Foster-Melliar, a subsidiary of Simeka Business Group, offers a comprehensive consulting service that is a major contributor to the extraordinary results that can be achieved by simply streamlining business service management (BSM) aspects of an organisation with business needs.
“Consulting is the perfect answer when there is a need to find a solution that is tailor-made for an individual organisation and its unique set of circumstances. The elements that comprise a comprehensive business service management solution are neatly captured in the fibre of consulting,” says Deon Hultzer, General Manager for Consulting Services - Foster-Melliar.
Consulting is essentially a partnership where two separate entities pool their knowledge and experience with the focus of streamlining the organisation's BSM practices. Foster-Melliar's consulting services launches into the process by conducting a thorough review of the current practices in addition to observing how these practices are implemented and applied in order to achieve a thorough understanding of the business.
The initial partnership is often preceded by identifying a mismatch between the level of service that an organisation receives as opposed to what is required. These requirements will dictate the starting point of the consulting process. “As a business grows, develops and matures, it is often found that IT gets left behind performing the same old processes because 'they always worked'. Foster-Melliar believes in forming a strategic alignment with the organisation that is aimed at identifying the strategic path and vision of the organisation. This information is then translated into the appropriate systems and processes that are needed for IT to comply with the organisation's strategic direction,” explains Deon.
Information security management is often neglected even though it plays a vital role in the protection of the intellectual property of an organisation. “It is absolutely crucial to ensure that the relevant management processes are in place to certify that the security solutions are functioning at its optimal level. It is necessary to secure access for authorised personnel in addition to removing unauthorised individuals as well as keeping the related database current. In the event of sensitive information, it is also needed to identify the chances of information leaking as well as pin-pointing possible sources from where it could possibly come,” explains Deon.
In some instances the processes that are in place are not sufficient for the maturity of the organisation. “Good practice standards such as ITIL and Prince2TM can be utilised to analyse existing processes in order to identify areas where these processes do not match up. Updating the processes to comply becomes a task that needs to be supported by the relevant tools and support structures in order to ensure optimum process alignment to the needs of the business. Aligning IT processes to comply with the relevant industry standards such as Cobit and ISO 20000, is also an aspect to be mindful of,” says Deon.
The internal skills that are available within an organisation often change as staff members embark on their personal development plans. “These skills may or may not comply with what is needed from a business perspective and often serves as quite a challenge for a manager. The difficulty of evaluating the existent skills set and aligning these skills with business objectives is greatly aided by a consultant who often has a more objective perspective of the situation,” explains Deon.
The number and complexity of products and solutions available to the IT industry makes for quite a challenge when it comes to product evaluation and selection. It is essential to obtain a proper understanding of what the solution needs to provide, which means that these requirements need to be pre-defined in order to assist the decision-making process.
“To achieve a business service management solution that is holistic in its vision, it is necessary to look at every aspect in context of all the others. Foster-Melliar's consulting services are aimed at achieving just that, by offering solutions that may be as big or as small as the organisation will need them to be. A consulting service can be adapted to encompass the entire process or can focus on specific aspects, based on what is required by the organisation,” concludes Deon.
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Foster-Melliar
Foster-Melliar, a wholly owned subsidiary of black-owned Simeka Business Group, sets the benchmark in the business service management and IT service management arena in South Africa. Foster-Melliar provides organisations with proprietary and best practice methodologies coupled with world class consulting, integrated enterprise management systems and training. In 1994, Foster-Melliar began its pioneering approach by introducing and delivering ITIL to the local market. Foster-Melliar has remained on top of its game through an unwavering commitment to knowledge, quality and customer service.