July 2007 Newsletter

Service Delivery

We mentioned in the last newsletter the creation of an important new post in Salford Software, that of service delivery manager. This role will act as our customers' advocate to ensure that they continue to get the service they want from Salford Software.

Rob Shepley, whom some of you may be aware of from his time in technical support, has been appointed to this role and he is looking forward to working closely with all our customers. When we eventually caught up with Rob, during his busy schedule, he said:

"I am really excited about this new role as I believe it helps set Salford Software apart from the competition in looking after our customers' needs. I have already had one-to-one meetings with a number of our customers, but over the next 12 months I am planning to sit down with each and every one of them to understand their requirements and concerns.

The feedback I receive is vital in ensuring that we continue to develop our services and solutions to meet changing requirements. The role also means that I act as a point of contact for the escalation management of any complaints about service delivery activities both from Salford Software and third parties.

All of which will enable me ensure that our service continually improves."

Rob will be using best practice to ensure that our services are provided as agreed and this will mean that he will be coordinating resources, prioritising and establishing schedules to ensure this happens.

Keeping our customers informed

A key part of the role will also mean ensuring customers are kept up to date with new and emerging technologies that could help to improve their efficiency and profitability. Due to our partnerships with major software and hardware vendors we are able to bring in senior people from these organisations to deliver the message first hand.

The first of these events was held on the 31st May at Manchester City's Eastlands stadium. In the spirit of the new ongoing co-operation between the 2 companies Microsoft and Novell shared the stage to talk about:

• Linux
• OES Clustering
• Microsoft Windows Vista
• Microsoft SharePoint

We would like to hold more of these events during the year, so if you have any ideas or topics you would like to see included in future please let Rob know

Technical Support

Increased investment in support team

Always mindful of the needs of our customers, we have been reviewing the regular feedback that we receive. As a result, we have recently made a number of investments aimed at ensuring the continual improvement of our support services.

Firstly for our premium Open Support service we have increased the pool of Novell dedicated engineers available to us to five. This now gives our customers instant availability to specialists, based at Novell, in the following key technologies:

• Operating systems
• Messaging
• eDirectory and identity management
• iChain and connectivity
• ZENworks

Customers of our Open Support service will be now be able to get their issues dealt with by the appropriate specialist that much quicker, helping to minimise downtime and maximise user productivity.

To further enhance our support services we have also invested in more staff for our team based in Manchester. This additional experience and breadth of knowledge will benefit all our support customers and help us to maintain high service levels.

New technical support manager

Since our last newsletter, Rob Shepley has moved from his role as technical support manager to the new role of services delivery manager, to replace him we have been fortunate enough to recruit industry veteran, Steve Dobson.

Steve joins us from Azlan. He has been involved in IT support for 16 years, half that time in supervisory and management roles and brings a great deal of experience in managing high-pressure customer service operations that are expected to deliver a quality service.

He is very excited by the challenge and is looking forward to helping take the reputation of Salford Software support services to even greater heights.

Restructuring of support requests helps to improve resolution times

The restructuring of our technical support resources into 3 categories (for details see our last newsletter earlier this year is beginning to bear fruit with customers reporting that their issues are being resolved quicker.

The streamlining of all our technical support staff into line 1, 2 and 3 resources has speeded up the time it takes for a customer to get through to the right engineer to solve their problem and has ensured that highly specialised staff are more readily available to handle the more complex issues that sometimes arise.

We will be closely monitoring the response times and feedback from our customers and will make further changes, where necessary, in order to continually improve our technical support services.

Development

New product launched

Many people using ZENworks Desktop Management find that the provided restriction policies are not sufficiently granular for their needs. While it is possible to create multiple 'Dynamic Local User' policies enabling the generation of different access lists for containers of users, this will not work in every case. As a result it can be very difficult to identify certain types of user, e.g. students enrolled on multiple courses or modules.

To get round this we have developed our Login Control product. This is an add-on for ZENworks for Desktops and allows policy-based access restrictions to be applied to groups or containers of workstations. Once implemented, when a user tries to authenticate to a workstation additional checks are performed before they are allowed access to their desktop. This provides much greater control and allows you to:

• Restrict access to groups of PCs based on a predefined list of users, groups or containers
• Require users to enter additional information that can be validated and optionally stored back into their eDirectory account
• Customise notifications - for example, include your logo on the screens that prompt for information
• Administer the rules via an easy to use Web-based administrative interface
• Delegate control of particular labs to individual departments

Login Control works with any Windows XP/2000 client (with Novell client) and runs on OES or Windows Server 2003.

GPAS update

We will shortly be releasing a new version of GPAS - V4.2. This is a combined release for both Netware and Windows and will contain many additional features including:

• Updated interface
• Workflow improvements
• Many stability and speed improvements

The Windows GPAS version will be released in two variants - Standard and Enterprise.
The Standard version is designed for smaller colleges and businesses with just a single site and one print server.

Other updates

The Remote Monitoring product, announced in our last Newsletter is now being trialled at two sites and is working well.

Professional services

Aberdeen Council

After 6 weeks of hard work we have just completed the 1st phase of a new identity management solution for Aberdeen Council. Covering some 14,000 users in the Council, this project has created an ID vault where all relevant employee data will be held.

We have also set up employee "white pages" across all of the Council's many sites and enabled fast and automatic provisioning for the phone and e-mail systems. Importantly, this will provide the foundation for the larger project that we will be undertaking next and will see the other core systems connected.

The overall aim is to streamline and greatly reduce the overhead associated with the management of employee access, as users will only need a single set of log-in details to gain access to all their essential applications.

The finished system will support some 14,000 government employees at around 100 council sites and will cover - central IT systems, employee identity badges and access to buildings.

South Lanarkshire College

We have just started work on a new identity management solution for South Lanarkshire College. This solution is designed to make life easier for 5,000 students and 300 staff. By having all systems linked into one identity management system, users will gain easier access and the college will benefit from a more efficient operation of its IT systems.

The first phase will take around 2 months to complete and will cover:

• Connecting to the existing student record system
• Creating the new user accounts
• Enabling automatic provisioning and deprovisioning of accounts
• Connecting to the existing VLE system

When this has been completed we will be integrating the system with proximity cards to provide access to the new campus building, its car parks and classrooms. ID access cards will be provided to all students and staff granting them access based upon their identity to differing facilities within the campus.

The system will also allow the college to take attendance records as students can be 'checked into' classrooms, the data from which can be linked back to the college's student records system.

Cambridgeshire County Council education authority

Over the last few weeks we have been busy working on the pilot for a Microsoft-based identity management project in Cambridgeshire. This will eventually enable 200 schools in the county to connect to a central Microsoft Active Directory and deliver a single sign on infrastructure.

The pilot is setting up the first of the schools and will enable us to iron out any initial snags before we press on with connecting up the rest of the schools.

More new staff

The professional services section of Salford Software has doubled in size over the last year. We now have 12 full-time professionals working on projects all over the UK and Ireland, and we have no doubt that this figure will continue to grow further over the coming months to support the increasing number and variety of projects we are now working on.

Training

Identity Manager Training

Identity Manager ATT and the Provisioning Module ATT courses have both now been updated to the latest version of IDM 3.5. Salford Software is running a number of Identity Manager training courses including the Fundamentals course (3065) and the Advanced Technical Training. All details including booking forms are available from our training schedule

New SUSE Linux Desktop 10 Administration

SUSE Linux Courses feature on the Salford Software training schedule. Whether you are interested in the basics or already have a good working knowledge of the solution, there are courses available.

Topics covered during the course include:

• Installation
• Configuration of remote access
• Manage backup and recovery
• Administer user access and security

Novell Advanced Technical Training Courses (ATT)

In addition to the IDM courses mentioned earlier in the newsletter the Novell ZENworks Asset Management ATT will also take place from 14th - 16th August booking is available

Novell Access Manager ATT, is due for release very soon and will be added to the training schedule. Course topics include:

• Identity Provider Administration
• Novell Audit and Logging
• Single Sign On with Access Manager

Training requirements

We try to include as many courses as possible in the training schedule however if you can't find what you are looking for, please let us know. We want to ensure that we meet the expectations of our customers by providing the technology training you require.

Let the trainer do the walking and the talking! Onsite training is more and more becoming a popular option. We can provide onsite training for most of the Novell courses offered, including the ATT's. If you want any further information about this option, please contact our training team or call 0161 906 2233

Sales

New partnership with SunGardHE

We recently signed a new partnership agreement with SunGard Higher Education that will enable us to increase the scope of the services we can provide to our education customers.

SunGard's vision sits well with our own. Their aim is to help every education institution create a Unified Digital Campus. This is an environment in which people, process and technology interact seamlessly to deliver measurable performance improvement and a better educational experience.

By partnering with SunGardHE, we can now offer an enhanced solution that will give students and staff access to a wide range of critical resources and facilities with a common set of credentials, through a single point of entry, both on and off campus.

SunGard Higher Education assists more than 1,600 customers worldwide to strengthen institutional performance through improved constituent services, increased accountability, and better educational experiences. The synergies from such a partnership can only provide significant benefit to all Salford Software customers.

Framework approach to aid IDM implementation

With 90 of the UK's 121 universities and higher education colleges as customers we have designed and successfully implemented more IDM solutions to academia than any other reseller in the UK. Building upon such unique experience we have now developed a framework approach which enables organisations to orchestrate identity.

The Framework for Resource Access & Identity Management (FRAIM) encompasses our approach to strategic identity management and will help reduce management overhead, drive business processes, strengthen security and improve the overall user experience.

We are now offering free FRAIM Workshops to our customers to help them define their delivery requirements.

Please contact our sales team for further information or to arrange a workshop at a time to suit you.

University of Hertfordshire

We have just signed a contract to provide the University of Hertfordshire with a new Identity Management solution to support its strategic vision for the provision of seamless digital services to students and staff.

The new solution will integrate with the University's existing systems to provide 25,000 students and 2,500 staff with 'anytime anywhere' access across the University's extensive range of corporate and digital services. Users will see a reduction in the number of usernames and passwords required. The new solution will:

• Move towards single sign on
• Ultimately reduce administration
• Automate the process of account creation
• Speed up changes to systems when a user moves course or job function.

The new system will play a key role in the University's stated aim to create a more holistic student life cycle experience. This will extend beyond graduation so that alumni will have secure access to facilities online to enable them to pursue their graduate careers across the globe.

Salford Software's Shibboleth solution

As many of you will be aware, JISC have produced a six step 'road-map' for joining the UK Access Management Federation. Working very closely with the various organisations involved with the instigation and control of the new services (JISC, BECTA and JANET(UK), formerly UKERNA) we have developed a corresponding service to assist institutions deliver each of the six steps in this road map.

Full details can be found in the document Salford Guide to Joining the UK Access Management Federation on our Web site.

Technical Support Hours

In response to customer demand Salford Software is delighted to announce that from September the Technical Support services centre will open earlier and close later. Our team will now be available to take your calls, emails and respond to incidents from 8 in the morning until 6 in the evening Monday to Friday.

We are sure that our customers will see this as a great enhancement to the services currently on offer. Further information around this will follow in due course.

Sales team continues to grow

To underpin the continuing demand we have experienced for our services and solutions over the course of this year, we have recently recruited two extra members to the sales team.

Salford Software and Novell

For over 16 years, Salford Software has developed and serviced the academic market place as a Novell partner, providing licensing, support, training and consultancy for Novell products. Salford Software maintains the highest level of support, ensuring escalation direct to Novell Technical Services. In addition, Salford Software has delivered more identity management solutions into academia than any other vendor.

Looking forward, Salford Software and Novell believe that critical delivery into this market requires a more focused approach. To this end, Salford Software has decided to concentrate on its core business of delivering quality Novell solutions and services directly to its customer base. Novell will launch a new academic distribution model through which Salford Software will procure on behalf of its customers.

What does this mean to you? From our standpoint, it means there will be no disruption to services - Salford Software has retained the exclusive rights to renew your current contracts into the coming academic year. From the 1st of August Salford will simply buy new licenses on behalf of customers via a distributor at the back end. Other Novell partners, if accredited will also be able to quote for new licenses, however existing contracts can only be processed via Salford over this renewal period.

Salford Software has gone from strength to strength and has continued to grow with revenues in excess of £5 million in fy07 - and has strengthened its team with a current staff of 50 employees all of whom have extensive experience in your market place. We support more Novell users than any other company in Europe and purchase more Novell Technical Support services than any other reseller in the UK, and we are totally debt free ensuring longevity of service in the future.

If you would like to talk with anyone at Salford Software regarding continuity of service, then please don't hesitate to contact us - but from our point of view, it's business as usual.

Marketing

UCISA Management Conference

Salford Software attended the UCISA management conference during March. The event took place at the Novotel London and was a great success. During the event we announced our new partnership with SunGardHE, referred to earlier in this newsletter. Our identity management presentation about "improving the user experience" was well received by those who attended.

The winner of the Satellite Navigation System was Phil Range from Wolverhampton University. Well done Phil.

Salford Software will be attending the UCISA CISG event from 21st - 23rd November at the De Vere Grand Harbour in Southampton. Once again there will be a prize draw. Further details will be included in the next issue of the Salford Software newsletter.

Open Support Meeting

Thanks to all who attended the Open Support Meeting on 30th May. Attendees heard the latest news and updates on technologies from Novell and Microsoft including, Identity Manager, Access Manager, Linux, Vista and Sharepoint. Paul Heaney from Salford Software introduced customers to the Remote Services solution and provided a live demo.

IDM Forum

Salford Software is delighted to announce that they will be launching a forum for Identity Management. Details and invitations to the launch will be circulated in due course. We are very excited about this new initiative and hope that those who have already embarked upon the implementation of IDM and those who are considering it will reap the benefits of being a member of this group.

JISC Events

As part of our commitment to academia and support for the UK Access Management Federation and those organisations who are wishing to join up, Salford Software has attended a number of JISC events. A solution is now available for purchase, please see Salford Guide to Joining the UK Access Management Federation

Festival of Futures

Salford Software was delighted to be invited to attend, present and exhibit at the Festival of Futures, an event which took place recently at Bradford College. More information is available from Bradford College

Upcoming events

"Enhancing the user experience through the use of portal technologies" is a UCISA event which is being sponsored by Salford Software and SunGardHE. Join us on 16th October at St Annes College in Oxford. Details and booking information is now available from our website and from UCISA

Technical Events

We will be running a series of technical events at a number of locations. These events will cover products such as Sentinel, Linux and Identity and will take place during October. Dates and booking information will be released soon.

GPAS User Group Meeting

The GPAS User Group meeting will take place at Lancashire County Cricket Club on October 2nd 2007. The agenda includes an introduction to GPAS for Windows, a customer case study and contributions from partner organisations.

The full agenda will be available once confirmed however we are keen to have feedback from you, the customer. We will be including a "think tank"session asking for opinions and ideas.

We believe that this will be a great opportunity for you to see and hear about the latest developments, meet with other GPAS users and let us know what you would like to see in the future.

If you would like to book your place please fill in the booking form here.