26th February 2026
4 min read
Integrating Service and User Across the Case Lifecycle
How Iken Connect extends case management beyond the organisation
Zak Chester
Chief Product Officer
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Last week I wrote about integrations in the context and remit of case management more broadly, and Iken specifically. That focused on the connections between people, data, and tools during a case lifecycle, and centred on the integration of technology across those three areas.
I said that service-based work is fundamentally about working with people. So what are the opportunities here within a case management context? How do you include a client within a workflow? And what do you gain from doing so?
We have been working closely with clients, through our collaborative client-led innovation programme, Iken Labs, and with prospective clients as well, to explore these questions. Ahead of the launch of Iken Connect, I wanted to build on last week’s article and examine this area in more detail using a practical lens.
A Problem in Search of a Solution
The challenge of better integrating clients and stakeholders into the workflow of the services we support formed the basis of our discovery process.
Across many of our clients and prospects, the summary of what we were being asked was relatively simple:
Behind these questions sit more specific issues:
Individually, these issues may seem manageable. At scale, across dozens or hundreds of live cases, they compound. The result is inefficiency and friction, and a steady drain on already stretched resources. This is as true in the public sector as it is elsewhere.
If we return to the idea of a case management ecosystem, what is missing is a more direct bridge between service teams and the people they serve.
"Case management doesn’t stop at the organisation’s boundary. If we believe in connecting people, data, and tools internally, the same principle should apply to the service relationship itself.”
Zak Chester
Chief Product Officer
Integrating Service and End-Users
When we explored these challenges in detail with clients, we approached the problem from a simple product perspective: what are the real benefits of integrating service and user more closely?
The most tangible benefit is efficiency. Not simply in reducing keystrokes or shortening emails, but in improving accuracy and ensuring that the right and sufficient information is captured at the outset of a piece of work.
However, the more nuanced benefit is arguably more important.
Including clients more directly within the workflow increases transparency and accountability. It provides greater visibility into progress and a clearer understanding of what is happening and why. It also gives clients a greater sense of agency in what is, ultimately, a collaborative process.
These factors build trust.
Extending the Ecosystem
Last week’s article focused on connecting people, data, and tools within case management. The natural progression is to extend those same principles beyond the organisation itself.
If communication should sit alongside the case record internally, it should not be disconnected externally. If information should be captured once and used many times, that should apply at the point of instruction as well. If workflow should be structured and transparent, that structure should be visible to the people involved.
This is the thinking behind Iken Connect.
It is not simply a portal layered onto case management. It is an extension of the case management ecosystem. A bridge between service teams and clients. A structured way to bring people, data, and workflow into closer alignment across organisational boundaries.
As we move towards launch, we will explore in more detail how Iken Connect is designed to reduce friction at the point of instruction, streamline ongoing communication, and create a more transparent and accountable service experience.
If the first step was deliberate integration within case management, this is the next: extending that deliberate connectivity to the service relationship itself. More to follow.
Learn More
If you’d like to learn more about how Iken supports local authority legal and governance teams, get in touch or explore our latest case studies from councils across the UK.
