2 page Case Study - Posted 2/13/2008
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The City of Zurich Simplifies Management by Standardizing on New Operating System
The City of Zurich is optimizing its IT infrastructure by bringing its 15,000 PCs and notebooks spread across 60 service departments in line with one common standard. Previously, the various service departments decided for themselves which operating system and applications to install. As part of the city’s new IT strategy, hardware and software are now procured collectively by the centralized IT service department (OIZ). After conducting a thorough evaluation, the OIZ decided to standardize on Windows Vista® and the 2007 Microsoft® Office system. As a result, government employees are realizing improved productivity with the Windows Vista Instant Search feature, which significantly reduces the time it takes to locate files and programs. At the OIZ, the standardization reduces administrative costs, enhances security, and simplifies the task of locating and fixing errors.
Situation
Before embarking on its current standardization strategy, the city was managing 15,000 PCs and notebooks spread across 60 different service departments, each with their own procurement policies. At the end of 2007, the centralized IT department (OIZ) put into action a plan to reduce cost and complexity by deploying workstations on a common standard. This has put an end to many of the difficulties and efficiency losses that were caused by the existing environment, which included myriad operating systems and office applications. For example, it was very time-consuming to locate errors within the 1600 applications employed by the city.
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The City of Zurich is using Windows Vista and Office 2007 to modernize its desktop workstations. Windows Vista is proving to be a powerful, secure, and highly stable operating system that is perfectly suited to professional use in large organizations. |
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Daniel Heinzmann
Director, IT Service Department, City of Zurich |
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Solution
The City of Zurich decided to standardize its IT office workstations on the Windows Vista® operating system and the 2007 Microsoft® Office system. Based on a pilot project conducted in two service departments, the solutions will be rolled out starting in spring 2008. The deployment will be supported by Microsoft Consulting Services, Microsoft’s service provision division. Employees from this department help the OIZ to distribute the software quickly and smoothly. They will assist in setting up the new IT office workstation in all service departments, establishing the different requirements of users and ensuring the compatibility of the 1600 applications currently in use. “All installations must run smoothly on the basis of the new Windows infrastructure,” explains OIZ Director Daniel Heinzmann. This therefore requires a customized solution.
The engineers involved are using Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 not only to install Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office system, but also for subsequent central configuration and maintenance. The City will also realize faster deployment, easier provisioning, and better management with the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP). This solution’s technologies support accelerated provision of Windows Vista while also making it easier to manage.
Benefits
There were several strong reasons for choosing Microsoft. “With Windows Vista and Office 2007 as a basis, we can offer our customers solutions in no time at all, for instance when it comes to collaboration. Using Microsoft Office SharePoint® Server 2007, a suitable solution is installed in moments,” states Heinzmann. Another argument in favor of Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office system involved the powerful search functions. With these functions, employees in the administrative offices can quickly and easily access numbers and documents. The document preview function enables users to view texts, spreadsheets and presentations without having to open a program. With the uniform environment, employees who frequently move from one workstation to another or work on different PCs can find the same, familiar PC working environment.
The two products proved to be more stable, with enhanced security: “Pre-rollout tests showed that our requirements for stable and secure operation are completely met,” reports Heinzmann. MDOP helps manage the operating system and applications even more effectively. As the central IT service provider, the OIZ will find it much easier to procure the necessary hardware and software, while also benefiting from lower costs thanks to the Enterprise Agreement volume license model.
The standardization that is underway is also gradually decreasing administrative costs. And the same can be said of error rectification, as numerous faults can be eliminated centrally without an engineer having to appear on site. Microsoft’s close proximity (Microsoft Switzerland is based in Zurich), industry know-how, and clear commitment were also factors in the decision: “We were won over by the company’s expertise with regard to public administration. On top of that, members of the top management of Microsoft Switzerland took personal responsibility for the project,” said Heinzmann.
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
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:
www.microsoft.com
For more information about City of Zurich products and services, call or visit the Web site at:
www.stadt-zuerich.ch
