v1-06/13-Outdated Systems- Whitepaper

Whitepaper - Outdated systems

Outdated systems

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working with daisywww.daisygroup.com

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Contents

• Downtimeandbusinesscontinuity• Flexibility• Disasterrecovery• Competitoradvantage• Barrierstoupgrades–price,fear,downtimeconcerns• Casestudy


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Usingoutdatedsystemspresentsseriousproblemsforbusinesses.ArecentstudybytheBusinessPerformanceManagement(BPM)ForuminCaliforniarevealedthatcompanyITmanagersfeelthattheirinfrastructureandsystemsarefilledwith“obsolete,redundantandunused”software.Thestudyshowedthat“nearlythreequartersofthesecompanieshavenoprocessinplaceforretiringoutmodedsoftwareandlessthanhalfconductregularsoftwareauditstoseehowmuchsoftwareisonthenetwork.”

Aswellastheobviouscostimplications,therearealsomajorsecurityconcerns.BPMForumExecutiveDirector,DonovanNeale-May,stressedthatthiswasakeyissue.

“Quality is directly tied to how vulnerable software is. Obsolete, dated applications will be more prone to compromise. The older the software, the riskier it is to use. They haven’t been designed to be resilient against attacks. We didn’t ask specifically about security, but security is below the surface in a lot of answers.”

Thesurveyalsoshowedthatbusinessesarealltoooftencontenttorelyontheirexistingcomputersystemsastheyhavebeenreliableinthepastandtheyarefamiliarwithhowtheyoperate.However,thiscomplacentapproachcanresultinsignificantbusinessinefficienciesandunnecessaryadditionalcostsbeingincurred.

Downtime

Qualityofservicewillinevitablydiminishifthesystemsexperienceperiodsofdowntime.Youwillseesalespersonnelunabletorespondtocustomerquerieswithcorrectinformation.Precioustimewillbewastedifreliancehastobeplacedonmanualsystemsandprinteddataifthesystemsthemselveswilleithernotprovidetheanswerinreal-timeorwillonlydosoaftersignificantdelays.Thiscanhaveadetrimentalknock-oneffectforthebusinesswithdisappointedcustomers,damagetogoodwill,lossofpotentialnewbusinessandareductioninprofits.Nobusinesscansensiblyallowsuchasituationtocontinuewithouttakingremedialaction.

Thisrequiresastructuredapproach.Measuringdowntimeisessentialasyoucannotproperlyaddresstheproblemwithoutdoingso.Accuratemeasurementandsettingofappropriatetargetsiskeytoremovingdowntime,orattheveryleastreducingit.Byincreasingstaffawarenessandencouragingthemtonotedowntimeeventswhentheyoccurtobedisplayedintheworkplace,willassistindeliveringmajorimprovements.

Downtime and business continuity


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“Nearly three quartersof these companies have no process in place forretiring outmodedsoftware.”

BPM Forum


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Business continuity

BusinessContinuityPlanning(BCP)isessential.BCPhasbeendefinedbytheUSFederalEmergencyAgency(FEMA)asfollows.

It“identifies an organisation’s exposure to internal and external threats and synthesises hard and soft assets to provide effective prevention and recovery for the organisation, while maintaining competitive advantage and value system integrity”.

OthertermsusedareBCRP-BusinessContinuityandResiliencyPlanning.Howeverbothtermsaresayingthesamething.Allbusinessesneedaplandesignedtoenableabusinesstocontinuetofunctioninextremecircumstances,howevercaused.

AcriticalfeatureofanyBCPhastobeariskanalysis,assessinglikelybusinessimpactsofarangeofscenarios,coupledwithanimpactanalysisdeterminingappropriateresponses.

...All businesses need a plan designed to enablea business to continue tofunction in extreme circumstances...

Flexibility

Business planning

Modernbusinessescannolongersafelyrunonthebasisthatthepastsalesprofileisanadequateguideforthefuture.Buyingandinventorydecisionsneedtobemadeonthebasisofreliableup-to-dateinformationfromitscomputersystems.Ifthesystemscannolongerprovidethiscompetitiveadvantageitcansoonbelostandwillbedifficulttoregainwithoutadditionalcostandeffort.

Alloftheseproblemsareavoidableifsensibleplanningdecisionsaremadefollowingaregularreviewofsystemcapability,withpromptpurchaseofanynecessaryupgrades.

Relianceonoutdatedsystemscanalsoresultinbothover-stockingandunder-stockingsituationsonlyrevealedaftertimeconsumingperiodicstocktakingwhichisapoorandwastefuluseofstaffresources.Modernsystemshowever,areabletoprovideup-to-dateinformationinreal-timewhichcanmakearealandtangibledifference.Thisisnotonlyintermsofcostsavings,butthroughprovidingaquickerandbetterserviceforcustomers.Itisthecustomerafterallwholosesoutiftheinventoryisincorrect.

Call centres

Anagingcallcentrecanposesignificantproblemsasitwilllacktheflexibilityandagilityneededforittomeettheneedsofagrowingbusiness.

Thecallcentremaynothavebeendesignedtoprovideforincreasesincapacity.Ifthisisthecaseyoumaywelloverthecourseoftimestarttoseethesystemrunningslowlyorlackingcapacityforanybusinessgrowth.Decreasedvolumes,slowconnectionsandlackofabilitytorunmodernVoIPtelephony,canallseverelydamageyourbusinessintermsofincreasedcostsandlostbusiness.

Asyourbusinessgrows,yourcallcentremustbeabletomeetitsneeds.Thiscanbeintermsofincreasedvolumes,theneedtoaddnewtechnologicalassetstothesystem,andalsotopermitexpansiontomultiplelocations.Youneedmodernsoftwarewhichisdesignedtoensurethatthesecrucialrequirementscanbemet.

Ifyouaretomeetyourcustomers’individualrequirementsandretaintheirbusinessonalong-termbasis,youneedareliableandup-to-dateintegrateddatabase.Thisisonlyachievableifyouhavetherightsoftwareinstalled.Thisisessentialtoensurethatyoucanattheveryleastmaintainyourpositioninahighlycompetitivemarketplace.


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Recentresearchindicatesthatacompany’sabilitytorespondquicklyandappropriatelytoadisaster,particularlywherecomputersystemsareinvolved,canmakethedifferencebetweenwhetherthebusinesssurvivesatall,asopposedtoregainingitsformerpositioninthemarketplace.

Gartnerdatarevealsthatwheremajordisastershaveoccurred,upto40%ofcompaniesriskfailure.UniversityofMinnesotaresearchfindingspaintanevengloomierpictureindicatingthatasfewas6%ofcompanieswouldbeabletocontinueinbusiness.

Thereforeitiscriticallyimportantforbusinessestohaverobustdisasterrecoveryplansinplace.Riskidentificationiskey,followedbyaclearstructuredplanoutliningwhatactionwouldbetakenbywhominwhattimeframes.Itisessentialtoplanforbothforeseeableandunforeseeableevents.

Weather

Snow,rain,highwinds,flooding,lightning,stormsandothernaturaloccurrencesallhavethecapacitytowreakhavocwithsystems.Youwillneedtotakesensibleprecautionstophysicallyprotectcomputerhardwarefromdamagebytheelementsifyouaretoavoidsignificantrepairorevenfullreplacementcostsandbusinessdowntime.

Fire

Thispresentsanevengreaterpotentialhazardintermsoftheneedtohaveadequateprotectioninplacetoprevent,oratleastminimize,damagestobuildings,IThardwareandequipmentandbusinessdata.Power outages

Majorpoweroutagesaffectinglargepartsofthecountryarerare,butnotunheardof.ThesecancausemajordamagetoITequipmentandresultinlossofdata.Accesstoback-upfacilitiesandtheabilityforyourstafftoworkfromhome,oralternativebusinesslocations,hastobeakeyfeatureofanydisasterrecoveryplan.


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Disaster recovery

Protecting core business assetsYourcallcentremaybeyourmostpreciousasset.Ifthetelephonyisoutofactionforwhateverreasonforanyperiodoftime,youneedtoensurethatyouhaveback-upproviders.Youmayneedmorethanoneoftheseincasethesamedisastereventalsoaffectstheback-upfacility.

of companies risk failure

40%

6%with only

Up to

able tocontinuetrading

AnumberofrecentresearchstudieshaveconfirmedthatrelianceonoutdatedITsystemsencouragedinefficiencyandhadasignificantlyharmfuleffectontheabilityofcompaniestomoderniseandexpandcapacitytomeettheirgrowthrequirements.

Inthebankingsector,areportfromInfosysandOvumAccording,estimatesthatupto75%ofEuropeanbanksareinthisposition.Theirfindingsshowthat80%ofbusinessescanvassedfeltthattheirsystemsputthematabusinessdisadvantageand75%recognisedthattheirsystemsprevented,ratherthanaccommodated,scopeforchange.

Upgrading to state-of-the-art software

Ensuringthatyourcallcentrehasthemostup-to-datefeaturesiscriticalingainingmarketadvantageandalso,atthesametime,producingsignificantoperationalsavings.

Akeyproductavailabletobusinessisvirtualsoftware.Thishasanumberoffeaturesincludingvoicerecognition,interactiveresponsemechanismsandtheabilitytosendemailstocustomersandsupplierswithawiderangeofbusinessinformation.Thesoftwarealsohasthecapacitytoupdatecustomeraccountdetails,thusensuringstreamlinedbusinesstransactionsandhighlevelsofcustomersatisfaction.

Thissoftwarecanalsoformamajorcomponentofyourdisasterrecoveryplan.Shouldanydisastereventoccuritwillgiveyoutheabilitytooutsourcebusinesscustomersupport,reducingpotentialdowntime.Thiswillminimisebusinessinterruption,reducelossesinrevenueandmaintaintheappropriatelevelofserviceforcustomers.Allofthesegainswillensurethatyourbusinesskeepsfunctioning,oftenplacingitaheadofcompetingbusinesses.


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Competitor advantage

Equallywithstaffcover,itispossiblethatlargenumbersofstaffbecomeunavailableatshortnoticethroughillnessorevenanepidemic.Youneedtoensurethatyouhaveaccesstocompaniesthatwillbeabletotakebusinesscallsforyou.

Ifinternetaccessgoesdown,tomaintaincustomerserviceyouwillneedtohavesystemsinplacetodealwithonlinebusinessdifferently.Thismeansdivertingstaffeitherwithinyourbusinesstotakeahighervolumeoflandlinecallsintoyourcallcentreorusingspecialistoutsourcingcompanies.Yourdisasterplanwillneedtoensurethereforethatpersonnelareproperlytrainedtobeabletotakeondifferentrolesinanemergency.

of systems prevent rather than

accommodate.

75%

felt their systemsput them at adisadvantage

80%

Report from Infosys and Ovum According


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Whyisitthatsomanycompaniesarereluctanttogoforsoftwareupgrades,choosinginsteadtocarryonrelyingontheirexistingITsystems?Itseemsatfirstsighttomakenobusinesssense.Businessesneedtounderstandthatinthelongtermthisattitudewillrestrictbusinessgrowthandresultinadditionalandunnecessarycosts.Thereareanumberofreasonsforthis,allofwhichariseindifferingdegreesfromaninnateconservatismandfearofchangewithinbusinesses.

Familiarity

Itishumannaturethatpeoplearehappiestwithwhattheynobest.Theyhavebeentrainedontheirexistingsystemandunderstandit.Eveniftheyrecognisethatitmayhavesomedeficienciestheyfeel,duetoexperience,thatitdoesthejobperfectlyadequately.Aboveall,theyareconfidentthatitwon’tletthemdown.Inrealitytheytreattheirsystemlikeanoldovercoatandtheycheerfullyputtoonesideanythoughtthatitmightbeholdingthebusinessback.

Impact of change

ITdirectorsandmanagerswillhavelegitimateconcernsabouttheknock-oneffectsofupgradestoagingsystems.Willintegrationbetechnicallypossible?Whatwilltheimplicationsbeformigratingdata?Whatadditionalhiddendirectandindirectcostsoftheupgradewilltherebe?Towhatextentwilltheexistingbusinessoperationbedisrupted?Howmanystaffwillhavetobedivertedfromexistingdutiesandforhowlong?Allthesearekeyandrealquestionswhichhavetobeproperlyaddressed.Theycannotbedismissedasshowingmerereluctancetochangeonthepartofstaff.

Assessment of new products

Alltoooftenbusinessmanagersarecontenttoconcentrateontheday-to-daymattersinhandanddonotallowsufficienttimetoreviewtheproductsthatareonthemarket,testthem,lookatreferencesitesandchecktheiroverallsuitability.Thisagainservestomilitateagainstbusinessesapproachingdecision-makingabouttheirsystemsinaplannedandreasonedmanner.

Software costNewsoftwarehastocomewithaprice,includingone-offpurchasecosts,installationandongoingannualpayments.Thishastobemeasuredagainstthepotentialbenefitstothebusiness.Itbegsthequestionastowhethertheycanbeproperlyidentifiedandassessed.What are the benefits?

Businessesarenaturallywaryofupgradesthatwillonlyprovidemarginalbenefits.Theycanillaffordtoincuradditionalcostsforupgradeswhicharesupposedtodramaticallyincreasebusinessperformance.Againtheyhavelegitimatefearsthatthesebenefitsmaynotmaterialise,oreveniftheydo,furtherupgradeswillberequiredwithinaveryshortperiod.Theywillnotwanttopayoutunnecessarysumsforwhatappearstobeonlystop-gaparrangements.Therehastobehonestandopendialoguebetweensuppliersandbusinessessothatorganisationscanhaveconfidenceintheclaimsthatarebeingmadeforthesoftware.

Barriers to upgrades


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Thetruthisthattherearesignificant,quantifiablebenefitstobehad: Reduced costs

Businessesdoneedtounderstandthatthereisacosttomaintainingoldsoftwareparticularlywherebusinessesaregrowing.Lackofcapacity,dataoverloadsandsystemoutagescanallresultin,notonlyprovidingbusinessinefficiencies,butalsoloadingthebusinesswithadditionalcosts.

Installingsoftwareupgradescanavoidtheseissues.Capacitywillbeincreased,downtimewillbereducedandsmoothbusinessprocessesensured.Thesearemajorandrealgainswhichcanbedemonstratedwithinaveryshortperiod.

Thiswillalsobeaccompaniedwithsignificantproductivitygainsasstaffcanseeandreapthebenefitsofhavingreliable,flexibleandresponsivesystems.

Security

Relyingonoldsoftwareinevitablyhasasecurityriskattachedtoit.Systemdegradation,viruses,malwareallpresentanever-growingdangertobusinessITinfrastructure,increasingthelikelihoodofbusinessinterruptionanddowntime.Upgradingtothemanytriedandtestnewsoftwarepackagesthatareavailableonthemarketcangivethebusinessacomprehensiveassurancethatthesedangerswillberemoved.

Thesebenefitsarereal.Businessesthatcarryoutaproperreviewoftheirsystemswillbeabletoseethattheadvantagestheywillachievethoughupgradesaremeasurableandsignificant.Itisapowerfulpackage.Higherproductivity,reducedcostsandincreasedsecuritycantogethermakeamajorcontributiontobusinessviabilityandprofitability,enablingittocompetemoresuccessfullyinthemarketplace.


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Verizon upgrades school district’s call centre

VerizonhasbeenabletohelpaschooldistrictontheeastcoastoftheUnitedStatestoimproveitscallcentreoperation,improvingthequalityofserviceprovidedtoenquirers,withouttheneedformajoradditionalexpenditure.IthasutiliseditsEnhancedCallRoutingapplication(ECR)whichhasthefacilitytospeedupconnectionsandenablecallcentrestafftoconcentrateonasmallernumberofcomplexcalls.ThisisachievedthroughtheECRsystem’skeyfeaturesofautomatedcallroutingforroutinecallsandhandlingofcalls.

VerizoncoupledtheECRsystemwithanInteractiveVoiceResponse(IVR)arrangement.Thisoperatesbylettingcallersobtaininformationandchoosethepersontheyneedtospeaktoonanautomatedbasissimplythroughusingtheirtelephonekeyboard.Thiseliminatesdelaysandspeedsupconnectiontimesdramatically.

AthirdfeaturetailoredtotheneedsoftheschooldistrictwasaHostConnect(HC)solution.HCprovidescallerswithinformationonbusroutingsandtimetables.Allthatcallershavetodoistypeinstandardpersonalidentificationtogainaccess.

Thisintegratedandrobustsystemofferedreliabilityandround-the-clockservicethroughouttheyear.

Dealing with peaks

Verizonhadtobeabletodeliverasystemthatcoulddealwithveryhighpeaksincallerdemand.Thiswasconcentratedintotwoperiodsoftheacademicyear,whenitcommencedinSeptemberandatyear-endinJune.Callsineachofthosetwoperiodsamountedto140,000,representing50%oftotaldemandfortheentireacademicyear.

PriortoVerizonbeingbroughtin,thecallcentresimplycouldnotcopewithseveredelaysincallsbeingansweredaswellaslargenumbersofcallsbeinglost.Althoughadditionalcallcentrepersonnelwerebroughtin,thiscouldnotsolvetheproblem.Userresponsewasunderstandablynegativewithasteepriseincomplaintsfromparentstotheschoolauthoritiesandlocalpoliticians.Suchasituationwasclearlyunsustainableandrequiredurgentaction.

Approval and implementation of the Verizon proposition

Againstthisproblematicbackground,Verizonsubmitteditsproposalstotheschooldistrictboard.Thesewerequicklyapprovedandfundingwasmadeavailableforimmediateinstallationofitscallcentresolution.Theresultwasthatinco-operationwithschooldistrict,Verizonwasabletoachievecompletionofimplementationinonlyfivemonths.Thismeantanewcallsystemwasfullyoperational,deliveringthepromisedbenefitsofspeedierresponsesandtheeliminationofheldorabandonedcalls.Parents’reactionstotheseimprovementswasswiftandpositiveandamajorsuccesshadbeengained.

Case study


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Don’tbeheldbackbyyouroutdatedlegacysystems.Companiesthatarestillusingthesamesystemstheyinstalledtenormoreyearsagocouldbelimitingtheirbusinessproductivityandabilitytorespondtomarketconditions.

BycarryingoutregularupgradesyoucanlowertheriskoffailureandobtainsignificantcostreductionsatthesametimeassafelyimprovingyourITinfrastructure.Thiswillensureyoucanprolongtheworkinglifeofyoursystemsandprovidelastingbenefitstoyourbusiness.

Conclusion

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v1-06/13-Outdated Systems- Whitepaper