Total Support Services

Business Systems Support Services - As many organisations rely on the integrity of their solutions to deliver key business information, there is a growing management awareness of the dangers of system downtime caused by disruption of this vital service.

In the past, many organisations relied on server hardware maintenance support as a means of recovering from system crashes. However, today's server farms are far more complex and frequently provide interlinked access to a wide number of enterprise wide applications. This coupled with the trend towards e-business, means that any interruptions to services can have severe financial penalties. In addition, the increases in the number of hacker and virus attacks have highlighted the dangers of security lapses in systems infrastructure.

Quality Support - A key element of any system. Many medium sized enterprises face a serious dilemma on how to adequately build the necessary resources to manage a growing, increasingly complex and important facility. Business information is now recognised as being one of the most important assets second only to its people. The choice facing many organisations is either to invest heavily in recruiting and retaining a skilled internal IT team or outsource some or all of the required support services. It was to meet these needs that Anglia Business Solutions developed a range of flexible technology support services. These services are designed to provide a wide variety of clients with a cost effective method of maintaining their systems without significantly increasing its IT headcount. Clients can choose from a number of service options or indeed mix and match from the various choices on offer to select a solution most appropriate to their organisation. The services include the following facilities:  

IT Outsourcing Service - The IT Outsourcing Service is designed for those organisations wishing to take full advantage of current technological advances with minimal additional investment in internally employed IT resources. This involves a partnership arrangement aimed at exploiting the power of modern business oriented solutions to provide the organisation with a competitive edge. The aim is to target the business drivers within the organisation and provide personnel with up to date business information designed to improve communications and efficiency. The methodology involves gaining a clear insight into the future business objectives of the organisation and the strategy involved in delivering the aims. The focus then switches to how and where the management feels that timely and accurate information can assist in achieving these objectives. The delivery process is through a consultancy exercise involving interviews with key personnel throughout the organisation and seeking their views on desired improvements.

Once the terms of reference for the proposed service is agreed, the normal practice involves defining the current status of existing systems. This is likely to involve an audit of the existing network infrastructure. It may also be extended to include an exercise designed to assess how a new business management information system would assist the flow of accurate and up to date business information across the enterprise.  Details of these processes are described in Network Infrastructure Audit and Anglia Solution Model. The deliverable is an all-embracing report detailing the findings and recommendations on how to achieve the desired results from the proposed service.

On proceeding with the recommendations of the report, the client enters into an arrangement that effectively provides access to a wide range of management and technical expertise on a priority basis. These are clearly defined in the service level agreement that outlines the agreed responsibilities of both parties in the partnership arrangement. The services would typically provide clients with Consultancy advice on suitable solutions for the business, Implementation services on the proposed systems, Knowledge Transfer to enable users to utilise and provide day-to-day management of the solutions, Technical and Application Support designed to keep the systems running and Ad Hoc Technical Services at highly advantageous commercial rates. The ongoing relationship is managed via regular steering committee meetings operating to terms of reference agreed at the outset.  

Technical Consultancy - As a Microsoft GOLD Certified Partner, Anglia Business Solutions has to maintain personnel accreditations in all of the core Windows based products in order to retain partner status. In addition, during the course of the deployment of complex integrated networks across a wide variety of industries, the technical consultants have gained a significant amount of in-depth practical expertise of solutions that work. The Technical Consultancy Service is designed to assist clients to take advantage of the latest infrastructure advances while avoiding the pitfalls associated with early adoption of new technology. The challenge facing many clients is how to securely share corporate information across the enterprise and use it to collaborate with clients and suppliers. The consultancy expertise gained in the successful deployment of local, wide area and virtual private networks (VPN’s) assists in achieving these aims. The services consist of network audit, network design, feasibility studies, ad hoc assignments and network deployment & upgrades.

In many cases, these are undertaken while working with hard pressed IT departments. These can no longer afford to recruit and retain resources with the breath of skills to keep abreast of increasingly complex new technology. This is exacerbated by the increasing support demands of the PC user base that are now reliant on workstation technology to perform their day-to-day tasks. The service details are as follows:

Network Audit - This popular service puts a stake in the ground on the efficiency and security of the current infrastructure. For a full description, click here.

Network Design - The network design service is aimed at taking a strategic view on both the short and longer aims of the organisation and devising a network and communications infrastructure solution that meets the growth objectives. The service evaluates alternative approaches prior to recommending the most suitable option based on technical and financial grounds. The deliverable is a report highlighting the various options considered, the design of the preferred network in graphic format and financial investment required on the recommended solution.

Feasibility Studies - These studies are frequently aimed at assessing alternative possible solutions to meet a specific requirement. They are usually designed to evaluate both the technical feasibility and financial implications of alternative approaches prior to committing to one route. Typical projects include evaluation of thin client technology, radio and remote communications, voice over IP and VPN options. The project can involve building of a simulated solution and projecting the implications of a wider adoption. The deliverable can be a working prototype accompanied by a report explaining the pros & cons of the various solutions.

Network Deployment & Upgrades - Network Deployment & Upgrades are services that require detailed planning to ensure minimal disruption to the end users. The mission critical nature of the servers that meet the information needs of end users means that companies are unable to close down these services during normal working hours. To meet this need, Anglia Business Solutions provides weekend deployment and upgrade services. The objective is to ensure that users arrive at their desks on the following Monday to commence work immediately.

Ad-Hoc Assignments - The ad-hoc assignment service is used to supply clients with skilled technical resources to perform a specific task either outside of their areas of expertise or to augment their current resource pool. Typical tasks include providing holiday cover for internal resources, assistance with server or workstation roll-outs, installation of new software facilities, recovery from a damaging virus attack or general trouble shooting. Such tasks are usually performed on a time and materials basis against agreed task based criteria and the work signed off against daily time sheets.

Infrastructure Support Service -  The Infrastructure Support Service is a high quality responsive support offering designed to ensure continuity of service in the event of difficulties in the wide area/local area or communications networking environment. This widely used contract support is delivered to performance levels detailed in the service level agreement. It is delivered in three ways:

Telephone Support - The service provides unlimited telephone support to defined qualified trained personnel within the client environment during normal business hours. Experienced consultants with a working knowledge of the client site usually provide the service. They have access to information on recent changes to the networking environment to assist in resolving any difficulties.

Remote Support Service - The Remote Support service, when enabled, provides additional information on the current status of the network. It facilitates on line troubleshooting and enables rapid issue resolution where feasible.

Site Visits - Where a serious issue arises relating to the performance of the network, an on-site visit by an experienced consultant usually succeeds in resolving the issue. All consultants are equipped with the latest software releases and diagnostic tools to affect a rapid return to full network service. In addition, all consultants have access to specialist skills within the company together with the back-up support of Microsoft in the event of encountering serious difficulties.