A collaborative platform to facilitate and stimulate community interactions
Created over 30 years ago, CoTer Numérique is an association bringing together IT decision-makers from French local authorities. It aims to address issues related to digital technology and information systems and to share best practices, drawing on the experience of a dynamic network. Its members include cities, communities (urban, metropolitan, and cities), inter-cities federations, cities groups, departmental councils, and regional councils.
Challenge
Before setting up a collaborative platform, CoTer Numérique had no dedicated tool for structuring exchanges within its community. Questions were simply sent by email via mailing lists, which made management complex and tedious, particularly when it came to processing member feedback.
The association wanted to modernize its processes by adopting an interactive platform that would encourage spontaneous exchanges and facilitate knowledge and best practices sharing among its members.
Why eXo?
The choice of eXo was obvious for several reasons:
Intuitive ergonomics: The tool had to be accessible to everyone and easy to use without prior training, in order to ensure quick adoption by the community.
Quick implementation: The association was looking for a ready-to-use tool that could be deployed quickly.
Sovereignty and security: Data protection is a priority for local authorities, and eXo Platform provides solid guarantees as a sovereign solution.
Used by several local authorities: Already adopted by several local authorities, the solution provided reassurance thanks to its references and positive feedback.
Mobility: The association wanted a mobile application so that members could access information outside of office hours.
Affordable cost: The plug-and-play solution was very affordable for the association, and only a few days of support were needed to set up the project, which was an additional advantage in the decision-making process.
The impact
The project kicked off with a presentation meeting for the CoTer Numérique board. This first step made it possible to showcase the solution’s potential, define requirements, and identify the spaces to be created on the platform.
Today, members can access a home page and dedicated spaces based on their type of local authority: some for the IT departments of departments and regions, others for those of cities and EPCIs (public inter-municipality cooperation establishments). An onboarding space, co-built with the eXo team, also provides support for new users and helps them get started with the tool — without the need for any training.
The platform was officially launched at the beginning of the year during a hybrid event (on-site and via videoconference). It received a very enthusiastic welcome, and initial feedback confirms that it fully meets the expectations of local authorities.
Currently, all 800 members of CoTer Numérique have access to the platform. It is highly active, with between 90 and 100 connections per day. Peak connections and lively interactions are particularly observed at lunchtime — a clear sign that the tool has naturally become part of members’ daily lives.
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