Access "IT service catalog not always necessary in a shared IT environment"
This article is part of the March 2012 Volume 12 issue of Benefits of a shared services strategy
At Liberty Diversified International Inc., which owns businesses in places as far-flung as Taiwan that range from paper manufacturing and office supplies to advertising, every IT resource that can be virtualized is. "The goal is to share as much of the systems as we can," said Alla Johnson, CIO since June at the Minneapolis-based holding company. A Multiprotocol Label Switching, or MPLS, wide area network connects most of Liberty Diversified's company locations. ERP systems are delivered primarily via tools from Citrix Systems Inc. Windows and Linux servers are on VMware. Johnson uses IBM BladeCenter technology to support that environment, and has a Dell Inc. Compellent SAN for storage. One thing Johnson doesn't use in her shared services shop? A traditional service catalog. "There was an attempt at a catalog about five years ago. The business didn't buy into it," she said. Instead, she is developing a strategic plan that lays out the services that will be available over the next three years and when they will be implemented. These services are based on ... Access >>>
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With cloud strategies abundant, CIOs must exercise command, control
by Niel Nickolaisen
Given the growing number and quality of cloud strategies, CIOs must make sure they are the ones driving this cultural shift -- or risk obsolescence.
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With cloud strategies abundant, CIOs must exercise command, control
by Niel Nickolaisen
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News
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Shared services model puts focus on external customer
by Christina Torode, Editorial Director
For Owens Corning CIO David Johns, a shared services model is key to a low-cost, high-value IT and business services delivery strategy.
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IT executives putting their own stamp on shared services model
by Christina Torode, Editorial Director
Definitions and approaches vary, but IT executives are forging ahead with their own takes on shared services to cut costs and serve customers better.
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IT service catalog not always necessary in a shared IT environment
by Linda Tucci, Executive Editor
Shared services in a virtualized cloud computing environment add complexity to developing a service catalog but don't change its basic purpose.
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Shared services model puts focus on external customer
by Christina Torode, Editorial Director
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