MicrosoftOnlineServices
CustomerSolutionCaseStudy
MarketingFirmCutsEmailCosts30Percentby
MovingtoMicrosoftOnlineServices
Overview
CountryorRegion:UnitedStates
Industry:Professionalservices—
Marketing
CustomerProfile
Texas-basedHarte-Hanksisaglobal
marketingcompanythatprovides
creative,database,mailing,fulfillment, andleadmanagementservices.The
companyhas5,000employees.
BusinessSituation
Harte-Hankswasconcernedaboutthe
costofitsmessaginginfrastructure,the
reliabilityofemail,andtheabilityto
provideuserswithproductivitytoolson
moredevices.
Solution
Harte-HanksmovedtotheMicrosoft
BusinessProductivityOnlineStandard
Suite,whichprovidesemail,collaboration,webconferencing,andinstant
messagingsoftwareasonlineservices.
Benefits
• Messagingcostsreduced30percent
• BetteruseofITresources
• Fasterdeliveryofservicestocustomers
“TimethatourITstaffusedtofocusonemailcannowbe
refocusedonsupportingresourcesthatdriverevenue.We
likethefactthatmanagingemailinfrastructureisnow
someoneelse’sresponsibility.”
RobertNeill,VicePresident,CorporateTechnologyServices,Harte-Hanks
Asaglobalcompany,Harte-Hanksdependsonemailmessagingto
keepits4,000informationworkersintouchwithoneanotherand
withcustomers.Concernedabouttherisingcostandcomplexityofits
existingemailsolution,Harte-HanksmigratedtotheMicrosoft
BusinessProductivityOnlineStandardSuite,partofMicrosoftOnline
Services.WiththehelpofBinaryTree,aMicrosoftGoldCertified
Partner,Harte-Hanksmigrated4,000mailboxestoMicrosoftOnline
Servicesintwoweekendsandcutmessagingcostsbyapproximately
30percent.Relievedofmessagingadministration,theHarte-HanksIT
staffcanfocusmoretimeoncreatingandsupportingsolutionsthat
driverevenue.Withtheavailabilityofinstantmessagingandweb
conferencing,andabletoaccessemailmessagesfrommoremobile
devices,Harte-Hankscanbemoreresponsivetoitscustomers.
Situation
“Foratleastfiveyears,we
haddiscussionsabout
potentiallyswitchingtoa
newemailplatform,butit
requiredsignificant
financialcommitment.”
RobertNeill,VicePresident,Corporate
TechnologyServices,Harte-Hanks
Harte-Hanksisaworldwidemarketing
companythatprovidesmultichanneldirect
anddigitalmarketingsolutionsaswellas
shopperadvertisingopportunitiestolocal,
regional,national,andinternational
consumerandbusiness-to-business
marketers.BasedinSanAntonio,Texas,
Harte-Hankshas5,000employees(4,000
informationworkersand1,000production
workers)inmorethan30officesworldwide.
Harte-Hanksusedthesameemailmessaging
softwareformanyyears.However,with
numerousclustersofmailserversaround
theworld,twoadministratorsdevotedto
emailadminis-tration,andremote-office
personnelspendingconsiderabletime
supportingemailinfrastructure,the
companywasconcernedaboutrisingcosts.
Additionally,manyemployees,especially
neweradditions,weremorefamiliarand
experiencedwithMicrosoftOutlookand
MicrosoftExchangeServerthantheywere
withtheexistingmessagingsolution.In
manycases,newemployeeshadtoclimba
learningcurvejusttobecomefamiliarwitha
serviceasbasicasemailmessaging.Also,
productivityfunctionssuchasinstant
messagingandvideoconferencingwerenot
includedwiththeexistingsolution,soHarteHankshadtoprovidethemasseparate
applications.Launchingandswitching
betweenmultipleapplicationsthroughout
thedayreducedemployeeproductivity;
additionally,accesstosomeofthese
programswaslimitedbecauseofthehigh
licensingcosts.Whileemployeeswere
increasinglyusingsmartphonesandwanted
toaccessemailmessages,calendars,and
contactsfromthesedevices,thoseservices
requiredextraservers.
“Foratleastfiveyears,wehaddiscussions
aboutpotentiallyswitchingtoanewemail
platform,butitrequiredsignificantfinancial
commitment,andwecouldn’tjustify
bringinginabrandnewemail
infrastructure,”saysRobertNeill,Vice
PresidentofCorporateTechnologyServices
forHarte-Hanks.
Solution
Inlate2008,Harte-Hankslearnedaboutthe
MicrosoftBusinessProductivityOnline
StandardSuitefromitslocalMicrosoft
accountteam.ThissuiteincludesMicrosoft
ExchangeOnlinemessagingsoftware,
MicrosoftSharePointOnlinecollaboration
software,MicrosoftOfficeLiveMeetingfor
PC-basedwebconferencing,andMicrosoft
OfficeCommunicationsOnlineforinstant
messaging.Theseenterprisecommunication
andcollaborationapplicationsarehostedin
the“cloud,”inMicrosoftdatacenters,and
arepurchasedfromMicrosoftorits
partners.
TheHarte-HanksITstaffwasfamiliarand
comfortablewithMicrosoftsoftware,as
manyofthecompany’sserversranthe
WindowsServeroperatingsystems.The
companyalsorunsmanyofitsdatabaseson
MicrosoftSQLServerdatamanagement
software,usesMicrosoftOfficeproductivity
softwareonitsdesktops,andusesMicrosoft
OfficeSharePointServer2007for
collaborationsites.
Harte-Hanksdecidedtorunapilotprogram
ofMicrosoftBusinessProductivityOnline
StandardSuite,apartofMicrosoftOnline
Services,andothercloud-basedemail
solutions,whichprovidedsimilar
functionality.Usingapilotgroupof40users,
mostlyintheITorganization,Harte-Hanks
testedbasicemailfunctions,including
schedulingmeetings,creatingcollaboration
sites,checkingemailandcalendarsfrom
smartphones,andotherfunctions.It
ultimatelydecidedonMicrosoftOnline
Services.
“Wedon’thavetomakea
hugecapitaloutlayforan
emailserverandrequired
licensingjusttoadd100
employees.It’sniceto
haveincrementalcosts
thatmatchour
incrementalgrowth.”
RobertNeill,VicePresident,Corporate
TechnologyServices,Harte-Hanks
“Welikedthelevelofintegrationbetween
thevariouscomponents—howwell
messagingandcalendaringandLiveMeeting
meldedtogether,forexample,”Neillsays.
“Wealsosawbenefitfromhoweasilyour
iPhonesandothersmartphonescouldbe
configuredonMicrosoftOnlineServices.”
UsingMicrosoftExchangeActiveSync
technology,Harte-Hanksemployeescan
easilyandquicklysynchronize
email,calendar,contacts,andtasksbetween
MicrosoftExchangeOnlineandtheirmobile
devices,includingiPhones.
4,000MailboxesMigratedinTwo
Weekends
InJune2009,toobtainhelpinmigratingto
MicrosoftOnlineServices,
Harte-HanksengagedBinaryTree,a
MicrosoftGoldCertifiedPartneranda
finalistforthe2010MicrosoftNotes
MigrationPartneroftheYearAward.
“BinaryTreeprovidedahostedmigrationof
theHarte-Hanksusermailboxesand
messagingdata,sonoonsiteconsultingwas
needed.Wedideverythingremotely,”says
ColleenaJazrawi,SeniorAccountManager
forBinaryTree.“Wefirstperformedan
analysisofthe
Harte-Hanksenvironmenttoseeifthere
wasanythingthatwouldimpactthe
migrationandthenwesuccessfullymigrated
theemailmessages,calendars,contacts,
andto-dolistsfortheir4,000usersinjust
twoweekendsviaourremotemigration
datacenter.”
“BinaryTreehelpedusplanthemigration,”
Neillsays.“Italsoperformedacustomdata
migrationfor750ofourmostprolificusers,
migratingahighervolumeoftheirhistorical
mailmessagesanddata.”
Harte-Hanksalsocreatedatrainingportal
whereemployeescouldviewvisual,step-bystepinstructionguidesforeachofthemajor
taskstheycouldperformwithMicrosoft
OnlineServices,suchassendemail,
scheduleameeting,andsetupa
collaborationsite.“Peopledon’thavehours
atatimetoattendtraining,buttheycan
findfiveminuteshereandthere,”Neillsays.
“Thetrainingportalwasabigsuccess.We
sentallemployeesemailsinformingthemof
theswitchoveranddrivingthemtothe
trainingportalsotheywouldbeprepared.
Themigrationwasverysmooth.”
ClosingtheDistanceGap
Today,all4,000informationworkersat
Harte-HanksuseMicrosoftExchangeOnline
foremailmessaging.Thecompanyalso
purchased1,400licensesofthedeskless
workerversionofExchangeOnlineforits
productionworkers.Theycanaccessemail,
calendars,andcontactsusingOutlookWeb
App,afeatureofMicrosoftExchangeServer
thatprovidesweb-basedemailaccess.
WithExchangeOnline,employeeshave
easier,fasterwebaccesstotheiremailusing
thefamiliarMicrosoftOfficeOutlook2007
messagingandcommunicationsclient.
Employeescanviewsharedcalendarsand
movemoresmoothlybetweentheir
MicrosoftOfficedocumentsandemail.
Employeesarealsoabletoaccessmail,
calendars,contacts,andto-dolistsfrom
theirsmartphones.”MicrosoftOnline
Servicesreallyexpandedthearrayofmobile
devicesourstaffcoulduse,”Neillsays.“Our
employeeshaveremoteandon-the-go
accesstomail,calendars,contacts,andthe
companydirectory.Theresultisaboostin
productivitysincesuchasignificant
percentageofouremployeesareonthe
roadconsultingwithclients.”
ByusingMicrosoftOfficeCommunica-tions
Online,Harte-Hankshasbeenabletowidely
deployinstantmessaging.“Messaginggives
usanothertooltointeractwithone
another,”Neillsays.“Sincewe’respread
“Eventhoughit’sdifficult
tomeasure,thecollective
efficienciesresultinfaster
deliveryofsolutionstoour
customers.”
RobertNeill,VicePresident,Corporate
TechnologyServices,Harte-Hanks
acrossmultiplelocations,ithelpsclosethe
distancegap.Sometimesouremployeesfind
itmoreefficienttosharequickbitsof
informationviainstantmessaging.”
Employeesareintheearlystagesof
transitioningtotheMicrosoftOfficeLive
Meetingservice,whichprovidesPC-based
webconferencing.“We’vestartedtosee
significantgrowthintheuseofLive
Meeting,”Neillsays.“Wehadalimited
numberoflicensesforanotherusage-based
webconferencingsolution,butwere
cautiousaboutdeployingitmorewidely
becauseofexpenseconcerns.WithOffice
LiveMeeting,webconferencingispartof
ourflatmonthlyfee,soeveryoneisfreeto
useLiveMeeting.”
ThecompanyisincreasinguseofMicrosoft
SharePointOnlinetodeployteam
collaborationsites.“SharePointwasn’tabig
focusofourinitialonlineservices
deployment,butwehavefoundthatit’s
mucheasiertocreateanewsiteinthe
onlineenvironmentthanintheexistingonpremisesenvironment,”Neillsays.
Benefits
BymigratingtotheMicrosoftBusiness
ProductivityOnlineStandardSuite,HarteHanksreduceditsmessagingcostsby
approximately30percent,freedupITstaff
time,whichcannowbespentoncreating
andsupportingrevenue-producingservices,
andimprovedresponsivenesstocustomers.
Italsooutfittedits4,000information
workerswitharicherpaletteof
communicationsoptions.
MessagingCostsReduced30Percent
WiththemovetoMicrosoftOnlineServices,
Harte-Hanksreduceditsmessagingcostsby
approximately30percent.Thatsavings
comesfromeliminatingon-premises
messagingserverinfrastructureand
maintenanceforthoseservers,software
licensing,emailadministrators,andthe
previousvideoconferencingsoftware
licensing.
Inadditiontoeliminatingdedicatedemail
administrators,Harte-Hanksrecoupedtime
acrossitsITstaffpreviouslyspentmanaging
theon-premisesmessaginginfrastructure.
“Numerousserveradministratorsanddata
centeroperationsmanagershadtobe
concernedaboutthehealthofour
messaginginfrastructure,”Neillsays.“By
switchingtoMicrosoftOnlineServices,we
freedupITstafftimeequivalenttoroughly
onefull-timeemployee.”
Also,thecompany’smessagingcostsare
nowtieddirectlytoitsbusinesscycles:
Messagingexpensesgrowindirect
proportiontobusinessgrowth.“Wedon’t
havetomakeahugecapitaloutlayforan
emailserverandrequiredlicensingjustto
add100employees,”Neilladds.“It’sniceto
haveincrementalcoststhatmatchour
incrementalgrowth.”
BetterUseofITResources
Oneofthemostappealingaspectsof
movingmessagingintothecloudisthat
Harte-Hankscangetoutoftheemail
administrationbusiness.TheITstaffno
longerhastoworryaboutkeepingserver
hardwareup-to-date,applyingsecurity
updates,anddeployingnewmessaging
servers.“Weareamarketingsolutions
company,andnowwecanfocusour
energiesonwhatwedobest,”Neillsays.
“TimethatourITstaffusedtofocuson
emailnowcanberefocusedonsupporting
resourcesthatdriverevenue.Welikethe
factthatmanagingemailinfrastructureis
nowsomeoneelse’sresponsibility.Thisis
ourfirstlargeforayintocloudcomputing,
butitprobablywon’tbeourlast.”
FasterDeliveryofServicestoCustomers
ForMoreInformation
Harte-Hankscanalsodeliversolutionsto
clientsfaster,becauseemployeescan
communicatemoreefficientlywithtools
suchasinstantmessagingandweb
conferencing.“Eventhoughit’sdifficultto
measure,thecollectiveefficienciesresultin
fasterdeliveryofsolutionstoour
customers,”Neillsays.“Downtheroad,we
lookforwardtofederatingtheseservices
withcustomerswhoareusingthesame
toolssowecanimproveourserviceeven
further.”
FormoreinformationaboutMicrosoft
productsandservices,calltheMicrosoft
SalesInformationCenterat(800)4269400.InCanada,calltheMicrosoft
CanadaInformationCentreat(877)5682495CustomersintheUnitedStatesand
Canadawhoaredeaforhard-of-hearing
canreachMicrosofttexttelephone
(TTY/TDD)servicesat(800)892-5234.
Outsidethe50UnitedStatesandCanada,
pleasecontactyourlocalMicrosoft
subsidiary.Toaccessinformationusing
theWorldWideWeb,goto:
www.microsoft.com
FormoreinformationaboutBinaryTree
productsandservices,call(212)244-3635
orvisitthewebsiteat:
www.binarytree.com
FormoreinformationaboutHarte-Hanks
solutionsandservices,call(800)456-9748
orvisitthewebsiteat:www.hartehanks.com
MicrosoftOnlineServices
MicrosoftOnlineServicesarebusiness-class
communicationandcollaborationsolutions
deliveredasasubscriptionserviceand
hostedbyMicrosoft.Withtheseofferings,
customerscancost-effectivelyaccessthe
mostup-to-datetechnologiesand
immediatelybenefitfromstreamlined
communications,simplifiedmanagement,
andbusiness-classreliabilityandsecurity
features.ForITstaffers,MicrosoftOnline
Servicesarebackedbystrongservicelevel
agreementsandhelpreducetheburdenof
performingroutineITmanagement,freeing
uptimetofocusoncorebusinessinitiatives.
Formoreinformation,visit:
www.microsoft.com/online
SoftwareandServices
•
Thiscasestudyisforinformationalpurposesonly.
MICROSOFTMAKESNOWARRANTIES,EXPRESSORIMPLIED,
INTHISSUMMARY.
DocumentpublishedMarch2011
MicrosoftOnlineServices
− MicrosoftBusinessProductivity
OnlineStandardSuite
− MicrosoftExchangeOnline
− MicrosoftOfficeCommunications
Online
− MicrosoftOfficeLiveMeeting
− MicrosoftSharePointOnline
Partners
•
BinaryTree