The Glow Online Productivity Suite procurement exercise has recently concluded.
Early consultation with a range of stakeholders identified two key elements for the procurement strategy; namely that new contracts would be longer in nature and that an element of choice would be desirable.
As a result of the procurement exercise, contracts have been awarded to Microsoft for continued availability of the O365 suite of services and, for the first time, to Google for their G Suite for Education products. Both the products will offer communication, collaboration and creation tools for use by teachers and learners.
Each contract will commence in September 2017 and run for an initial term of 5 years with opportunities to extend up to a maximum of 10 years. We hope that this provides the reassurance about continued provision of online productivity tools in Glow.
Microsoft
For O365, this means that the successful Glow O365 tenancy will continue for the foreseeable future.
No transition will be required and learners and teachers can therefore continue to use the services with full confidence of continuity of provision.
Ian Fordham, Director of Education, Microsoft UK says “We are delighted that Education Scotland has awarded Microsoft a further five years of the Glow contract. This new contract is validation of the past five years where we have provided cutting edge technology such as Office 365 to thousands of schools via the glow platform. We look forward to continuing to support the fantastic work done by teachers and students across Scotland, who deliver excellence in learning and teaching every day.”
For the first time, and in response to feedback from users, we have also awarded a contract to Google for provision of their G Suite for Education products. The G Suite for Education products will be incorporated into Glow and further details will be communicated over the coming months. We will also be consulting with stakeholders on the best way to implement the Google services into Glow.
Google stated;
“More than 70 million students, teachers and administrators around the world rely on G Suite for Education to learn and work together. Google believes that Schools, in partnership with their Local Authority, should decide which digital tools are best suited to their needs. The expanded options now available to educators via Glow will help students and educators to work together seamlessly, while fostering a love of learning amongst students and encourage their curiosity.”
