‍United World College of South East Asia (UWCSEA) is one of Singapore’s premier international schools. The institution has approximately 6,000 students (aged 4–18) enrolled across its two campuses. An unwavering dedication to student safety is central to UWCSEA’s mission.

Manual visitor management compromising security and efficiency

Managing who enters and leaves a school is crucial, and UWCSEA is no exception. As Ben Morgan, Director of Infrastructure, explains: “We need to take great care about who comes onto our campuses. It’s very important that we manage our visitors and ensure they understand the do's and don'ts of being around children.”

However, UWCSEA faced multiple challenges in managing visitor access across UWCSEA’s campuses:

1. Strain on employees and resources

Previously, UWCSEA managed the visitor process manually. The school has hundreds of staff members who would email visitors invites with a PDF of the school’s safety rules. Visitors were required to print, sign, and return these documents ahead of their visit. This process was time-consuming and created an unnecessary hassle for everyone involved.

2. Tedious 30-minute visitor check-ins

Once they arrived on campus, visitors encountered an equally onerous process. They had to report to the guardhouse, where security personnel would ask them to locate prior emails as proof of their visit. Security would manually check IDs and print name badges as visitors waited. On busy days, the exercise could take up to 30 minutes.

3. Inconsistent compliance management

One of the school’s biggest concerns was the risk of staff and visitors failing to comply with such a complex process. “We were concerned that visitors might not consistently send the right declarations, and on particularly busy days, our security guards might not have the capacity to notify the appropriate individuals about the visit,” Morgan said. “This uncertainty created a risk that we needed to remove.”

Simplified visitor management without the hassle

“Envoy did exactly what we required and at an attractive price point. We loved the simplicity of its setup and usability.”

UWCSEA evaluated several options before deciding that Envoy Visitors was the best solution to make their visitor process more efficient. The biggest reason? The platform reduced complexity for technicians, visitors, and staff.

“Envoy is an essential piece of the puzzle in enabling us to manage who comes on to campus and ensure they understand the rules they need to follow. This ensures both they and our students stay safe during their time here,” Morgan said.

• Integrations to workplace tools that reduced workloads and more efficient workflows.
• Visitor check-in times dropped from 30 minutes to seconds, saving hundreds of hours monthly.
• Every visitor now follows a standardized visitor process, guaranteeing 100% compliance.

Integrations and reliable technology that improves efficiency

“Envoy has significantly enhanced our efficiency, enabling staff to be more effective and uphold our safeguarding processes with minimal effort.”

Envoy integrates seamlessly with UWCSEA’s existing technology stack, making things easier for the school’s employees. For instance, the staff can now send invites directly from Google Calendar and automatically provide visitors with secure Wi-Fi credentials as soon as they check in.

Besides the improved user experience, UWCSA has experienced zero downtime, and Morgan is happy with Envoy’s rapid, round-the-clock customer support. “We’ve never encountered any technical issues with Envoy. Whenever we needed help setting something up, their support team was quick to respond and very professional,” he said.

Hundreds of hours saved monthly

“The value of Envoy—both in terms of time savings and safety— is very high.”

With Envoy, the UWCSA staff turned a complicated, time-consuming process into something fast and easy. 

Visitors receive an invite by email that prompts them to “register now.” They can then digitally sign the required documents in seconds and receive a QR code that expedites sign-in upon arrival. On the day of their visit, they simply scan the code on an iPad provided at the guardhouse to sign in, which instantly notifies their host of their arrival. Many of the visitors coming onsite are parents coming to see their kids, so Envoy’s ability to recognize returning visitors saves time and makes the process even smoother.

“What used to be highly cumbersome and error-prone has become incredibly straightforward,” Morgan said. “Every step takes two or three clicks within the system, and you get a guaranteed, high-quality result.”

Visitors also appreciate the user-friendly Envoy system: “We get positive comments from visitors, especially vendors who visit multiple schools,” Morgan explained. “They often tell us how smooth and easy their experience is on our campus compared to others.”

Compliance with safety regulations

UWCSEA regularly reports visitor numbers to local authorities to keep their emergency preparedness plans up to date. With Envoy, UWCSEA’s security staff has been able to set a simple, standardized process that every visitor can easily follow. As a result, they can ensure all compliance requirements are met—whether signing the necessary documents or keeping accurate, audit-ready visitor logs.

“Our number one priority is safeguarding our students, and Envoy is a key part of that process,” Morgan said. “With our previous manual system, we couldn’t guarantee it was followed 100% of the time. Now, we have confidence that we know who’s on campus and that every visitor is aware of their responsibilities.”

What’s next for UWCSEA

UWCSEA plans to explore more of Envoy’s features, like Emergency Notifications, to make their campus even safer and their visitor check-in process smoother. Morgan is confident that Envoy will continue to support their commitment to safety and excellence.

Partnering with Envoy was a great decision,” he concludes. “I recommend Envoy to other schools and organizations without hesitation.”

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