Every company offering field service management and automation solutions will impress you with a long checklist of features: schedule boards, dispatching and routing, work order management, automatic billing, and more. How do you compare products and find the differences that should determine your choice? Download this white paper and read up on some of the key issues to explore as you compare products and providers.
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When managing fixed assets, you must follow Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) for financial statement reporting, and you must follow the IRS tax codes and regulations for income tax reporting. Each has its own set of rules and requirements. This e-book explains the differences between GAAP principles and IRS regulations for fixed assets management, and provides a list of best practices to follow.
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In the world of accounting, the savings potential of improved fixed asset management is often overlooked. Yet assets like land, buildings, transportation, and manufacturing equipment represent among the largest investments most companies make. Sub-optimal fixed asset practices can threaten the accuracy of financial reports and negatively impact your bottom line. This white paper outlines best practices for fixed asset management and suggests tips for implementation, including establishing an accurate baseline of fixed assets, selecting the right asset management tools, staying up to date with legislative changes, and producing targeted financial reports.
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Spreadsheets have become one of the most prevalent software applications used in businesses today, for everything from simple calculations to impromptu databases for tracking a wide range of information, including employee hours, expense reports, and fixed assets. And while spreadsheets are inherently useful in business, they are constantly being used for tasks in which they are ill-suited. Many companies use spreadsheets for financial tracking and reporting, but the negative aspects of using spreadsheets for tracking and depreciating fixed assets are substantial. This white paper describes fourteen ways that spreadsheets can fall short, and gives recommendations for implementing a dedicated asset inventory and asset accounting solution.
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Companies that fail to manage fixed assets can have difficulty complying with reporting regulations and complex, changing tax laws, and thus run the risk of misstating financial information and making mistakes in tax filings. A complete fixed asset management software solution should have tracking, depreciation, and inventory features, and should also provide the ability to conduct physical inventories of assets easily and reconcile the results to the fixed asset schedule. Finally, it should include easy, functional reporting to aid compliance, auditing, and preparation of financial reports and tax filings. This white paper looks at the potential ROI of fixed asset management software.
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Implementing a fixed asset inventory solution and performing proper accounting of assets can save time and money, reduce theft, improve planning and budgeting, eliminate “ghost assets,” and help an organization recover after a natural disaster. However, the importance of tracking and managing fixed assets such as land, buildings, transportation, and manufacturing equipment is often overlooked. This white paper discusses best practices for fixed asset inventory management and suggests tips for implementing a successful inventory process, including how to create an asset inventory process, implement a label and scanning solution for tracking of assets, establish an accurate baseline of fixed assets, and design a “go-forward” strategy for maintaining an asset inventory.
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When businesses implement an ERP system, they have to decide whether to manage fixed assets using an add-on module from the ERP vendor or a dedicated fixed asset management solution. The key differentiating factors can be functionality, ease-of-use, cost, and compliance issues. If you’re currently searching for a fixed asset management solution, this guide looks at the differences between the two types of assets and explains why a best-of-breed fixed asset management solution may be a more affordable, flexible, and reliable option than an ERP add-on module.
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Today’s businesses are seeing the increased use of cloud-based solutions owing to potential economic benefits. This report spotlights Agresso’s SaaS ERP cloud platform—and shows how the underlying agile VITA architecture plus UNIT4’s unique approach to multitenancy enables organizations to substantially lower costs related to business changes, minimize disruption, and maximize productivity. Download the report now.
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If your approach for implementing an application that will be accessed primarily by business users is the same one you’d take to deploy a back-end IT system, you might want to rethink your implementation strategy. Business users need to be more involved in the configuration and design of the systems they will be using, and they need to be involved early. Read further to ensure your EPM solution implementation is a success.
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All software has a lifespan, and sooner or later it will be time to change or upgrade your current ERP solution as well. But how can you tell whether your ERP system is still performing to its fullest, or leading your company to slowly lose its competitiveness? Know the five early warning signs that can give you early notice of the coming need to change your ERP system before the results show up in your bottom line.
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The global ERP market has been seeing an average of about 10% growth year on year since 2006, and while the current global economic slowdown is bound to cause a dip in this growth pattern, it is a safe bet that the overall trend will sustain. Read this white paper to get a deep understanding of the ERP market space and its development, the key ERP vendors, and the factors you need to consider when selecting an ERP system.
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In today's challenging economic environment, organizations need to undertake major cost-cutting efforts while improving operational efficiency with fewer resources. ERP solutions provide an effective way for companies to improve overall business performance, but the ERP landscape has changed dramatically over the last year, with an increasing number of SaaS providers. Read this paper and know if you're ready for SaaS ERP.
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ERP projects are very complex affairs and go beyond technical issues into both cultural and business process domains. The success of your ERP project is determined by the amount of preparation that is undertaken before the software is even shortlisted. Read this white paper and know the procedures and precautions that you can follow to help you avoid most of the pitfalls associated with implementing your ERP system.
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CRM software has gone well beyond being a "good to have" capability. Senior management is now generally quite clear that this genre of software is needed. However, it also often acknowledged that companies that have deployed CRM software solutions have not obtained the benefits that were promised. When we understand the reasons for this dissatisfaction, we can make the case for a new CRM solution. See the benefits of a new CRM solution.
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Today’s business marketplace is an extremely competitive one. Companies that want to be successful need to develop, grow, and manage their business effectively. To successfully do this, businesses need a CRM solution. CRM solutions allow companies to strengthen relationships with existing customers and build new relationships with prospective clients. Know what to consider to select the right CRM solution for your business.
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Every business is in business to generate revenue. The more revenue generated, the happier everyone is. A company’s call center is no different. But how do you manage your call center to run as efficiently and productively as possible? While CRM software will represent an investment when initially implemented, it offers the possibility for a favorable return on investment. See how a CRM solution can benefit your call center.
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More and more workers are using smartphones and tablets to do their work—from anywhere at anytime. But managing these devices in the field can be difficult. Enterprise mobile device management (MDM) solutions are the answer to many of the issues caused by the rapid growth of mobile devices. See how MDM provides IT with a complete set of inventory, control, and reporting tools that make it easy to manage mobile devices wherever they are.
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Is your business running as well as it should be? Your ERP system may be the dynamo it was intended to be, but if it has become outdated or outrageously expensive to operate—a dinosaur or a devil in the making—chances are it is doing more harm than good in today’s increasingly global world. Regardless of your business or industry, the time has come to examine your ERP system dispassionately. Know what needs to be considered.
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The PLM world is currently witness to fervent debate on the most appropriate type of PLM/CAD software. Best-of-breed solutions offer the needed capabilities and hence integrate the necessary software modules as per the customer’s needs, whereas all-in-one CAD/PLM suites attempt a “one size fits all” approach. In his report, TEC principal analyst P.J. Jakovljevic provides his view on the intricacies of these two approaches.
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The rapid proliferation of mobile devices entering the workplace feels like divine intervention to many IT leaders. This raises the inevitable question: how will you support workforce desire to use personal apps and devices while allowing them to be productive in a secure environment that protects corporate data? Read the Ten Commandments of BYOD to know how to create a peaceful, secure, and productive mobile environment.
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Acumatica is a rising cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) software vendor with a value proposition of delivering the benefits of cloud computing and software as a service (SaaS)—without sacrificing system customization, control, security, and performance. Read this TEC Report by TEC principal analyst P.J. Jakovljevic and see how Acumatica’s offerings give both new and old ERP software vendors a run for their money.
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Monolithic ERP systems have proved inflexible in a period of change. The cost of maintenance and modifications are often prohibitively expensive. Yet most best-of-class applications generally lack strong integration tools. As a result, many companies cannot support change effectively. See how you can supplement the capabilities of your legacy ERP solutions with a flexible, innovative financial management system-and thrive during change.
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Vistaar, a newcomer to the B2B pricing management space, is quickly asserting its powerful analytic and planning capabilities. In this TEC Report, TEC principal analyst P.J. Jakovljevic looks at the strategic approach the vendor has taken to the development of its platform and applications, and speaks with the vendor’s product management expert Usha Lyer on Vistaar’s offerings, competitive landscape, and future plans.
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This tutorial presents a framework and financial methodology for deciding whether an enterprise should replace its current “status quo” tape storage solution with a new “proposed” solution, and the economics related to that decision. Read this white paper for an analysis of the value drivers that contribute to the cost of the status quo and proposed tape storage solutions using an illustrative business case, and much more.
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What has made Rimini Street a leader in the third-party enterprise software service and maintenance (S&M) cottage industry? TEC principal analyst P.J. Jakovljevic offers up some reasons and speaks with Rimini Street’s senior VP Dave Rowe on the company’s winning product and service line capabilities and future moves, and gets Dave’s interesting perspective on the need for and explosive growth of third-party support.
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Most ERP products have been designed from repetitive manufacturing, and thus lack the powerful asset management and project management functionality that mining companies require. But ERP is becoming a higher priority for these organizations. This white paper offers tips on selecting ERP software for the mining industry. Learn how you can you select ERP that can handle the entire mining project and asset lifecycle.
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Design-operate-maintain is an approach to asset management designed to maximize value over the entire asset lifecycle—from asset planning and design through years of maintenance and operation through to decommissioning and replacement. How can you select EAM software capable of supporting this enlightened approach? Download this white paper to find out.
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Global competition, rising regulatory burdens, increasingly demanding customers, and profitability pressures all characterize an impatient business environment with little tolerance for the status quo. In an ongoing race to meet these challenges, manufacturers tie their fates to ERP systems. But selecting an ERP system is no easy feat. Read this white paper and get 10 best practices to consider when selecting an ERP system.
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In an ongoing race to meet present-day challenges, manufacturers tie their fates to ERP systems, and the degree to which those systems remain functionally viable in the face of new and shifting challenges is a major determinant of long-term business survival. Know how to recognize when your system becomes updated and what you need to do to remain vigilant and proactive in identifying and staying current with market evolution.
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In many organizations, it is workers bringing their own devices into the workplace who are forcing the hand of IT policy makers. But as new devices are coming to market faster than corporate IT can formulate policies about them, application management is quickly becoming a fundamental mobility management challenge. Those companies with the best mobility implementations will win in a world of real-time business engagement. See how!
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Most organisations are sitting on IT equipment that is not supporting the business optimally, yet the received wisdom is to sweat the assets to gain as much perceived lifetime value from them as possible. However, IT assets have inherent value which can change significantly through each asset’s lifecycle—whether this is through its hard resale value or just through its scrap value. By applying a full IT lifecycle management (ITLM) approach to the complete IT platform, a business-optimised platform can be created—one where business value overrides the embedded concept of sweating assets.
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This paper highlights the environmental impact of printing and discusses how a managed print service can support an organization's sustainability goals, while also lowering costs and driving business efficiency.
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Cloud services will be a leading driver of productivity for manufacturers over the next decade. Businesses focused on reducing costs and improving the quality of manufacturing solutions will increasingly turn to the cloud for SaaS solutions. Read this white paper by president and CEO of inKumo, Inc., and find out how this new era of technology will dramatically improve productivity and cost savings in the industry.
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This white paper analyzes several deployment methods of Cisco Extension Mobility within Enterprise Cisco telephony environments and how to streamline commissioning. It presents how automatic configuration of auto-registered phones and end user sync to Microsoft Active Directory can be used by the Uplinx Auto Provisioning system to provide an automated process with a clear workflow that minimizes operational costs, reduces configuration errors, accelerates service requests, and improves the end user service experience.
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While no technology can prevent normal equipment wear or the need for maintenance, predictive analytics and the latest advances in predictive diagnostics are now helping plants to overcome their challenges by detecting impending problems early and allowing plants to take control of their operations. Download this white paper to learn how you can put these advantages to work for your organization.
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Expense management in the legal sector can be complex and burdened with problems. Expense errors in claims sent to clients can not only result in time being spent in sorting out resulting issues, but can also impact the trust between the client and firm. Legal firms must ensure expenses are dealt with accurately, effectively, and in a timely manner. Download this paper for Quocirca’s recommendations for a chosen system.
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Visual Asset Manager 6.3 is TEC Certified for online evaluation of computerized maintenance management systems/enterprise asset management (CMMS/EAM) solutions in TEC's CMMS/EAM Evaluation Center. The certification seal is a valuable indicator for organizations relying on the integrity of TEC research for assistance with their software selection projects. Download this report for product highlights, competitive analysis, product analysis, and in-depth analyst commentary.
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The Proximity Hotel in Greensboro, North Carolina, is the first hotel in the US to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification at the platinum level from the U.S. Green Building Council. Combining luxury with energy efficiency and environmental sustainability, the hotel places the highest priority on guest comfort. The owner's goal is a sustainable, energy-efficient hotel that never compromises guest comfort. Learn more now.
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This white paper reveals the results of a survey that examined how companies can intelligently manage devices to create value, and to look at implications for improving energy efficiency. While recognizing there are challenges facing smart management of devices, one third of those who responded to a related survey also acknowledged that such efforts could help cut costs or increase profits significantly across many areas of the business. Learn more. Download this white paper now.
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Of the 30 billion invoices sent and received in Europe every year, more than 90% are in paper format. This is not only labour intensive and error prone, but comes at both a financial and environmental cost. Such manual operations slow invoice reconciliation, leading to poor relationships with suppliers and buyers and, potentially, poor cash flow management. This paper discusses the challenges posed by inefficient manual invoice processes, the need for e-invoicing, and how an organization can focus on its core business by handing over invoice processing to a managed service provider.
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Overlooking how an application fits into your overall IT landscape can lead to costly implementations. But addressing data management with middleware solutions that work seamlessly with existing applications in your company’s IT environment can lead to significant benefits. Explore the value of technology decisions that support and maintain infrastructure-wide interoperability with regard to your data management solutions.
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Now that technical aspects of delivering information to the business intelligence (BI) user community are understood, BI vendors are focused on market expansion through key initiatives, including advocating ‘BI for the masses.’ However promising expanded BI use may be, a careful and balanced discussion of the specific business and technical preconditions for capturing the business value of BI investments is needed.
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This white paper presents an overview of IFS Applications for asset management of nuclear power plants, including corrective, preventive, and condition-based maintenance functionality for safe work management in a hazardous environment. Also included are asset lifecycle management tools to track changes to the assets that affect operational limits and conditions (OLCs).
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The administration and management of printing can be time-consuming, often relying on manual processes. Many businesses are rethinking their approach to managing the print environment, by either adopting a managed service or implementing centralized print management tools. This can ensure the high availability, reliability and manageability of printing resources, while leaving IT staff free to focus on core activities.
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To effectively transform succession planning from a manual, paper-based process to one that is systematic and technology-enabled, CEOs must focus on laying a solid foundation supported by strong executive leadership. Read this CEO guide to get five key tips to jump-start your succession planning efforts to better manage risk and ensure business continuity and to know how a strong succession strategy can impact your company.
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Universities and other higher education establishments have to address the need for savings across the board. One area is expenses from faculty members and other associated with faculty. The complex mix of expense types needs a flexible yet solid means of managing spend as close as possible to the point of expense that encourages the individual to participate in the process without it being seen as an imposition. Know how.
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Electronically stored information is a key asset to any organization, but it is often insufficiently cared for. Failure to protect data can result not only in steep fines, but also in loss of competitive advantage of the company. To ensure the safety and integrity of information, read this report on data governance examining how well European businesses understand the risks and what steps they have taken to address them.
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This white paper analyzes the return on investment (ROI) that customers can expect from their enterprise network solution, based on interviews with customers. Additionally, you will read about the business case for proactively managing network and application performance. Get the visibility you need to achieve your IT objectives. Download this white paper today.
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PAS 55 compliance is a priority for asset-intensive companies that must maximize asset value. Learn how enterprise asset management (EAM) software can facilitate the practices in this specification, including the most demanding requirement—asset lifecycle management encompassing all asset stakeholders including contractors, suppliers, engineers as well as internal users.
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Companies must meet GRC criteria defined by internal and external policies, as failing to do so can have business and legal consequences. Although management of travel and entertainment (T&E) expenses is often seen as being of low importance for overall GRC, poorly managed T&E can lead to unforeseen issues with long-term business impact. See why using an external T&E management provider is the best way to adhere to GRC.
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The managed print services (MPS) market continues to evolve as vendors expand their service offerings beyond the office print environment. Today the business agenda is broader, and MPS must provide a route to business transformation as well as cost efficiency. Businesses thus must place their transformational goals on the agenda at the start of an MPS engagement. See what major MPS providers have to offer to your business.
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Comprehensive management and protection of information can be achieved only when both data centers and end points are controlled by managed service providers (MSPs). MSPs must change their thinking and embrace end point management, ensuring IT availability, data security, and business continuity. See how MSPs with the right tools and services are well positioned to strengthen customer relationships and grow market share.
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Understanding, measuring, and managing against return on investment of a company’s IT investment (ROIT) enables IT leaders to quantitatively frame their contribution to the business and justify initiatives they seek to undertake. Read about concrete practices, processes, and recommendations to drive ROIT investment via key areas for improvement, the value of improvement, and guidelines for evaluating potential projects.
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Competitive pricing, and its impact on revenue, is a mainstay of marketing in the highly-competitive hotel industry. The real-time nature of the Internet means that sales, pricing, and revenue managers must abandon inward-looking cost-plus pricing models in favor of more rigorous outward-focused knowledge-based strategies. A system that provides market intelligence data creates important advantages for pricing managers.
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Technology is at a point where organizations must make decisions about where the IT platform future lies. Will existing architectures be sufficient to see a business through the next few years, or will cloud computing—built on the proven approaches of Web services and service-oriented architecture—be a better way forward? By modeling and predicting future states, organizations can make the right decisions. Find out how.
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Companies are finding it difficult and costly to update and modify enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems after they have been installed. The question isn’t whether an ERP solution supports change, but rather at what cost? How quickly can adjustments be made, and what stresses do such changes place on the organization. To answer these questions, this paper provides results from a survey of senior finance executives.
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Reduced margins and heavy competition in delivery, distribution, and transportation service industries are creating a high level of urgency for every business to implement an effective fleet management system that can manage costs and provide a measurable return on investment (ROI). GPS fleet tracking technology can be one of the most cost effective means to manage fuel consumption. Find out more.
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This paper examines how a talent management system (TMS) that integrates learning, performance management (PM), compensation, development, and succession planning can make a bottom-line difference in a retailer’s ability to reduce turnover, manage change, and achieve strategic goals. It also examines how retailers are using software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions to make optimum use of budgetary and staff resources.
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Managed print services (MPSs) offer organizations the opportunity to control costs, reduce the complexity of managing a heterogeneous infrastructure, and improve business processes. With many organizations striving to do more with less, MPS can cut expenses by passing control of complex printing infrastructure to the experts, and leaving the organization to focus on its core business competencies. Find out more.
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This paper focuses on identifying the similarities and differences between Oracle Financial Analyzer (OFA) and Hyperion Planning (HP). For users who are migrating, or thinking of migrating, to Hyperion Planning, strategies will be discussed to ensure their existing functionality can be replicated in HP. The paper is aimed at users who are familiar with OFA or similar multidimensional database applications.
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For managed services providers (MSPs) aiming to serve small and medium-sized businesses, the ability to capture and retain lasting customer relationships is a determining factor for long-term profitability. Only by clearly and consistently communicating your value to your customer can you hope to attain the role of trusted advisor—a position that will help protect you from losing business to lower-priced competitors. Learn how an integrated, offline reporting solution can help ensure that your customers perceive your value in the ways that matter most to all managers within the customer organization.
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Service companies that want to thrive need to find a better way to deliver services and run their business. Automating IT services is the answer, and it should be the immediate goal of any company that aims to stay in business as market pressures increase. Looking beyond basic automation, becoming a managed services provider (MSP) should be the long-term goal. Discover ways to ensure your service company's survival in today’s competitive IT services market.
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Margins on profitable products and services erode as they become commoditized. And now, the same process is starting to happen to the IT services market. To avoid the commoditization trap and distinguish their services from their competitors, managed services providers (MSPs) need to develop a two-pronged strategy that involves delivering higher-value services that yield greater profit margins, and driving down service delivery costs so they can effectively deliver responsive, tools-based services to compete efficiently in a commoditized market. Find out how.
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Most IT service providers have always and continue to operate in a break/fix service environment. When a customer calls with an issue, the service provider drops everything to fix it. Under these circumstances, service providers have a difficult time forecasting monthly revenues and staffing needs, which has a huge impact on profitability. Add to this the intense competition, excessive customer turnover, low technician utilization rates, and shrinking margins that characterize today‟s market, and the result is IT service providers anxious to find a new way of delivering their services. Learn about innovative IT-as-a-Service initiatives that are defining the new IT value chain of the future.
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Considering that e-mail and other electronically stored information (ESI) create the electronic equivalent of DNA evidence, there is no doubt that their evidentiary role will continue to expand. Learn how implementing a strategic e-discovery compliance program can help US and Canadian employers preserve, protect, and produce legally compliant e-mail and other ESI when compelled to do so by a court or regulatory body.
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When companies have technology rollouts to deploy on a nationwide or global scale, service efficiency is critical. By understanding the details of the Rollout Services Model, they can avoid the potential nightmares of project implementation and increase the chances that projects are completed on time and within budget. Learn how to evaluate a technology rollout company effectively and ensure that you are getting the most efficient and cost-effective implementation system for your technology deployment projects.
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The rapid deployment of nationwide technology rollouts requires well-defined processes, robust management skills, and a unique understanding of how to get the job done. Without a proven technology rollout system, businesses run a high risk of project complications that can result in increased costs, missed deadlines, and an overwhelming burden on internal resources. Learn what a technology rollout system is, how it can lower costs and save time without compromising quality, and what questions to ask a technology rollout company.
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Most enterprises waste millions of dollars annually by not managing their telecom spend in a standardized, centralized, more accurate way. Having ballooned up to being in the top four overall expenses of the entire company, telecom expense management (TEM) is something you should put on your radar—sooner than later. Find out why your telecom expenses are rising, and how you can work globally to reduce them.
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For many consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies, the environment is too complex to implement a new business process without upgrading the IT systems that support that process. Taking a consumer approach to upgrading can help. You need to seek out solutions that fit your CPG environment, can keep up with continual innovation, and more. But you always need to be thinking ahead. Learn more about developing an IT roadmap.
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Utility and energy sector executives face a litany of critical industry demands. Mandatory reliability standards and environmental compliance, along with expanding capacity requirements, must be factored into increasingly complex operating plans. Struggling to maximize your aging infrastructure and ensure every investment yields maximum return? Learn how you can get more done with asset investment planning.
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Many failed projects are lamented by analysts and commentators because of the lack of effective metadata management. Your project may fail too—but there are simple steps to avoid the common mistakes that lead to failure. Find out how your service infrastructure affects the agility of your IT systems, and the roles metadata registries, knowledge organization systems, and collaborative tools play in a metadata methodology.
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Change management is an inherent part of software implementation. Ideally, you want new business processes and the software to support them. However, companies still often compromise, due to their implementation approach and technology limitations—resulting in needless expense. There is a more rapid approach to implementation and change management, with reduced risk, greater value, and lower total cost of ownership (TCO).
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Today’s technology and application leaders are pressured to deliver functionality that drives efficiency, innovation, and growth—while reducing costs. As a result, technology and application portfolio management (APM) are top business priorities. Learn about a framework for implementing an APM program that can enable your company to monitor and analyze the impact of application changes and reduce portfolio complexity.
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Today’s fast-paced lifestyle means many people spend a considerable amount of time in a mobile state, going between home, office, and meetings. With increasing pressure on time and mobility, the ability to secure important assets, both digitally and physically, has become critical. But there is an easy and affordable solution—learn how a surveillance system can be put into place using network attached storage.
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PepsiCo Italia needed an information management system to manage and track assets it loans at no cost to clients, such as coolers and fountains. It also sought to increase operational efficiency and trace every event involving every piece of equipment during the entire asset life cycle. Learn about the integrated enterprise asset management (EAM) system PepsiCo chose to supports all equipment asset management processes.
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Heinz Frozen Food Company was set on improving its manufacturing and maintenance process efficiency, and knew that implementing a new enterprise asset management (EAM) system would involve monumental change for employees. Heinz choose a Web-based system to help it gain better visibility into processes and work towards more progressive lean manufacturing and lean maintenance practices for greater efficiency. Learn more.
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Leading companies are reducing energy consumption and costs as a top-priority initiative—with benefits ranging from more efficient operations to increased shareholder value, improved environmental conditions, and new market opportunities. A global asset sustainability approach will give you opportunities to further lower costs while ensuring reliable operations in all your properties, plants, and equipment. Learn how.
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At Mohawk Fine Papers, a new Web-based enterprise asset management (EAM) system replaced a maintenance management system (MMS) to provide efficiencies for paper-making and converting equipment. Since implementing the new EAM, Mohawk has standardized its maintenance processes, streamlined work order flow, automated business rules, and achieved more detailed tracking of assets. Learn more about the EAM software’s modules.
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As you look for ways to get the most out of your existing operating assets, enterprise asset management (EAM) and computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) solutions are key. However, when it comes to researching, selecting, and implementing the right EAM/CMMS software, you need to avoid several mistakes. Discover 10 common errors you should avoid if you’re looking for a new or replacement EAM or CMMS solution.
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Every record that fails to meet standards of quality can lead to lost revenue or unnecessary costs. A well-executed data quality initiative isn’t difficult, but it is crucial to getting maximum value out of your data. In small companies, for which every sales lead, order, or potential customer is valuable, poor data quality isn’t an option—implementing a thorough data quality solution is key to your success. Find out how.
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Most document security companies concern themselves solely with the prevention of unauthorized access to content. Online publishers, on the other hand, struggle to find a balance between document security and a satisfactory reader experience. A new approach to document security can give online content publishers the ability to protect their content without adding unnecessary complexity to document access. Learn more.
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Regardless of size or purpose, business processes within a company rely heavily on the dependability of assets for successful operations. Enterprise asset management (EAM) solutions can help companies monitor their assets, including a feature that allows documents to be attached to a work order. But printing the work order and its attachments is not always so simple. Learn how automated work order software can help.
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Information is one of the most valuable resources for facilities management departments, so it’s essential to have a process that lets you achieve full value from it, and to urge your company on from weak paper-prone processes. Facilities management systems can now integrate with other systems. Find out the points you should consider when choosing and implementing a computer-aided facilities management (CAFM) solution.
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The increasing use of virtualization allowed managed hosting providers to reduce costs by sharing infrastructure between customers, creating the earliest versions of what is now known as cloud computing. Platforms managed by specialists provide higher service levels, greater ease of secure access, and more manageable costs than many companies can achieve internally. Discover more about Europe’s managed hosting market.
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Teamwork requires data to be shared, but security must be maintained. Folder encryption is an essential part of corporate security and protecting intellectual property. Secure Folder can provide a secure electronic workstation. Files and folders can be secured for users’ personal use, or configured so they are available for the shared, exclusive use of a selective group. Find out more about a desktop encryption solution.
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Secure Mail is a plug-in that integrates into Microsoft Outlook. The main functions of Secure Mail are provided in the toolbar or the menu. It’s possible to pre-assign various setup options before the software is rolled out, which can be locked so that the user can no longer change the default settings. Learn more about the main properties of Secure Mail and get an overview of the possible configurations the product offers.
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Do you understand the differences between open source and closed source (proprietary) software? To make an informed decision when choosing between them, you need to know the advantages and disadvantages of each. The main issues in the debate include cost, service and support, innovation, usability, and security. Get a closer look at open source and closed source software solutions so you know what’s right for your needs.
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Agitar provides Java testing solutions to its customers around in the world in various industries. Agitar has been using a network licensing platform since 2004, and now offers floating licenses from a re-distributed server, with stand-alone license server or embedded options. Unlike other license servers that can’t be embedded, there’s no separate licensing process. Learn how this benefits Agitar—and its customers.
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Fair Isaac Corporation’s FICO scores—the global industry standard for objective, profitable risk assessment—are the most widely used consumer credit scores in the world. Fair Isaac was using a simple in-house license manager to protect new installations of the FICO score, but as new implementations spread around the world, the company decided it needed a new system to manage its licenses. Learn about its chosen solution.
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Since 1996, NumeriX had been using in-house-developed licensing tools to manage and protect its applications. In 2006, it outsourced licensing to a third-party vendor that could provide a scalable solution with two licensing options. After some problems with integration, NumeriX consolidated on one commercial licensing management solution. Find out about the benefits of the licensing solution the company chose.
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Product activation is a popular approach for securing software licenses. However, software developers need to understand all the requirements for a capable activation system, from the license models they’ll need to support, to how to deal with the corner-case customer environments. Learn about the obvious, and not-so-obvious, issues software developers need to consider as they select a product activation system.
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Software vendors have used license management for many years. Older approaches, such as key-file-based licensing or dongles, do have a number of drawbacks for both the vendor and the user. Product activation solves many of these problems, so is gaining broad acceptance. Learn more about product activation and licensing management, and why modern product activation systems are superior to other techniques.
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Currently, India’s population is approximately 1.0009 billion. The middle class is large and still growing; wages were low, but now are some of the best in various industries; many workers are well educated and speak English; and investors are optimistic and local stocks are up. Despite political turmoil, the country presses on with economic reforms. But for potential investors, there’s still cause for worry—find out why.
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Aligning IT with business objectives has long been a mantra of corporate directives. But organizations often fall short of publishing quality documents and assembling plans that meet business needs—never mind providing the necessary details to ensure thorough infrastructure planning. Don’t focus too much on technology—find out how to better manage the IT planning process and how to overcome its challenges.
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The increasing number of passwords actually decrease productivity and present a security risk when people get frustrated and write their passwords on a sticky note. This means the application of a single sign-on (SSO) solution provides greater security and improved user-friendliness and productivity. Learn how to increase the security and usability of existing and alternative authentication methods, and how the requirements for user authentication can be realized efficiently and at low cost.
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Discover a framework for crafting a software-as-a-service (SaaS) strategy in your company. Examine key concerns such as data integrity, maintaining compliance, and ensuring proper process management, as well as approaches to help maximize your return on investment (ROI). A SaaS solution for your enterprise resource planning (ERP) or accounting system might be your ticket to improved business and application performance.
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Business networks have come to the fore in the past decade, as the power of customers and consumers has increased relative to the manufacturers and retailers that serve them. These networks enable these companies to deliver faster innovation to customers at lower costs by sharing investment, assets, and ideas. Find out how information technology and communication (ITC) systems can help you unlock new market opportunities.
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During a downturn economy, the IT department is often among the first to be hit with senior executives’ cost-cutting initiatives. Yet in some instances, IT investments deliver more value to a company’s top and bottom lines—by creating new efficiencies and increasing revenues—than any savings gained from traditional IT cost-cutting. Discover the other reasons why your IT spending can actually save money in the long run.
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For years, utilities have seen a growing need to enable a smarter electric grid, promote cleaner power sources, and replace aging structures. These issues came into sharper focus when US President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). This legislation provides funding for many energy initiatives—however, strict compliance guidelines come with the stimulus plan. Find out more.
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Workers spend on average close to 80 percent of their workday with some combination of enterprise applications and desktop tools. Best-in-class companies have already found ways to improve productivity. Learn more about the convergence of enterprise applications with desktop tools, and the role it plays in providing visibility to enterprise data, improving communication, and facilitating real-time decision making.
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New Avenue Solutions is a consultant for small to medium businesses (SMBs) in network setup and installation, security, data backup, and more. As part of New Avenue’s service offering, it rents rack space in a data warehouse to manage customers’ network and backup solutions. As storage demands grew, transfer rates slowed, and maintenance became increasingly time consuming. Learn how New Avenue overcame the problems.
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While different business strategies have been used to insulate firms from change, chief executive officers (CEOs) are beginning to see that their companies need to become more agile in making changes to strategy, operations, and products. But turning agility from a buzzword into a business capability means measuring and managing your ability to change. Find out how CEOs can take the lead in defining what agility means.
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Growth—whether organic or acquisitive—is challenging executives today from a strategic as well as an operational perspective. Studies estimate that 50 to 80 percent of deals fail to reach their projected results. Discover the challenges inherent in three common growth models, and find out how to implement a solid, flexible, and adaptive foundation that can support your company’s corporate growth strategies.
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Although students at the University of Nevada’s Reno campus were generally respectful of the campus’s computers and IT policies, entertainment or malicious software often appeared on computer hard drives. This made machines less stable or even disabled them entirely. To combat the problem of computer network security, UNR found a solution that enables automatic shutdown time and safer shared computer workstations.
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Oklahoma City University spent a significant amount of money putting the latest computer technology and software in its classrooms. But teachers noticed students weren’t always using these learning tools appropriately. After installing teacher management software, instructors have total control of classroom computers and no longer have to deal with classroom distractions, such as games and instant messaging. Learn more.
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Lewis and Clark Community College in Illinois (US) was having a number of technology problems in its classrooms, leading to student attention issues. After installing a new software solution, teachers can now share their screens with students, provide remote assistance to students from a central console, and monitor classroom screens to ensure students are on task. Find out more about this workstation management solution.
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Coeur D’Alene School District’s director of maintenance was looking for ways to help the district save money. Knowing that the district was spending a lot on energy and that an element of energy waste was involved, he decided to search for an energy management solution for the district’s classroom computers. Find out more about the software-based desktop computer energy management solution the district implemented.
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The desire to be environmentally responsible—and save money—led Howard Community College (HCC) to green its campus. Seeing that there was room for savings in its computing technology, HCC searched for an energy management solution that would make workstations available when system resources are required, while conserving power during productivity downtimes. Learn how the solution HCC chose offered energy savings and more.
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Vulnerabilities in Web applications are now the largest vector of enterprise security attacks. Attacks compromising sensitive data are often the result of “cross-site scripting,” “SQL injection,” and “buffer overflow.” As many companies have discovered, these attacks will evade traditional network defenses unless you take new precautions with automated detection. Learn more in this primer to Web application security.
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IT spending is often an issue for companies, but in difficult economic times it’s even more important to see what benefit IT can bring to the business. But IT investments are most effective when they improve business performance. Find out the degree to which organizations in the United Kingdom (UK) understand what IT is doing for their businesses, and in particular how some companies measure this and benefit from it.
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The automation of traditional paper-based processes with technology can lead to unnecessary complexity. This leads to increased costs and other challenges which can be avoided if solutions are simple and fit closely to the business task in hand.
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It is an accepted fact that Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is the only consistent and comprehensive documentation of best practices for IT service management. Now, ITIL mentions facilities management in best practices for IT service management. Why? Because facilities have to be intact and operating seamlessly to manage the physical environment where the IT infrastructure is located. Find out more.
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Computerized maintenance management system (CMMS). Enterprise asset management (EAM) system. Computer-aided facilities management (CAFM) system. Integrated workplace management system (IWMS). Each type of facility management solution offers different functionalities and features, and one may be better than another for your company’s needs. Learn more about the differences and how an integrated solution is a “must have.”
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Facilities management software systems used to function in separate technology silos. Now, vendors are adopting Web-based services, as well as on-demand and other emerging technologies. As the technology that solves the inefficiencies of working with geographic information systems (GISs) and computer-aided design (CAD) rapidly evolves, new opportunities emerge for facility and property managers. Learn more.
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Hirotec has been supplying and caring for the assets of some of Australia’s biggest industries for more than 30 years. In 2003, Hirotec was on a strong growth trajectory and realized its IT system couldn’t support its expansion—but that deploying an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system across the company would require staff buy-in. Now, with PRONTO-Xi, Hirotec has reduced invoice cycle time by 20 percent. Learn more.
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When implementing a new business management system, you need to consider many factors. With advances in Web technologies and growth in broadband across the Internet, alternative deployment methods have emerged. Nowadays, you often must include the question of whether to implement the solution on premise or on demand. Find out more about these options and how your choice can impact the overall success of your solution.
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A company’s IT assets make up the largest portion of its overall IT budget. Properly managing these assets is key to ensuring each IT dollar is well spent. An IT asset management (ITAM) solution, such as an enterprise management system (EMS), combines hardware and software inventory with software distribution and application, and remote functionality that can ensure IT assets are optimally set up and used. Learn how.
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IT service delivery departments today need to keep spending under control without compromising service quality—running a very tight technical and operational ship is vital. Achieving this involves at least three components of application management. Find out what they are, and how you can reduce costs and maximize staff productivity while managing the change process for the Oracle E-Business Suite.
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In hard economic times, IT organizations can maintain operational excellence and sustain service quality while still reducing costs. Achieving this objective involves at least three aspects of application management: managing change, managing technical performance, and managing user performance. Learn more about managing the change process in your PeopleSoft environment, and the value of an integrated change solution.
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Server-based computing has been seen at best as a way to provide those within highly task-based environments with a controlled desktop environment. However, changes in software, hardware, security, and management systems are driving the shift toward server-based computing being suitable for a larger proportion of a company’s user base. Learn how client-side computing can be more tightly controlled yet provide flexibility.
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Networked printers and multifunction peripherals often require a high level of support and manual intervention. Secure remote monitoring platforms reduce device downtime by automating service alerts and meter reading, and providing proactive toner replenishment. Users benefit from improved device uptime, and manufacturers and their service partners can build proactive service relationships that can drive customer loyalty.
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Common methods for monitoring the data center environment date from the days of centralized mainframes, and include such practices as walking around with thermometers. But as data centers continue to evolve with distributed processing and server technologies that drive up power and cooling demands, you must examine the environment more closely. Monitoring equipment isn’t enough—learn how to better manage your data center.
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In some circumstances, the air surrounding IT equipment can be harmful to internal electronic components and lead to failure and downtime. Reliance on precision cooling solutions to maintain the proper humidity level in a computer room or data center doesn’t always assure proper humidity levels at the IT equipment air intake. Learn more about humidity, its effects, and its management in computer rooms and data centers.
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How much time do you waste juggling multiple applications or searching for documents instead of focusing on your customers and prospects? Salesforce.com and Google, two software-as-a-service (SaaS) providers, have teamed up to bring together Web-based business applications that can streamline communication and collaboration. Find out how to take advantage of the benefits of SaaS to meet more of your business needs.
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E-mail is a prime communication channel for business, so e-mail security has a high priority. But as budgets tighten, it’s more difficult to keep up with new threats to e-mail security. Sustaining and enhancing security while optimizing your budget can be done with a cost-effective solution that optimizes your existing investments in technology, people, and processes. Find out what a network appliance can do for you.
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When you upgrade enterprise application software, you want to realize expected benefits as quickly as possible and minimize costs, disruption, and risk. In tough economic times, there is absolutely no room for budget overruns and the potential disruption to business operations—which are always risks of an application upgrade. An end-user management solution can help you realize return on investment (ROI). Find out how.
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The only way to prevent chaos during testing is to have the process fully understood by all stakeholders, with defined roles and responsibilities. The result of a well-planned and well-designed approach is realizing the expected business benefits and return on investment (ROI). Whatever the project life cycle, a single test process can be used to great effect. Find out what you should consider in this type of project.
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Want to know more about distributed agile best practices for software development projects? Find out about the challenges and lessons learned from this implementation of distributed agile for teams distributed across US, Europe, and India. Discover how this large, globally distributed project for a large telecom vendor realized such benefits as better collaboration, higher quality product, and on-time delivery.
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In a global survey of senior managers in various functions from 17 industries, 61 percent say IT’s primary mission today is that of reducing costs and boosting productivity. But the IT mission is changing: nearly 70 percent of the same executives say that within three years IT’s main role will be to enable revenue growth. Learn more about how this shift is expected to happen, and how to manage it in your organization.
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Increasingly, companies in the aviation industry are outsourcing their maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) operations, especially for engine and component repair. However, many companies still report using custom, in-house applications instead of standard, off-the-shelf solutions. Learn how companies are balancing their outsourced and in-house MRO solutions, and discover the top three trends impacting the MRO segment.
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In today's market, companies need to make investments that really count. In this webcast, you will learn why investing in the right technologies and gaining more value out of IT assets already in place should be an important focus for small and midsized companies.
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If you’re not up to speed on the key benefits of software asset management (SAM) solutions, this overview can help. Additionally, you’ll learn about the areas where an SAM solution can deliver the most tangible, quantifiable cost savings to your company. You’ll also learn how to calculate the potential return on investment (ROI) on an SAM solution in order to present senior management with a compelling business case.
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You can leverage economies of scale to increase production by using existing equipment and people, lowering cost per unit, and increasing profit margins. The same applies to providers of services. Using the talented personnel you have and expanding the quality and distribution of services and support are much easier than starting from scratch. Find out how you can take advantage of economies of scale for profitable growth and gains in market share.
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System planning is the Achilles’ heel of a data center physical infrastructure project. Planning mistakes can propagate through later deployment phases, resulting in delays, cost overruns, wasted time, and a compromised system. These troubles can be eliminated by viewing system planning as a data flow model, with sequenced tasks that progressively transform and refine data from initial concept to final design. Learn more.
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Monitoring servers, environments, platforms, applications, and services have become key ingredients for building successful IT departments. However, it can be a daunting task to find the right solution to accomplish these critical needs with a limited budget and tight timelines. Learn about the differences between agent-based and agentless monitoring, so you can make the right decision based on your company’s needs.
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Well-informed accounting treatment of network-critical physical infrastructure (NCPI) assets can improve a company’s financial performance. Design and manufacturing improvements in modular and scalable uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs), power distribution units (PDUs), and computer room air conditioners provide entirely new NCPI asset management opportunities with direct and measurable financial benefits. Learn how.
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Data center commissioning requires tight coordination between vendors, facilities, IT departments, engineers, the commissioning agent, and others. Managed properly, commissioning can deliver an unbiased evaluation of whether a new data center will succeed or not. Managed poorly, it can lead to problematic data center performance issues. Learn 10 common data center commissioning mistakes, and find out how to avoid them.
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The Internet offers companies the opportunity to present a commercial image independent of size and location. With this and the Internet’s ability to extend a business’s reach, it is valuable to know precisely what various Internet service providers (ISPs) offer before buying. This includes evaluating service level and support capabilities and understanding how these vary throughout the United Kingdom (UK). Find out more.
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When considering major purchases, most people ask, “Why rent when you can buy?” But with IT systems, the reverse may be true. Software as a service (SaaS) offers many advantages over traditional software, especially in terms of the on-going costs of maintaining and upgrading systems. Learn how passing those burdens on to a SaaS vendor can help your company focus on optimizing efficiency, productivity, and profitability.
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Outsourcing is increasingly used to reduce costs and increase value—but it has its risks. As companies look to push more of their custom software application development needs to outsourcing partners, you need to plan carefully to build stringent security requirements into contracts and create metrics to ensure those requirements are met. Find out how to increase the value and reduce the risk of outsourcing.
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Oil company Energen wrestles with volatile energy prices and their effect on operations. Energen’s key challenges included reducing operating costs and improving efficiency. Many tasks related to plant maintenance and purchasing were done manually—both cumbersome and limited in analysis abilities. After an enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation, Energen has a system that is integrated and automated. Learn more.
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Some executives say the greatest risk to any large company is IT failure. IT applications routinely support critical processes throughout a business: customer service, invoicing, payroll, regulatory compliance, and more. With so much depending on IT, any disruption can be ruinous. But amazingly, many companies don’t have sound IT risk management processes in place. Find out how investing in IT reduces your security risk.
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As financial resources become scarcer, maximizing return on assets (ROA) is becoming a key corporate strategy. Unfortunately, metrics governing asset performance are not always available in real time, and are often of low or mixed reliability. Improving visibility into asset performance can help management streamline processes and make better decisions that can ultimately deliver superior corporate results. Find out more.
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The task of defining test plans, acceptance criteria, and testing deliverables and processes for any software development effort can raise many challenges. Choosing a tool to help support these practices not only can help to alleviate the burden placed on those involved, but it can add efficiency, organization, and the foundation for success. Find out how one company benefited from implementing a quality initiative.
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The differences between on-demand applications (also known as software as a service, or SaaS) and on-premise solutions mean that stronger benefits can be achieved with a SaaS-based system. On-demand solutions are far more cost-effective than their on-premise counterparts—statistics show that the total cost of ownership (TCO) for an on-premise solution over the first three years is 60 to 200 percent higher. Find out more.
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In this economy, enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is a critical business asset and key driver of lean practices. According to Aberdeen Group, best-in-class manufacturing companies are 35 percent more likely than other companies to operate on a current version of ERP. Discover the key considerations―and the potential benefits―that you should keep top-of-mind as part of an overall application lifecycle strategy.
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Midsize companies engaged in manufacturing, trade, or services need innovative solutions they can implement quickly to help them manage changing customer demands, government regulations, and market requirements. Online tools can speed the configuration, control costs and scope, and tailor the solution to your company—and you’ll have the agility and support you need to grow, while staying within budget. Find out how.
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Businesses of all sizes must manage an increasing diversity of remote users and devices. The tasks involved range from keeping systems running to ensuring security, compliance, and more. Under this sort of pressure, IT managers and managed service providers must have flexible access to powerful tools and an ability to share the data those tools rely on. Software as a service (SaaS)-based tools can help—find out how.
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Limited office space at the National Aquarium in Baltimore required staff to share computers, resulting in several security risks and inefficiencies. For more efficient and secure computer sharing, enhanced data security, and reduced support time, the Aquarium moved all users to Windows Vista. Learn how the move has reduced login time from 15 minutes to 5 seconds, provided faster access to information, and more.
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In the past 12 years, the universal serial bus (USB) has grown from pipe dream into the de facto standard for devices such as portable memory devices, video game consoles, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and more. Learn how a USB keyboard/video/mouse (KVM) can correctly emulate the constant presence of a keyboard and mouse to each connected computer, offering much more flexibility in the data centers of tomorrow.
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IT asset management (ITAM) can provide insight into your information infrastructure and enhance your ability to control IT asset performance. Through better management of IT assets, you can ensure that every piece of hardware and software is fully used. Get tips on how to spell out to your stakeholders the benefit of ITAM, including improving service levels to users and eliminating compliance risks, to your stakeholders.
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Enterprises are embracing new technologies like grid, virtualization, and multi-core processors that allow them to do more with fewer licenses. Vendors have responded with new licensing schemes—but while the calculations may be complex, the ramification is simple: enterprises must find new ways to meter software usage efficiently and effectively. Find out about four key tenets of a winning license optimization strategy.
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Implementing a digital signature solution can secure business operations, reduce costs, advance business processes, and improve your competitive advantage. However, implementing an incompatible digital signature solution could end up costing thousands—if not hundreds of thousands of dollars more than necessary. Before you invest, get an overview of the options and their associated costs and different value propositions.
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You probably know that managing your IT assets and infrastructure is becoming increasingly more complex, as your company operates on a broader, more global scale. But do you know what IT asset management (ITAM) is and how it can benefit your company? Learn about ITAM solutions that can help your organization gain greater control over the various components, including software and hardware, within your IT architectures.
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Software as a service (SaaS) is known for its relative speed to deployment and low up-front cost. Less well known are the business advantages of SaaS for enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions, especially for small and midsized businesses. Learn how a fully integrated SaaS solution can help you improve your business operations, as well as better meet the challenges of growth, competition, and regulatory compliance.
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Many of the mysteries of equipment failure, downtime, software, and data corruption are the result of a problematic power supply. Compounding the problem is that there is no standardized way to describe power problems. Learn more about common power disturbances, what can cause them, and how to safeguard your critical equipment—all described in Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standard terms.
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IFS co-founder Ulf Stern and senior advisor Anders Wilhelmsson discuss how project management functionality that is tightly integrated with enterprise asset management (EAM) and asset lifecycle management (ALM) tools is essential to executives of asset-intensive industries. Lacking this integration, valuable asset data is lost and asset utilization cannot be maximized.
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A data de-duplication application can be an integral part of your data protection and data replication software. De-duplication technology can dramatically reduce the cost of protecting your data. Find out how data de-duplication software can work in conjunction with storage software to minimize duplicate data for more efficient disaster recovery—and how this can save bandwidth, storage resources, and overhead.
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Small and medium businesses (SMBs) often don’t know how to engage and manage outsourcing initiatives. Both outsourcing provider and seeker should together address several questions when starting a project to outsource business or technology processes. What’s the cost benefit? What are the risks involved? Find out the customer and the vendor perspectives, and how to achieve cost savings and service-level improvements.
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For Sequa, a manufacturing company with 60 major operating units, the challenge was to replace its old fixed assets management system—which didn’t support tax law changes— with a remotely accessible solution to eliminate manual calculations. Sequa’s new Web-hosted solution allows accurate results, better reporting, and up-to-the-minute tax change support—with no need for IT maintenance. Learn more about the benefits.
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Secure sockets layer (SSL), an essential security protocol, has allowed the Internet to extend to e-business. At the heart SSL is the certificate. As organizations increasingly rely on SSL, the number of certificates in use can grow into the hundreds or thousands, increasing your costs. Learn about the three key areas impacting the management of SSL certificates today—and what you can do to reduce cost and complexity.
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If you’ve already implemented Sage Saleslogix for your customer relationship management (CRM) process and CRM analytics needs, this guidebook can help you achieve more value. And if you’re considering Saleslogix for your new CRM solution, you’ll learn best practices, including how to integrate and customize; how to move from sales to support, service, and marketing; and how to think strategically about training.
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Your data models are brilliant ... but only if database administrators (DBAs) and developers are on the same page. A mismatch of expectations can slow down a project and lead to weak products. But this situation can be avoided if you develop a strategy that builds a little more teamwork. Follow seven cost-effective steps to better collaboration, and get a lot more value from your software development team’s data modeling.
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When choosing a change management tool for your business environment, you need to consider several important factors. First is the number of database platforms in your data center, and whether to get a solution that supports multiple platforms. Find out the other factors, and how the right tool can reduce training and software costs, increase productivity, and ensure database availability, security, and performance.
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Progressive companies are discovering that they can optimize processes and assets to make the best use of resources, reduce negative impact on the environment, and strengthen business results—all at the same time. Improving enterprise asset management (EAM) processes provides opportunities for you to create less waste, reduce resource use, and decrease emissions. Find out how you can take advantage of EAM’s benefits.
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User training is a key aspect of the software implementation process. But it’s also the most overlooked, as companies often think more about software functionality than about how well their employees are adapting to using it. Don’t assume that your employees are too busy, or that software training costs too much. Find out how user software training can save you money and increase your return on investment (ROI).
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Unlike large manufacturing companies, small and medium facilities often handle asset management and maintenance with cobbled-together manual and semi-automated systems. This results in many lost benefits, including uninterrupted production and simplified regulatory compliance burdens. As you explore asset management solutions, you should know five critical factors that can determine the success or failure of your project.
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As part of its effort to improve literacy in grades K-3, the Chicago Public Schools District needed to manage thousands of personal digital assistants (PDAs) and other devices to ensure distribution to the right teachers at the right institutions—and under serious time constraints. The schools deployed an asset-tracking solution that enabled real-time tracking, as well as budget planning with depreciation. Learn more.
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A school district in Missouri sought to optimize the booking and scheduling of its newly modernized conference and meeting spaces. Its old scheduling software was frustrating, as it was difficult to customize and configure. But after installing Meeting Room Manager, the schools are able to set specific room and equipment configurations, and post activities online as well as on a public viewing screen. Learn more.
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Learn how IT asset tracking tools helped Allina Hospitals and Clinics monitor 2,700 computers on and off their network without having to invest in additional infrastructure. This case study shows how their security system enabled this leading health care provider to go from a 30 percent tracking record to an almost perfect record for its growing inventory of laptops and electronic health records.
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Learn how Grant Thornton achieved a 99.7% guaranteed IT asset tracking rate across a nation-wide network of leased computers to tightly control network endpoints, achieve regulatory compliance, and drive down total cost of ownership (TCO).
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The best encryption and security policies will not protect your laptops against careless employee use. Learn about the latest innovations in tracking IT assets off the local area network (LAN), remotely deleting sensitive data, and physically recovering stolen computers.
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The portable nature of laptops makes them particularly susceptible to all kinds of security and tracking problems. This paper discusses the strengths and limitations of laptop security, including the technology for accurately tracking IT assets, recovering missing computers, and deleting data remotely.
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For many distributors, inventory is the largest and perhaps the most important asset. Inventory ties up more money than buildings or equipment, and is often less “liquid.” It is crucial, then, that distributors develop and use a comprehensive set of tools that allows close monitoring of the performance of inventory investments. Read more about simple measurements that can help you maximize your investment in inventory.
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HSB-Stockholm, a property management firm, manages more than 200 client work orders daily. The company realized its back-office solution couldn’t address customer satisfaction, and that a new solution would have to keep up with the growth of field operations. Learn how HSB implemented a mobile, Internet-based solution that increased the speed of service delivery and maintenance operations by 50 percent.
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To keep your IT infrastructure healthy, strong operational processes are essential to managing changes—both planned and unexpected. A streamlined, integrated approach that incorporates hardware and software assets is a key foundation for meeting regulatory compliance requirements. Find out how you can benefit from applications that enable continuous compliance with operational processes and tools—and reduce your business risk.
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If you’re still struggling to deploy and maintain traditional on-premise software applications, you might consider a new generation of on-demand software-as-a-service (SaaS) alternatives to satisfy your rapidly changing business requirements. There are many benefits, but also risks that can negatively impact your operations. Find out how safeguarding your SaaS with a wide area network (WAN) application delivery can help.
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Day-to-day IT requirements are often managed at the expense of strategic goals. But if you can consistently control change in your IT environment, you’ll be that much closer to resource efficiency and risk mitigation. Learn about a four-phase change management methodology that, when used with enterprise software, can help you detect, track, and analyze change—for continuous improvements and more budget for new projects.
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Is your IT environment suffering? Increasing complexity and the challenges of achieving regulatory compliance within a tight budget could be making it more difficult for you to manage change. A traditional change and configuration management (CCM) tool might not be providing all the help you need. Find out how a CCM tool that addresses configuration audit and control can ease your IT infrastructure’s aches and pains.
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A common misconception when considering a Web content management solution (CMS) is that open source software will save you time and money. Just because you don’t have to pay subscription fees or shell out for licensing doesn’t mean there aren’t hidden costs with open source implementation. Find out the questions you should ask before choosing open source—and how to best evaluate and compare your CMS options.
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Companies looking to expand their facilities and strategize their way into the marketplace often focus most of their efforts on bottom line results. During the process, they factor in infrastructure costs but often pay little attention on how to control them. Find out how a Web-enabled solution that puts infrastructure management sharply in focus can help you easily access distributed information while helping curb costs.
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Before you decide if you need to update your financial management software, you should ask some questions about five key areas of your operations. For example, does your current system generate the types of reports you need? And does it allow your processes to support your policies? Evaluate all the challenges you face with your current financial management software—and find out how you can overcome them with an upgrade.
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Some managers have concluded that strategic planning is nothing more than an exercise in futility, to be taken out and dusted off at annual meetings. However, strategic planning can still help direct your company and improve earnings. The trick is strategizing well—which means having all the information you need, when you need it. Find out how to hone your competitive edge with integrated business planning capabilities.
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Many businesses today rely on telecom expense management (TEM) for mission-critical functions ranging from sales to service to customer relationship management. But despite its overall importance, nearly one-third of a telecom staff’s time is spent on processing orders and invoices. Maximizing the potential of a telecom system requires a data-driven approach. Find out how Map-To-Win is helping businesses do just that.
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In today’s Internet-connected global economy, the market doesn’t allow for companies to sit back and relax into a comfortable niche. Customer loyalty is ever harder to maintain, and you risk losing your business to competition if you can’t respond quickly to market change. Before you lose any more ground, find out how to replace your disconnected, redundant business processes with flexible and efficient ones integrated by IT.
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Service excellence alone is not enough to ensure future growth and profitability in today’s challenging market. Streamlining IT processes is essential to your business workflow. Whatever your professional services software needs—from customer relationship management (CRM) to human capital management—it’s time to learn your lessons: find out key strategies and best practices that can help your company grow profitably.
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You’re planning to upgrade your business intelligence (BI) solution and can’t wait for implementation. But are you sure of how to take advantage of its key value drivers, or which functionalities are best for your organization? And can you anticipate—and minimize—implementation risks? Find out how an upgrade assessment done by experienced professionals can help you develop a proven upgrade plan and lower associated costs.
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Managing growth is a monumental undertaking—and one that Valero Energy Corporation has mastered. But as one of the largest oil refinery companies in North America, with revenues exceeding $90 billion (USD), the company needed to find a way to fit new applications into its existing infrastructure in a quick and cost-effective manner. By switching to SAP’s NetWeaver platform, Valero saved $480,000 (USD) in the first month.
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When it comes to US Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) compliance, safe change actions are critical. But what’s the best approach for file integrity monitoring and change detection? While there are many solutions on the market, continuous file integrity monitoring (CFIM) is winning over the competition worldwide. Find out how CFIM can handle your operational control monitoring requirements.
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If the auditors came knocking, would you be prepared? When they do come, you’ll need to be ready to answer some tough questions regarding your change management processes. Implementing and assessing change management controls for Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) compliance in the US can be a very expensive and time consuming process. Find out how you can reduce the SOX burden by improving the way you manage your change processes.
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Is it possible for a business to ensure uninterrupted, secure, and high-performance access to network-based business applications and web sites? Yes. With network load balancers, user requests are evenly distributed among available servers so that individual servers do not become overwhelmed. Learn about the basics of load balancing and how it can improve the performance and security of your business applications.
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Aon Corporation’s business is part of a highly regulated industry that maintains strict licensing requirements. With these constantly changing requirements, the company realized its outdated procedures and processes were no longer adequate and that a learning management system (LMS) was what it needed. The company turned to Cornerstone OnDemand for help, and since adopting LMS, Aon has achieved 100 percent compliance.
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While today’s regulatory environment poses significant challenges to businesses, it should be looked at as an opportunity—one that turns compliance efforts into capital gains. You can accomplish this with an internal audit of your change management policies. This checklist will help your business prepare for a high-level process audit while providing tools your IT managers can use for maximum results.
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The blade server market is one of many fast growing in the IT industry, helping large businesses resolve issues with power, cooling, and space constraints in their datacenters. But what about the mid-market customer whose needs are very different? Hewlett Packard (HP) addresses these needs with the launch of its new HP BladeSystem c3000—a complete blade server and storage solution designed with the mid-market in mind.
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Today’s configuration management tools focus on collecting and reporting statistics, logs, and failures, but fail to address the need for analyzing this data to determine best practices for improving efficiencies. That’s why Configuresoft has developed software that enables you to link core systems configuration and change management disciplines into actionable analytics. Find out how it can work for you.
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The competitive nature of the financial services industry today and the changing landscape of the customer approach to investing puts an onus on suppliers to consider how well they are dealing with customers’ business transactions. In order to provide better customer service—while at the same time improving operations—these organizations must invest in a system that allows real-time visibility of the entire process.
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Why choose on-demand when there are so many integrated software solutions on the market? Because on-demand packages provide a number of benefits that can help IT focus on innovation and creating true business value, rather than dealing with network headaches. But along with the benefits there are a number of challenges. Read more about these challenges and how you can manage your on-demand implementation project.
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Microsoft Windows Storage Server 2003 is frequently deployed in small or midsize applications. And while many customers view it as an excellent small network-attached storage (NAS) solution, they often move to larger, proprietary file server appliances when their needs expand beyond its capacity. This approach, however, adds more expense and complexity. But with Sanbolic’s Melio Cluster, capacity can be added as needed.
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Microsoft System Management Server 2003 and Operations Manager 2005 storage monitoring solutions provide the necessary tools to centrally manage and monitor Windows client and server infrastructure. Now, Sanbolic’s LaScala clustered volume manager and related products offer a complementary toolkit which enables administrators to centrally configure and assign storage assets in a storage area network (SAN) environment.
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Administrative errors can and do happen, but native tools do little to aid administrators in this area. While Microsoft’s Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) is a great tool for managing group policy, it has its limitations. Discover how to implement best-practice approaches to help successfully extend the deployment of group policy to your server security settings, while reducing costs and minimizing errors.
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Company employees, business partners, and customers all demand secure and low-response-time access to business applications—from wherever they are. While SAP addresses this need through its enterprise service-oriented architecture (SOA) solution, when security features are added the application response time is slower. So what’s the best way to test global SOA deployments? Read this white paper to find out.
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UreSil, a manufacturer of specialized health care products, feared its legacy manufacturing resource planning (MRP) software was hindering efficiency and compliance. The Sage ERP X3 enterprise resource planning (ERP) came to the rescue, and after a formal ERP training program, full implementation required only one week. All processes, including tracking and inventory, are now streamlined, flexible—and compliant.
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The nature of software is that it constantly evolves, requiring regular updates throughout its lifetime as new features are introduced. But managing and implementing these changes is often left to experienced administrators who are often overwhelmed with other projects. Find out how moving to a delegated administration model can help your business improve its administrative productivity, system availability, and security.
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LeasePlan Norway, a large automobile fleet management company, needed an alternative to manual entry of incoming invoice data, while still maintaining complete accuracy. The company implemented AnyDocINVOICE for invoice data capture, because of its ease- of- use and ability to capture data without templates. Find out about all the other functionalities that prompted the company to install the solution in its Swedish office.
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The amount of malware that is being released around the world is increasing at an alarming rate. To combat these cyber-crimes, new layers of protection are needed that take advantage of automating the entire malware protection cycle—from sample collection, analysis and classification, to remediation. By combing automation with Panda’s Collective Intelligence, targeted attacks can be detected more quickly and efficiently.
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Computerized numerical control (CNC) is crucial to the successful operation of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) application, but the road to success is sometimes rocky. To surmount the challenges of meeting your CNC needs, learn how an on-demand (or CNC managed services) model can improve your return on investment, and streamline and standardize your business processes.
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Have you ever received a call from your existing long-distance phone company asking you to switch to its service and wondered why they are calling? Chances are the integrity of its data is so poor that the company has no idea who many of its customers are. The fact is, many businesses suffer from this same problem. The solution: implement a master data management (MDM) system that uses an accurate data matching process.
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Ensuring the quality, accuracy, and security of customer data has never been more important than it is today. The growing potential for privacy breaches and tighter compliance regulations have created unique challenges and responsibilities for many data providers. Here we discuss some of the key privacy issues surrounding data management, and how partnering with a provider of master data management (MDM) software can help.
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Virtual private networks (VPNs) are optimized to perform specific functions within the remote access architecture. But deploying the often complex mix of approaches for managed and unmanaged devices can affect your security. Blue Coat RA provides a new approach that bridges the gap between traditional and endpoint security technologies—helping businesses meet remote access requirements in a simple, cost effective manner.
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Blade computing is a new computing architecture that provides a highly dense, scalable, and powerful flexible platform to support businesses’ software needs. Blade architecture was once used for simple server consolidation, but it has now become a way of managing IT assets, which provides significant business benefits. Find out how a blade system can benefit your company while optimizing your existing infrastructure.
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Today, more business than ever is done in branch offices or at remote sites, but very few IT resources are actually hosted there. To reduce costs, businesses often consolidate applications—but consolidation can lead to poor performance. With the right solution, however, acceleration techniques—like bandwidth management and protocol optimization—can be properly dispersed to remote applications, helping increase performance.
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Although secure sockets layer (SSL) is a ubiquitous enabler of e-commerce and outsourcing, it creates a special challenge for network administrators and security professionals because its encryption is known to decelerate data. In order to regain control over application delivery—when everything business-related is encrypted—organizations need to look toward SSL-aware solutions that can help decipher and accelerate data.
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A secure and accurate flow of information in your supply chain operations has never been more critical—and complex. Digital transfer of unstructured information is a security risk, for both confidentiality and compliance, and traditional file transfer methods are now falling short. A managed file transfer solution combining hardware, software, and networks can meet your demands for visibility, security, and compliance.
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Managing IT assets is a vital corporate function—and a source of potential liability if not performed properly. By effectively managing IT assets, businesses can be assured that each IT dollar has been well spent. With an asset management solution, your IT staff can monitor application usage and budgets more accurately, and improve in-house IT support and performance—resulting in greater efficiency and reduced costs.
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Explosive data growth, shrinking backup windows, and unreliable restores are just a few of the issues you have to manage on a daily basis—especially if you’re using a legacy tape backup application system. But you can still use your legacy system by extending its life and enhancing its reliability with a hardware-based disk compression solution. Find out how, and considerably reduce your backup and recovery times.
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The capacity of today’s storage systems is increasing at an astonishing rate. But the truth is: the more storage you have, the more you use. So, how do you create an efficient data storage system? And how much space can it really save you? Advanced single instance storage (A-SIS) deduplication can reduce storage consumption up to 95 percent—helping you conserve disk space, while keeping your system overhead low.
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