Data is the binder for optimal collaboration

Author: Emile Stam @OpenLine

Author: Antoine Stelma @Connected Data Group

In today’s rapidly evolving technological landscape, the ability to manage and leverage data effectively is crucial for businesses across various sectors. Companies are increasingly seeking comprehensive solutions that not only address their data needs but also integrate seamlessly with their existing infrastructure.

This is where strategic partnerships come into play, enabling organisations to combine their strengths and deliver enhanced value to their clients. One of these successful collaborations is between Quistor and Open Line, a partnership that has allowed both companies to offer a complete approach to their clients, particularly those in local government, manufacturing, and logistics industries.

Moreover, in 2022, Open Line acquired Connected Data Group after the two companies had worked together extensively in previous years. Open Line specialises in managed cloud services, while Connected Data Group focuses on data. This turned out to be a perfect combination, resulting in a joint venture: Connected Data Cloud. This is ideal for companies that want to work more data-driven but wish to be relieved of the burden of managing the infrastructure and data architecture, explain Emile Stam and Antoine Stelma.

Emile Stam is the CCO of Open Line. “We are a managed cloud service provider. We offer as-a-service solutions that unburden customers to the maximum extent.” The company has about 330 employees and more than a hundred customers, mainly healthcare organisations, local governments, water boards, social housing providers, and companies in logistics and industry. Stam says, “We focus on management and technical support and provide integrations that suit the customer. In almost all cases, these are hybrid cloud solutions. With our customer teams, we are close to customers and always have an eye for the moments that are most important to them. Think, for example, of Black Friday for a logistics customer, but also Memorial Day for a municipality. Those are moments when everything has to be right and there should be no digital surprises.”

Logical Combination

Antoine Stelma co-founded Connected Data Group with Erik Fransen in 2017. The company has been part of Open Line since 2022, but the collaboration goes back further, Stelma says. “It all started with a data analytics platform at a large hospital in Utrecht. We excel at designing data architecture and analytics applications, but you also need a partner who ensures such a platform can perform. That’s how we got to know Open Line. That first project was immediately very successful, and many more followed. In healthcare, but also in very different sectors. We have customers such as housing corporation Woonbron and ship pump manufacturer Marflex. Together with Open Line, we can now truly provide customers with a complete service.”

Connected Data Group still uses its name, with the suffix “an Open Line company”. It has several propositions, Stelma explains. "The first is ‘Grip on Data.’ In companies, we bring together all kinds of data. We use DAMA International’s data management framework, which ensures that clients can organise and use data in the right way much faster and with higher quality. This enables them to work in a data-driven manner. The second proposition is ‘Insight in Data’. How do you get added value from data? Think about combining B2B and B2C data. By cleverly linking data and applying powerful algorithms, you can optimise processes.

We also make our customers ‘Skilled with Data’ through our Connected Data Academy, which is actually where the roots of our company lie. We see customers as sparring partners, and it is important that you can speak the same language. DAMA’s framework plays a major role in this. In recent years, we have successfully put the DAMA Certified Data Management Professional certification on the map in the Netherlands and trained and certified hundreds of data professionals to their satisfaction." You can create executive-style reports with Pro Reports and even schedule these reports and distribute them via email or save them to a network location.

Simpler, Faster, More Accessible, and Predictable

Open Line’s acquisition of Connected Data Group now has a concrete result: the Connected Data Cloud. “That’s our joint baby,” laughs Stam. Stelma adds, “We deliver a platform that now runs in Open Line’s private cloud, but can also run in various public clouds. Within the Connected Data Cloud, we offer tools for virtual data management. It helps you get a grip on your data. An important part of that is data virtualisation. With this, you no longer need to collect data centrally. Using an intelligent model, you can retrieve it from different places at the moment you need it. That gives more flexibility. In addition, the Connected Data Cloud has a multifunctional database at its heart to store and process all kinds of data, including the Data Vault method to record data in a uniform and auditable way for a longer period. This provides optimal support for data-driven work. Naturally, we also offer powerful solutions for analysing the data, from standard reports to machine learning and artificial intelligence.”

Connected Data Cloud is offered as a service. Support is an important part of that service. Stelma explains, “Our specialised service desk can, if the customer wants, provide support 24/7. We can also offer that as a managed service. Is someone going on holiday or leaving the organisation? Then we can accommodate that and ensure continuity. I notice that many customers keep the functional people on staff but outsource the data collection completely. In addition, with the as-a-service variant, we ensure that the customer does not have to build and set up their infrastructure, which is often a hefty investment anyway.”

Stam emphasises how important the acquisition of Connected Data Group is for Open Line. “Data is at the basis of AI and many other innovations. From customers, we get more and more questions about dealing with data. It is difficult for them to still see the wood for the trees. But they need to be able to make the right data decisions quickly. Connected Data Group cleverly finds the path through that forest. Our combination offers many advantages, especially for customers. Someone who works in healthcare, for example, wants to work on healthcare issues, not on connecting data sources and creating reports. But that person does want to do something with data. For example, what can you learn from medication use? With the Connected Data Cloud, we make all that simpler, faster, more accessible, and predictable.”

Well Protected

Security is an important component of this. Stelma: “Data becomes an asset and that asset must, of course, be well protected. Open Line is very knowledgeable about security, with the right certifications. And it has its own SOC (Security Operations Centre) and NOC (Network Operations Centre) in Valencia. Down to the desktop level, we can determine who is allowed to see what and under what circumstances. With the help of AI, we can quickly see if there are any discrepancies in that.”

AI also brings security challenges, Stam adds: “With the use of AI, such as Copilot, security and data governance have become even more important. Many companies store all their data, but if you then use that to train your AI models, it has little value. Data quality has to be right. Large companies employ large teams of data analysts to do that, but the mid-market does not have that luxury. That’s where Connected Data Cloud helps.”

The combined story of Open Line and Connected Data Group is catching on, Stam says. “We see a strongly increasing demand for data-driven work and data-driven care. Data is ultimately the binder for optimal collaboration.”

About OpenLine

Openline is a long-term partner of Quistor in terms of Cloud Infrastructure solutions and Technical Managed services (Microsoft/VMWare). Openline and Quistor have a successful partnership to help mutual clients that are mainly active in local government (municipalities, water councils), manufacturing, and the logistics industry. These clients use multiple in-house technology stacks (MSFT & Oracle) to support their daily operations.

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