Christopher M. Burry, John S. Moh and Derrick Schwartz, Avanade
July 21, 2004(Computerworld)
Many companies we work with are considering hosted IT services for reasons that include improvements in technology's performance, reliability, security and cost-effectiveness.
However, in the decision to host e-mail, we suspect there's another drive: Maintaining systems to necessary standards is simply too much for the IT team. Against a backdrop of issues ranging from spam and the regulatory requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to the threat of phishing, e-mail is a utility that's expected to function all the time.
While a decision to outsource should begin with evaluating company needs, many IT departments don't have a grasp on e-mail usage. Employees stockpile gigabytes of data and demand features they then seldom use -- and efforts to "predict" usage with e-mail policy result in adequate service for about 75% of the company at best, in our experience.
For these reasons, companies may opt for hosted e-mail providers, whose comprehensive reporting often affords greater insight and reveals possibilities for the following:
Tailoring or segmenting service -- to meet better than three-quarters of users' needs.
Aligning usage with expenditure. What's more, service providers may get special licensing deals that enterprises don't.
These opportunities don't come without advance preparation. Here are considerations we recommend our clients use to get ready to go with a hosted e-mail service.
More than e-mail
Hosted e-mail has gotten a lot more sophisticated. In addition to messaging, calendaring, contact maintenance and data sharing functions, service providers may offer a host of productivity tools and configuration options. Additional features may include Internet access, spell checking, instant messaging and administration options. Access options include mobile, real-time and forced synchronization, as well as shared data.
With the advent of so many service options, service-level agreements don't have to be limited to availability. Improvements in technology mean customers can ask providers to commit to agility -- adjusting service seamlessly on demand. Of course, more options also mean more fine print -- and more chance of overlooking service requirements in a sea of possible features. It helps to be equipped with some idea of basic user profiles.
Who's using services
It's typical for one company to house several types of e-mail users. A good example is a hotel chain that chose to outsource e-mail for its property managers. "Basic" users were given Web-based mail accounts for periodic news and announcements. Corporate e-mail used daily by executives -- the "power" users -- was maintained in-house.
We characterize user profiles and representative features and limitations as follows:
Basic Users: These employees don't use e-mail or calendaring daily. A basic user package might include sending and receiving e-mail and individual calendaring. Such accounts have limited storage of 10MB to 25MB and can be accessed from a kiosk or shared system and Web-based browser.
Advanced Users: These employees use e-mail from a fixed (desktop) location throughout their work day. A hosted package might include 50MB to 100MB of storage and features such as send and receive; more complex calendaring for group scheduling; a personal address book; and a "thick client" such as Microsoft Outlook or Lotus Notes with real-time mail arrival-status, message-recall, receipt-notice and read-notice capabilities.
Power Users: Employees who rely on e-mail daily and need access any time, anywhere -- from their home offices, laptops, mobile phones or other such devices -- comprise this group. Storage limits may range up to 500MB, and service must be synchronized across all the devices an executive might use.
Don't forget a crucial user element that could change with outsourced e-mail: the help desk. It's important to consider how users will experience a change in support. We find that companies have greater success when they preserve their IT staff as the first point of contact for users. The team then can work directly with the service provider's technicians.
Another important factor is the connection between hosted e-mail and business process. Companies requiring that everything pass through the IT department's change management board, for example, shouldn't consider e-mail a candidate for outsourcing. Imagine the chaos when the change management board requires the provider to put its service pack through the board's evaluation. It's like telling the electric utility how to string its lines to the company's door.
Knowledge is power
Equipped with some idea of user categories, IT managers can investigate those tailored service and cost benefits they'd like to get from hosted e-mail. Look for flexibility in provisioning, but ask what service changes might require hardware or software that could significantly increase the cost of service. Tiered services may be cost-effective, but confirm who owns or controls licenses required for all feature upgrades -- and watch for fine print stipulating that the software client access license is the customer's responsibility. A quality service provider will likely agree to a 30-day trial, so IT managers can explore the potential advantages to hosted e-mail.
Christopher Burry is technology infrastructure practice director and a fellow at Avanade Inc., a Seattle-based integrator for Microsoft Corp. technology that's a joint venture between Accenture Ltd. and Microsoft. John S. Moh and Derrick Schwartz are senior systems engineers at Avanade. Comments or questions can be sent to Christopher.Burry@avanade.com. Don't miss our e-mail/groupware special report: Big Decisions, on the choices IT managers face regarding suites and upgrades.
