Messenger delivers an IT solution

A ... London messenger has developed an IT system that updates court and staff rotas electronically.

Filipe Reis began designing his ‘Resource Centre’ as a means of helping him establish the whereabouts of colleagues while manning the Harrow office switchboard, North Region.

Now, the initiative devised by the former teacher and factory systems manager from Angola, Africa, has attracted the interest of BIS, (Business Information Systems Directorate) at ... HQ. Introduced at Harrow last August, the Resource Centre is a database that provides up-todate information on the whereabouts of staff, their job roles and their telephone numbers.

This is especially useful for the receptionist who frequently deals with queries either in person or on the phone for individual members of staff. The system also has the potential to allow managers to enter their staff rotas directly into the Resource Centre.

Filipe, who was awarded the title ‘Teacher of the Year’ for achieving outstanding exam results and helping to place 1,200 children in schools in Angola, joined the ... four years ago after gaining a Business Information Systems degree at Middlesex University. “When I came here I could barely speak English,” he said. “I found it difficult memorising where people were – whether they were in court, the police station or had moved desks in the office.

“I created the first version of the Resource Centre to help me with my switchboard duties. “By matching the staff directory with the rota, I could tell whether someone was available,” said Filipe who spent numerous weekends and evenings developing the prototype.

• Filipe’s technical expertise is matched by a flair for art. For a view of his paintings see www.jfreis.com