The problem
As one of the city’s largest workplaces with 1,800 employees in central administration and decentralized units, Slagelse Municipality faced significant challenges in coordinating their many meeting facilities. Employees spent a disproportionate amount of time manually searching for available rooms, often resulting in double bookings or unused rooms. This inefficiency created frustration in a busy day-to-day environment where interdisciplinary collaboration is essential to municipal operations.
A particular technical barrier was their hybrid IT setup, with the Exchange server running on-premise, which made it difficult to find a modern solution that could integrate seamlessly. Previously, ordering meeting catering was done via separate emails or internal systems that were not directly connected to the room menu itself. This created a risk of incorrect orders and missed deliveries for critical political committee meetings and internal workshops.
The consequence was a huge loss of resources for both administrative and canteen staff, who spent hours manually reconciling lists. The lack of visibility also meant that expensive square meters were empty, even though demand for meeting space was high. Slagelse Municipality was looking for a robust and future-proof platform that could bridge the gap between their on-premise infrastructure and the need for a user-friendly, digital meeting experience.
The solution
Slagelse Kommune chose MyDesk as their central platform for Workplace Management, primarily because of the system’s ability to handle their hybrid Exchange environment. The choice fell on the modules for meeting room booking and integrated catering management, which brought all functions together in one place. By choosing MyDesk, the municipality got a solution that respected their security requirements while enjoying a modern cloud interface.
The implementation was tailored to Slagelse Municipality’s existing hardware, as MyDesk was integrated directly onto their current meeting room monitors. This saved the municipality from large investments in new hardware and ensured a sustainable transition to the new system. The technical integration with on-premise Exchange was carried out in close collaboration between MyDesk specialists and the municipality’s IT department to ensure maximum data stability.
The onboarding process was rolled out in phases, where both administrative staff and the canteen were trained in the new catering management workflow. MyDesk’s intuitive interface made it easy for employees to adopt the system from day one, whether they booked via Outlook or directly on the screens. The rapid deployment confirmed that the solution matched the employees’ need for simplicity in a complex organization.
The result
After implementing MyDesk, Slagelse Municipality has seen a noticeable change in how their meeting facilities are managed and utilized. By consolidating booking and catering into one workflow, the number of support calls regarding missed bookings has dropped drastically. Room screens now always show real-time profiles, which has eliminated the uncertainty of whether a room is occupied or available.
Concrete measurements show that administrative staff save up to 15-20 minutes per complex meeting booking, as all options are handled in the same flow. The integration with the existing screens has also ensured a room utilization rate that has increased by approximately 25% because unused rooms are now automatically released. This has given management a much better data basis for assessing the future need for meeting square meters.
The long-term effect is a significant improvement in employee satisfaction as employees now feel better supported by their digital tools. The calmness around the conduct of meetings has created a better working environment, where the focus has shifted from logistics to the content of the political and administrative discussions. Slagelse Municipality now has a modern platform that can scale with their future workplace management needs.
