Case Study: Agenda Screening Services

Agenda's Foundation

Agenda Screening Services is one of the market leaders in Pre-Employment Background Screening. Their commitment to "delivering excellence in staffing & screening solutions" is reinforced by a number of certifications, including ISO/IEC 27001 Information Security, ISO/IEC 27018 Protection of Personally Identifiable Information, ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems, ISO 14001 Environmental Management, Cyber Essentials and more”

For nearly a decade, Alexander Foxley, IT Manager at Agenda Screening Services has overseen their technology infrastructure as they've grown to serve world-leading clients. The company conducts comprehensive pre-employment background screening checks, ranging from Basic and Enhanced DBS checks, to Finance Verification, Digital Identity confirmation, and Open Source Intelligence checks for candidates across the globe.

"We pre-implement background screening checks for anyone applying for a position at a company or for existing employees requiring yearly re-screens," Alexander explains. "Our clients are mainly UK-based, but the candidates we screen can be located throughout the world."

The Challenge

However, beneath this successful exterior lay a growing challenge: their off-the-shelf pre-employment screening system had reached its end of life. "We'd pushed our existing system to the absolute limit," Alexander recalls. "We extracted as much value as possible, but we needed additional functionality that simply wasn't available in that product."

Alexander's "call to adventure" came when the limitations of their legacy system began to throttle client satisfaction and internal innovation. After exploring the market and finding nothing that met their requirements, Agenda Screening Services made the strategic decision to develop a bespoke solution.

"We looked at what else was out there, but nothing would provide what we needed," says Alexander. "We decided it was time for something built specifically for us – a bespoke system that could integrate new technologies, scale effortlessly, and be offered as a standalone SaaS solution."

This vision set the stage for a transformative journey, but raised a crucial question: how to host this new platform?

"The biggest decision was whether to stick with what we knew – an on-premise solution – or look to the future and embrace the cloud," Alexander admits. "There was significant uncertainty because while we had the drive to move to the cloud, we lacked the depth of experience in cloud infrastructure."

Cloud9 Security enters the story...

In this moment of uncertainty, Alexander received an email with a line that immediately caught his attention: "don't suffer the same fate as the Death Star." As Star Wars fans, the Agenda Screening Services team couldn't resist responding to this clever marketing hook.

That fortuitous connection led Alexander to Cloud9 Security (formerly Azured UK) which rebranded in early 2025 to underscore its mission of empowering UK SMEs with "cloud confidence" as a Microsoft Cloud Security Specialist. Trusted by Microsoft and boasting deep expertise in Microsoft 365 protection, identity management, Intune-based device security, and Sentinel-based threat detection, Cloud9 focuses intently on security and Azure infrastructure.

An initial meeting with Martin Ferguson from Cloud9 immediately impressed Alexander with his deep knowledge and collaborative approach. "I made it clear from the start that I didn't want to simply hand over the project and have them come back when it was finished," explains Alexander. "I wanted it to be a learning opportunity for us, where we made decisions together and our knowledge would increase throughout the process."

This aligned perfectly with Cloud9's partnership approach. Alexander emphasises that while there are inherent risks in working with a smaller company compared to global conglomerates, the benefits often outweigh them – particularly when it comes to the client-customer relationship.

"Referring to Cloud9 as a 'small company' understates their capabilities. In fact, their size proved to be an advantage, enhancing both the outcomes and the experience. It reaffirmed that we made the right decision in choosing them as a partner."

Alexander Foxley

IT Manager, Agenda Screening Services

The Solution

Embracing Azure's potential

In 2024, Agenda Screening Services committed to a cloud-first approach for their new system. Rather than simply lifting and shifting their VM-based on-premise setup, they opted to reimagine their architecture using PaaS services, web apps, and platform-managed firewalls. This leap from known territory into Azure's rich ecosystem marked their official departure from the comfort of legacy infrastructure.

The journey began with an on-site scoping workshop where the teams mapped out objectives and end goals. The real value, however, came from Martin's ability to shift Alexander's thinking from on-premise paradigms to cloud-native approaches. "My mindset was stuck in on-premise infrastructure," Alexander admits. "While I could replicate that in Azure with virtual machines, Martin showed us it wouldn't be the best use of resources or cost-effective. He introduced newer technologies that would deliver better results. It changed my mindset from 'that's what I'm used to, that's what I can do' to 'this is what we could do, and this is why it could be better.'"

Crafting the security stack

Key trials included selecting between on-premise security approaches and Azure's native security services. Under Martin's guidance, the project evolved organically, with flexibility to adapt their approach as new insights emerged.

A significant milestone came with the creation of their development environment. "Once we had that test system up and running, we could take a step back and look holistically at how to secure the environment using what Azure could offer," Alexander explains. "We are holding people's personal identities. It's highly sensitive information that needs to be protected and Cloud9 helped us achieve that".

Achieving audit-ready security

The hardest test came in achieving a robust, audit-ready security posture under stringent UK compliance mandates. Some of Agenda's clients are "absolute world leaders in their respective fields," Alexander explains, with IT departments and compliance teams numbering in the hundreds. "Establishing the right technology stack and prioritising security from the start was critical in shaping our environment and processes. Ensuring a robust and secure foundation is paramount, not only for our own standards of excellence but also to meet the expectations of our clients and auditors.”

Cloud9 introduced modern web application hosting on PaaS, Azure-native encryption, automated patching, network segmentation, and scheduled VM shutdowns for development environments, blending security best practices with cost efficiency. "Keeping that data secure in Azure was equally as important," Alexander says.

"There were cost savings as well. Encrypting data on-site here would cost tens of thousands of pounds, whereas in Azure, it's included within the security package – instant cost-saving."

Scalability & flexibility

"I no longer have to wait to source and provision infrastructure. Within minutes, I can have resources up and running in Azure. This agility supports both internal scalability and future growth as we on-board new clients.” Alexander notes.

Enhanced security & compliance

A holistic security stack, backed by Microsoft Azure and Fortinet technologies, delivers real-time threat detection and response, meeting the stringent requirements of Agenda Screening Services world-leading clients.

Cost optimisation

Cloud9 helped identify significant savings including pay-as-you-use compute with auto-scheduling for non-production environments, no upfront capital expenditure for hardware, warranties, or maintenance, and the elimination of ongoing power & infrastructure management costs.

Knowledge transfer

Perhaps most valuable to Alexander was the knowledge gained throughout the process. "My knowledge has expanded exponentially since getting on board with Cloud9 and running this project," he shares.

An ongoing partnership

Emerging from this quest, Agenda Screening Services now wields a modern, secure, and scalable platform – one that not only meets today's demands but also paves the way for new revenue streams.

What began as a single project has evolved into a strong ongoing partnership. Alexander now calls Cloud9 for various initiatives, from an upcoming Intune project to Microsoft 365 penetration testing and regular support. "We have such a great relationship with them – not just Martin, but Reda, Callum, and others on the team," Alexander says. "I've only just renewed our contract. There was no qualms about it – I just signed up. I'm happy. Let's go for it."

He particularly values Cloud9's flexibility, citing how they suggested repurposing accumulated support hours for project work rather than letting them sit unused – saving Agenda £10,000 on an upcoming initiative.

Deep expertise with a personal touch

In my 10 years at Agenda, there are two people I know that if I need anything, they will be there for me. Martin Ferguson is one of them. Even if we hadn't paid, I know Martin would help – we've just got that relationship now. Unlike larger providers who might pass clients between sales managers and technical teams, Cloud9 offers continuity of relationship combined with deep technical knowledge.

Honesty and transparency

Alexander appreciates Cloud9's willingness to recommend other providers when a task falls outside their core expertise. "I've had conversations where I thought I'd like Cloud9 Security to do this for me, and they've come back and said we think you'd be better off looking elsewhere. I respect them for being completely honest and upfront.

Flexibility over rigid processes

While acknowledging the reality of scope creep in projects, Alexander values Cloud9's ability to adapt. "With larger companies, you end up with somebody doing work for you that you have no working relationship with. They've got a predefined list of steps of what they need to do, they do it, tick the box, it's done. By contrast, Cloud9 Security are flexible enough to pivot when needed, rather than sticking rigidly to predefined steps.

True partnership

Alexander sees Cloud9 not as a vendor but as a partner in Agenda Screening Services success. "When you find that company that will work with you side by side and coach you through it – not just go away, do the work and come back – it's much more fulfilling. "Don't look at Cloud9 as a small team and think they can't do what you want – they absolutely can. They're passionate about what they do and will go above and beyond to help you achieve your objectives."

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