4-page Case Study - Posted 6/18/2008
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IT Solution Provider Increases Security and Efficiency with New PC Operating System
The employees of Avanade know that part of the company’s success is practicing what they preach. The Seattle, Washington–based company provides IT solutions to enterprises around the world and frequently encounters situations where personal computers are subject to theft or loss, where data can be compromised through inadequate security, and where IT management is seeking to streamline internal processes. Avanade decided to improve its internal operations in all of these areas by upgrading its workstation and portable computers from the Windows® XP operating system to the Windows Vista® operating system. With more than 85 percent of company employees now using the newer operating system, the company is experiencing enhanced security, better management functions for the IT department, and greater usability for employees.
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We wanted to be proactive on our security so a lost laptop or other security breach wouldn’t hurt us. Windows Vista helped us be proactive in generating greater security.  |
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Michael Rosen
Infrastructure Director
Avanade |
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Situation
Avanade is a leading provider of strategic technology solutions, with a broad range of specialties that support business growth: enterprise application and infrastructure design and deployment, business intelligence solutions, and managed services. To remain a leader in its industry, Avanade does everything that it can to give its consultants a competitive edge, whether that means providing advanced training, assembling cross-disciplinary delivery teams to meet a customer’s needs, or ensuring that its employees have access to the best technology tools to provide service to Avanade customers.
However, providing the best technology presents a number of challenges for the company’s IT department because of the nature of the Avanade workforce. More than 80 percent of the company’s employees are mobile workers who either travel constantly or work out of remote offices. Those employees rely heavily on portable computers, which can be lost or stolen, exposing Avanade to the potential loss of valuable intellectual property. For the mobile and remote users on a dispersed network, being able to find the right information when it’s needed has also proved challenging. Historically, stand-alone search tools provided some of this needed functionality, but often at the cost of not integrating well with other systems or being difficult for the IT department to support.
Finally, managing the company’s computer assets—deploying updates, installing and delivering new computers, and more—is also a challenge for the IT department.
To increase competitiveness and streamline internal operations, Avanade sought new technology that would enhance the manageability of its assets, improve the power of search tools and other features for users, and boost corporate security.
Solution
Avanade became an early adopter of the Windows Vista® operating system, deploying Windows Vista Enterprise across the enterprise to replace the Windows® XP Professional operating system. Avanade deployed Windows Vista in a phased rollout during 2007 and into 2008, using deployment tools that included the Microsoft Solution Accelerator for Business Desktop Deployment (BDD) and Windows Imaging Format (WIM). By mid-2008, about 85 percent of company employees were using the new operating system.
The deployment was part of a major IT upgrade that also included deployment of Microsoft® Office Professional 2007, Microsoft Office SharePoint® Server 2007, and Microsoft Exchange Server 2007.
“As a company, we are early adopters of technology, so everyone wanted to get on Windows Vista as soon as possible to try out the new features,” says Michael Rosen, Infrastructure Director for Avanade. “Within a month after the release of Windows Vista, we [began] planning … how to deploy it throughout our globally dispersed company in order to take advantage of specific features such as the built-in security and self-help diagnostics.”
A key goal of the deployment was to create new security policies for workstation and portable computers that would take advantage of features such as Windows BitLocker™ Drive Encryption, a data protection feature that helps mitigate the threat of data theft or data disclosure when computers are lost or stolen. The company is also using digital rights management at the document level to protect the confidentiality of information on the company’s Office SharePoint Server 2007 sites and Exchange 2007 platform.
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As a company, we are early adopters of technology, so everyone wanted to get on Windows Vista as soon as possible to try out the new features. |
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Michael Rosen
Infrastructure Director
Avanade |
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Benefits
By deploying Windows Vista across the enterprise, Avanade has helped enhance the security of its computer assets—and the intellectual property residing on company computers. In addition, Avanade has taken advantage of a number of features that improve the manageability of its broadly dispersed base of workstation and portable computers. Employees are also benefitting from the operating system, particularly the powerful, built-in search functionality that helps them quickly find information.
Greater Security for Corporate Data
The company’s decision to deploy Windows Vista helped it to enhance security in the enterprise, helping reduce potential risks such as lost computers or unauthorized entry into the company’s data based in Office SharePoint Server 2007.
“We have not had any serious security breaches in our company, but we’ve certainly heard about and witnessed some during the course of our work—for example, people leaving laptops behind in a cab, with the device filled with confidential information,” says Rosen. “We wanted to be proactive on our security so a lost laptop or other security breach wouldn’t hurt us. Windows Vista helped us be proactive in generating greater security.
“Before Windows Vista, Avanade examined many proprietary, third-party encryption options but ran into significant challenges with integration, performance, and key recovery,” Rosen continues. “Windows BitLocker Drive Encryption achieved our primary goal of full-disk encryption without the cost or complexity of proprietary management consoles or third-party tools. The BitLocker recovery key process is straight-forward and is managed through the Active Directory® service and our existing set of management tools.”
With Windows BitLocker Drive Encryption, the company has the ability to provide full-volume encryption and boot integrity on all PCs. This helps Avanade ensure that the data on a computer stays confidential even if the PC is lost, stolen, or decommissioned.
Furthermore, the company now is better able to ensure that sensitive information in its Office SharePoint Server 2007–based work spaces and document libraries can be shared securely with those outside Avanade. The company uses digital rights management to protect information contained in SharePoint Server 2007 sites at the document level.
Better IT Management Tools
The Avanade IT department has improved its own operations and processes by deploying Windows Vista. “We have a lean IT shop and are always looking to drive greater efficiency through technology, just as we do with our clients,” says Dale Christian, CIO, Avanade. “The manageability of Windows Vista and the way it is architected really helps enhance the way that our IT personnel work.”
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The manageability of Windows Vista and the way it is architected really helps enhance the way that our IT personnel work. |
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Michael Rosen
Infrastructure Director
Avanade |
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For example, he cites the importance of keeping PC images current. Historically, it was laborious for the Avanade IT department to provide software updates, but with Windows Vista, it’s now much easier and faster to keep all software current. This was demonstrated when the company implemented Windows Vista Service Pack 1.
“Upgrading our image to Service Pack 1 in Windows Vista was a very streamlined process because of the new BDD and WIM imaging and formatting tools,” Rosen says. “The update process for other items, such as additional drivers and new models of laptops, has also been easy. Now instead of having to maintain a library of images for each type of hardware, we only have one image that can be deployed to any computer model we support.”
Enhanced User Productivity
As a consulting company, Avanade is in the business of providing knowledge to its customers through a large base of information, expertise, and intellectual property. So getting at information quickly is paramount—and now easier with Instant Search in Windows Vista. With just a few keystrokes, Avanade employees can locate a specific file, application, or e-mail message.
“The search functionality built into Windows Vista is something that our employees take advantage of every day,” says Ryan McCune, Global Solutions Director for Desktop Transformation at Avanade. “What is truly valuable is how … a person can find a document, a folder, an e-mail, or some other item in an instant. We rely heavily on e-mail, and the ability to enter a search term in Windows Vista and have the results pop up quickly is incredibly valuable. In the past, we had third-party tools to perform this function, but they were never as fast or as thorough.”
Rosen says he uses Instant Search every day: “In my position, I deal with our account base on the East Coast and as such manage many clients at the same time, so finding information quickly is critical. The Windows Vista search functionality makes me a lot more efficient. If I’m in a meeting or on a phone call, Instant Search lets me look up a phrase or keyword in real time, and the file or message instantly pops up. It is invaluable, considering the amount of information that I deal with.”
For More Information
For more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234 in the United States or (905) 568-9641 in Canada. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:
http://www.microsoft.com/
For more information about Avanade products and services, call (206) 239-5600 or visit the Web site at:
http://www.avanade.com/
Windows Vista
Windows Vista can help your organization use information technology to gain a competitive advantage in today’s new world of work. Your people will be able to find and use information more effectively. You will be able to support your mobile work force with better access to shared data and collaboration tools. And your IT staff will have better tools and technologies to enhance corporate IT security, data protection, and more efficient deployment and management.
For more information about Windows Vista, go to:
www.microsoft.com/windowsvista
This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.
Document published June 2008
