Consulting Services
In addition to telephone support provided by the Customer Support
Center, on-site assistance is available through Vantage Consulting
Services. Vantage Consulting Services offer and deliver a full
set of technical services that meet a diverse set of needs. The
following section gives a brief overview of the consulting services
VMARK can provide.
Vantage Network Planning and Implementation Services provide a
modular, vendor-neutral set of capabilities that help capitalize
on open solutions, while preserving existing investments. Through
Vantage, VMARK assists customers with project planning, project
management and network services in the following phases:
- Network Planning - encompassing everything from configuration
design to site planning to plan management.
- Network Product Selection - evaluating. recommending
and incorporating the products and services that best meet immediate
and future needs.
- Installation and Testing - ensuring that your network
is implemented - and operating- in the most efficient way possible.
- Network Conversion - for a small segment of your network
or the full-scale conversion of enterprise-wide communications.
- Network Management - involving both on-site and remote
administration and management
of all network components.
Program Management Services
Vantage Program Management Services offer a single, central resource
for managing all areas of your open systems program, from integrating
technologies to vendor activities to in-house efforts.
- Full Project Turnkey Management - covering all areas
of a project, including in-house resources and outside vendors.
- Sub-Project Management - focusing on a specific area
of a project, such as application conversion or data conversion.
- Selection/ Vendor Product Acquisition - reviewing,
analyzing, and recommending all necessary products and vendors.
- Vendor Coordination for Planning and Implementation
- managing vendor participation throughout the life of the project.
- Customized Project Plan Generation and Management -
employing a variety of project management tools to create and
execute a highly specific project plan.
- Issue Management - helping to identify the source of
a problem (i.e., platform, database, network, etc.) and ensure
its resolution.
- Platform Analysis - providing full configuration analysis
through direct interaction with systems vendors to ensure the
processing power and capacity you expect by helping you choose
the most appropriate open system.
- Network Analysis - offering in-depth analysis of all
aspects of your network needs, presenting and evaluating solution
options, along with the best ways to implement them.
- Application Conversion Assessment- identifying program
conversion alternatives through full code analysis that addresses
the differences between your existing operating platform and open
systems, your databases, your utility sub-systems, or third-party
software.
- Data Conversion Assessment - providing innovative approaches
to data conversion, offering timely, non-disruptive service that
consistent with your normal operations.
- Conversion Planning Process - offering customized conversion
plans that identify all tasks - from preparatory changes on your
existing system to end-user training, ensuring successful implementationof new technology.
- Application and Data Conversion and Management - converting
and migrating applications and data through a hands-on effort.
- Testing and Validation Management - confirming that
your systems are up and running according to plan.
- Support Personnel and User Training - for system administrators,
operators, application and system users (including "train
the trainer" sessions).
- Live Conversion Day Management - scheduling and managing
all resources to ensure successful results.
Vantage Performance Tuning
Vantage Performance Tuning provides an on-site or remote consultant
for up to five days to evaluate the customer's environment through
the use of diagnostics and in-depth knowledge of VMARK's products.
The customer must provide the consultant with access to applications
personnel, VAR personnel and end users as needed. Over the course
of the evaluation the consultant will perform the following:
- Analyze all File Sizes
- Run Diagnostics on Files
- Analyze the VOC File
- Analyze the Dictionaries
- Review the use of temporary Files
- Analyze Overflow Buffers
- Analyze Oversize Records
- Analyze Lock Tables
- Analyze Semaphore Usage
- Analyze Collision and Retry Rates
- Analyze File OPEN Statements
- Analyze Disk Load Balancing
- Analyze Paging/Swapping Rates
As part of the evaluation the consultant will write a customized
report that identifies the steps the customer should take to optimize
the throughput of their processing system. The report will cover
changes required to the hardware, operating system, database configuration,
application configuration and application code.
It will be the customer's responsibility to make the changes recommended
to optimize their environment. Another option would be to choose
one of the two on-site consulting packages that can be purchased
to have the consultant make the changes.
Requirements:
- Fourteen day advance notification is required.
- Total of Five Days - Monday through Friday
- Price Includes Travel and Lodging
On-Site Consulting Support
The following consulting packages provide consulting time at the
customer's location. The consultant will have in depth knowledge
and experience in the customer's environment and will be able
to assist in hardware and software areas. The customer and consultant
can determine what needs to be accomplished when the site visit
occurs and tailored to the customer's specific needs. Some of
the areas that can be addressed are:
- Implementation of Performance Optimization
- Database Revision Upgrade Planning
- Conversion Planning - Database and Application
- Installation and Configuration
- On-Site Support
- Application Development Consulting
VANTAGE ON-THREE
- Total of three Days of Consulting time at the customer's location
(Monday through Friday)
- Seven Days advance notification required
- Price Includes Travel and Lodging
VANTAGE ON-FIVE
- Total of five Days of Consulting time at the customer's location
(Monday through Friday)
- Seven Days advance notification required
- Price Includes Travel and Lodging
To order any of the above packages please contact your local VMARK
sales office.