In line with its ongoing strategy of improving the affordability, quality, scope and reach of information technology (IT) services management for distributed and small to medium enterprises, FrontRange Solutions has introduced DiscoverNET - a management console designed to streamline the resolution of network incident management.
DiscoverNET is pre-integrated with FrontRange`s category-leading incident and customer service management solution, HEAT, and is also packaged into the company`s new modular Information Technology Services Management (ITSM) solution.
The pre-integration means that as soon as a network device begins to encounter, say, a threshold limit on CPU utilisation or networking bandwidth, HEAT will automatically receive critical information from the device, use automated business rules to suggest a course of action, and populate a trouble ticket in the HEAT system with all the relevant information - proactively facilitating speedy tracking, resolution and reporting.
By contrast, conventional systems usually require a systems administrator to do his or her own investigation of the causes and potential fixes of a problem, open a different application for issuing an IT service request form and enter all necessary information manually.
"For many small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the most challenging IT issue today is lack of manpower, and DiscoverNET functionality reduces workload, simplifies problem resolution, eliminates typos and increases speed of response," says FrontRange Solutions Africa managing director, Tracey Newman.
"Even more important, DiscoverNET shifts network management from a reactive to a proactive focus, enabling administrators to anticipate and solve problems before they impact customers. That has clear and valuable benefits in terms of improving customer satisfaction.
"In fact, DiscoverNET can have a significant strategic impact on your business because it turns what has always been an operational cost centre into a service centre that not only builds customer loyalty but actually has the power to put money back on to your bottom line."
For outward-facing IT service organisations that support customer networks, the combination of DiscoverNET and HEAT provides vision into the customer network coupled with powerful resolution and tracking tools. Other FrontRange modules such as voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) call centre routing and queuing can be added on the same platform as the organisation grows, for unprecedented ability to serve customers quickly. The same set of benefits applies to distributed enterprises, which manage internal infrastructure across multiple locations and geographies.
As with the full HEAT and ITSM products, FrontRange`s DiscoverNET is designed according to Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) best practice - putting it well ahead of the market trend towards adopting ITIL as an industry standard by 2008.
FrontRange HEAT and ITSM have both been verified by Pink Elephant - a leading global resource for ITIL best practices consulting and training - as being ITIL compliant in the most critical areas of customer and IT services management. These include incident, problem, change, knowledge and service level management.
ITIL is a set of pre-written strategies and procedures for running a corporate IT function. It covers aspects from development, through system delivery, availability and maintenance, all the way to support of the system through helpdesk and other services. It consists of a set of reference manuals written by acknowledged industry experts, commentators, practitioners and theorists. It was initiated by the British government as a guide to optimal implementation and management of IT systems. It is now owned by the IT Service Management Forum (ITSMF), a non-profit vendor and user organisation.
FrontRange Solutions business partners are equipped to help SME customers expand their use of HEAT, offering new tools, ITIL compliance, and a variety of cost saving capabilities.
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FrontRange Solutions is the leading independent provider of service management and CRM applications designed specifically for the SME and distributed enterprise markets. Our applications and solutions allow organisations to manage extraordinary customer relationships and provide exceptional service. The company is headquartered in Pleasanton, California, with offices in Colorado, UK, Germany, Italy, SA, Australia, China and Singapore.
FrontRange product families include GoldMine, for customer relationship management, team-based contact management and sales forces automation solutions; and HEAT, for complete service management including help-desk, knowledge management, asset management and service level management.
FrontRange Solutions drives business decisions for market-leading companies such as Affinity Logic, Barloworld, British American Tobacco (SA), Nissan, Coris Capital, Daimler-Chrysler, Datacentrix, De Beers, Financial Services Board, Johannesburg Water, Standard Bank and Volkswagen SA.
FrontRange has earned more than 60 major industry awards, including: Software Magazine "Hot 500", Windows Magazine "Win 100", Call Centre CRM Solutions Magazine Editor`s Choice, RealWare Award for CRM, WinMag.com WinList Award, Entrepreneur Magazine Best Software, Call Centre Solutions Product of the Year, and InformationWeek Top 50 Application Service Providers.
For more information, please visit www.frontrange.co.za or contact +27 11 325 5600.
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