Frida Education and Sigma Develop a New Flexible Management System

Photo: Frida school in Gothenburg, credit: fridaskolan.se

Frida Education is an expanding group with a vision of being Sweden’s leading education company. Through its subsidiary Didaktikcentrum AB, Frida Education and Sigma have developed a user-friendly management system that simplifies school management and equips the organization for the future.

Malin Stjernman is CEO and a co-owner of Frida Education. Together with her co-workers, she has built a viable organization characterized by long-term and responsible thinking. The subsidiary Fridaskolorna runs pre-, primary, and upper secondary schools in the west of Sweden, and this is where the new system is being used.

“When we hire new colleagues, we are clear about our values of openness, responsible thinking, and proactivity. Being involved in creating a school environment that stimulates and encourages learning and curiosity, should be a driving force for all our co-workers. It is vital for us that our organization develops continuously, is open to innovations, and fulfills our goal – to prepare students for the real world outside,” Malin says.

With such an innovative vision, Frida Education wanted to optimize the management of the schools and make it more efficient. Malin continues:

“We were looking for a flexible management system that would allow us to be agile and at the forefront of development, but soon discovered that the systems already available on the market were not flexible enough or didn’t suit our needs. We thought we saw a clear gap on the market and that others could have needs like ours. After a while we made the decision to develop our own system and that’s when we met Sigma.”

Didaktikcentrum had a set of requirements on the management system:

1. User-friendly interface

The system should be fast, responsive on all devices, and be so user-friendly that it would be perceived as easy to learn. Simple functions and a user-friendly interface were therefore a priority.

2. Easily expandable functionality

The school system and environment are continually developing, and so should the management system. Didaktikcentrum wanted a flexible system that could keep up with development. That was one of the top frustration factors with the other management systems they had seen on the market.

From the beginning, Sigma developed three modules: user administration, a childcare module, and an information panel.

3. Seamless integration with third-party services

Even with a flexible system, Fridaskolorna still needs to interact with external services. Like other schools, they use different solutions for accounting and ERP, learning platforms, and so on. That’s why these third-party services had to be integrated with Fridaskolorna’s management system.

Currently, the new system is integrated with four third-party providers: ERP, a learning platform, G-Suite, and a quality system.

“Sigma helped us to create the management system we were looking for but couldn’t find. We are proud of our solution, and we feel that we can recommend it to other schools,” saysMalin Stjernman. She continues:

“During the development process, we had close contact with the remote team from Sigma Software. We appreciated how self-driven and independent Sigma was, a great foundation for our cooperation.”

“Didaktikcentrum didn’t just want a system to facilitate management, but a system that supported the business to continue to pursue school development in Sweden and to be at the forefront. We are proud to have their trust and support their vision of a sustainable school,” says Daniel Björkman, Vice President at Sigma Technology Solutions.

Sigma team has substantial experience in EdTech, including both school management, communication, and interactive educational solutions. The project is done in cooperation between Sigma Technology Solutions and Sigma Software.

For more information, please contact:

Malin Stjernman, CEO at Frida Utbildning, Fridaskolorna and Didaktikcentrum. malin.stjernman@fridautbildning.se, 070 555 20 16.

Daniel Björkman, Vice President at Sigma Technology Solutions. daniel.bjorkman@sigmatechnology.com, 070 621 44 17.

About Frida Education

Frida Education is a family-owned corporation with about 500 employees. All surplus is reinvested in the schools, for the benefit of schoolchildren and youth. The parent company has two subsidiaries, Fridaskolorna and Didaktikcentrum. Fridaskolorna have pre-, primary, and upper secondary schools on five locations in western Sweden. About 3,500 students study at our schools. Fridaskolornas vision is to develop interrailers – proficient, curious and active community citizens.

The main task of Didaktikcentrum is to bring about lasting changes in school activities through educational efforts. Didaktikcentrum’s ambition is that research and practice-based development should interact in a successful way.

For more information, visit fridaskolan.se.

About Sigma Technology

Sigma Technology is part of Sigma Group and is a global supplier of product information, embedded and software design, and offshore development. We are experts with a passion for technology and information. We take pride in delivering quality while constantly improving our deliveries. Our philosophy is “Local Drive – Global Strength”, therefore we have offices worldwide to be close to our customers.

For a complete picture, visit sigmatechnology.com.

About Sigma Software

Sigma Software provides top-quality software development services to customers in many sectors. These include government, telecommunications, media & advertising, aerospace, automotive, banking and financial services, real estate, tourism, gaming and entertainment.

For a complete picture, visit sigma.software.