Enterprise Connection (EC) has been awarded a tender to provide software licence management services to the Provincial Government of the Western Cape (PGWC).
This prestigious contract comes shortly after receiving two awards from Microsoft SA, ie Licensing Solution Partner of the Year and Winning Customers of the Year. The contract demonstrates the strength of EC`s methodology and service level commitment as well as the confidence government places in the effectiveness of this black-owned enterprise.
Says EC`s Account Manager Faiza Brown: "We won the contract because we are committed to the LicenseRight methodology. We have a team of four people dedicated to working on the account and a proactive engagement plan that addresses the complex needs of the Provincial Government of the Western Cape."
Brown recounts that the provincial government has a wide array of departments spread across numerous buildings and sites, each with its own computing requirements. This makes licence management an enormously complex task that demands high service levels and effective systems to handle it.
Consequently, Enterprise Connection structured its service offering in a way that would answer government`s needs. EC made a strong commitment to the methodology in terms of providing software review audits, running regular workshops and updates for key role players, and educating individual software users through ongoing training.
The government body tasked with appraising tender submissions, the State Information Technology Agency (SITA), was impressed by EC`s engagement plan. As Brown explains: "They liked our commitment in terms of having multiple resources allocated to different roles - we have dedicated a service level manager, a licensing specialist, a software solutions architect and an internal resources person to service the Provincial Government of the Western Cape."
The LicenseRight methodology employed in addressing the client`s needs was another vital factor. "We go into an account and consult with the individual role players in terms of how it is being managed," says Brown. "We then conduct an audit review and work towards rectifying the situation. At the same time we look at existing policies and procedures and recommend practical steps to ensure compliance. This requires commitment from the client side because they have to implement these policies and procedures."
LicenseRight facilitates the management of licence and contract issues between vendor and customers. Using this system, EC becomes responsible for helping the organisation to navigate through all the complex issues associated with software licensing. EC`s years of software and licensing experience enable it to apply LicenseRight in the most appropriate manner, to ensure customers are free to focus on more important elements of their functions and departments.
The PGWC contract follows the same methodology that EC delivers to all its clients, but in this case it entails delivering to multiple departments across the whole government spectrum. The complexity of the project can be judged by the fact that it involves more than 10 000+ end-users across all departments of the provincial government.
The contract covers installations at the departments of Agriculture, Cultural Affairs and Sport, Department of the Premier, Economic Development and Tourism, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, Health, Housing, Local Government, Provincial Treasury, Social Services and Poverty Alleviation, Transport and Public Works, Education and finally, Community Safety.
The PGWC has appointed two individuals who drives compliance and ensures that optimal service levels are maintained within the organisation. This level of commitment is pivotal in ensuring the entire implementation of the methodology is successful. Problems arise when people don`t have the appropriate knowledge in terms of licensing.
Comments Brown: "It is not just a matter of going in and doing an audit - it is an entire process of licensing legacy applications and new acquisitions across the enterprise. Fortunately EC is used to dealing with big challenges and has an appropriate strategy in place, whereby a team of experts with complementary skills sets are committed to the project.
"We are proud of the fact that the PGWC chose us for the job," says Brown. "It is a completely objective assessment of our services by SITA and it shows the strength we have developed in handling this kind of enterprise-level task."
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