Maintaining a Smooth Transition from Multiple Providers

To achieve truly seamless IT services, global companies often choose to switch to a single, versatile provider like Aura. The central issue in doing so is transition. With multiple sites and users all reliant on the technology that’s being transferred, the shift can be complex and problematic. Any errors and it can even be damaging. This is an area where Aura adds significant value which was crucial for a global luxury car manufacturer, with 130 sites worldwide.

Multiple incumbent providers

After securing a contract with the global car manufacturer, Aura had just over three months to transition from their incumbent providers to our own comprehensive, integrated service. However, having adopted a portfolio of vendors and technologies over the years, they now had a myriad of vendors in 130 sites across the globe.

With over 28,000 users relying on the technology being transferred, minimising disruption was a must. That was paired with the need for everything to be done in German as a primary language, to make the process as simple and transparent as possible for the company’s key stakeholders.

Mapping out the transition

Collaborating with a global service integrator, our first step was to provide a full transition proposition to the customer. It comprised a thorough review of all historical documentation and inventory records to understand trends, the roadmap and utilisation.

More estate than initially scoped was discovered in the transition, which we were able to wrap into the project going forward. Aura’s team then took a series of steps to prepare for a smooth transition:

Knowledge transfer

Our team engaged in a series of workshops with the incumbent providers to fully understand the estate. This allowed us to obtain key knowledge of the assets, forming a solid foundation for the transition.

Coordination

Aura set up a global PMO office for the customer to manage and coordinate all transition projects. Spanning across all sites and regions, this provided full visibility and a single point of contact throughout the process.

Ownership

We took full ownership of historical incidents, Simple Service Requests and in-flight projects from the incumbent service providers. That gave us a fresh overview of technical abilities globally.

Testing

Aura conducted a preventative maintenance and acceptance test plan accompanied by site surveys at the pre-identified core locations. By understanding the security procedures when entering the customer premises, this allowed us to be slicker in our processes from the off.

Inventory review

An inventory review and document mapping of all locations resulted in a clear SLA offering for support. With correct information on hardware per site, we could provide a faster resolution.

A swift, comprehensive takeover

Following rigorous preparation, a ‘big bang’ takeover of the entire global estate was successfully completed. Having undertaken a series of workshops, reviewed all technological policies and procedures, and built up new supporting documentation in the leadup to the takeover, the project was a triumph from day one.

The introduction of our local strategic partners in each country ensured a close working relationship with the customer going forward. This has already paid dividends, facilitating a reliable communication stream and complete trust amongst everyone involved on the customer account. Aura now acts as an extended arm of the customer, working closely within the account.

The final outcome

Our detailed documentation and rigorous preparation process has given the customer full visibility of their systems across multiple countries – something that was seemingly impossible prior to the transition. This has enabled them to significantly reduce costs in support and licences, with an accurate support SLA that is in line with their standards.