Why are we implementing Office 365 and issuing Scouts NSW email addresses?
As a crucial initiative within the Scouts NSW Strategic Plan 2019-22, the issuing of Scouts NSW email addresses, along with Scouts NSW versions of Microsoft Office 365 Online E1 (Non Profit) licenses is an essential step forward for Scouts NSW in meeting our organisation-wide responsibilities and compliance obligations in relation to law and legislation for Child Protection and information and data privacy controls and security. This is a vital de-risking initiative of the Scouts NSW organisation and its members, through putting systems, processes, and protocols in place using a number of integrated technology solutions as facilitators to support meeting our broad ranging moral, ethical, and legal obligations. This significantly includes the very public commitment by Scouts NSW to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse that Scouts NSW would adopt and implement all of the commission’s recommendations, a number of which are directly related to the centralised control, management and security of Scouts NSW information and data.
What is being rolled out?
Scouts NSW is rolling out Scouts NSW email addresses to all adult members with defined official appointments along with the Scouts NSW version of Microsoft Office 365 Online E1 (Non Profit), which is a completely cloud-based suite of tools that are totally online-based (not accessed via a desktop).
Because it is cloud-based (online), Scouts NSW members can access their Scouts NSW email account and other Office 365 Online tools on any device, at any time, from any location simply via a web browser such as Google Chrome, Internet Explorer (Edge), etc.
When members activate their Scouts NSW Office 365 email address, this will become the primary email address Scouts NSW uses to communicate with members instead of their current email address (e.g. Gmail, Hotmail, or other account). Please note: a non-Scouts email address will still be required as a back-up address for password resets.
What has been achieved so far?
From Monday 21 October we began rolling out, region by region, Scouts NSW email addresses, along with the Scouts NSW version of Microsoft Office 365 Online E1 (Non Profit) to adult members holding key leadership appointments as designated within Scoutlink.
To date we have rolled out 1675 email addresses across all Regions to:
- Group Leaders/Leaders in Charge
- Group Secretary
- Group Treasurer
- Group Chairperson
- All official Region and District appointments that don’t currently have Scouts NSW email addresses such as DRCs, DCs, etc.
- District Commissioners (Sections)
- Region Commissioners (Sections)
- Rover Crew Leaders
We have approximately 2600 email addresses left to rollout to beginning 4 December:
- Section Leaders
- Fellowships
Next steps?
- ACTIVATE your Scouts email address – check your current email account for your activation message from Scouts NSW. Click on the link to set up your password.
- The project team are now working on the SharePoint structure for the entire organisation. This will be rolled out early in the New Year. More detailed information will follow to Regions about this in the coming weeks.
Help?
We know there are many questions surrounding this new technology – we have compiled online help guides, FAQ’s and other resources which are located here.
For additional assistance after looking at the online help materials, members can contact [email protected].
