Albron

Albron implements Cloud Single Sign-On for 1,000 locations and 4,500 employees

Albron is the largest independent caterer in the Netherlands, known among other things for providing catering services to the Holland Heineken House during the Olympic Games in Beijing, Vancouver and London. Together with its approximately 3,000 employees, Albron creates, develops and operates food concepts from 800 locations for leisure, at work, in healthcare and in education. With employees frequently moving between locations, the challenge of keeping track of ten different websites each requiring unique logins became apparent. This led to a strong organisational desire for a Single Sign-On (SSO) system, a topic that had been high on the agenda in management meetings for quite some time.

Paul Vermeer, systems administrator at Albron: “We want to keep it simple. Our location-based employees are not particularly tech-savvy. Supplier websites and web shops are often difficult to log into. We realised early on that developing individual connections with all these entities was not the way forward.” Given that many supplier sites and small IT-equipped web shops lack SSO functionality, finding a solution that provided SSO access without imposing complex technical projects on suppliers was crucial. “We had been on the hunt for such a solution for a while. It’s important that the tool we choose supports us without complicating things for our suppliers,” Vermeer notes. With the roll-out of the HelloID SSO portal, Albron’s staff can now access various sites without the need for separate logins, the turnaround time for orders has improved, and the frustrations at the various locations have been removed.

Fewer calls to the service desk

Albron’s IT department consists of 25 staff members, three of which are responsible for first-line support. Password reset requests, especially during holiday periods, used to flood the helpdesk. Paul Vermeer explains: “The service desk often had to contact various suppliers to reset passwords, which could take some time.” With the introduction of HelloID, logging into different applications is now decentralised. Initially, the location manager or supervisor receives login details from the supplier, enters this information, and afterward, there is no further need to address it. The number of calls to the service desk has significantly decreased since implementing HelloID. “Central management is no longer necessary. Each location now has a manager who can provide immediate assistance. Managers recognised a solution was necessary. Now, employees at the locations just have to press the supplier’s button to get what they need,” Vermeer adds.

Outcome

Albron is extremely satisfied with the outcome of the HelloID implementation and the collaboration with Tools4ever. Paul Vermeer says: “We kicked off with a one-month proof of concept. After that month, we decided to switch to the live environment. We went from 10 locations to 700 locations within one week.” During the extensive selection process, having a reliable partner was at the top of the list. “At Tools4ever, updates are announced in advance, along with the potential impact an update could have. This transparency is greatly appreciated. Furthermore, the response times are impressive. Any queries we have are promptly addressed. The initial setup was straightforward, with HelloID’s single sign-on capability seamlessly integrating our various sites. The implementation was tailored to meet Albron’s specific needs and preferences.” Besides reliability, scalability was very important. Albron added 180 locations without any problems. They all could start using HelloID right away.

Five tips

Albron had been looking for a solution for the multitude of websites requiring separate logins for some time. To assist other organisations in this selection process, Albron has five tips for finding the right solution and partner.
Five tips for selecting an SSO solution:
1. Choose a reliable partner.
2. Consider the scalability of the solution.
3. Ease of use should be a top priority.
4. Opt for a simple installation.
5. Select a solution that is straightforward to manage and maintain.