NW govt improves service delivery with SAS analytical software

The North West Provincial Government (NWPG) has implemented sophisticated analytical software to improve both its IT service delivery and the cost management of its IT infrastructure.

NWPG now monitors and manages its IT resources, using the accurate information obtained from the software system, to make proactive decisions on, for example, future infrastructure investments.

This ensures reliable IT services for end users, preventing the IT directorate from being in constant "firefighting" mode. With proactive planning of IT resources, performance bottlenecks have become a thing of the past.

"SAS IT Service Vision (ITSV) is delivering value because we can now rely on accurate information to strategically measure and manage performance of IT resources," says Paul Rabotapi, NWPG's deputy director: Applications Development and Maintenance Sub-directorate, IT Directorate, Department of Finance. "We can therefore properly plan or forecast, and budget accordingly.

"In the past, it was difficult for us to obtain reliable information about our IT infrastructure," he adds. "Many of our previous decisions had to be based on assumptions."

NWPG, in Mafikeng, has been a SAS user for many years. At the end of 2002 it decided to implement IT Service Vision to monitor and manage huge amounts of performance information from a variety of systems and networks.

The implementation was completed within budget and in just two weeks instead of the month initially scoped in the project plan.

"NWPG has a complex IT infrastructure," says Ronnie van der Merwe, SAS solutions architect in the Sales Support Division. "It has many offices, all of which communicate with each other and with other provinces. It was previously a nightmare to manage this extensive infrastructure.

"Although our solution has the capacity to manage every part of this infrastructure, our customer decided to concentrate on its large Windows servers, and to monitor and manage its mainframe."

IT Service Vision is fully Web-enabled, giving users an easy, graphical snapshot of what they need to know. The solution generates easy-to-read reports on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.

"Business benefits include improved delivery of IT service," explains Van der Merwe. "IT Service Vision gives more accurate analysis of performance for all systems, and more effective planning of resources. It reduces the risk of implementation projects, and offers a smooth migration from existing solutions.

"Another major benefit is improved cost management for the IT infrastructure," he says. "The solution provides accurate analysis of exceptions and possible problem areas. Addressing these in time leads to more efficient infrastructure and cost savings, allowing for a more exact budget planning and more effective investment decisions."

According to Rabotapi, the new software gives the department real, up-to-date information that makes it easy to take the correct decisions. "We can now plan properly in terms of our budget, and manage our IT resources accurately, particularly the networking side. We know when to upgrade, and why.

"We are now busy with the second phase of the implementation, expanding and utilising the software optimally, developing further reports, and drilling deeper down into the information to gain more insights," Rabotapi concludes.