The deployment process was very easy, and with this quality of technology free of cost, it was a simple choice to go Google.

Charlie Calimlim, Chief, Information and Publication Division

Challenge

The Commission for Higher Education (CHED) in the Philippines found it challenging to support its 2,247 institutions due to an inadequate internal communication system, including poor security and spam protection and an unreliably functioning server. Employees increasingly turned to personal email addresses for greater storage and better security--but with no standard domain, communication between offices was impaired. In 2012, the CHED’s ISP shut off Internet access and the staff were unable to reach their own website. Officials recognized this as a crisis and realized the need for a well-functioning system with strong IT support.

Solution

The IT director at the University of the Philippines recommended Google Apps for Education. Because CHED is funded entirely by taxpayer money, Google Apps was an appealing prospect: it is free of charge. Plus, it offers significantly improved storage capacity, stronger security, and a user-friendly interface. All central office employees migrated to Gmail with a deployment process of only six days. Because CHED no longer had to pay to maintain its old system, funds could be allocated to supporting projects such as the e-library--an online resource that makes information freely available for students throughout the Philippines.