Responsible Development
We are increasingly focused on the sustainable aspects of our core software product, and the processes we follow to build it.
Harnessing a sustainable process for our core software
We are committed to adopting and applying the latest technology to ensure that our own and our customers' energy consumption is kept to a minimum. Our efforts in this area are in line with the Sustainable Production and Consumption Sustainable Development Goal.
We recycle or donate as much of our old IT kit as we possibly can, working with dedicated recycling providers who are as focused on sustainability as we are. We recently created a recycling scheme for employees, allowing them to recycle personal electronic items they no longer have a need for.
Sustainable practices within our core software
We have transitioned to a ‘cloud first’ approach to Alfa Systems implementations because we see real benefits in the speed of implementation for customers, and they in turn see significant benefits in the reliability of the service. Our cloud-native hosting service provides geographical flexibility and rapid deployment while removing the responsibility of application support, monitoring and availability from our customers.
An environmental benefit comes from our use of AWS Cloud Computing for our hosted service and AWS is committed to powering operations with 100% renewable energy by 2025.
We are committed to ensuring Alfa Systems is accessible as possible and have a dedicated UI/UX Design team where accessibility is part of their core remit. This team recently carried out accessibility audits of the Alfa Systems software, part of a major internal investment initiative which fundamentally improves the overall UI and UX of Alfa Systems. A strand of this work (codenamed Mercury) was informed by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). We have recently introduced a UI framework to the product and all components added to this framework will be WCAG AA-compliant.
Each customer’s Alfa Systems environment is deployed in a Virtual Private Cloud, completely isolated from all other customers using Alfa’s hosting services. Our Security-as-a-Service provider monitors security event logs 24 hours a day, with high-severity incidents reported to Alfa within 15 minutes.
Alfa is compliant with ISO27001, ISO27018 and the SOC2 controls for availability, integrity and confidentiality. We can deploy Alfa Systems in geographical proximity to users while meeting data residency regulations, ensuring that performance and compliance requirements can be met in the same solution.
The following are just some of the techniques that we employ to ensure that we remain ISO27001, ISO27018 and SOC2 compliant in security:
- Encryption at rest and in transit
- Cloud authentication of end-user credentials
- Continuous monitoring for vulnerabilities
- Routine penetration and disaster recovery testing
We do not support any form of slavery, human trafficking or child labour, and we work only with suppliers who have been assessed through our internal processes to be ethical providers.
We have an ethical procurement policy and our key procurement personnel have been trained in relation to the relevant requirements and regulations. In EMEA, we aim to ensure that our contractor and subcontractor community pay London Living Wage to those employees based in Greater London and UK Living Wage to those employees based outside Greater London.
We are currently improving our supplier approval process, embedding more ESG factors into supplier selection across Alfa.
