Manufacturing

PROBLEM

A boutique manufacturing company that produces display units for retail stores recognized that they had a significant operational vulnerability in that a single person had created and managed their entire IT infrastructure including the design and construction of their physical network as well as the programming of their major application systems including their customer ordering and inventory systems. The relationship with this person had deteriorated and the company realized that his departure would leave them highly vulnerable to system failures with no clear recovery path. In addition, the company realized that the on-person IT shop model had caused other problems including a lack of IT budgeting and planning, lack of systems documentation, and insufficient cost controls.

SOLUTION

Major Scale provided a business analysis of the firm’s entire IT operation, resulting in an Action Plan with the following recommendations:

Short Term:

• Continue with the planned outsourcing of network and hardware support (a.k.a. ITSP)
• In conjunction with the ITSP provider, develop a detailed disaster recovery process and plan
• Begin exploration of outsourcing options for software application and development support
• Develop a training and mentoring plan for moving the existing IT staff member into a management role.
• Begin work on the Application Map system documentation using in-house resources

 

Long Term:

• Design a method for implementing an engineering approach for the software process including division of duties between development, QC and installation.
• Develop a plan for moving to a virtualized server environment (using outsourced support, i.e. ITSP)
• Begin to design support structures and functions for an expanded product set
• Create and implement an IT budgeting and procurement process that provides more formal controls over IT purchases and greater detail in reporting IT expenditures including the purpose of each purchase.
• Use outsourcing suppliers (both ITSP and Application Support) to develop full system documentation

 

IMPLEMENTATION

Shortly after the Major Scale study was completed, the sole IT support staff left the company and the action plan was put into action. During the study phase of the engagement Major Scale had interviewed several potential outsourcing support companies, and after the departure of the sole IT staff, the company selected one company to support the physical network including servers and desktop machines, and another company to support the application software.

Major Scale continued on to assist in the project management of a new product roll-out that the company was undertaking. This product was successfully rolled out with an initial sale of two thousand units to a major retailer.

 

BUSINESS IMPACT

The company was able to complete its successful roll-out of its new product due in large part to the support from the two outsourcing companies that improved and maintained the physical network and the application programs.  The company was also able to implement effective cost controls over IT spending resulting in simproved budgeting, planning and profitability.