A massive thank you to all who came and joined us for this year's Community Connect - it was fantastic to see you all again and catch up on the latest news from across the community. This year's roadshow brought us to London, Birmingham, Manchester and Wales, where we discussed all things Evolve, end-to-end and digital transformation. Couldn't join us, or need a refresher? We're wrapping up Community Connect - here's everything you missed.
Our annual two-day transformation event returns on July 9th-10th, so make sure to save the date! More details to hit your inbox soon, but don't hesitate to reach out to your account manager for more information.
Exemplary digital transformation from the UK public sector
We're providing the community with exclusive early access to our latest whitepaper - the 2023 NDL Community Awards Project Showcase. Recognising your achievements while demonstrating the possibilities of digital transformation in the UK public sector, this showcase aims to celebrate and inspire.
Congratulations again to our 2023 winners, and good luck to our 2024 applicants. To learn more about any of the projects mentioned in this showcase - or at Community Connect - get in touch with the team.
Looking for new project inspiration, working with a tricky system and looking for some similar experiences, or simply curious to see what the community's up to? The Evolve Community Project Library is now live - filter and browse through a growing database of Evolve projects happening in organisations just like yours.
Everything we do is centred around the needs of our community. You said, we listened. We're revolutionising the Forum to bring you an interactive Knowledge Centre. Get the most from Evolve - accelerate your projects with our exclusive community content, and share your insights, ideas, and questions with the wider community.
Don't forget, you can now find a whole host of Digitise Apps and eForms, Automate ACPs, Connect Connectors and Flow Activities over in the Evolve Template Library. Increase your velocity with a head-start - our tried and tested templates are built for the public sector, and easily adapted to the needs and requirements of your organisation.
As always, there was plenty of product news to share at this year's Community Connect. Catch up with the latest updates from each core Evolve product and gain insights into the exciting changes ahead in 2024.
Click each logo to find the latest updates for every product.
2023 was a big year for Flow. You gave us plenty of excellent ideas, and we delivered plenty of useful features - such as the ability to send emails from Microsoft365 Outlook mailboxes without the need for SMTP, as well as the ability to monitor them without IMAP. We introduced Microsoft Graph Endpoint through direct integration with Microsoft365, we improved performance, and we rolled out cloud-based licencing. But we're not finished yet!
There's a lot to get excited about in 2024, with plans to boost the power of Flow even further. From Scheduler Activity, Activity Groups and Script Component Service to GOV.UK integration, PDF generation and next-step confirmation emails, there's a lot on the roadmap for our trailblazing workflow software - so keep your eyes peeled for more details coming soon. Releases starting in Q2.
Last year saw our RPA offering's official rebrand from SX to Automate. But 2023 wasn't just about a new lick of paint. We saw some serious ACP performance enhancements, increased OCR reliability through engine upgrades and the introduction of more in-depth documentation than ever before - now accessible from the Profile Editor and Workbench directly.
This year, Automate 8 is set for general release in Q2, already available in early access from the NDL Helpdesk. This major update introduces Anchor API, Automatic xPath generation, a point-in-time control tree and screen scaling. You can also expect support for Windows AWD without a full virtual machine and support for Windows 11 notepad. You'll see various UI improvements such as better handling of tables and grids, and Current profile/user APIs that allow you to get the names of current users. There's more on the agenda, so don't miss additional details coming soon.
2023 was a huge year for Connect - particularly the development of the Connect feature within Digitise, as well as the standalone release of Connect 1.6. Last year we introduced Connect as a means to send and receive data without code - thanks to its API import wizard and drag-and-drop connector studio. You can already take advantage of key features, such as the secure credential store, pre-configured connectors, request-to-response graphical view and API directory.
This year is set to be even bigger, with Connect 1.7 set for release in H1. It boasts a range of new features, such as the advanced import wizard, second-generation operation builder and extended API support. With 1.7, you can expect import speed to be 5x faster, with even more pre-configured connectors and AI optimisation. But that's not all - future plans for Connect include a custom API structure, the ability to chain APIs within connectors and an OpenAPI definition builder, so stay posted for more updates throughout 2024.
In 2023, Digitise Apps and Forms both saw a number of releases, introducing support for various operating systems, Connect connectors and the ability to generate PDFs into SQL databases. We also massively overhauled our online documentation, so it's easier than ever to find the information that you need to get the most from Digitise.
This year, there's plenty on the agenda with Digitise Forms 1.8 and Digitise Apps 10.9 both set for release in Q1. However, these updates are just the start - with work on a unified app and form product, a web-based digitise studio and brand-new design modes commencing in 2024. Stay tuned for more big news coming soon!
Accelerate your digital transformation journey with the help of others.
At Community Connect, we emphasised the importance of working together. Our training and mentorship programmes are specifically designed to develop self-sufficiency and in-house skills, and both our project and support services provide those extra pairs of hands that are often needed to really drive end-to-end transformation in public sector organisations.
However, we're not the only ones here to help. The NDL Community is renowned for its collaborative nature, with most (if not all) of you willing and actively looking to work together in overcoming common challenges. As ever, we encourage those interested in NDL services, community projects or even reconnecting with other Community Connect attendees, to reach out to the team.
Thanks again to all who attended Community Connect - we hope you enjoyed reconnecting with the community as much as we did. Couldn't attend the event, or left Community Connect with burning questions, ideas or interests? Don't hesitate to reach out to your account manager. We're more than happy to arrange direct meetings and get you up to speed.
Don't forget to pre-register your interest for TechFest with the team - we can't wait to see you there.