The UG has started rolling out its new phone plan. But to some employees’ annoyance, their phones don’t work.
The CIT started handing out the new phones last week, with some departments and faculties receiving around three hundred devices. But some employees are complaining that their new phone isn’t working, rendering them unreachable.
Earlier this year, the university decided to replace all landlines with mobile phones. Temporary staff and employees with a contract of fewer than 0.5 FTEs will receive a softphone or a SIM-only subscription, while staff with a permanent contract over 0.5 FTE will get a standard smartphone.
Unexpected
‘It’s true that a small percentage of phones didn’t work right away’, says Sander van Lien with the CIT. ‘That was an issue we experienced that we hadn’t expected.’ According to Van Lien, it’s a very small number of devices, ten to fifteen, that are having problems. ‘We’ve been getting reports on them since late last week.’
CIT has since figured out the problem: the specific Android version on the phones. ‘We install this sort of UG folder on the phone. When that folder finds a different version of Android than it expected, that causes a hiccup in the installation process.’
Manual
Van Lien says the issue can be easily remedied. ‘We haven’t published the manual yet, as we’re currently putting on the finishing touches’, he says. The manual describes the steps employees can take to solve the issue themselves.
People who’d prefer some help can go to the CIT helpdesk. ‘The people there have been informed of what needs to be done to fix the phones, so employees can receive help right away.’