| More IT Services, Less Budget | | | | control over critical functions, AtoZ chose to engage |
| For the last few years, the economy has been | | | | an IT Service Management solution provider who could |
| tumultuous. Faced with economic downturn, slowed | | | | fully leverage existing in-house management tools and |
| consumer spending, and falling share prices, businesses | | | | complement the existing staff, adding maximum |
| are rightfully counting every penny. | | | | business value with minimal disruption to on-going |
| Executives are now tasked with justifying each and | | | | operations. |
| every IT investment to validate equal or greater return. | | | | An IT management solution partner delivers process |
| This has resulted in the reallocation of resources to | | | | discipline, as well as remote monitoring, management, |
| projects and initiatives that produce the quickest return, | | | | reporting, tracking and help desk services. Many |
| are tied directly to immediate revenue generation or | | | | infrastructure failures result from flaws in process and |
| enable cost reduction | | | | methodology. Thus, the greatest value-add a |
| In order to stay ahead of the competition, enterprises | | | | management partner can provide is process and |
| must provide the highest level of customer service, | | | | change management methodologies that stem from |
| while focusing IT resources on strategic business | | | | their expertise and experience in implementing best |
| initiatives. Meanwhile, IT organizations within these | | | | management practices. Collaboration and knowledge |
| businesses are facing shrinking budgets just when their | | | | transfer is key to the management value proposition. |
| infrastructure is expected to support more devices | | | | SaaS (Software as a Service) Service Desk |
| and systems than ever before, all while operating at | | | | AtoZ selected a Software as a Service ("SaaS") |
| peak performance. | | | | based enterprise service desk solution to provide |
| Meeting the Demand | | | | service desk personnel and end-users with an |
| The opportunity is available for mid-size enterprises to | | | | easy-to-use, browser-based interface for incident, |
| increase both top-line and bottom-line growth by | | | | problem, and change request management. |
| implementing IT Service Management (ITSM) solutions. | | | | InfraDesk |
| ITSM solutions enable these enterprises to manage IT | | | | Benefits |
| services as a business within a business allowing the | | | | - Secure Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform |
| leverage of existing IT infrastructure and staff to | | | | - SaaS avoids investment in IT Infrastructure |
| reduce IT operations costs, while improving system | | | | - Upgrades are part of the service |
| performance. Managing IT as a business creates the | | | | - Hosted at InteQ, available anytime, anyplace via the |
| ability to select investments (i.e. hardware, software, | | | | web |
| outsourcers) that produce the quickest and highest | | | | - Embedded ITIL based processes and modules: |
| payback with the least amount of upfront capital, and | | | | Provide the assurance that your support processes |
| continuously manage those investments so they can | | | | are based on industry proven best practices and |
| exceed expectations while proving the value of your | | | | ensures a fast, efficient rollout that can be measured in |
| IT infrastructure improvements. | | | | days versus months significantly improving return on |
| Benefits of managing IT at a business level include:q | | | | value. |
| Predictable costs-A standardized cost structure for IT | | | | - Workflow automation: InteQ's unique data-driven |
| operations to ensure profitability margins.q Predictable | | | | workflow and action based architecture significantly |
| performance-IT infrastructure (servers, networks, | | | | streamlines and automates your business processes |
| databases) and applications are highly available and | | | | enabling your support staff to focus on the customer. |
| perform consistently to meet and exceed service | | | | - Integrated Configuration Management Database |
| levels.q Efficient Resource Utilization-Generation of | | | | (CMDB): Provides a common repository for IT |
| new revenue streams by allocating critical IT | | | | configuration items (CI), their attributes and relationships |
| resources to support new business initiatives and | | | | to enable you to more effectively manage changes, |
| applications.q Reliable Service Provider | | | | and more efficiently resolve issues, within the IT |
| Performance-Management of service providers and | | | | environment. |
| network carriers to ensure they are meeting their | | | | - Open architecture for Integration: Easily extend your |
| service level agreements to maximize return on IT | | | | existing business and IT systems and processes, |
| investment. | | | | through a variety of integration options, to further drive |
| The Business Case for Managing IT as a Business | | | | operational efficiencies and service levels. |
| The Scenario | | | | - Flexible Configuration: Powerful administration |
| Revenue Issuesq Delays in time to marketq Managing | | | | modules which allow you to create and modify |
| the supply chainq Enhancing customer satisfactionq | | | | workflows to support your unique business |
| Ensuring manufacturing quality | | | | requirements without compromising the underlying |
| AtoZ Company is a leading manufacturer of | | | | application foundation and its ITIL-based best practices. |
| innovative, high quality electronic products with annual | | | | Remote Monitoring, Management and Problem |
| revenue of $1.4 billion and a global network of ISO | | | | Resolution: AtoZ selected Managed Services to |
| 9001 and 9002-certified facilities and supply sites. The | | | | proactively resolve problems in the IT infrastructure (i.e. |
| Company is presently on an aggressive growth streak, | | | | applications, databases, networks, and server) by |
| acquiring several large competitors over the past two | | | | providing 24/7 monitoring, problem identification, |
| years. | | | | diagnostics, reporting, and resolution. InfraSolve covers |
| During the previous year, AtoZ has upgraded all of its | | | | the application layer (such as SAP, Oracle Financials, or |
| sites with an improved network infrastructure and | | | | Microsoft Exchange) and the supporting IT |
| updated ERP system. AtoZ presently utilizes five | | | | infrastructure. |
| external vendors for network, processing, and | | | | Managed Services |
| hardware resources. In addition, AtoZ has implemented | | | | Benefits |
| product and system conversions for three years and | | | | - Finds the root cause of the problem and permanently |
| have two more scheduled conversion rollouts within | | | | removes it from the infrastructure. |
| the next 18 months. | | | | - Improved root cause analysis eliminates repetitive |
| As a direct result of the upgrades, there has been a | | | | calls so that you can increase system availability and |
| substantial increase in the quantity and duration of | | | | your company can keep lanes functioning to generate |
| performance related service calls to the IT help desk. | | | | additional revenue per square foot. |
| In addition, the company experiences a high agent | | | | - Improved system availability translates to increased |
| turnover due to the drudgery of handling a large | | | | online transactions. |
| number of repetitive and routine inquiries regarding | | | | - Elimination of problems once they occur means you |
| system performance degradation and outages. When | | | | can deploy your help desk and system administrators |
| complex issues arise, the need to involve second and | | | | to higher value activities, such as supporting new |
| third level support engineers increases the workload | | | | channels and increasing the time to market for |
| with the tracking of outstanding issues, all of which add | | | | revenue generating systems. |
| to the IT operations costs. | | | | - Automatically resolves events before they turn into |
| New plant openings are often delayed due to the | | | | problems. A reduction in actionable incidents means |
| incompletion of IT infrastructure changes and. the | | | | your staff can eliminate support activities and you can |
| unpredictability of costs associated with these | | | | increase the availability of revenue generating systems. |
| changes is causing management to constantly create | | | | - Provides notification when the system and |
| budget variances. This action inevitably leads to | | | | applications require attention. Even with automated |
| decreased profits for the company through loss of | | | | escalation and preventive action systems will |
| sales and opportunities to open new markets. | | | | occasionally fail. In these cases, you can allocate |
| Lately, IT infrastructure planning has not been as | | | | scITSM Solutionse and valuable knowledge workers to |
| consistent as desired, as manager attention has been | | | | take corrective action before a system outage occurs. |
| diverted to taking escalated calls and addressing users | | | | - Provides automatic trouble ticket creation, tracking, |
| needs directly. | | | | and escalation. Time spent manually entering, tracking |
| The Challenge | | | | and escalating trouble tickets impacts your help desk's |
| AtoZ Company's challenge is common among | | | | ability to keep pace with your growth plans. By |
| companies of their size. They are constantly required | | | | automating this function, you can handle more calls |
| to make process improvements in their IT | | | | with existing resources. |
| infrastructure while continuing to meet (or exceed) | | | | - Reporting Portal - AtoZ has access to a highly |
| customer expectations while managing the changes | | | | secure Web-based reporting portal that provides |
| directly related to recent mergers, acquisitions and new | | | | views into the availability and performance of the |
| site openings. This combination of events conceivably | | | | business application infrastructure, as well as detailed |
| strains managers, agents, IT administrators, and | | | | application/device specific breakdowns. |
| customers equally. | | | | Reporting Portal |
| Overview:o AtoZ has invested in help desk and | | | | Benefits |
| monitoring software products to support Operations | | | | Enables you to hold vendors to their service level |
| Management services utilizing three applications to | | | | agreement. |
| manage their infrastructure. Unfortunately, each | | | | How often are you unable to prove that your vendors |
| application requires its own costly infrastructure and | | | | are breaching service level agreements? Besides |
| support staff. While these tools generate more data, | | | | financial remedies, you will have the information that |
| they do not offer the visibility required to assist in the | | | | ensures that you are receiving the support you |
| overall improvement of IT infrastructure management. | | | | deserve and that are paying for. |
| These monitoring systems create excessive | | | | ITSM Best Practices Consulting and Training |
| actionable incidents that increase infrastructure costs | | | | ITSM introduces a comprehensive set of processes |
| and make it difficult to sustain and support growth | | | | that enable the IT organization to manage the entire |
| plans.o The service desk is difficult to manage and | | | | infrastructure from inception through production. These |
| maintain. Agents find that it adds to their workload, and | | | | processes are documented in the public domain within |
| reconfiguring it to meet the business needs of IT | | | | the Information Technology Infrastructure Library's (ITIL) |
| requires a specialized programming staff.o Root cause | | | | ITSM best practices framework. ITIL contains a |
| identification is time consuming and difficult due to a | | | | practical set of guidance tools for the planning, |
| lack of end-to-end reporting and diagnostic capability.o | | | | development, delivery, and support of IT infrastructures. |
| The development staff is growing and making an | | | | All three processes eliminate inadvertent outages from |
| increasing amount of system changes. However, | | | | incorrect changes to the infrastructure: |
| these changes do not follow any structured process | | | | § Change Management-maximizes the benefit to |
| and often inadvertently cause outages.o Excessive | | | | the business of making changes to the infrastructure |
| numbers of fault and performance issues are not | | | | while minimizing the risks involved in making those |
| automatically detected and resolved, leading to | | | | changes. |
| reduced system availability and performance.o In an | | | | § Configuration Management-ensures that all of |
| effort to reduce predictable service issues at new | | | | the changed items in the infrastructure are authorized |
| sites upon opening, IT staff tends to order high-end | | | | and under the control of a simple set of processes. |
| equipment that is expensive and may provide more | | | | § Release Management-controls the release, |
| functionality than is actually needed.o Lack of a | | | | distribution, implementation, and maintenance of |
| common infrastructure framework makes it difficult to | | | | Configuration Items. |
| align IT infrastructure investments with business | | | | The Result |
| objectives. | | | | Revenue Increases |
| Operating Expense Issues | | | | AtoZ Company has experienced improvement of |
| Activity Costs (FTEs)o Helpdesk Agents: 6o | | | | revenue generation activities, or top-line productivity |
| Administrators: 6o Senior Analysts: 3o Manually | | | | growth with existing personnel and infrastructure by |
| handling trouble tickets and escalation | | | | deploying ITSM solutions across the enterprise. |
| Vendor Managemento Service provider outages | | | | Operating Expense Reductions |
| effect revenueo Faulty hardware hinders production | | | | Operating expenses have experienced quantifiable |
| Infrastructure | | | | reductions that enable AtoZ to achieve their growth |
| High mean time to repair due to root cause analysis | | | | plans with existing resources, or to maximize |
| and vendor escalation | | | | investments in other targeted areas. The chart below |
| Software Assets | | | | illustrates AtoZ's operating expenses before and after |
| 3 Monitoring tools in production | | | | implementing ITSM solutions. |
| Enterprise Service Desk in production | | | | ROI Analysis |
| ERP | | | | ITSM Solutions will cost AtoZ Company $621,000 over |
| Not tracking performance and availability of | | | | three years. |
| mission-critical Baan ERP application leads to | | | | Note: Costs of implementation and applications may |
| downtime. | | | | vary by client, based upon existing system ITSM |
| In addition, AtoZ Company does not have a process in | | | | Solutions architecture and organizational processes. |
| place to measure and report on service provider | | | | Over the same three-year period, AtoZ Comapany |
| performance, therefore they are unable to measure | | | | realized the following net financial benefits of using |
| the effectiveness of their service providers.. As a | | | | ITSM SOLUTIONS's solutions. These financial benefits |
| result, it is difficult and time consuming for AtoZ to | | | | are based upon the assumptions, business profile, and |
| request charge-back's for service outages due to their | | | | business issues provided in this review. |
| inability to attest service level agreements. | | | | The business impact reflects the following benefits:o |
| The Solution | | | | Reduction in operating expenses of $2,016,038o |
| AtoZ initially considered completely outsourcing their IT | | | | Increased revenue of $6,750,000 |
| infrastructure management. However, this approach | | | | The total return on investment (ROI) of using InteQ's |
| would provide little flexibility while dramatically increasing | | | | portfolio of Service Management solutions over three |
| risk. To meet management goals while maintaining | | | | years is $8,145,038. |