Success Stories

Hampshire Constabulary is the second largest non-metropolitan police service in England and Wales, serving a population of 1.8 million in 730,000 households throughout Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. Based at Headquarters in Winchester, the IT and Communications Services (ITCS) department supports the IT infrastructure that underpins police operations, including over 700 applications and vital command control systems such as the crime recording system. Within this department, the Service Support team is responsible for providing 24x7 Fault and Service Request support for the force’s 7,500 employees. The team maintains over 3,500 desktop machines and the mission-critical Airwave digital radio system, used not only by police officers for instant communication with colleagues and base, but also by civilian staff such as delivery drivers and facilities managers.

Driving service efficiency

Visibility of the IT infrastructure has made a major difference to the Service Support team’s ability to manage the Incident/Problem/Known Error lifecycle. VMware provides out-of-the-box integration with third-party applications such as Microsoft SMS, allowing operators to use asset tag data to pull up individual PC or laptops records within the Configuration Management Database (CMDB).

Likewise, a customized connector to the Airwave digital radio system means that they can instantly view data relating to over 4,000 in-car systems, handheld and base units.

BThe team handles around 8,000 Incidents and Service Requests per month with calls ranging from forgotten passwords or PUK codes for the Airwave radios to requests to set up shared folders or radio talk groups. Frontline operators are now guided through the information-gathering process on screen, clicking on the relevant answer to ensure that calls are correctly categorized, and that accurate data is retained for future reference.

According to Christina Xavier-Thomas, IT Development Manager at Hampshire Constabulary, “Using VMware Service Manager to automate key ITIL processes had an immediate impact on service delivery and productivity. The first line resolution rate rose by 10 per cent within the first year, and auto logging of emails has saved the equivalent of 40 operator hours per week. We have also begun to use the Service Portal and, where this has been actively promoted, customers are happily routing 50 per cent of Change Requests this way.”

Process Management platform for business

Following the successful implementation of the IT Service Desk, the IT Development team began to explore how VMware Service Manager could effectively serve as a platform for non-IT as well as IT processes.

Xavier-Thomas explains, “In 2008, we started to use Service Manager Change Management and Service Workflow to automate the implementation of IT Service Requests for system configuration and software changes, This worked extremely well and it seemed a shame that only IT was benefiting.”

The Record Management System (RMS) provided an early example how the VMware platform could seamlessly straddle IT and business process management. At Hampshire Constabulary, a police officer wishing to create or amend a form can now simply log this requirement as a Service Request by email or via the Portal. The request is automatically routed for business approval and implemented by IT as part of one continuous Workflow, minimizing the time and effort involved.

With an urgent need for an automated system to cope with a growing number of PNC records that required conversion, The Association of Chief Police Officers Criminal Records Office (ACRO) PNC Bureau implemented VMware Service Manager as a platform for business process management. Mission accomplished, the Development team then also got the go-ahead to roll out the solution to other key business operations, including ACRO Police Certificate Dept and the Professional Standards Department (PSD).

Xavier-Thomas comments, “Because Service Manager is a very visual tool, we were able to show business managers how their existing business processes looked, and how easily they could be adapted and enhanced. Managers were also very happy to find that holding information within the CMDB meant that they could have easy access to full audit trails and whatever reporting they required.”

Increasing efficiency and reducing costs

ACRO is the self-funding bureau responsible for updating the status of records held on the mission-critical Police National Computer and for conducting police checks for embassies overseas. Previously, 62 ACRO personnel were tasked with handling in excess of 2000 requests per week using manual processes. The team now uses Service Manager Workflow to manage the whole process for updating records as well as for issuing and charging for police certificates. As part of the Benefits Realisation Process, the automated process management will increase output by an estimated 10 per cent, and significantly boost the overall number of revenue-generating embassies that ACRO can deal with.

Xavier-Thomas maintains that the business has found the transition to VMware Service Manager from their previous systems to be a smooth one.

“We routinely customize front-end screens to specific business requirements, delivering a tailored application that is easy and intuitive to use. We also have the ability to partition the CMDB, ensuring that each business sees only the relevant data and protecting the confidentiality of sensitive data,”

As an example, partitioning has allowed the Professional Standards Department to use the VMware CMDB as a secure repository for complaints. Prior to this, there was no standard process for recording and tracking police complaints – a serious concern given the onus on the Constabulary to respond to public dissatisfaction within 24 hours. Now, every complaint is logged using VMware Service Manager and Workflow automation to ensure a timely response by letter, phone or email as appropriate. Concurrent licensing for around 15 users is sufficient to provide 250 staff with on-demand access to the Request Management system.

Xavier-Thomas comments, “Hampshire PSD was cited as an ‘example of good standard’ in a recent report by HM Inspector of Constabularies (HMIC) due to the effectiveness of its ‘database to record examples of dissatisfaction received at front encounters’. This recognition clearly underlines how much we can achieve using VMware Service Manager within the wider business environment,”

She continues, “In pure financial terms using Service Manager as a business solution has generated huge cost efficiencies – in the region £50,000 per application, totalling £500,000 since the beginning of 2009 - simply because we haven’t needed to source additional products. At the same time we have dramatically reduced the amount of IT resource tied up in deploying new software, and cut the time it takes to realize a typical project from 4-6 months to just 4-6 weeks.”

Other departments at Hampshire Constabulary including Facilities, Human Resources and the High-Tech Crime Unit, Special Investigations and the Criminal Records Bureau/Central Vetting have already started to work on similar projects for delivery throughout 2010.

In summary Christina Xavier-Thomas says, “VMware consultants worked closely with the Development team, helping us to maximize the potential of our IT Service Management investment. In truth, we’ve taken things further and faster than any of us thought possible at the beginning, which is a testament to the power and flexibility of VMware Service Manager as a platform for both IT and business process management.”

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VMware Service Manager provides ITIL Service Management and Help Desk solutions including Incident Management, Problem Management, Configuration Management, Change Management, Release Management, Service Level Management and Availability Management software. Copyright © 2010 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved.