IS Strategy

Information, Communications and Technology Strategy

Newport City Homes - Information, Communications and Technology Strategy

July 2009

H:\Strategy 1 of 48 Author – Neil Jones


Document Control Sheet

Document Title Information, Communications and Technology Strategy

Version 01

Status Initial Draft

Reference

Author Neil Jones

Date July 2009

Quality assurance by:

Document history

Version Date Author Comments

0605040302 23rd July 2009 Neil Jones Second Draft01 3rd July 2009 Neil Jones Initial draft



Executive Summary

1.0 This Information Services Strategy has been developed through environmental scanning, and by building upon the Tribal “Draft Information, Communications and Technology Strategy for Approval”, dated October 2008.

2.0 The Strategy states its strategic aim as “[to] … support the overall strategic aims of Newport City Homes by providing reliable information to the point of need, underpinned by robust and integrated computer applications and delivered by up to date and integrated networks and telephony systems”.

3.0 The document highlights a number of important strategic principles in paragraph 3.0, and the whole strategy is dependant upon their validity.

4.0 The document is then broken down into the important constituent elements of the I.S. department’s scope of responsibilities as follows:

5.0 The Information Management Strategy (paragraph 4) which sets out how all information within Newport City Homes (electronic, paper-based, emails etc.) will be managed, how it will be defined and how long it should be retained.

6.0 The Information Systems Strategy (paragraph 5) highlights the organisation’s current strategic computer systems, and sets out future strategic applications that will be developed in the future.

7.0 Newport City Homes’ (NCH) Development Strategy (paragraph 6) is then set out with particular attention being given to what we will develop, and how.

8.0 Our Technology and Communication Strategy (paragraph 7) is detailed in depth, and the elements of our server infrastructure and telecommunications infrastructure is dealt with.

9.0 Paragraph 8 sets out our Customer Service and Support Strategy which highlights how the I.S. department will interact with our users.

10.0 Our Disaster Recovery (paragraph 9) strategy discusses how we will utilise Bettws as our disaster recovery site and which of our applications will be protected.

11.0 Finally the strategy document sets out a 5 year costed implementation plan of new and replacement systems.



1.0 Background

Newport City Homes (NCH) is still an embryonic organisation, and as such, much of its Information Systems and Information Technology provision is undertaken by Newport City Council (NCC), the management of which is undertaken through a service level agreement (SLA).

This SLA will cease in March 2010, and Newport City Homes will need its Information Technology (I.T.) infrastructure in place and the hosted computer applications (housing management, housing repairs, finance system and HR system) and their interfaces, migrated to NCH control.

This strategy has been developed in order to provide the required infrastructure, and also to overcome the perceived frustrations of the NCC I.T. provision, identified through user feedback, and published by the Tribal draft strategy document1.

1.1 Environmental Scanning

This strategy document has been developed in order to support the overall vision and objectives of Newport City Homes, and the major external driver which is the Welsh Housing Quality Standard. It has been developed after consultation with Heads of Service, the IT User Group and builds upon the draft strategy prepared for NCH by Tribal Consulting. Current trends in the sector, and sector best practice issues have been identified through the Tribal and House Mark benchmarking report, and through consultation with peers via. the Community Housing Cymru IT network forum.

1.2 Progress to date

Good progress to implement infrastructure and telephony has been made, and planning is underway to migrate those systems currently hosted by NCC. Areas already addressed are shown below:

The majority of the IT team is now in place The financial systems, Open Accounts, e-Bis and BRIXX are in

place The server infrastructure has been purchased and is currently

being implemented The telephony infrastructure has been purchased and is

currently being implemented Wide area network links between Central and other NCH sites

have been purchased and we are awaiting installation

1 The Tribal “Draft Information, Communications and Technology Strategy for Approval” document is available from the Head of I.S.



The data network for Central has been purchased and we are awaiting installation

The data centre and structured cabling for Central has been planned and we are awaiting installation in conjunction with the planned building works

2.0 Strategic Aim

This strategy will support the overall strategic aims of Newport City Homes by providing reliable information to the point of need, underpinned by robust and integrated computer applications and delivered by up to date and integrated networks and telephony systems.

3.0 Strategic Principles

In order to achieve NCH’s strategic aims it is assumed the following principles will be adopted:

In order to leverage the cost efficiencies associated with our charitable status, wherever possible Microsoft products will be implemented

Any new or replacement computer applications and technologies will comply with our technical environment policy (see Appendix A)

Corporate data will be entered only once, in an accurate manner and will be reused as necessary

Corporate data and information (including emails) will be stored securely, appropriately (online storage v archive) and for the correct amount of time as per legislation and NCH policy

Corporate computer applications and data repositories will be used in favour of ad-hoc databases (e.g. Access databases) or ad-hoc spreadsheets (e.g. Excel databases)

Datawarehouse technology will be used to enable integrated data and to facilitate a corporate approach to reporting and performance management

A corporate reporting tool will be implemented Data will be owned by Application Owners, not the I.S.

department All major applications will have an identified Champion Computer systems will comply with the necessary Data

Protection Act legislation2

All computer hardware, software, peripherals and telecommunications equipment will be specified and purchased corporately by the Information Services team

2 For more information on the Data Protection Act (1998) see www.ico.gov.uk



Computer equipment will be managed in such a way as to minimise environmental impact (see Appendix B)

Computer equipment will be disposed of in accordance with Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) legislation and NCH policies (see Appendix C) 3

NCH staff will influence system and technology choices through the IT User Group and through membership of project boards and project teams as required

NCH staff will be provided with relevant training and user guides in order to ensure maximum and efficient use of deployed technologies

Service level agreements will be implemented and managed in order to ensure the highest and most appropriate levels of customer service (see Appendix D)

Key performance indicators (KPIs) and benchmarking data will be produced and reported upon in order to gauge the effectiveness of the IS function

An ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) approach to customer service management will be adopted

A Change Advisory Board (CAB) which is an element of ITIL will be implemented and chaired by the Head of I.S. This forum will review and approve or otherwise all information and technology requests and changes

This strategy document will be reviewed annually This strategy document will be underpinned by an annual plan,

specific implementation plans and a five year business plan Residents will be encouraged to make use of our corporate IT

training facility Efforts to overcome digital exclusion will be undertaken through

the reuse of old computer equipment and training

3 For more information on WEEE legislation see www.environment-agency.gov.uk/weee



4.0 Information Management Strategy

This Information Management Strategy is all encompassing, and as such refers to all corporate information and data (including emails) that may be paper based or in electronic form.

Our ethos in this area is to ensure that NCH’s data will only be collected once, that it will be accurate and fit for purpose (i.e. contains the required detail), that it will be stored efficiently and securely and that it will be made available and presented in such a way as to provide the right information for those who need/request it.

NCH will hold data in defined computer applications such as Anite’s Housing Management application and in an Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS) which will deal with unstructured data such as Microsoft Word files, scanned fax documents etc.

4.1 Data Capture

Data being entered into major NCH applications will continue to be entered in a structured record format, and be held within that application and NCH’s datawarehouse. These applications will hold the master records and will provide data for the datawarehouse, but will not accept updates from the datawarehouse.

Unstructured data such as word processing files, Adobe Acrobat files, and photographs will be saved by the user into a defined area of NCH’s EDRMS. According to the type of document, and other classification elements, i.e. the document is related to tenants or properties these files will be stored against NCH’s A to Z taxonomy4.

Current paper records and files will be scanned and the resulting electronic documents will be stored within the EDRMS, classified according to the taxonomy, and with appropriate metadata5 being added.

4.2 Data Retention4 NCH is implementing an A to Z taxonomy for the storage of unstructured data. The A to Z relates to properties.5 Metadata refers to details added to saved files that hold details such as author, date created and date to delete etc.



In order to ensure that NCH complies with data protection legislation, sector best practice and to minimise the risk if we are ever required to adopt the Freedom of Information scheme, data needs to be held for an appropriate amount of time.

To automate this process for NCH, and to ensure that electronic storage requirements are kept to a reasonable level, all files within the EDRMS need to have a retention date applied to them as part of that files metadata.

Suggested retention periods for NCH can be seen in Appendix E.



5.0 Information Systems Strategy

Our ethos with regards to information systems in NCH is to ensure they are accessible, accurate, robust and available.

5.1 Current Applications

5.1.1 Housing Management (Anite OHMS)

This application holds the master records for tenants and properties and will provide the unique property reference number to be utilised within the Housing Repairs system.

Currently this system is being hosted by Newport City Council. It runs on an Oracle database which is held on an old BULL Unix server running the AIX operating system. By March 2010 this system will be migrated to a Windows operating system, running in a virtualised environment and hosted in NCH’s data centre.

The system has been in use within NCH for many years. Anite has recently been purchased by Northgate and this company has stated that support for the system will end in 2015. Therefore NCH will need to commence work on a replacement system early in 2012. This will allow the time for tendering and then the large workload involved in migrating to the new system.

Annual updates and patches to the system will need to be applied in order to keep the system in support from the suppliers, but due to the necessary replacement schedule no enhancements will be sought (other than those to deal with new legislation).

5.1.2 Housing Repairs (ROCC UME)

As recommended by the original Tribal draft strategy NCH has contracted to replace this system. The original ROCC repairs system is to be upgraded to the latest ROCC system and at the same time will be interfaced to a number of other new systems that will benefit the repairs functions of NCH. Additionally, one of the new systems will provide NCH with an asset management (PIMMS) module that is necessary to provide valid and up to date information that is needed as NCH works towards the Welsh Housing Quality Standard (WHQS).



The current repairs system is hosted by Newport City Council on a Microsoft SQL database running on a Microsoft Windows server. The new system will be hosted in the NCH data centre in a virtualised environment and will be live by March 2010.

A project is underway to implement the new repairs function and the new additional systems. The following systems will be introduced by March 2010:

ROCC – The new repairs system itself which will deal with reactive, planned and cyclical repairs. The new system will interface with Anite (in order to reconcile property reference numbers), OpenAccounts, PIMMS (the new asset management system), Opti-Time (for dynamic scheduling) and First Touch (mobile data to the workforce).

PIMMS – The new asset management system. This application will hold details on the condition of properties, and will allow financial planning and forecasting to be undertaken as NCH moves towards compliance with the WHQS.

Opti-Time – This new system will provide NCH with the ability to dynamically schedule repairs by priority and the location of operatives. Reactive repairs are automatically passed to this system from ROCC itself.

First Touch – This new system will allocate repair workloads directly to the operative via. handheld Microsoft Windows mobile devices (after scheduling by the Opti-Time system).

Keyfax – This will provide a graphical diagnostic tool to allow more accurate coding of reported repairs.

5.1.3 OpenAccounts

This system is currently hosted on a Windows server at Newport City Council. The first phase was implemented this year as part of the recommendations of the Tribal draft strategy. New, additional modules are currently being investigated. It will be migrated to the NCH data centre by March 2010 and will run on a virtualised environment.

The system is fully implemented and will be interfaced with the new housing repairs system. It will be reviewed in 2014.



5.1.4 OpenPeople

A project is currently underway to implement this system. When fully implemented it will provide a full range of HR functions and also allow NCH to run its own payroll function. We will go live with the payroll functions in April 2010 which allow us to move away from the payroll service level agreement currently in place with Newport City Council.

Currently the system is hosted on a Windows server at Newport City Council, but it will be migrated to NCH’s data centre by March 2010.The system will be reviewed in 2014.

5.1.5 E-Bis

This is a web-based system and is used by NCH as its purchase order system. It has the same screen structures as OpenPeople.

5.1.6 BRIXX

This is a web based system used by NCH for our thirty year, long term financial planning.

5.2 Future Applications

NCH will require a number of new applications in order to provide the levels of data integration, reporting and business intelligence that any modern organisation needs.

A datawarehouse will be constructed to provide the basis for our integration and this will be overlaid by Microsoft SharePoint which will provide the remaining functionality and allow us to develop additional applications and to move towards our goal of portals for staff, board members, partners and residents.

5.2.1 Datawarehouse

A datawarehouse will be constructed with a Microsoft SQL database. Our major applications as outlined in paragraph 5.1 will feed this system with data. It will be constructed in such a way as to make links between the main applications through the use of record keys and best practice extract, transformation and load (ETL) tools and policies.

A data cube will be built over the datawarehouse. This will allow the data contained within it to be analysed (‘sliced and diced’) in any possible combination.



Overlaying this will be a flexible presentation layer that will allow the use of dashboards, drill down analysis tools and reporting.

An I.S. Officer with development responsibility will be appointed (September 09) to lead on this workload.

5.2.2 Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

This system will utilise the data in the datawarehouse in order to provide a complete picture of all the interactions NCH have had with the resident who is contacting us. Telephone calls, visits and letters will be recorded along with the traditional data held in our housing management and housing repairs systems. Depending upon the type of interaction with the resident, NCH staff can be tasked to deal with general queries and requests.

It is intended to implement this system in 2010 – 2011.

5.2.3 Intranet

NCH will implement a corporate Intranet as soon as practicable after we go live on our own infrastructure. Microsoft SharePoint Server (MOSS) will be used to host the Intranet, and at the same time provide content management.

This will allow user departments to author their own content, and then through a workflow, allow that content to be viewed and agreed by their manager, and automatically posted to the Intranet site. This workflow will be extended to allow appropriate content to further be posted to the Internet site, or to appropriate Extranets or Portals.

The Intranet will be implemented in 2009 – 2010.

5.2.4 Internet

NCH currently has an interim Internet site. We plan to further develop this in the short-term and will identify a more appropriate hosting solution. We will utilise content management as outlined in paragraph 5.2.3 to help populate the site, and continue to further develop it to introduce

Extranets (which will give specific content to groups of people external to NCH such as board members, contractors etc.) and Portals (which will give specific content to individuals and allow



those individuals access to applications / business intelligence etc.).

New hosting will be identified in 2009.Content management will be utilised in 2010.Extranets and portals will be implemented in 2010 – 2011.

5.2.5 Performance Management / Business Intelligence

Business Intelligence (BI) is currently undertaken within NCH via. a number of disparate means. In order to report progress against business plans and to report against key performance indicators (KPIs) various reports and Excel spreadsheets are produced, mainly by human intervention. These reports are currently only available against separate computer systems.

We will implement a corporate business intelligence solution which will be able to report across applications and provide an automated reporting facility which will further allow dashboards and the ability to drill down into the underlying data to provide data analysis.

Initial intermediate BI implementation 2010.Full BI implementation working across datawarehouse 2011.

5.2.6 Electronic Document Records Management (EDRMS)

Currently NCH saves unstructured data in a variety of formats and in multiple locations. With this approach there is a loss of corporate approach to the data, and it can be very difficult to retrieve documents for future use. Additionally NCH currently also has a large amount of paper based records. These take up storage space and cannot be searched against.

The introduction of an EDRMS will allow unstructured data such as word processing files, Adobe Acrobat files, and photographs will be saved by the user into a defined area of NCH’s EDRMS. According to the type of document, and other classification elements, i.e. the document is related to tenants or properties these files will be stored against NCH’s A to Z taxonomy.

Current paper records and files will be scanned and the resulting electronic documents will be stored within the EDRMS, classified according to the taxonomy, and with appropriate



metadata being added. Microsoft SharePoint will provide the underlying infrastructure for this approach.

NCH will implement its EDRMS in 2010.



6.0 Development Strategy

Our ethos in this area is to reduce reliance on our application providers for minor changes, interfaces, reports and links to performance management information.

NCH will not take on the risk of developing major applications, but will concentrate upon developing a datawarehouse that will form the basis of integrated data, a common reporting platform and the basis for integrated performance management information. Additionally I.S. staff will develop workflows, e-forms, Intranet and minor utilities / applications where a clear benefit to the user base can be demonstrated.

Where there is a requirement for a new computer utility or system, comprehensive user requirements will be captured and refined. The I.S. department will firstly look to modify any existing systems or then investigate any possible collaborative approaches with partner organisations, other housing associations etc.

6.1 Development Methods

NCH will adopt the following two industry standard development methods, and utilise them as appropriate to the context of any specific development:

Waterfall model6 RAD (Rapid application development)7

6.2 Development Tools Up to date Microsoft development tools and systems will be adopted as our development environment with technologies such as:

Microsoft Visual Basic Microsoft SharePoint Microsoft Sequel Server XML Webservices

In accordance with best practice, any systems developed within NCH will be subject to defined user requirements, change control, robust

6 The Waterfall model is an industry best practice approach to developing ‘complex’ computer applications where the time to deployment is not of great importance7 The RAD model is utilised where a relatively non-complex and time critical development is required



testing, user training where required and appropriate levels of documentation.

6.3 Undertaking the development

All development activity will take place on appropriate test systems, and will only be moved into a production environment when all testing has been completed, and agreement has been received from the Head of I.S.

Due regard will be given to the provisions of relevant legislation, particularly the Data Protection Act, Information Security Guidelines and W3E requirements for disabled users.

Additionally any new development will adhere to the NCH Technical Environment Policy (see Appendix A).



7.0 Technology and Communications Strategy

This part of the strategy deals with the infrastructure that NCH will use to deliver computer applications, data and information to our user base. It will ensure that NCH’s infrastructure is resilient, expandable, secure and works efficiently in order to provide the information needs of our user base.

Our ethos in this area is one of automated deployment of technology and desktop applications, proactive fault monitoring and the ability for remote fixing. We will ensure that access to the network and computer applications is as easy as possible from any appropriate location. This approach will increase the efficiency and speed of the service I.S. can provide and this will increase the overall efficiency and effectiveness of our user base.

The technology and communications strategy encompasses server infrastructure, desktop hardware and software, telephony, mobile telephony, flexible working, and the data network.

7.1 Server infrastructure

NCH has implemented DELL server hardware running Microsoft server operating system software. Where possible, virtualisation technology has been implemented, and NCH is using the VMWare virtualisation suite of products.

The Microsoft management suite of products SCOM has been implemented and this package allows us to remotely deploy and manage applications and also proactively monitor and report on faults.

7.1.1 Directory Services

The Microsoft Active Directory service has been deployed. Users require a user ID and password to log in and access network resources. These network resources are secured according to user and/or group membership from the Active Directory. Each user retains an individual user account that will authenticate, authorise and audit access to network resources. More than one Domain controller has been deployed for resilience, and to allow remote sites system access should network links fail.



7.1.2 Email

NCH has implemented Microsoft Exchange for its sever based email management package. This provides e-mail functionality to the Outlook client (desktop based email package) and Outlook Web Access (OWA) and Outlook Anywhere both of which will provide remote email access.

7.1.3 Anti Virus

NCH has implemented the Microsoft suite of anti virus (Forefront) products for use on both servers and desktop computers. Linked to the SCCM suite of products it automates updates which will allow us to remain up to date and minimise the risk of new viruses and harmful software.

Anti-Virus updates will be managed from the SCCM server.And Forefront for Exchange will be deployed on the Exchangeservers to perform message level virus scanning. Perimeter level scanning is provided by ClearSwift Mailsweeper for SMTP and Websense for internet browser.

7.1.4 File and Print facilities

File data will be stored on virtualised file servers with data stored on the shared storage device. This file server will contain8:

• Shared files for the directorates• Home files data for user• User Profile data• Miscellaneous data for items such as software

The File server will also host printer queues for all printers thatare accessible on the network that support shared printing.

Users will have their shared drives allocated (mapped) using a single login script when they logon and offline folders for shared data will be configured so that users can access files they have opened previously when they are away from the network.

8 Initial data allocations are - 150GB for directorate shared data, 250GB for user home data and 100GB for shared legacy data. 25GB has been allocated for user profiles (100MB per user profiles) and 10GB for miscellaneous data



7.1.5 Internet Security / Firewall

A Cisco Firewall has been placed between the Internet and the internal Network to ensure that the internal network is secure. Additionally the Microsoft ISA Server product has been placed between the Cisco Firewall and the network hosting the infrastructure providing a DMZ9 and two factor firewall technology for additional security. Additionally the Cisco PIX Intruder Protection module to provide intrusion detection has been implemented.

Internet browsing will be managed through a Microsoft ISA Server which is also being utilised for e-mail remote access services. This has been integrated with Websense to provide web filtering.

7.1.6 Systems Management

In order to make the most efficient use of our infrastructure to proactively support the user base the following elements of the infrastructure will be managed:

• Monitoring of servers• Patch Management• Hardware auditing• Remote control of desktops• Software Delivery• Managed Desktop Build

These functions will be provided by:

Microsoft System Centre Operations Manager (SCOM) which monitor and provide alerts on all deployed servers (Operating System and Microsoft Server Applications).

Dell OpenManage which has been implemented to support Dellhardware management and integrated with SCOM to provide a unified monitoring interface.

System Centre Configuration Manager (SCCM) has been deployed to provide the core functions of systems management providing software and hardware audits, remote control of desktops and software deployment and client patch management.

7.1.7 Backup

9 DMZ refers to de-militarised zone. A best practice approach to separating external and internal networks.



The whole infrastructure will be backed up on three levels:

• Data, i.e. Mailbox and files• Operating system, i.e. systems state backups• Virtual Machines

A Dell DP 500 Backup appliance with Microsoft Data ProtectionManager for short term backup to disk provides easy and fast backup to disk functionality. A traditional tape backup device attached to the DP 500 allows traditional tape backup device for long term backup of data.

Backup tapes will be stored securely in a fireproof site away from the Nexus building.10

7.1.8 Virtualisation

Underpinning the infrastructure is a virtual platform. This will allow NCH to extract the maximum benefit from its hardware investment and it will minimise space requirements and electrical and cooling requirements.

NCH have deployed a number of technologies in this environment, VMWare and Microsoft Hyper V. VMWare is currently the industry best practice product but is expensive to implement. Hyper V is relatively cost effective for NCH (due to licensing benefits for charitable organisations) but is relatively new to the market place. Therefore, in order to reduce risk to the organisation both has been implemented now, with the long-term plan being to move completely to Hyper V when the product is more mature, and when the costly VMWare product needs to be re-licensed in 2012.

7.2 Telephony

10 Offsite storage is likely to held in a fireproof safe at Bronafon’s building as part of a reciprocal agreement.



NCH has inherited, implemented and will need to further deploy a number of telephony systems and methods of communication. These are made up of:

Traditional PBX (Tunstall) for the Emergency Contact Centre

Microsoft Office Communications Server (OCS) for general NCH telephony use

BlackBerry Enterprise Server and Blackberry devices Mobile phones Microsoft Windows Mobile devices

7.2.1 Tunstall PBX

The Tunstall PBX is a critical piece of the infrastructure required to enable our alarm systems to work. Upon transfer to the Nexus building it will be replaced with a new model. This piece of hardware whilst critical is low cost, and as such it was felt that in order to minimise risk around the emergency call centre it should be retained and interfaced to the OCS, rather than being replaced with it. Additionally, the retention of this hardware will give NCH telephony resilience should OCS fail, thus allowing alarm / emergency calls, repairs reporting and general enquiries to remain functioning.

7.2.2 OCS

NCH has implemented the Microsoft voice over internet protocol telephony system. This product is known as OCS and in addition to the functions of landline telephony such as voicemail, it integrates into the organisation’s computer infrastructure through the Microsoft Active Directory.

This integration allows NCH full use of the additional functionality included in OCS:

Instant messaging Presence Ability for users to share documents and desktops

in real-time Desktop video conferencing Links to mobile telephones



NCH has deployed “Endpoint Devices” as opposed to traditional landline telephones and these are being complemented by other soft phone technologies such as headsets.

The use of these devices allows flexible working as once the user has logged onto the network, the telephone becomes active and can be accessed just as it would in a workplace setting, seamlessly.

NCH has deployed this technology in a high availability form11. Therefore if the telephony hardware suffers a failure in the Nexus building, telephone services will continue through the disaster recovery instance of the hardware located in our Bettws office.

Should the Tunstall PBX system fail, OCS will provide resilience for repair reporting and general enquiries.

7.2.3 BlackBerry

NCH currently uses a number of Blackberry Devices that include the Blackberry Curve, Blackberry Bold and Blackberry Pearl. NCH now purchase the devices directly through Orange, but the underlying infrastructure is hosted by Newport City Council. These devices are used predominantly for email and associated functions (e.g. calendar).

When NCH migrate to Microsoft Exchange / Outlook for its email provision the organisation will need to deploy the infrastructure to manage these devices for itself. Additionally there will be migration and training costs and implications.

As NCH will need to deploy Microsoft Windows Mobile devices to support the new technologies and working practices associated with Opti-Time and dynamic scheduling the Blackberry infrastructure will not be deployed within NCH and the devices will be replaced with Windows Mobile devices. The functionality allowed by these devices can be seen in paragraph 7.2.5.

7.2.4 Mobile Telephones11 High Availability refers to installing resilient hardware which will take over the primary functioning role, should the ‘day to day’ hardware fail.



Currently a contract exists between NCH and Orange for the provision of mobile telephones. The organisation is currently planning to renew all existing mobile telephones in conjunction with Orange. At the same time staff will be given the opportunity to take out an agreement with Orange that will allow them to utilise the organisation’s handset for personal calls through a system known as Orange Personal Line12.

NCH will consolidate handsets into just a few types (i.e. rugged handsets for operatives). However, until a final decision is made upon the type of Windows Mobile devices that are to be deployed no actions will take place (Windows Mobile Devices are likely to be able to replace mobile telephones, Blackberry devices and in some cases give operatives the access they require to Opti-Time).

7.2.5 Windows Mobile Devices

NCH’s infrastructure has been developed to allow these devices to be used efficiently and securely. Links into our email system and the ability in the future to view corporate data and applications via. a Browser will be made available to the users of these devices.

They are currently being trialled by NCH and upon the successful completion of the trial a decision will be made on which devices will be deployed and to whom.

8.0 Customer Service and Support Strategy12 By agreeing to this Orange offering, the personal calls of all staff can be billed directly to staff from Orange, thus cutting out the requirement of NCH staff to deal with collecting money for personal calls.



The ethos of NCH’s service desk will be that of a ‘can do’ approach. Whilst some formality is required around fault reporting, and some requests may require further analysis if issues of information security or data protection are raised, bureaucracy will be kept to an absolute minimum. The needs of NCH’s user base will form our working policies and we will strive to provide excellent service to our users. Minimising down time and increasing the efficiency of our users will be a priority.

8.1 Service Desk

NCH will implement a service desk application that will be used to record faults and requests. This function will be staffed by members of the I.S. team, and will be contactable by telephone (externally on 01633 227799, internally on 7799) and email ‘[email protected]’. Users invoking this service will be provided with a reference number that can be used to track the progress of their fault or request throughout its lifetime. The operating hours will be Monday – Thursday 08:00 until 17:00 and Friday 08:00 until 16:00.

The service desk will be the first point of contact for all faults and requests, and it will be able to automatically escalate issues to senior members of the I.S. team if agreed service levels are not being adhered to. The system will be capable of producing reports to show how the I.S. function is operating in relation to agreed key performance indicators (see Appendix E).

8.2 Service Level Agreements

The service desk workflow and prioritisation process will be built around the agreed SLAs that can be seen in Appendix D. Any new systems or technologies that are introduced into NCH will be subject to new SLAs being agreed around the importance of that system to the organisation.

8.3 ITIL approach

The I.S. department will adopt the ITIL best practice approach to service delivery and service management and I.S. staff will be trained in the relevant elements of ITIL.

8.4 Account Management



In order to ensure the needs of our user base are captured and addressed the I.S. team will meet regularly with all the NCH functional areas. At these meetings we will be able to inform staff of any new developments taking place, and listen to any service concerns or ideas for change.

8.5 I.T. User Group

The I.T. user group will continue to function as the primary method of engaging with our user base. It will meet regularly to inform users of new developments and to take feedback on issues of service. Additionally this group will provide the user requirement elements of any new service or technology that is being introduced into NCH.

8.6 Change Advisory Board (CAB)

An element of ITIL, a CAB will be setup to investigate and approve or otherwise, changes to existing technology or the introduction of new technology / systems. It will be chaired by the Head of I.S. and will be made up of the I.S. Manager, Senior I.S. Technician and Project Manager, with the ability to call upon anyone related to the technology being discussed.



9.0 Disaster Recovery Strategy

Disaster recovery (DR) in this instance refers specifically to the recovery of information technology and information systems. It is however recognised that DR is just one component that NCH will need in its overall Business Continuity (BC) strategy. As the organisation has only recently been formed it is recognised that future work will be required to both define the BC requirements, and then to ensure that this DR strategy is refined to support it.

Our ethos in this area is to ensure that our mission critical applications are kept in service at all times. As can be seen from Appendix D, the Tunstall application and our telephony provision is classed as mission critical.

However, as well as the above we are providing resilience wherever possible for our other applications and systems. At this time our infrastructure has been designed to provide DR facilities for our telephony and our network drives (containing our data).

9.1 Data Centre

The data centre which is based on floor one of our Central office has been designed to ensure resilience where possible and to allow accreditation to the various national requirements mandated for emergency contact centre provision. DR elements that will be deployed are:

Uninterruptible power supply (UPS) for critical Tunstall13 kit Generator supply for our Tunstall system Generator supply for our Tunstall PBX telephony system

In addition to this provision NCH has a separate DR instance of the Tunstall system which will allow us to run the system remotely should we lose access to our Central building. An agreement exists with Link, to allow us to make use of one of their buildings in the St. Julian’s area of Newport.

9.2 Bettws Area Office13 The Tunstall kit which is made up of a number of servers, network switches and telephony provision supports the Piper Care systems that are looked after by our Emergency Contact Centre.



Whilst designing our infrastructure we have included duplicate systems to allow DR provision for the following systems:

Telephony Network access Network data

Upon completion of the Bettws building work the above DR systems will be installed and commissioned. However, during the design and planning of our overall infrastructure NCH has included additional data storage capacity and the ability to replicate data and applications.

Upon completion of the building work, and when our infrastructure is fully implemented NCH can build upon the initial hardware installation and will be able to provide additional DR provision for our existing applications (i.e. housing management, housing maintenance, OpenAccounts etc.)

DR functionality to be implemented in 2009 – 2010.

Comprehensive DR plan to be drawn up 2009 – 2010.

10.0 Implementation Plan

In order to achieve the strategic goals set out in this document an implementation plan has been developed to outline the workloads to be undertaken, and to show the financial and human resources required to achieve them.

All work plans and requirements will be agreed and prioritised by the senior management team. These plans are set out in Appendix F.

In order to show progress to date in terms of spend to date, Appendix G shows where we are, and what we have spent in relation to the short term (up to February 2009) and medium term (March 2009 until April 2011) goals as set out in the Tribal draft strategy document.



Appendix A – Technical Environment Policy

All new systems, applications and peripherals must be able to operate within the NCH technical environment.

This policy sets out what is technically acceptable for the organisation and additionally provides tender compliance information for prospective suppliers.

The environment is as follows:

System in use Versions in use

Compliant? Notes

Database OracleSQLProgress

Reporting Tools Business ObjectsCrystal Reports

Server O/S Windows XP

Client O/S Windows XPWindows 7

Browser Microsoft IE 6.0

Directory Microsoft Active Directory

Network LAN Ethernet. 1 GB

backbone, 1 GB server uplinks. CAT 6 cabling and TCP/IP protocol

WAN 100MB to Area Offices and Malpas Depot. 10MB to District Offices.



Dial-in ADSL – BT broadband to warden schemes.

Server hardware

Rack mountable(express amount of rack space required)

Monitor included?

KVM included?

Power requirements (per item of hardware)

Heat output (per item of hardware)

Please outline In-built system resilience

Enterprise backup

Microsoft DPM

Email System Microsoft Outlook

Printing protocols

TCP/IP with LPR

Compliance ITIL – Service delivery and management

Data Protection Act

DDA/WAI – Disability Discrimination Act/Web Accessibility

WEEE – Disposal of obsolete electronic equipment



Interfaces Highlight all systems that would need to interface with this one

.


NOTE:

1. If the system does not operate under our technical environment, the differences and the attendant ramifications must be spelt out for NCH.

2. The IT technical environment is dynamic and therefore subject to continuous change. Where appropriate, please contact the IS Manager for an update on the technical environment before including this as part of a contractual document.


Appendix B – NCH Environmental Policy

1. Summary

This documents sets out NCH’s strategic position with reference to ‘green issues’ such as carbon reduction and power efficiency that are relevant to the estate of servers, computers, laptops, printers and peripheral devices.

The principles have been set with due regard to current industry best practice and the ‘Greening Government ICT’ agenda.

2. Actions to be taken

The following actions will be taken and checked for each piece of equipment. Wherever possible central system policies will be developed in order to ensure compliance in the most efficient fashion.

PCs and Laptops

Remove active screen savers (screen savers use same amount of energy as when screen is in full use)

Switch monitors to standby after 5 minutes of inactivity (no active screensaver)

Shut down PCs after office hours Enable active power management on desktops (standby /

hibernate after a defined period of inactivity) Ensure re-use of equipment that is no longer required but is still

serviceable. If re-use is not possible recycle or ensure green disposal.

Specify low-power consumption CPUs and high-efficiency Power Supply Units (80% conversion or better)

Printers

Apply timer switches to non-networked technology and printers

Set default green printing including duplex and grey scale Optimise power-saving sleep mode on printers Utilise multi-function devices and educate staff on the most efficient use of photocopying v printing etc.

Data Centres

Utilise the ITIL capacity management element Utilise the ITIL configuration management element Implement virtual servers where possible Implement a multi-tiered storage solution to reduce amount of spinning disks



Appendix C - Disposal of Obsolete Computer, Radio, Telephony and Communication Equipment Policy

1.0 Background

This document sets out the policy for the disposal of obsolete computer, peripheral, telephony and communications equipment. Equipment for disposal is identified as being:

Broken / beyond economical repair Below minimum required specifications Surplus to requirements

The following legislation issues have been taken into account

Data Protection Act (1998) WEEE

2.0 Policy requirements

2.1 The Head of IS (or person(s) nominated by them) shall make the decision as to whether returned equipment can be disposed of. The following factors will need to be taken into account:

Age of equipment Condition of equipment Cost to replace equipment

After analysing the above factors, the decision could be to: reuse the equipment within NCH donate it to residents or any other charitable group supported by

NCH sell it scrap it

2.2 Where equipment is deemed suitable for reuse it will be redeployed to its new location after being checked to ensure that it holds the correct software (correctly patched), and that any data cleansing required has been undertaken. Following redeployment the asset database must be updated to reflect the new location.

2.3 Where equipment is identified as being suitable for donation, NCH data and software will be securely removed (PCs and laptops will just be loaded with a basic operating system). Donation to residents or to NCH approved charities or partner organisations will be undertaken in conjunction with housing regeneration staff.

2.4 Where equipment for resale may be of a high value (e.g. Cisco networking switches) IS will contact 3rd part organisations who may wish to purchase the equipment directly from them. Low value equipment identified as suitable for resale (this will typically be monitors, and other peripherals) will have their details posted on the IS Intranet site. Details posted will include make / model



and condition. The equipment will be posted for a period of two weeks, and during that time interested persons will be able to make a sealed bid to IS. The successful bidder will be informed and asked to make payment to the finance department. When finance have received the payment, they will inform IS, and arrangements can be made to provide the equipment to the successful bidder. If equipment advertised in this way is not purchased, it will be scrapped, and the process detailed above will be followed.

Any equipment sold will not be subject to warranty or support. PCs and laptops will have all NCH software and data removed prior to sale. Equipment that is disposed of will have its details amended on the NCH inventory system.

2.5 Where equipment is to be scrapped, the hard drives will be removed (and securely disposed of), thus ensuring that data protection requirements are met. All disposals will be dealt with according to WEEE requirements. Equipment that is disposed of will have its details amended on the NCH inventory system.



Appendix D – Service Level Agreement



Appendix E – Suggested data retention periods















Appendix F – 5 Year Implementation PlansInformation Services - 5 Year Operational Plan Year 2009 - 2010

Workload Notes Cost Resources (£k) Required

Implement replacement ROCC system Purchase orders placed Project Manager (Consultant rates) & 12 month secondment for implementation

Complete Relacement Desktop Replacement 150 Implement HR & Payroll System Purchase orders placed Card reader system Included in building costs ID Card printer 3 Implement Intranet 35 New Internet Host 5 Migrate Anite Housing Mgmt. System Migration costs 10 Implement Helpdesk System 25

Total for Year 228



Year 2010 - 2011


Disaster Recovery 50 Implement datawarehouse 50 This element is dependant upon the successful employment of an IS Officer (Development) role - already agreed Corporate Reporting 15 EDRMS 100 Internet (Phase 2) 30

Total for Year 245

Year 2011 - 2012


GIS system Approx. costs only 50



Business Intelligence 30

Total for year 80 Year 2012 - 2013


Replacement Housing Mgmt System Current system goes end of life 500

Project manager (Consultant) and 12 / 24 month secondment for implementation

Upgrade Server Hardware 25 PC replacement programme 56

Total for year 581

Year 2013 - 2014


Upgrade Server Hardware 45



PC replacement programme 56 Total for year 101



Appendix G – Comparison Spend To Date

Table 1 – Planned costs from Tribal Draft Strategy Document

ProjectO ne-off Costs[1] Start Finish Current Position

Purchase & Implement Finance System 250,000Sep-

08Feb-

09 Phase 1 complete - Further modules being assessedPurchase & Implement Asset Management System 175,000

Nov-08

Oct-09 Purchased. Project underway to implement. Go-live date 2nd Feb 2010

Procure and implement Email system 100,000Nov-

08Feb-

09 Purchased. Project underway to implement. Go-live date October 2010

Purchase & Implement Website 100,000Nov-

08Feb-

09 Phase 1 completed. Further work required in 2010

Procure additional telephony switch 13,000Nov-

08Feb-

09 Purchased. Project underway to implement. Go-live date October 2010

Make required system changes to Anite for RSL operation 40,000

Nov-08

Feb-09 Completed

Make required system changes to ROCC for RSL operation 30,000

Nov-08

Feb-09 Completed

Additional PCs for new staff (50 PCs @ £800) 40,000 CompletedConsultancy on procurements and implementation 23,000

On-going - Project manager currently helping us with ROCC implementation

Improve Website to provide interactive services 75,000 Apr-09Mar-

10 Further work planned in 2010

Purchase & Install own HR & Payroll System 150,000 Apr-09Mar-

10 Purchased. Project underway to implement. Go-live date March 2010Procure and implement ASB system 80,000 Apr-09 Mar-

10Not yet underway

O



Procure and implement new Telephony system 220,000 Sept 09

Feb-10 Purchased. Project underway to implement. Go-live date October 2010

Procure and implement upgrade to ROCC/replacement for ROCC 225,000

Dec-09

Feb-10 Purchased. Project underway to implement. Go-live date 2nd Feb 2010

Procure and Implement Cashflow Forecasting 5,500 Completed

Review of Anite Housing Management System 40,000Sept 09

Mar-10 Completed

New hardware for Anite 20,000Dec-

09Feb-

10 Completed

Procure and implement new intranet 50,000Mar 09

Sep-10 Underway.

Procure and implement own network 130,000Sept 09

Feb-10 Purchased. Project underway to implement. Go-live date October 2010

SLA with Newport City Council £560k planned for (i.e. two years)

INITIAL STRATEGY COSTS 1,506,500 Contingency (+10%) 150650 Total Strategy Costs 1,657,150

NB – The above table is based upon the Tribal short and medium term strategic costing plan. Some elements, without planned dates have been omitted from the above.

P



Table 2 – I.S. costs to date (data taken from e-Bis)

Element

Server HardwareServer Software / licensingTelephony InfrastructureNetwork InfrastructureNew desktop computersReplacement repairs systemAsset Mgmnt System (PIMMS)Opti-Time (Dynamic scheduling)First Touch (PDAs)KeyFax diagnostic toolsConsumables

Total Spend to Date 1089555

Items to be considered

The original strategy document did not take into account the IT infrastructure needed for a new building, e.g. generator, structured cabling, air conditioning, build of data centre

Some costs were very approximate The state of desktop computers and telephony switches were not good, and so required replacement ahead of

schedule


Documents

IS Strategy