Case Studies

Take a peek behind the scenes at the inner workings of Oakland as we talk through some of our landmark projects. From data strategy and governance to platform engineering, data analytics and artificial intelligence, you can find out how we have helped people with their data across various industries.

Network Rail: Revolutionising knowledge management through Generative AI

At Oakland, our collaboration with Network Rail stands as a testament to our commitment to driving innovation through technology. Working closely with our client, we embarked on a mission to tackle challenges in knowledge management and harness the potential of AI and natural language processing.

In this case study, we look back on our journey alongside Network Rail and how we effectively harnessed our expertise in data strategy, artificial intelligence (AI), and integration to deliver an effective, long-term solution.

Creating a data platform for a major UK media organisation

Evolving next generation analytics capabilities with Parcel2Go

Business intelligence reporting and intelligent forecasting for Network Rail

In recent years, Network Rail has been impacted by significant organisational, digital and cultural change.

Growing demands for greater efficiency and effectiveness have resulted in a need for more intelligent reporting and decision analytics, especially within Network Rail’s Regional Capital Delivery teams.

Adopting a devolution strategy required Network Rail to ensure that each region had the business intelligence and intelligent forecasting capabilities necessary to deliver major capital projects that gave outstanding value to the taxpayer whilst meeting stringent government guidelines.

Executing a Data Strategy for Yorkshire Water

Yorkshire Water faces similar pressures and demands as many other utilities, and has long realised that data is a core asset in helping them to deliver smarter network and customer operations.

This need to utilise their data assets to help exploit and capitalise their physical assets led them to undertake a complex, multiyear data transformation. This case study explains the vital delivery role provided by The Oakland Group in executing a data strategy across a broad set of areas within the data transformation initiative.

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Leveraging Microsoft Azure for Market Expansion and Growth

Oakland was tasked with building a cloud-based data analytics platform designed to propel Emerald into the future. This platform needed to provide comprehensive data governance and quality functionality, reconciling conflicting data from diverse sources.

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Transforming Data Governance for a Major UK Utility

Our client, a prominent water supply and treatment utility company in the UK, boasts over 2,500 employees, a customer base of 5 million and impressive annual revenue of £1 billion. Servicing one of the largest counties, their operations faced challenges stemming from a complex data environment, hindering efficient operations and decision-making.

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Improving Sustainability Reporting for Vistry Group

Vistry Group is the UK’s leading provider of affordable mixed-tenure homes. As a responsible developer, they work in partnership to deliver sustainable homes, communities, and social value, leaving a lasting legacy of places people love.

Operating across 26 regions, they build homes all over the UK through their respected brands; Bovis Homes, Linden Homes, and Countryside Homes leading their retail sales and Countryside Partnerships driving growth through their strategic partnership model.

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Setting the Standards for Responsible Data Use with the ICO’s Data Strategy

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is an independent regulator in charge of upholding the public’s information and data privacy rights. Data is core to their organisation, and they had an ambitious business strategy (ICO25) that needed underpinning with a tailored data strategy.

The ICO regulates and enforces the UK General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018, and the Freedom of Information Act 2000, so they had a unique opportunity to set the tone for responsible and innovative data use in the public sector.

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Helping a Leading Provider of IT Infrastructure Unlock Sales Growth with a 150% ROI

Our client, a leading provider of IT solutions and services to businesses and the public sector, has grown to be one of the largest IT services firms in the UK, with an ambitious vision for the future.

In the past, growth was delivered through hiring in more sales staff to drive engagement with potential customers; however, at the scale they were approaching, it was recognised that a new approach was needed. The company was looking for help to build a data analytics platform to aid the sales staff in identifying new opportunities. As a sales first business, finding ways to improve the productivity of their sales force is key to driving better margins.

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A UK Public Service Broadcaster

This UK-based media company needed to gain faster insights to enable decision-making when pulling data across its different media functions, such as understanding viewers, viewers’ engagement, monetisation, marketing, and commissioning.

Many queries relied on lengthy data engineering requests or a convoluted journey to find the right person with the right knowledge to analyse the necessary data. Those queries often resulted in different answers for similar questions due to different approaches and shadow data.

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Designing a Data Strategy and Roadmap for RAW Charging

RAW Charging provides electric vehicle charging solutions tailored to meet the specific needs of various locations and sectors across the UK.
RAW stands out for its unique approach, recognising that each location requires a distinct EV solution rather than a ‘one size fits all’ method. Many leading UK companies choose their services for this reason.

The Oakland Group were selected to help the RAW leadership team create a complete vision, strategy and roadmap for how data will transform their business in the coming years.

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Driving growth for Elvie with a data platform

RAW stands out for its unique approach, recognising that each location requires a distinct EV solution rather than a ‘one size fits all’ method. Many leading UK companies choose their services for this reason.

The Oakland Group were selected to help the RAW leadership team create a complete vision, strategy and roadmap for how data will transform their business in the coming years.

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Building a next-generation Investment Gateway web application for Network Rail

Increasing efficiency, compliance and decision performance through financial digital transformation

This case study charts the successful implementation of the Investment Gateway Application by the Oakland Group in collaboration with the Network Rail Finance team.

The project aimed to transform the Investment Authority process, ensuring consistency, compliance, and efficient decision-making across diverse railway projects.

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A Global Telco implementing a ‘self service’ data assurance monitoring platform

When a Global Telco wanted to enhance the data governance and data quality assurance of its financial reporting capability, it was reluctant to buy off-the-shelf software that wouldn’t fit the varied needs of its vision for Data Excellence.

Instead, Oakland devised an innovative assurance solution that helped to transform data operations performance, but more importantly, deliver daily insights that the business can trust and rely on.

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Creating a data platform for tech start-up Income Analytics

Income Analytics were keen to leverage its twenty years of planning and development expertise

To create an online platform that would enable real estate professionals, investors, owners, and lenders to make better informed data-driven letting, investment, and lending decisions.

The leadership team selected Oakland to build the platform based on our data strategy, cloud engineering, and process transformation expertise.

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Building a Data and Analytics Platform for Acuity Robotics

As experts in remote data capture and robotic infrastructure inspection, the client saw the potential for this method of data collection to gain vital insights into asset conditions while using more advanced analytical techniques.

We were asked to design and build a bespoke, cloud-based data and analytics platform that could collect and collate the data, then serve it securely to customers and data scientists – all while providing data quality assurance.