Employment Center Overcomes Lockdown Thanks to Technology 

Melsungen: Standort des Jobcenters Schwalm-Eder

Cortado MDM and iPads ensure customer proximity and continued training during the lockdown. 

The Schwalm-Eder Employment Center, set up by the local authority and the regional employment agency, provides services to job seekers in the area. At its 4 locations, staff provide support with job searches, training positions, gaining qualifications, and secure the livelihood of many families in the area. 

To improve job opportunities for its clients, the employment center offers coaching. The training was previously an on-site measure. With the pandemic, clients could only come to the employment center individually by invitation, and a group with 12 people in one room was unthinkable. The employment center needed a solution quickly.  

“We thought about how we could run training sessions without being physically present,” said Wilfried Kunze, a member of staff who also takes care of the employment center’s decentralized IT requirements. 

The solution was found with iPads. Initially, 12 devices were purchased and loaned to clients, who, according to Wilfried Kunze, often do not have this kind of hardware at their disposal.  

The devices still had to be managed and secured so that they could be used for training and reset when passed on to other coaching participants in compliance with data protection regulations.  

While researching for a solution, he came across Cortado. An important reason for the decision in favor of the Cortado solution, according to Wilfried Kunze was that “Cortado is a German company, which ensures data protection under GDPR provisions. Besides, the consultation was competent and very friendly.” 

A virtual classroom from Vitero runs on the iPads via a browser. Cortado MDM also distributed Office applications to the devices, as well as Skype and Zoom for video calls. Cortado MDM manages the devices in such a way that users cannot manipulate them. Users mustn’t install their own apps, for example. Such settings are all preset via Cortado MDM. According to Mr. Kunze, it is not a problem if training participants use the browser and internet privately, but the intended purpose of the devices is for training. 

The plan is to use more iPads for consultation sessions at a later date. But for now, training sessions are underway.  

Wilfried Kunze continued by saying: “I’m satisfied. We have enabled the devices for training with the Cortado solution and met the legal requirements for data protection.” 

With Cortado MDM, the Schwalm-Eder Employment Center can continue to fulfill its mission, with some pandemic-related limitations, of providing training participants with support in their search for a job.