Services

Our consultants and partners bring extensive experience to your business projects and opportunities. The following case studies represent just a few samples of our work. Please
contact us to discuss the specific ways in which we can help your IT and business projects.

Case 1

A large international financial services firm was aggressively expanding and had recently acquired several new companies. User management, system security, and IT auditing had become unwieldy. Records were stored in multiple types, in multiple systems, with disparate data schemas. Each new subsidiary had its own directory service, in addition to the user and account data maintained by each individual department within the company. The client needed to consolidate customer, partner, and user records into a secure, and centrally managed system that could grow itself to match the dynamic nature of the company. Additionally, Identity and Access Management (IAM) had to develop as a system, to meet the growing needs of the business.

Links Business Group response:

Perform a Directory Services Analysis and Design. After the initial design, the client wanted to add compliance measures such as secure record storage, single sign on, web authentication, and provisioning. The project split into a second phase, and became an Identity Management Analysis project.

How our client’s business was improved

• Corporate directory services reduced from 7 to 1, substantially reducing support costs and increasing efficiency.
• Existing directory data was migrated to the new system, with no loss to records or identity information
• New global, enterprise-level directory service created, greatly facilitating growth, integration, and communication with business partners.
• Helpdesk support calls reduced by 50%. (Account and password reset issues.)
• Authentication, authorization, and auditing capabilities added to all web-enabled applications and customer portal.
• System consolidation allowed for a 30% reduction in IT operating expenses.
• Web portal development time reduced 25%.

Case 2

A large property management company needed to evaluate a mainframe accounting package that integrated with diverse data formats. The company’s system vendor was pushing hard for them to purchase a costly system and software upgrade. The client needed a full third-party project analysis performed, to determine if the proposed package was right for them and to explore possible alternatives that would align better with business requirements.

Links Business Group response:

Deliver the Project Analysis Service. Examine all aspects of the vendor’s proposal, competing proposals, other alternatives, and the client’s business objectives. Determine if project was viable and worth the money.

How our client’s business was improved

• The Project Analysis Report provided hard case data with which to negotiate with software and equipment vendors
• Vendor software and deployment costs reduced by 30%
• Client saved $250,000 by reallocating and upgrading existing components
• The Project Analysis Report was used as a fiscal budgeting tool for planning similar initiatives.
• Client gained critical Business Intelligence that it applied to subsequent processes and proposal evaluations.

Case 3

A large international foods distribution company had to move its aging NT 4.0 infrastructure to Windows 2003 and Active Directory. The company possessed several hundred NT 4.0-based servers, with thousands of desktop clients authenticating to dozens of individual account domains. Special challenges of the project included the large number of disparate domains, the highly-distributed nature of the environment (dozens of plans and administrative facilities spread throughout the world,) slow links between many sites, and dozens of highly custom applications which required extensive testing and certification to function in the new environment.

The project goal was to collapse all existing resource and account domains and consolidate the organization in to a single Active Directory Forest. The forest would provide centralized authentication services for end-users, and applications such as Microsoft Exchange 2000.

Links Business Group response:

Windows Migration Services (WMS) and Resource Automation and Consolidation Services (RACS). WMS is a service, a project methodology, and a tool set. Using industry best practices and our WMS tools, the infrastructure was migrated to a central domain, backup domain controllers were decommissioned and re-allocated, DNS was recreated, and centralized AAA services were made available.

How our client’s business was improved

• Server environment and management overhead decreased by 50%.
• Enterprise backup tools in production decreased from 4 to 1, providing an aggregate person-hour savings of over 50 person hours per month.
• New, automated patch strategies were deployed, reducing patch enterprise patch deployment time from 2 weeks to less than 1 hour.
• Complete Windows 2003 Server build process reduced from over 4 hours to 20 minutes.
• Centralized domain architecture reduced monthly management overhead by 120+ hours.
• WMS saved the client an additional $30,000 – $40,000 in tool, licensing, and vendor fees.

Case 4

The alumni and donor services department within a major university requested a complete audit of their data network, server systems, support systems, directory services, security systems.

Links Business Group response:

Complete a Business Technology and Strategy Report and deliver results to key decision makers. Results from the report were used by management to decide what project initiatives were necessary, and which were not. Armed with critical business information, budget were approved and several major IT projects initiated.

How our client’s business was improved

• System management tasks consolidated, significantly reducing system administration costs and time expenditures
• Security incidents reduced by 50%
• Server uptime increased by 20%
• New server and desktop system deployment time reduced by 50%
• Helpdesk calls lowered by 40%
• New directory services deployed, easing administration, auditing, and workflow
• Database application administration time reduced over 50%

Case 5

A large real-estate investment company was experiencing several serious IT-related business problems and requested consulting assistance. Helpdesk calls were increasing, IT employee attrition was running over 35% a year, system and network outages were frequent, viruses were rampant, end-user support costs were high. The CFO requested a full evaluation of the company’s IT infrastructure, operations, and management.

Links Business Group response:

Conduct a Business Technology and Strategy Report (BTSR.) Taking a holistic approach, we analyzed every aspect of company operations and submitted a detailed BTSR to the CFO. Using the business intelligence delivered in the report, management was able to critically asses its current operations and employ many of the recommendations and system designs disseminated in our report. Each problem was assigned a priority value, a statement of cause, and a list of detailed recommendations which included alternate strategies for every proposed solution.

How our client’s business was improved

• A new helpdesk tracking and management system was developed and deployed, allowing for immediate incident response and increased client satisfaction
• Helpdesk ticket load reduced 30%
• Virus outbreaks halted
• IT-related attrition reduced from 25% annually to 5%
• Application support costs reduced 40%
• 25% reduction in client-side TCO

In today's complex world of ever-increasing web applications, passwords, governmental regulations, and auditing requirements, it is absolutely essential that all organizations, regardless of size, have a formal identity management system in place.

What exactly is Identity Management (IdM)?

Most simply put, Identity Management is a process that defines the "who, what, where, and how" of identity. It defines what an identity is within an organization, what the identity can do, and how to track and report on what the entity does. IdM is also referred to as "IAM", or Identity and Access Management. This is also known as "AAA", or Authentication, Authorization, and Auditing. Identity Management, or IdM / IAM encompasses all of the following:

• Single Sign-on. One ID and one password/token/PKI/smartcard/i-name provides access to most or all applications in the enterprise.
• Digital Identity (DigitalID). Reducing and rationalizing multiple units of identity into a single entity, such as a specific username, or digital token, smartcard, dongle, cell phone, or PKI tool.
• Provisioning. Registering and unregistering user access to applications and facility access points. Provisioning also includes all business workflow processes of approvals or denials that may be required.
• Fine-grained authorization. Permissions sets regulating what user or application can do once access is granted.
• Directory Services. IdM is built on the back of one or more directory services, such as LDAP, eDirectory, or AD. Directories may be standalone, metadirectories, virtual directories, of a combination of all three.
• Authentication methods. Defines how users or applications may access a system.
• Application Entitlements. Determine applications can the user access, once authenticated.
• User and application auditing and reporting. Tracking and maintaining records of all transactions by application and user, throughout each transaction point.
• Strong authentication. Also known as "two factor" or "multi-factor" authentication and can include biometric, token, Kerberos, SAML, and PKI-based access.
• Federation. Digital Identity that is trusted across service providers, business partners, and multiple units within an organization. Federation is the "ring of trust" that allows Digital ID to cross boundaries.

Business Drivers for Identity Management (IdM/IAM)Implementation

• Regulatory Compliance
• Significant cost reduction
• Faster time to market for new applications
• Developer efficiency
• Application standardization
• Increased business and IT process efficiency
• Consistent means of applying security controls across all applications and processes
• Full auditing and reporting for company applications
• Eased integration with partners and suppliers
• Improved end-user experience
• Scalability and Integration

How Links Business Group can successfully implement your Identity Management infrastructure

Links Business Group consultants are seasoned and experienced in IdM from both the political/organizational perspective, and the hands-on technology implementation. Links Business Group has been implementing Identity Management (IdM/IAM) and related technologies since the early 1990's, long before the big vendors jumped on the bandwagon. Links Business Group provides full lifecycle project management, implementation services, and ongoing management of your Identity Management initiative. Our experience, tools, field-tested methodologies, and vendor-agnostic approach will ensure that your implementation is a smashing success. Call Links Business Group today to facilitate your IdM / IAM initiative.

We look forward to working with you!

Why does everyone need to consider a security and privacy strategy?

• Government regulations and increasing penalties for non-compliance
• Personal identity theft
• Enterprise data theft
• Web site shutdown and defacement
• Risk of Internet transaction interception
• Clients who increasinly expect higher standards of data protection
• Ecommerce, Governmental, and Social Networking Sites that request more information than what they need
• Notice how every site you visit promises "not to resell your information, and keep your details private?" How private is data that exists at dozens or hundreds of different sites?
• Company and government insiders having a "bone to pick" can steal data or damage systems. (Remember companies: 75% of data theft, tampering, and misuse is completely internal, not external to your organization.)
• Laptop, and portable media theft, loss and misuse
• And many more

Why Links Business Group?

Our Services

• Installation, confiugration, distribution of SSL/X.509 certificates
• Development of new, or enhancement of existing web-based applications to incorporate full security services from the ground up
• Enhanced privacy through the use of Microsoft Cardspace, and OpenID.
• Strong authentication and authorization services for eCommerce.User, application, and transactional reporting
• Standing Encryption for personal and organizational data
• Transport Encryption for connections to networks and networks
• Policy-based Data Management
• And of course….our full line of Identity Access Management (IdM / IAM) Services and Products

Begin practial, manageable Data Security & Privacy measures today

Links Business Group can take the pundit-induced fear and cross-vendor bickering out of the equation and help put you on the road to practical, maintanable data security and privacy today. Most of our popular services are available for very small businesses and home office environments as well. Call us today at 877.769.8939, or email to schedule a complimentary initial consultation.

We look forward to working with you!

Links Business Group provides a strategic portfolio of IT project services, which can be scaled to organizations of any size. Some of our strategic offerings include:

• Identity Management and Directory Services Analysis
• Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), Graham-Leech-Bliley (GLB), HIPAA Compliance
• IT Project Analysis
• Business Process Management (BPM)
• Business / IT Strategic Alignment and Roadmap
• Vendor negotiation
• eCommerce Planning, Design, Implementation
• Application Integration
• Project Management, Acceleration, and Facilitation
• End-to-end IT Environment Assessments
• Seminars, custom training, and speaking engagements
• IT industry commentary and analysis for press publications and clients

Have more questions on how Links Business Group Consulting Services work?

Additional information is available on our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page. Many of our clients have similar questions, and the FAQ section is continually updated.

Start your IT project today!

Have a large IT project that is ready to move forward, or perhaps some questions about how to size, scope, and budget the project? Call us today to schedule your initial needs assessment. Remember, we get "IT" done. We look forward to working with you!