Challenges Facing Non-Technical Managers
Richard Thomas, CEO of netEvidence with its Highlight ‘digital window’ service, picks up the plight of senior managers in banks and financial service organisations, who are frustrated by having to work in a void of information about the services and technologies upon which their success and profitability depends.
Whilst most managers don’t have the time or the inclination to become technology experts, they do have a keen but often frustrated interest in how key services and technologies are performing.
For example, they want to know that all communications with primary data centres are up and running; that all trading systems are functioning; and that customers can access their accounts via the internet, ATM or branch. Most of all, they want confidence that the right data is delivered to the right place at the right time.
The problem is that technologies are usually managed by engineers, using tools that by their very nature are highly technical and rarely designed to be understood by those managing a business.
Outsourcing Increases the Information Gap
This issue has been multiplied over recent years as more banks and financial service organisations have placed greater reliance on outsourced IT services. Not only do managers need to know that these investments are delivering value for money, they also need visibility into these vital, but now ever more distant, digital services.
So regardless of whether an application or service is managed in-house or by third-party suppliers, managers increasingly find themselves working in an information void. They need to know if there is a problem with the delivery of their business services, together with an understanding of where that problem is, who is affected and for how long. They also want to know when the problem is resolved, whether by internal teams or external service providers.
Solutions for Visibility Into IT Services
The good news is that these frustrations can be removed. Services are now available that give this ‘window’ into the digital world providing clear, business-level information. They deliver real-time, performance-focused visibility of those business services, with full reporting and trend analysis, making it much easier to identify trouble spots and take corrective action where necessary.
These services require no capital expenditure. They don’t use probes and require little or no software to be installed; they leverage the intelligence already present within the existing digital infrastructure. Within hours they start to collect, interpret and evaluate this data to deliver clear information through intuitive, browser based dashboards that can be understood by executives, managers and engineers alike, wherever they are.
Benefits of Business-Level Monitoring
The key benefits of these services are that they deliver knowledge and understanding. They provide peace of mind that a bank’s or a financial service’s vital business services are up and running, delivering what they should, when they should, so that customers can transact when they want and how they want.
In our work with both the organisations that deliver technology services as well as the firms that use them, we see the story from both sides. We’ve found that the organisations that want to deliver greater value to their customers are the ones that understand that they need to open this window into the performance of their digital services. And in the majority of cases, this leads to greater levels of trust but more importantly, improved business performance.
The key thing is that we’re not all technology experts, but we all need to know how the performance of the technologies that deliver our key business services is affecting the success and profitability of our business.
Case Study: Clarity For Financial Institutions
netEvidence’s Highlight service is helping banks and financial institutions around the globe to achieve clarity and understanding of their digital worlds.
www.net-evidence.com
