Sector:

State Government

Situation:

The central IT agency of the state sought to re-procure the services of a Multisourcing Services Integrator (MSI), also known as Service Integration and Management (SIAM). The state was seeking a next-generation Digital MSI to leverage a cloud-based service management platform and extend the service across multiple shared services provided by the central IT agency, including infrastructure, applications, security, and the state portal. The vision was to evolve to a highly-automated service that aligns the state’s shared services to enrich the customer experience and enable the delivery of services at competitive prices.

Symbio Support:

Symbio has a long history and hands-on experience with the MSI model. Members of our team not only supported the design, procurement, and governance of the first generation MSI in Texas, but the solution architect / delivery lead from the awarded Service Provider (Capgemini) is now on our team. With this second-generation MSI model in Texas, Symbio helped the state completely redesign the operating model, business model, and entire set of RFP requirements to align with the evolving digital and automation capabilities of the market. We built a detailed cost model to generate a financial forecast based on the new requirements. We provided full procurement assistance support, including bid analysis and contract negotiations, and supported the program management office (PMO) during the transition and into the post-Commencement implementation period.

Critical innovations from the Symbio methodology and delivery that helped facilitate this evolution to a digital service integration model include:

  • Domain Expertise – At Symbio, effectively and efficiently facilitating the sourcing process is table stakes. Our team members average twenty years of experience in technology services. We take pride in and place a premium on staffing our team with IT domain expertise to supplement the client subject matter experts to ensure the solution is operational. As an example, on this MSI engagement, our team included a ServiceNow subject matter expert to help develop the requirements and assess the responses to ensure the full capabilities of automation and digital integration were captured and realized.
  • Connect the Dots – Ensure direct connections and clear linkages between the Vision, Desired Outcomes, Evaluation Criteria, Requirements, Service Levels, Critical Deliverables, and KPIs.
  • Test Drive – Clarification Sessions are often the pivotal moment in a procurement. The state and the Respondent meet face-to-face to walk through the solution, price, and exceptions to terms. The accelerated learnings this session provides to both parties is invaluable. The Respondent delivery team is front and center, providing the state an opportunity to engage directly with the team and test their assumptions and dependencies, clarify the benefits and risks of the solution, and observe and experience the relational dynamics within the team and with the state participants.

Symbio Staffing:

The source of our best practices is our team’s collective experience supporting clients in both the private and public sectors. Before moving into management consulting roles, the majority of our team members have years of experience working within large IT Service Provider organizations, including Atos, Capgemini, DXC, and IBM. We’ve recently had the opportunity to support state government central IT agencies (e.g., Texas, Arizona, Virginia), providing sourcing advisory services. For this Digital MSI engagement, our team included: 1. a Project Director (ITIL, APICS) with over 30 years of sourcing technology services as a Service Provider and Advisor, 2. a Solution Director (MBA, ITIL) with 25 years of experience, including as CIO, COO, and CTO with experience architecting and delivering the first MSI service at the state of Texas, 3. a Commercial Director (MBA, ITIL) who has played a key role as a sourcing advisor on multiple large state government outsourcing transformations (including Georgia and Texas), 4. a Technology SME (ITIL, multiple ServiceNow certifications) with 15 years of experience implementing service management systems with expertise in ServiceNow.

Client Impact – Solution:

The new Digital MSI requirements that Symbio co-created with the client included:

Marketplace

  • Accessible service catalog with mobile access and near real-time analytics
  • Self-provisioning with a comparison of services and pricing by the MSI
  • Orchestration of direct private and public cloud resource provisioning
  • Advanced service desk platform with an automated agent and advanced remote control

Service Management

  • Automated ITIL functions, centralized communications, and a single system of record
  • Automation of low-risk frequently-executed changes initiated from the service catalog
  • Automated identification and validation of CIs and analytic dashboards
  • Reactive and analytics-driven proactive problem management

Business Management

  • Performance analytics with real-time workflow data with visibility of projects and tasks
  • Financials with visibility into spending, service usage, and business goals tracking
  • Enterprise CRM through metrics and data analytics that provide operational intelligence in assisting customers to make more informed consumption management decisions

Operations Management

  • Automated data quality management enabling accurate CMDB and incident response
  • Event aggregation and automated response actions to increase service availability
  • Enablement of self-provisioning and workflow orchestration
  • A service catalog-based cloud resource orchestration system to order and bill usage

Client Impact – Results:

The state achieved the operational and financial objectives in a highly competitive procurement facilitated within the RFP timeline dates. The key features of the service include:

  1. A healthy business model for all stakeholders that:
    • Equitably distributes the savings of process automation economies of scale, and
    • Significantly reduces the cost of MSI services to single digit % of total IT services.
  2. An agile services ecosystem that:
    • Rewards innovation by efficiently onboarding New Services, Customers, and Service Providers, and
    • Low switching costs by eliminating all termination charges and paid all TnT charges in Year 1.
  3. A system that enables speed to value that:
    • Streamlines self-provisioning and automated invoicing and chargeback processes, and
    • Utilizes predictive analytics to accelerate the identification and resolution of issues.
  4. A compelling customer experience that:
    • Provides a consolidated catalog and reporting of shared services for stakeholders, and
    • Improves customer service with electronic transparency of services, service performance, and financial processing.