Concord inks deal with innovative IT service provider in the Netherlands

Concord Communications, Inc, a global provider of business service management software solutions, today announced that it has won a contract with Vertis, a Netherlands-based IT service provider specialised in business-process based information systems for customers in a variety of industries.

With an accent on application performance management, the implementation enables business managers of Vertis customers to evaluate the performance of their applications, systems and networks in an easy-to-understand way - from the user`s perspective. The solution was sold through and implemented by SMT Simple Management Technologies BV, one of Concord`s principal resellers in the region.

Vertis has signed service level agreements (SLAs) with its customers in varying industries across the Netherlands, and has always provided regular reports on the performance of the systems and applications it provides. But business managers at some customer sites found it challenging to decipher lists of technical detail, preferring to know what the quality of the user experience was in a given time frame, or how the level of application availability and response was seen from a user`s perspective. Vertis started moving from a reactive to a more proactive approach in its service provision, using a series of transparent key performance indicators, like application transaction time, rather than technical listings. The company then embarked on an evaluation of a number of different products, followed by two proof-of-concept phases before selecting Concord`s eHealth Suite of BSM solutions.

"What makes Concord stand out from the competition is that it`s oriented to what business people want and need to know. What`s especially important for users is how their applications are responding, like how long it takes to open a standard form or log in to an enterprise application, and the user experience is the ultimate measurement," noted Maarten de Vries, Director of Information and Communications Technologies at Vertis.

"In addition, the Concord solution was really easy to implement, so that our customers can start seeing results rapidly. We, and a lot of our customers, use Citrix and the Oracle E-Business Suite and Concord`s support for these is excellent. Finally, both active and observational measurement are enabled, making it a high-value solution both for us and for our customers."

"Tying application performance to the underlying infrastructure of networks and systems is fundamental to driving business success, both for service providers and for their customers," said Frank Kettenstock, Concord`s Vice-President of Product Marketing. "End-to-end visibility and management enables them to get the most from their investment in enterprise applications."