around New Zealand. They are a dynamic provider of technology solutions and aim to revolutionise the way their customers do business to increase productivity.
The Challenge
The school was struggling with a large volume of paper, a challenge compounded by the introduction of a new government payroll system. “Like many schools – they had a system in place to take care of the students, but nothing in place to take care of the staff.” says Seth Butcher, National Solutions Group Manager, Toshiba Australia.
The manual filing systems were cumbersome, time-consuming and increasingly expensive. “The challenge we faced was a mountain of paperwork really”, says Gaye Parlane Executive Officer, Operations at Papanui High School. “The administration side of things was creating a lot of paperwork, and the introduction of Novopay in 2012 created even more paperwork.”
Ben Huston, Toshiba Dealer Principal at BDL, says that Papanui approached them looking for a document management solution, but were also looking at the potential for managing other aspects of school life. They spoke about accounts payable, staff on-boarding, managing documentation, letters and more.
Servicing the payroll and movements of almost 200 employees was a “logistical nightmare”, says Ben, creating inefficiencies and eating into the time required to support the day-to-day running of the school.
The Solution
Papanui had been with their previous supplier for more than two decades but having worked with BDL and Toshiba placing photocopiers in the school, Gaye says that she didn’t hesitate to use them again.
“It was important to me that when we got this particular program, that we actually trust who we go with to put that in” says Gaye.
Seth Butcher says that Toshiba and BDL began by auditing the processes surrounding staff management; focussing on recruitment, on-boarding, contract
management, and salaries.
“Tackling the paper-based processes was key, so we put in a workflow solution with document management that digitises the process from start to finish” says Seth.
The school eventually implemented a full Toshiba One solution incorporating Multi-Function Devices, PaperCut software (enabling printing to anywhere within the school), digital signage for noticeboards throughout the campus, and most recently a full document management and workflow software system.
“They came to us with a specific problem, asked if we could help, and loved that everything could be managed from a central location,” says Ben Huston. “They were blown away by the time savings”.
The Result
Since implementing these solutions, the school has remained in regular contact with BDL and Toshiba. “We’ve become a trusted advisor. It’s an ongoing
relationship” explains Ben.
Happy with the progress that’s already been made, the school are enjoying the time and cost savings that Toshiba has been able to deliver.
Jeff Smith, Principal says that “the paper war that normally hounds a school has started to be eliminated…we’re really pleased with how it’s working”.
The addition of the document management system since the initial solution was deployed speaks to a happy client who is engaged and satisfied with their service so far, and a provider who is in tune with the individual needs of their customer. As Ben says, it’s an ongoing relationship.
Papanui High School are looking into further developing their systems with BDL and Toshiba, emboldened by the success they’ve already had with a trusted supplier.
An automatic accounts payable system, student management systems, and telephony and voice solutions are all currently being discussed for future implementation.
BDL and Toshiba also sponsor Papanui High School’s major prize giving at the end of each year, which Principal Jeff Smith describes as a “fantastic bonus for us”. The prizes are awarded in recognition to some of the school’s top-achieving students, but also those who just work hard.
Asked if BDL and Toshiba will still be working hard together in 20 years, Ben Huston is adamant: “Absolutely!”
