A major national bank reduces average server decommission process time by more than 50% by consolidating into a third party cloud-based data center.
SITUATION
Our national banking client needed to migrate and collocate three data centers into a third party’s building over a three-year period. The purpose of this project is to setup the client for future technology, working smarter and more cost-efficient, and address long-standing infrastructure needs. They wanted to modernize their technology as well as move to a cloud-first mentality while keeping mission-critical apps in third party data centers. This project allowed them to have the best of both worlds within their technology infrastructure to have cost savings but still firm control of their infrastructure. The migration would also enable them to remove the responsibility of owning and maintaining physical infrastructure. They needed a professional services partner to provide data center migration expertise and execution capacity.
Reduced Average Server Decommission Time by 50%
Apex began a phased engagement with Phase 1 including co-location design and Phase 2 covering the build process. The client desired a co-managed approach, and they knew they would need different levels of support over the course of the engagement. In keeping with the goal of removing client involvement from physical infrastructure, the proposed solution at inception included Apex vetting and selecting all consultants to alleviate the burden on client stakeholders. Apex provided the client with a seasoned migration lead from our bench to onboard customers and “right-size” teams across the program. The overall program level effort will continue to be led and directed by client management, but Apex has taken on running daily operations. During the initial design and planning phase (Phase 1), Apex’s consultant was responsible for assisting in the Modern Data Center design and project planning efforts, aligned with the internal client program office strategy for colocation. Apex’s migration lead worked with the client’s data migration program manager, technical integration manager, and data migration leader to design the specific data center migration strategy. During Phase 2 of this project, Apex provided project teams to support the data center build efforts ongoing throughout the engagement phases. Our work was driven by client and consultant inputs from the design and planning phase.
RESULT
Though this engagement is ongoing, Apex has already successfully established one of the client’s major data centers. Over the course of the project so far, our team has completed the design and governance structure for 91 milestones, improved base image provisioning of the client’s automation process by more than 50%, and developed over 35 colocation processes. Additionally, we reduced the average server decommission process time by more than 50%.
