Milestone for digital committee work: gpaNRW certifies the Linkando app for committee meetings

Press release

- The North Rhine-Westphalia Municipal Audit Office ("gpaNRW") confirms that the app from the software provider Linkando meets the technical, data protection and organizational standards for digital committee meetings in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

- Although committee members would like to see more digital meetings, they often experience technical and organizational difficulties.

- Linkando solves this problem with partners such as Zoom and Deutsche Telekom with a meeting app tailored to the special requirements of committee work.

Landau in der Pfalz, April 24, 2024 - The meeting app from software provider Linkando from Landau in der Pfalz is now officially certified for use in digital committee meetings. The approval of software solutions for conducting digital votes marks a milestone in the implementation of digital processes in municipal committees, according to the gpaNRW. A statement by Alexander Ehrbar, Head of the "Digital Administration" competence center at gpaNRW, states that the Linkando app for conducting digital votes meets the legal and technical requirements for conducting digital and hybrid meetings in municipal committees.

Volker Wiora, founder and Managing Director of Linkando, explains: "Committee meetings must be conducted in accordance with certain legal requirements. For example, secret and public votes and elections must be possible, voting rights must be allocated correctly and an agenda must be followed - Linkando can do all of this."

According to a survey conducted by the Federal Statistical Office on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Justice in 2022, almost half of those surveyed would like to see more committee meetings in digital or hybrid formats in the future. However, many of the software solutions currently available are not suitable for this. For example, nine out of ten respondents experienced technical difficulties with digital meetings. Linkando solves these challenges with a user-friendly meeting app. The integration with the video call software Zoom, which is unique on the market, contributes to the app's simple and intuitive usability. It is marketed to business customers by Deutsche Telekom as part of "Zoom X".

Klaus Poensgen, Head of Sales, Federal States and Municipalities, Deutsche Telekom, comments: "Deutsche Telekom is expanding its MagentaBusiness portfolio with Zoom X and Linkando X. This offering includes a large number of certified solutions that meet the requirements of the Digital Meetings Ordinance (DigiSiVO) and thus offers a comprehensive range for legally compliant digital committee work."

Andi Wienold, Head of DACH and Eastern Europe at Zoom, adds: " The state of North Rhine-Westphalia has carried out pioneering state policy work with the Digital Meetings Ordinance (DigiSiVO) and was the first federal state to introduce certification for digital committee work solutions. The fact that there is now a fully integrated complete solution consisting of the products from Zoom and Linkando will also be recognized and noticed beyond the borders of North Rhine-Westphalia."

In addition to the approval procedures already carried out in 2023, Linkando GmbH is the first provider to receive approval for its application in accordance with Section 47a of the North Rhine-Westphalia Municipal Code (GO NRW) this year. The gpaNRW is part of the state's supervision of local authorities and was founded in 2003. It is based in Herne. It is responsible for the supra-local auditing of all 396 municipalities, the 30 districts as well as the Aachen city region, the two regional associations and the Ruhr Regional Association (RVR). It is also the approval body for automated applications of municipal specialist procedures and digital committee meetings in NRW. Michael Esken has headed the state authority as President since September 2023.

About Linkando

Linkando is a software provider from Landau in der Pfalz and develops software-as-a-service solutions for digital playbooks and formal online meetings. Companies and public authorities use Linkando solutions to simplify workflows, increase productivity and scale proven best practices. In addition, Linkando apps enable formal meetings such as digital committee meetings or general meetings to be held in a legally compliant manner. Linkando's customers and partners include Deutsche Telekom, Zoom, Microsoft and SAP. https://linkando.com/meeting-gpanrw

Press contact:
Linkando GmbH
Ostbahnstr.17
76829 Landau in der Pfalz

press@linkando.com