The effects of COVID-19 are being felt worldwide. Unfortunately, schools, small businesses, and local governments are being hit particularly hard by the pandemic and the resulting economic slowdown. Organizations everywhere are trying to enable telework for their people in order to stem the virus’ spread, but in Spain where only 3% of workers were remote in 2019, this has proved a challenging transition. Many organizations lack the infrastructure, technical expertise, or funding to enable teleworking for their employees or students.

Determined to face this challenge head-on, the International Association of Microsoft Channel Partners (IAMCP) of Spain launched an incredible new initiative titled "Todos Desde Casa", or “Everyone from Home” in English. In broad strokes, this initiative seeks to connect organizations in need of teleworking support with the people and companies who can provide it. But, in reality, this initiative is doing so much more.

The birth of the initiative

On March 12th, 2020, the president of IAMCP Spain, Michiel van Vliet, was contacted by representatives from the Microsoft partner program regarding an initiative called “Flexible Working". This program is dedicated to supporting Italian businesses during COVID-19, and its story inspired Michiel to roll out something similar in his own country. On March 13th, IAMCP Spain began work on the “Todos Desde Casa” campaign.

The core idea was to bring together demand for teleworking solutions with organizations who could supply it while leveraging their expertise to smooth the transition however possible. All participating partners are expected to donate at least four hours of consulting or training to recipient organizations, and if that isn’t feasible, they’re expected to provide something else of value such as instructor-led training or sharp discounts on hardware or software. For consistency and transparency, IAMCP Spain drafted a “Todos Desde Casa” contract for all participating organizations to sign, outlining the ethos of the initiative and the expectations of all its partners.

To become a partner in this initiative, any individual or organization can fill out the sign-up form here. Requests get reviewed daily by IAMCP leadership, and if the applicant has capabilities or offerings that match the initiative’s needed, they are sent the contract and enrolled as a partner. Later, they’re matched with an organization in need of their support. So far, more than 80 partners have been enrolled including nine public entities, four business associations, six tech communities, and numerous private volunteers with relevant expertise.

Supporting organizations in need, however they need it

So what type of support can recipient organizations expect from the “Todos Desde Casa” initiative? Unsurprisingly, it depends greatly on the organization’s specific needs.

The first step is usually ‘need identification’. In this stage, the recipient organization discusses their current situation with the partner and they work together to devise a modernization plan that will help them reach their goals and maintain business continuity.

From there, the partner helps them execute on their plan, assisting them with tasks like updating their cloud infrastructure, installing new hardware, or deploying teleworking solutions to their employees or students. These can be difficult and expensive processes for small businesses and schools, so having an expert to assist them through their transition is invaluable to recipient organizations.

The most common requests are for solutions related to cloud platforms, such as Microsoft Azure, and for collaboration and productivity tools such as Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams. Teams allows any organization, no matter their size, to transfer their daily activities to the digital world. With Teams, it’s easy to chat, collaborate, exchange files, and hold meetings—all with maximum security and privacy. In addition, Microsoft 365 productivity applications are fully integrated with Teams, meaning employees can work collaboratively on files created in Word, Excel, or PowerPoint all without leaving Teams.

This initiative has done more than just help small businesses, schools, and local governments shift to a teleworking model– it has reinforced a sense of community across Spain. The outpouring of generous support from IAMCP, Microsoft, and all the “Todos Desde Casa” partners has been incredible to witness. Times are tough, there’s no doubt about it, but by coming together and supporting one another, we will get through this.

From the bottom of our heart, we’d like to say thank you to all of the “Todos Desde Casa” partners who are helping make this initiative a reality.

If you would like to become a #todosdesdecasa partner, please fill out the sign-up form today.