Reading, UK

Why trust AC?

What are the Hallmarks of a Trusted Supplier?

It’s easy for providers to reassure you with marketing speak and jargon. But there are some key elements you should really look out for.

If you’re currently on the hunt for a Consultancy or Managed Services provider, your head is probably swimming with questions. We’d imagine that trust lies at the heart of many of these queries. Can you trust a potential partner to get the job done? To protect your data? To work respectfully with your stakeholders?

We call them the hallmarks of trust - signifiers of expertise, of quality and of integrity. Some are obvious, and some are a little more niche, but they all help to distinguish reputable and trustworthy suppliers from the crowd.

Information security & data protection credentials

With prominent data leaks, information mishandling and ransomware attacks now a near constant presence in our news cycles, we have to start with information security.

ISO 27001

All suppliers should have been awarded (or, at the very least be working towards) accreditations like ISO 27001. Recognised as the international standard for information security, the ISO/IEC 27001 certification demonstrates that a provider has a robust, effective and continually improving ISMS (information security management system) in place. Here at AC, we’re pleased to share that we have recently been awarded our ISO 27001 certification, which is a testament to our deeply embedded commitment to information security.

Cyber Essentials Plus

Cyber Essentials is a Government-backed scheme which demonstrates an organisation's proactive approach to protecting against and preventing cyber attacks. Cyber Essentials Plus is a more rigorous assessment of an organisation’s ability to combat cyber security threats. Cementing our position as a highly committed and reputable provider in this regard, Automation Consultants has been awarded the Cyber Essentials Plus certification.

We hold the following accreditations

Industry certifications

This is going to be more specific to a consultancy's area of expertise. For us, for example, we specialise in Atlassian products, so a hallmark of our quality is Atlassian-specific accreditations.

Depending on your partner’s industry and area, look for relevant specializations.

Here at AC, we’ve received Atlassian's Cloud Specialization badge. We’re also a Platinum Solution Partner, and were recognised as a Partner of the Year finalist in 2022. Together, these accreditations speak to our expertise and experience within the Atlassian ecosystem.

It can also help to look at your potential consultancy provider’s place within the wider partner environment. For example, we’re an AWS Select Partner, and we also enjoy strategic partnerships with other complementary vendors and service providers.

A reputable provider should be able to list similar partnerships and relationships, no matter what their sector. This is a mark of a well-established, and well-regarded, supplier.

At Automation Consultants, we also provide monday.com consultancy and support, so we’re deeply proud of our position as a monday.com Gold Partner. Forging strong links and working relationships is a real hallmark of trust and quality.

We work with a wide range of different business areas

We provide a wide range of software lifecycle automation services to various government departments. We are committed to achieving efficiency savings through a range of automation techniques. These techniques include automation of requirements gathering and approval, project management, testing, builds... Read more.

The Atlassian Cloud features security controls like SAML SSO, SCIM user lifecycle management and multiple authentication policies (available with Atlassian Access), making it far easier to keep your organisation safe. The Atlassian Cloud features security controls like SAML SSO, SCIM user lifecycle management and multiple authentication policies (available with Atlassian Access), making it far easier to keep your organisation safe.

In an increasingly globalised and competitive marketplace, financial institutions are presented with significant challenges. The ability to adapt and change will be the critical factor when it comes to negotiating these hurdles and ensuring future success. We work in partnership... Read More.

Our telecoms consultancy combines business experience with operations knowledge, allowing us to assist our customers with services and products aligned to their needs. We have experience working across the complete range of applications deployed within a telecoms organisation... Read More.

The pace of change in the utilities sectors has increased rapidly in recent years. Factors such as increased competition, regulatory changes, environmental pressures and new technologies (smart meters for example) have presented significant challenges. We understand that new initiatives focussed... Read More.

Experience and expertise

You don’t need a consultancy partner to necessarily have worked with household names (although we certainly have over the years!) to demonstrate their capability and good reputation.

What you do need is for a potential partner to be happy to openly share their experiences with you. Here at AC, we can demonstrate our expertise and skills by providing customer case studies or testimonials. Now, sometimes these will need to be anonymised due to client preferences, or indeed for security reasons. But you should still be able to get a feel for an authentic and experienced consultancy, who have been able to solve similar challenges to yours, and to deliver successful outcomes.

When you’re working with a consultancy partner, it’s essential to have open communication, a shared sense of commitment to a project, and for you to have confidence in their skills and experience.

The hallmarks we’ve referenced in this post, should help to build upon your trust in a potential supplier. From information security and cyber protection certifications, to industry or product accreditations, seek out these markers of expertise and quality to ensure you can truly rely on your supplier as a safe pair of hands.

Are you considering working with AC?

if you’re considering working with our team here at Automation Consultants, it would be remiss of us not to conclude with a list of our own hallmarks…

Discover Our Case Studies

Whatever your need or requirements for monday.com training, Automation Consultants can help.