How current is your infrastructure?
For best business results in a demanding economy, you need to ensure services are supported by the latest and greatest technologies.
In the case of software, that goal may not always be easy to achieve—but it remains essential. As new versions of key software solutions emerge, each characterized by new features, the organizations that deploy them faster will get new business value faster as a result. And this concept only gets more persuasive when those solutions can integrate in new ways—multiplying their strengths by applying them in wholly new contexts.
Not every IT manager, of course, has the time required to stay on top of a constantly changing software landscape. New versions may be released, and yet go uninstalled. And every day that passes without them contributing to the infrastructure is a day in which the infrastructure isn't performing up to its maximum potential.
Cost constraints are also an issue. At a time of reduced IT budgets, it's important to find new ways not just to keep the infrastructure current, but also to do so in the most cost-effective fashion available.
Subscribe to IBM solutions for the latest and greatest
IBM Tivoli software subscriptions are a great way to solve both problems. Once an organization has obtained a subscription to a given software offering via either IBM's Passport Advantage or Passport Advantage Express program, new version releases are available instantly and free of additional costs.
There's no danger of IT managers inadvertently staying unaware of new software iterations; the program automatically notifies subscribers of a new release. Deployment is also simplified because new Tivoli solutions can be directly downloaded from IBM's website, then installed at any business-suitable time.
And when you consider matters from a cost standpoint, the business case for a subscription just gets stronger. However many new versions come out over the course of a calendar year, your organization is assured of being able to obtain and utilize them all—no extra expenses required. That means more straightforward planning and budgeting, since costs are entirely predictable. It also means that the cost per new release is significantly lower than it would have been had the organization purchased them all independently.
Obtaining Tivoli subscriptions, in short, is the best way for your infrastructure to be as current as possible, fulfill more of its business potential, reduce more of the associated risks, reduce expenditures, and enjoy a higher return on IT investment—all very compelling benefits, and all relatively easy to obtain.
IBM Maximo 7.5: A major update and a powerful case for a subscription
One particularly strong example of the power of a Tivoli subscription: IBM Maximo Asset Management, recently updated to version 7.5. Maximo is IBM's flagship asset management solution that manages the complete asset lifecycle. How comprehensive is the coverage? Very comprehensive indeed. Maximo solutions give the enterprise a single point of control over all types of assets—production, infrastructure, facilities, transportation, and communications—by managing them all on a common platform that allows sharing and enforcement of best practices, inventory, resources, and personnel. With Maximo solutions, the business can measure key performance indicators (KPIs) across the enterprise, and benchmark performance between plants or locations to develop new best practices and suggest new strategies.
Among other key benefits, capital assets useful life is lengthened because assets are continually tracked and maintained appropriately. This means each asset managed by Maximo delivers more business value, and it does so for a longer period of time.
With version 7.5, the Maximo family received a broad range of impressive new features and capabilities. Among others, for instance, were:
- Supply chain management. For many organizations today, complex indirect supply chains represent a major management challenge; what they need is an approach that is both simpler and more comprehensive, giving the organization better insight into and control over the materials required to improve operations and avoid downtime.
In Maximo 7.5, Maximo was bolstered with extra capabilities in exactly these areas. More complex supply chain management processes, for instance, can now be handled. "Heads down" operations are generally more efficient, and the integration with enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions has been streamlined.
- An enhanced migration manager. Maximo 7.5 now gives managers a lower total cost of ownership by simplifying the process of moving data between versions via automation scripts, application-based data import/export, and other features. This helps to multiply the value of Maximo by delivering its information to a broader range of both IBM and non-IBM solutions more easily and more quickly than ever before.
- Improved usability. The user interface has been simplified and yet made more powerful—translating into reduced time-to-value for a wide variety of applications and contexts, as well as accelerating task execution.
- A unified platform. IBM clients can now deploy, on one platform, Maximo Industry Solution for Utilities, Oil and Gas, Transportation, Life Sciences, and Nuclear Power. And optional capabilities via add-ons include Maximo Calibration, Maximo Scheduler, Maximo Spatial, Maximo for Service Providers, and Maximo Mobile offerings.
In every case, IBM implemented the new features and functionality specifically to drive business value for customers. In some cases, in fact, features were explicitly requested—and IBM, committed to the highest levels of customer support and satisfaction, delivered.
Now, by combining Maximo solutions and add-ons in a modular fashion, to correspond with your particular asset management requirements, you can get the granular, centralized control over assets in exactly the ways you need—not the ways you don't.
A subscription is the easiest and most cost-effective way to keep Maximo current
For IBM clients with a Maximo subscription, of course, deploying version 7.5 is an incredibly straightforward proposition. Thanks to the subscription, they are not just spared any additional purchasing costs, but also well apprised of the complete range of features and business benefits—an educational enhancement helpful for bringing them up to speed.
And once deployed, Maximo 7.5—like all IBM Tivoli offerings—is backed by IBM's ongoing, world-class support, available on a 24x7 basis to ensure that any issues that may emerge can be rapidly and completely resolved.
How much business value, all told, does that imply? Consider how many assets your organization relies on every day—in all areas from production to infrastructure to facilities. Consider how much ROA (Return on Assets) they generate at present. Consider how much more ROA they would be likely to generate given comprehensive management via Maximo 7.5.
Your final answer makes the business case for Maximo…and if you want the most cost-efficient, straightforward way to keep Maximo solutions current, you can't do better than a Tivoli subscription.
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