The Benefits of Outsourcing Top-10 Tips Searching for an Infrastructure Outsourcing Partner Understanding ROI in a DBA environment Appropriate Service Level Agreement (SLA)

1. Searching for an
Infrastructure
Outsourcing Partner
by
Jaroslav Cerny
CEO, RDB Consulting

2. Agenda
“Searching for …”
Part 1: The Benefits of Outsourcing
Part 2: Top-10 Tips when Searching for an
Infrastructure Outsourcing Partner
Part 3: Understanding ROI in a DBA environment
(Performance Measurement & Management)
Part 4: Appropriate Service Level Agreement (SLA)

3. Part 1
The Benefits of Outsourcing
Top-10 Tips Searching for an Infrastructure Outsourcing Partner
Understanding ROI in a DBA environment
Appropriate Service Level Agreement (SLA)

4. Top-10 Tips Searching for an Infrastructure
Outsourcing Partner
1. Appropriately skilled Technical Staff
2. Multi-platform, multi-operating system support
3. Pre-defined services offered, and how they are
delivered
4. In-house developed, pro-active monitoring and alerting
tools
5. Implementation of industry standards and best
practices, including King III compliance

5. Top-10 Tips Searching for an Infrastructure
Outsourcing Partner
6. Service Level Management
7. Regular Management meetings
8. Strategic Partnerships with Software Vendors
9. Comprehensive Documentation
10. Achieving a significant ROI

6. Top-10 Tips Searching for an Infrastructure
Outsourcing Partner
If you adhere to these guidelines this will result in a
successful partnership between client and outsource
partner.
Over time this will lead to TRUST.
How is trust built?

7. Building Trust
Competence Contractual Communication
Trust Trust Trust
 Capability  Honour SLA  Honesty
 Knowledge  Integrity  Two way
 Skills  Manage constructive
 Understand and expectations feedback
respect client  Results-driven  Confidentiality
perspective  Consistent  PAR – Polite,
 Knowledge Alert & Relevant
transfer

8. Part 3
Top-10 Tips Searching for an Infrastructure Outsourcing Partner
The Benefits of Outsourcing
Understanding ROI in a DBA
environment
Appropriate Service Level Agreement (SLA)

9. Understanding ROI in a DBA environment
An outsourced partner should pay for itself. How?
Three case studies:
1. Large manufacturing group–Annual contract R420K;
An hour of downtime costs the client R80-90K of profit
2. Cellular Service Provider–Annual contract R460K;
Delay in billing per day costs R100K-R160K in revenue
3. Cellular Network Provider-Annual contract R1.3 million;
An hour of downtime costs the client R70-100K
Same principle applies for other types of outsource
vendors (network, hardware, application, etc)

10. Part 4
Top-10 Tips Searching for an Infrastructure Outsourcing Partner
The Benefits of Outsourcing
Understanding ROI in a DBA environment
Appropriate Service Level Agreement
(SLA)

11. Origins and outline of a SLA
 Born out of fixed-telecoms environment
in 80’s
 Now widely adopted in all areas of
outsourced business, even internally in
organisations between departments
 Typically consist of services, priorities,
responsibilities, guarantees and
warranties

12. What makes a bullet-proof SLA?
 No wish-lists; be realistic
 Define responsibility clearly
 Regular reviews – SLA’s must evolve
with business changing requirements
 If large organisation, then first define
SLA on corporate level, then break it
down into OLA per SBU
 If SME then combine SLA and OLA

13. What makes a bullet-proof SLA?
 Should incorporate best practice (ITIL,
COBIT, ISO, etc)
 In order to manage it, you’ll have to
measure it
 One size does not fit all. Contact Centre
SLA differs from Manufacturing SLA
 Financial penalties and termination
clauses
 Plain English, not open to interpretation

14. Outsourcing can transform
your organisation by …

15. Taking it from static silos to…

16. … a Dynamic and Synergistic Unit

17. And if we don’t do it right?

18. Maximising your profit by reducing your downtime, risk and costs.
Maximum-uptime Outsourcing
Relational Database Consulting
DBA and Unix Solutions
DETAILS: Questions?
Jaroslav Cerny:
CEO, RDB Consulting
jaro@rdbconsulting.com
www.rdbconsulting.com