August 2016, IDC #US41688516

White Paper

The Business Value of Utilizing Deployment Services

Sponsored by: Dell

Rob Brothers Randy Perry

Martha Vazquez

August 2016

IDC OPINION

Business leaders are challenged to move their enterprises to the next level, a shift that involves

employing digital technologies along with organizational and operational innovation. This digital

business transformation will result in the creation of new business models and drive new business

opportunities. IDC believes that most enterprises today should not be in the business of deploying IT

assets; businesses instead should focus on what they do best and how they can use IT to do it better.

As a result, IT departments should devote much of their time to innovation and new business

initiatives. For the past five years, IDC has surveyed enterprises on how much time is spent on

different IT tasks, and the answer is always the same: IT departments spend 80% of their time on

routine "keeping the lights on" kinds of tasks such as asset deployment, patch management,

troubleshooting, and remediation. That leaves only 20% of time to spend on innovation. In today's

hypercompetitive environment, this 80:20 ratio hinders the type of innovation that can lead to a

sustainable competitive advantage.

Deploying assets falls into the category of necessary yet routine IT tasks. IDC's survey data of 550

enterprises shows that over 50% of businesses use some type of deployment service when rolling out

new PCs; while the reasons vary, they are all sound. "More cost effective" was and is the number 1

reason. IDC's business value research analysts have estimated that the cost savings in utilizing a

third-party deployment provider are significant. Specifically, organizations partnering with providers for

asset deployment enjoyed the following benefits:

Faster time to market. Using third-party providers enabled organizations to complete PC

deployments 59–68% faster.

Better customer experience. End users enjoyed 46% less disruption as a result of using

third-party deployment providers, reducing lost productivity costs by $46.23 per device.

Net IT savings. Organizations realized net IT savings of $620 per device (48% reduction).

(Calculations were based on a Dell ProDeploy Plus service list price of $330 per device for a tier 3

deployment.)

©2016 IDC #US41688516 2

METHODOLOGY

IDC surveyed 550 small, medium-sized, and large enterprises worldwide to assess the value they

receive when utilizing external support to deploy PC assets. Organizations with over 100 employees

from seven countries (Australia, China, France, Germany, India, the United Kingdom, and the United

States) were asked specific information about their PC deployment process. Roughly half (50.2%) of

the organizations relied on third-party providers to support tier 1, tier 2, or tier 3 deployment services.

IN THIS WHITE PAPER

This white paper discusses how utilizing external resources, in particular Dell deployment services,

can help companies save time, thereby enabling a focus on business initiatives. Implementing new

technologies is very time consuming, and if performed ineffectively, it can be costly and result in

end-user dissatisfaction. Utilizing the right third-party service provider to deploy assets can mean the

difference between a successful deployment and a deployment that may be destined to fail at worst or

operate less efficiently than proposed at best.

Deployment Services Options

Surveyed organizations were asked to identify which third-party deployment services they are using.

The tier of services that organizations use in many ways determines the extent of the benefits they

enjoy. Specifically:

Installation. 43% of organizations use tier 1 services, which includes the following elements:

Physical install of hardware — unpacking of the PC and monitor, asset tagging, and

removal of trash

Onsite technician and/or remote installation

Component validation (address missing, wrong, or defective components)

Installation of required firmware, control software, or base operating system (image load)

Deployment. 32% of organizations use tier 2 services, which includes all of tier 1 plus the

following elements:

Project management that performs site readiness, logistics management, change

management, and documentation

Software install and configuration, including operating systems, drivers, network

configurations, and system management tools (image load)

Post-deployment validation to ensure that solution is functional and all deployment

activities have been completed

On-the-job knowledge transfer

Integration. 25% of organizations use tier 3 services, which includes tier 1 and tier 2 services

plus the following:

Planning and design. As-is environment assessment, to-be-deployed design, and

migration planning

Integration. Product compatibility validation, configuration, and multivendor interoperability

Training. In classroom (hands-on)

Post-deployment transition assistance. Configuration changes and administration task

walkthrough

©2016 IDC #US41688516 3

SITUATION OVERVIEW

Enterprises today struggle with ways to deploy a myriad of assets efficiently and economically.

As industries move toward technology trends such as BYOD, a more mobile workforce, and self-service

needs, enterprises increasingly recognize the importance of providing a better end-user experience with

regard to deploying new technology. Enterprises need to keep the workforce working and productive; it is

unacceptable for delays or inefficiencies to occur when rolling out new assets to employees who are the

life force of every organization. Whatever their role, whether sales, business and application development,

customer service, support, or administration, employees and their organizations cannot afford disruptions

when deploying new technology.

For organizations, the goals of deployment should include the following:

Make it fast. End users are not as efficient during the deployment process, so the key is to

make the process as quick as possible. This requires intelligent preplanning and staging and

efficient execution.

Minimize impact on IT operations. Well-planned asset deployments do not interrupt other

critical IT operations.

Focus on customer (user) experience. Speed and automation enable end users to minimize

the amount of time they spend actively involved in the deployment process, and reliability of

the new system will determine how quickly the user adopts the technology.

The scale and scope of user demand is growing faster than ever, with each person using technology

differently and with increasingly varied requirements. Most enterprise deployment programs and

capabilities cannot keep up with the variety of needs. Faster and more precise deployments on an

as-needed basis are critical capabilities required to keep users up and running and productive. To

streamline deployment efforts, organizations must ask the following questions:

Do we outsource it? Should we utilize an outside service provider to take care of all our

deployment needs from imaging to onsite or remote installation with data migration?

Do we keep deployment efforts internal? Should we use our own tools and resources?

Do we utilize some form of hybrid approach? Should we employ device as a service?

IDC survey data shows that over 50% of enterprises are using external resources to help deploy

new assets.

Deployment Strategies

The first building block of any efficient device deployment is the strategy. Organizations with a

standardized approach to deployment tend to have much more efficient and productive results. One of

the more efficient PC deployment strategies is to replace PCs every three years to optimize

compatibility with new operating systems and help minimize IT support costs (see Table 1).

©2016 IDC #US41688516 4

TABLE 1

Deployment Strategies

Tier 3 Services (%)

Internal

Deployment (%)

We have no formal strategy (deploy PCs as they break) 0 27

We deploy (standardize on) one OS version, skipping every other version 12 9

We use the hardware refresh to deploy new versions of an OS and run two

versions at one time

13 12

We deploy (standardize on) the latest version of an OS within 18 months of

release

35 20

We replace PCs every three years regardless of OS 30 17

We replace PCs every four years regardless of OS 3 10

We replace PCs every five years regardless of OS 7 5

n = 550

Source: IDC, 2016

Management Challenges

There is no one right answer with regard to the best way to properly deliver deployment services.

Every enterprise is unique; depending on the makeup of the enterprise, deployment experiences can

vary greatly. Enterprises that are highly standardized in the applications and devices they allow will be

able to roll out assets in an efficient manner, while enterprises that are considerably more lax in the

controls of the devices and applications used by employees may have more costly deployment efforts.

Today's generation of highly mobile employees — many of whom work in a BYOD cloud-based

environment — expect instant gratification. IT teams are challenged in delivering a deployment

experience for these employees. Organizations must figure out how many resources to devote to

deployment, and this extends to IT staff as well. Considering the challenges of efficiently and

effectively mustering deployment resources, IDC has identified some of the business value areas

where a vendor can help reduce deployment costs.

The Business Value Benefits of Deployment Services

IDC evaluated the PC deployment activities of 550 organizations in the survey. Given that 64% of

respondents deploy assets one to four times per year, IDC was able to identify benefits of using third-party

deployment services. These benefits fall into the three areas discussed in the sections that follow.

©2016 IDC #US41688516 5

Time to Market

Companies were able to reduce the time to deploy PCs by 59–68%.

IDC asked companies to estimate how much time deployments required when conducted in-house.

IDC then compared those estimates with how long it took when using deployment service providers.

Depending on whether they were using tier 1, 2, or 3 services, organizations were able to significantly

reduce the time required to complete deployments. On average, companies were able to reduce

rollouts by 1–3.7 weeks (see Table 2).

TABLE 2

Time to Complete a PC Deployment (Weeks)

With Services Internal Improvement (%)

Tier 1 (installation) 0.64 1.73 68

Tier 2 (deployment) 2.46 7.35 59

Tier 3 (integration) 6.51 10.27 59

n = 550

Source: IDC, 2016

IT Staff Labor Costs for Deployment

IDC has evaluated the labor requirements (in FTE hours) for each activity associated with PC deployment

(see Table 3). Compared with organizations doing all their deployments in–house, organizations using

deployment services were able to reduce IT labor costs associated with deployment by 73%, resulting in

savings of $950 per device. (IDC used an IT staff–loaded annual salary of $100,000 for the purposes of

this white paper. The salary varies by country and vertical).

Methodology

IT staff cost savings calculations compare the IT labor hours for PC deployment using only internal

assets with the IT staff hours for PC deployment supported by PC deployment services. IT staff costs

are derived from the time differences in hours multiplied by a standard U.S. loaded annual salary

(salary x 1.28 load factor to account for benefits) of $100,000. Hourly salary is derived from annual

salary divided by 1,880 hours in a work year.

©2016 IDC #US41688516 6

TABLE 3

PC Deployment Services Benefits: IT Staff Cost Reduction

Improvement (%) Cost Savings ($)

Installation (tier 1)

Physical install (including trash removal) 71 254.26

Restore of employee data and settings, data wipe 57 71.28

Functional validation and quality assurance 94 26.06

Deployment (tier 2)

Project management 91 25.53

Software install and configuration 70 199.47

Post-deployment modifications to the initial install 76 144.15

Recovering lost data/settings 66 10.11

On-the-job overview knowledge transfer 96 55.85

Integration (tier 3)

Planning and assessment of PC environment prior to install 93 20.21

Classroom-based detailed training on new technology 78 57.98

Other (which can include tasks such as asset disposal) 70 85.11

Total cost savings per device 950.01

n = 550

Source: IDC, 2016

Improved End-User Experience

In addition to delivering full operational access to the newest devices an average of 60% faster,

enterprises using deployment services were able to provide a much better user experience (see Table 4).

Depending on how deployment efforts were staged, users could save 0.64–4.89 hours for the transition

from their old devices to their new devices, with an average time savings of 1.24 hours. This reduced the

total time each user was unable to access his/her devices by 46%, saving $46.23 per user in lost

productivity (at an annual loaded salary of $70,000).

©2016 IDC #US41688516 7

Methodology

End-user cost savings calculations compare the end-user hours lost for PC deployment using only

internal assets with the end-user hours for PC deployment supported by PC deployment services.

End-user costs are derived from the time differences in hours multiplied by a standard U.S. loaded

annual salary (salary x 1.28 load factor to account for benefits) of $70,000. Hourly salary is derived

from annual salary divided by 1,880 hours in a work year.

TABLE 4

PC Deployment Services Benefits: End-User Productivity Cost Savings

Tier 3

Services Internal

Improvement

(%)

Cost Savings

($)

Users reporting lost data or settings after the deployment (%) 3.61 4.28 16

Time lost because of lost data or settings after deployment

(per incident) (hours)

2.77 2.77 0

Time lost per user because of lost data or settings after

deployment (hours)

0.10 0.12 17 0.74

Deployments with problems that require a fix after the

technician leaves (%)

2.3 2.7 17

Time end users spend changing settings and/or moving data

once the technician is done (hours)

0.82 0.94 13 4.47

Average time that the user is without access to an

application/network or other resource when a new PC is being

deployed (hours)

0.52 1.62 68 41.02

Deployment time that is lost in productivity for end users (%) 30 31 4

Total time lost per user (hours) 1.44 2.68 46 46.23

n = 550

Source: IDC, 2016

Net Benefit Analysis

Total IT labor cost savings per user for a tier 3 deployment are $950 (73% savings). If we use the

Dell ProDeploy Plus service list price of $330 per device, we see that the net savings is $620 per

device (48% reduction) (see Figure 1).

©2016 IDC #US41688516 8

FIGURE 1

Total PC Deployment Costs per User per Device

Source: IDC, 2016

Strategies

IDC identified gaps in deployment abilities among enterprises. The level of asset deployment maturity

among enterprises today is shown in Table 5. As the data illustrates, maturity levels for all aspects of

deployment strategies are lagging.

In addition to process maturity, enterprises need to take into account whether they have the following

capabilities to determine how efficiently and effectively they can handle their own deployment efforts:

Well-trained personnel: It's important that technicians are both well trained and properly motivated

to ensure that they are dedicated to their work. Incentivize them to provide the best experience for

the end users, and give them feedback on how to make deployment processes better. The

workspace should be open and inviting to promote collaboration between technicians.

Tools and automation: With the proper tools in place, most deployment issues can be resolved

remotely in a quick and efficient manner. Any capabilities provided by tools should also include

some form of accurate asset/inventory management that can feed into an enterprise's overall

asset management application. Support tools should be advanced enough to support the

mobile workforce anytime, anywhere. In addition, predictive tools can enable the service desk

to be aware of potential issues such as out-of-date firmware or disk or memory failure. Tools

should also allow for remote control of the end-user device and record and log that session

into the help desk.

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

1,600

Utilizing third-party services Utilizing internal resources

$330

$54

$100

$352

$1,302

($)

(Tier 3 deployment service)

IT staffing cost for deployment

Lost user productivity

Tier 3 deployment fees

©2016 IDC #US41688516 9

It is costly and time consuming for enterprises to perform all deployment activities effectively. Hence

enterprises should use vendors for four primary reasons:

More cost effective

More expertise around the technology

Less risk of outage or failure in the future

More effective and efficient deployment

TABLE 5

Deployment Process Maturity

Organizations

(%)

Deployments are managed independently, not as a project. There are no documented processes. 16

There are defined processes and procedures for managing deployments (site readiness implementation

planning). Static information (point-in-time data) captured only, not dynamic with changing environment.

24

Deployments are managed as a program with continual process improvements. Issues are tracked and

resolved at the root cause level.

30

Deployments are managed via a formal corporate policy. There are documented processes. Issues are

tracked/documented at the root cause level using a software-based project management tool (versus using

Excel, for example). System deployment is consolidated so that a single technician can efficiently multitask.

21

A central deployment system manages assets, users, schedules, technicians, and issues. 9

Source: IDC, 2016

DELL DEPLOYMENT SERVICES

Dell is a well-known solution vendor in the technology space. As a result of the efficiencies and cost

savings that IDC identified in the survey, it makes business sense to use a provider such as Dell when

deploying PCs and other IT assets. IDC believes that Dell's deployment services can help enterprises

establish easy and cost-effective deployment processes. By offloading important yet routine

deployment activities via Dell's offerings, enterprises can stay focused on the most important business

operational tasks and realize a cost-effective deployment strategy.

Dell offers an end-to end-deployment service that is designed to provide optimized deployment

processes and reduce costs. In addition, Dell's services provide a complete project management

offering to support an enterprise's IT staff.

Dell's deployment services are designed to minimize disruption for the IT staff, thereby easing the

deployment process and making it less overwhelming. Tasks such as data migration, data transfers,

imaging, and setting changes can be done quickly and correctly when utilizing Dell's deployment

services. IDC believes that the methodology used behind the deployment process proves to be

strategic and cost effective for many enterprises (see Figure 2).

©2016 IDC #US41688516 10

FIGURE 2

ProDeploy Client Suite: Feature Comparison

Source: Dell, 2016

FUTURE OUTLOOK

Device proliferation and BYOD initiatives will continue to plague IT departments on how to best deploy

assets. Keeping internal staff trained on the nuances of deploying IT assets instead of focusing on how

staff can use those assets to drive business initiatives is not a strategic or productive mandate. In

today's era of digital transformation, innovation via technologies is a business imperative. As such,

enterprises that utilize third-party service providers to manage asset deployments are realizing

significant benefits in terms of cost, efficiency, and effectiveness.

CHALLENGES/OPPORTUNITIES

Organizations face an ongoing struggle to coordinate efforts across heterogeneous BYOD landscapes,

and many are looking for a provider to just "make it work." IDC believes that IT departments will look to

vendors to provide best practices and engineering talent to help install and integrate end-user

systems. Dell has consistently demonstrated success when working with hardware and software

vendors to support deliverables that span multiple vendors and technologies, and IDC expects that

Dell will utilize that advantage to expand its installation and integration capabilities.

IDC believes that deployment services will begin to blend in with the ongoing management and

support of IT environments, and Dell should watch for customer needs to continue to change. IDC

believes that to be successful in this market, Dell must continue to build capabilities and offerings such

as PC as a service and workplace as a service and provide users with the robust offerings needed to

make a decision on how and where they want to consume these assets.

©2016 IDC #US41688516 11

Dell has been delivering deployment services for years. Having a consistent delivery mechanism for all

of the company's new services on a global scale could be a challenge. Talent can sometimes be an

issue when rolling out global initiatives, and Dell will need to make sure it has trained sales and

technical resources globally to meet the possible influx of demand these new services may generate.

CONCLUSION

Enterprises are facing a number of technical challenges and costs when deploying new IT assets. As a

result, utilizing a service provider that can eliminate these barriers and help implement new technology

faster and efficiently will help the business overall. Enterprises that are looking to adopt deployment

services to save money should seek to take advantage of partnering with a vendor that can provide a

successful deployment strategy.

While 50% of businesses use some type of deployment service when rolling out new PCs for a number

of reasons, "cost effectiveness" is cited as the main driver for implementing deployment services.

IDC believes that Dell provides deployment services that can deliver cost savings, faster time to

market, and a better customer experience.

About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory

services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications and consumer technology

markets. IDC helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community make fact-

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