Cisco Webex Transforms State Legislature Operations

Challenge

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a state legislature was not able to meet and hold in-person sessions, stalling some of its initiatives and hindering its ability to operate the state government effectively. The legislature needed a solution that would allow the sessions to reconvene in January 2021 while keeping the staff and the general public safe.

Understanding the legislature's challenges, WWT delivered a face-to-face demo of a full digital workspace solution through Cisco and won the RFP (request for proposal) bid. The next step was to get started with the implementation — quickly.   

Solution

Through our partnership with Cisco, we were able to secure all the hardware needed for this project on time — a difficult task given the global hardware shortage. We then partnered with Coltrane Systems for its audio/visual expertise to help with the physical implementation of all the room kits, codecs, cabling, cameras and sound systems.

From a software perspective, we installed Cisco Webex, which included Webex Control Hub for management and analytics, and made sure the state capitol building had the calendar and directory integrations needed to schedule meetings through Microsoft Outlook.

When it came to using the technologies, our Adoption Services team and remote subject matter experts were on standby to troubleshoot immediate issues and user obstacles. The team also provided how-to guides and hosted onsite and virtual training sessions to help the committee members, assistants and IT staff feel comfortable using Webex.

Outcome 

From the beginning of January 2021 to the end of May 2021, the legislature hosted roughly 2,543 meetings, totaling 140,535 minutes, with 23,486 participants overall. 

Cisco Webex was an ideal solution for the state legislature as it provided the flexibility and stability needed to keep the state government operating in a virtual environment. The new technology infrastructure and software allow the legislature to meet no matter where members are located and provide the public with virtual access to participate and follow conversations through live streaming and closed captioning — significantly improving the interaction and transparency level between the government and general public.  

Webex's ease of use has also empowered the committee staff and reduced technical support calls, allowing the IT team to focus on more critical projects. 

Because of our partnership with Cisco and Coltrane Systems and our teams' expertise, the state legislature is now able to continue conducting government business and serve the public without interruptions.