University of Cambridge Disability Resource Centre

Maximizer empowers the Disability Resource Centre to support Cambridge students with a fully integrated, customizable CRM solution.

The University of Cambridge Disability Resource Centre (DRC) offers confidential and accessible support for all disabled students, helping them access learning and thrive academically. Serving over 5,000 students across Cambridge’s 31 Colleges, the DRC uses Maximizer to manage student support data, streamline processes, and enable remote work capabilities for staff.

ProAptivity, a Maximizer Elite Partner, provided essential consultation, training, and support to the DRC, enabling the center to configure Maximizer in line with evolving departmental requirements since their initial implementation in 2006.

Challenges

As the Disability Resource Centre grew to serve thousands of students, it faced three key hurdles that required immediate attention.

Firstly, the DRC needed a CRM that could adapt to the increasing complexity and volume of student support needs. Over the years, student requirements grew, and the need to capture a diverse array of data—from accessibility needs to specific impairment information—became critical. Maximizer’s flexibility to create and modify fields was essential, especially as the DRC wanted to avoid the constant cost and disruption of external software changes.

Second, as more students joined the DRC’s service, the burden of data entry increased. Initially, student forms were processed manually, with staff entering each Student Information Form (SIF) by hand, sometimes taking up to 20 minutes per form. With over 1,500 new forms each year, this laborious task impacted efficiency and morale, creating a need for a simpler, automated process to ensure accurate data capture and faster access.

Lastly, with the shift to hybrid work, the DRC required a way for staff to access and update student information remotely without losing track of critical student support data. Remote work challenged the DRC’s traditional workflows, emphasizing the need for a centralized system that integrated smoothly with familiar tools like Microsoft Outlook and Excel.

Solutions

To overcome these challenges, the DRC worked closely with ProAptivity to leverage Maximizer’s versatile and integrated capabilities. The flexibility of Maximizer allowed the DRC to customize fields in real time, tailoring data capture to meet evolving needs without requiring external development services. This adaptability meant that the DRC could quickly respond to changing legal and departmental requirements, saving time and money while maintaining compliance.

ProAptivity also assisted the DRC in deploying Maximizer’s Import Manager, automating the upload of Student Information Forms directly from Cambridge’s website into Maximizer. This innovation alone saved hundreds of staff hours, eliminated repetitive tasks, and provided immediate access to the most current student data across all teams.

To further enhance efficiency, the DRC utilized Maximizer’s seamless integration with Microsoft tools, allowing emails and documents to sync directly from Outlook and export into Excel for granular reporting. These features allowed staff to work remotely without interruption, centralizing all student records, communications, and compliance documentation within Maximizer. ProAptivity’s support ensured a smooth transition to this streamlined, hybrid-ready system, empowering the DRC to focus on its core mission—supporting students.

Business partner