Edinburgh tech firm Amiqus nets first public sector contracts

Edinburgh-based software firm Amiqus has entered the public sector by securing contracts with the Scottish government and the NHS.

Amiqus CEO Callum Murray said the firm is looking forward to welcoming many more new clients in the new year. Picture: Stewart Attwood.

The tech business has been chosen to support the Scottish government’s pre-employment checks. Amiqus secured the two-year contract after working with the government’s People Directorate as part of a pre-commercial pilot facilitated by the CivTech accelerator programme.

Amiqus showed that via the adoption of its technology, candidates could be offered a start date within seven days, a process that could otherwise take more than five weeks – and in some cases months – to complete.

The firm said that as public services come under pressure to recruit vital roles as quickly and safely as possible during the Covid-19 pandemic, it has also been engaged by the NHS Business Services Authority to support the wider NHS by providing rapid pre-employment vetting for up to 5,000 returning clinicians.

Leith-headquartered Amiqus – which earlier this year secured funding from Equity Gap – enables organisations to engage new clients or staff remotely, and was founded by Callum Murray in 2015. Every month it is used by hundreds of businesses to facilitate tens of thousands of pre-contractual identity and financial status checks. Its users span sectors from construction to vehicle hire.

The firm also notes that it enables organisations to manage their onboarding and compliance remotely. The company’s clients also include hundreds of law firms, as well as Umega Lettings, Neilsons Solicitors and Estate Agents and Roseisle Luxury Campervans.

In line with Amiqus’ commitment to using business as what Mr Murray describes as “a force for good,” the Amiqus team is also using its technology to enable both ProxyAddress (which uses duplicated addresses to connect those facing homelessness with support) and the Scottish Tech Army to deliver their services.

Amiqus began working with the Scottish Government People Directorate through the Scottish Government’s CivTech accelerator with the goal of improving the pre-employment experience for civil service candidates, while significantly reducing the workload for HR teams.

Constructive

Amiqus public affairs lead Laura Westring said of the collaboration with CivTech: “As a former civil servant, it has been great to see how the Scottish Government People Directorate and the CivTech teams worked so openly and constructively with our engineers, researchers, client and product teams.

"It’s not easy to introduce new software into any civil service, but the fact that we were all working in alignment and in the spirit of the National Performance Framework meant everyone was on the same page right from the start, looking to co-design a solution for maximum value and efficiency.”

Mr Murray said: “Five years ago, you couldn’t conceivably access legal or financial help, move home, or job, without getting through mountains of paperwork. Amiqus has been building trust and expertise since then and now supports hundreds of organisations and tens of thousands of people every month through our software.

"We’re excited to be working with the teams at both the Scottish Government and the NHS Business Services Authority and look forward to welcoming many more new clients in the new year.”

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