November 15, 2024
3 min read
Whenever you talk to someone about their OEM software maintenance and support services, it’s rare to hear a glowing review. Usually, their comments are peppered with anecdotes with slow incident response times, pressure to upgrade to retain basic support whether they need the new version or not, and waiting for security patches for months on end.
It’s unfortunate, because quality maintenance and support can do so much more for your software estate.
A software maintenance vendor can become a strategic partner, someone who can help extend the life and value of your software as well as support it.
Going beyond just solving support tickets, a good maintenance provider can function as an extension of your technical team who can help execute your IT roadmap and unlock the true return on investment of your software applications.
Here are three things to look for in a software maintenance and support services vendor.
Tired of help desks that don’t live up to their names, even when you raise a critical issue?
Look for a software maintenance company that assigns a team of independent product experts to each application to tailor your support to your specific business needs and who stays with your account throughout the duration. There’s a big difference between an anonymous voice at a call center and a product expert with decades of experience who knows your system inside and out.
Your tech support should work quickly to identify and fix issues to limit potential service disruptions. Look for binding SLAs with fast response times and a short window for target resolution for critical issues. They should also conduct a root cause analysis to reduce the chance of recurrence.
And perhaps most importantly, make sure they can support any version of your IBM, HCL, or VMware regardless of the OEM’s software end-of-support or perpetual license policies.
With cyber threats increasing at an alarming rate, keeping your IT estate protected from threat actors is at the forefront of every company’s radar. IT decision-makers need to have a complete understanding of the threat environment in which they operate and how they can strengthen their software security posture.
Considering the severity of the situation, the old OEM patch/fix/upgrade approach alone is not sufficient to protect your IT estate.
Look for a software maintenance and support services company that uses a contextual, risk-based, and defense-in-depth approach to cybersecurity who can respond quickly to new security intelligence and alert you to critical security risks and mitigation actions as they develop.
Tactical, proactive software maintenance extends the lifecycle of your enterprise products and delivers a greater return on investment than the software megavendors can provide.
Look for an expanded value service offering that will add depth to your software maintenance. Things like interoperability validation, proactive health checks, and product enhancements can further optimize your IT estate.
Software contracts are notoriously dense and complex, which makes it challenging to fully understand the parameters of your software licenses and entitlements. To avoid paying out steep noncompliance penalties, companies must monitor software usage, be up-to-date on license inventories, and understand the technical details of all their deployments.
Some software maintenance vendors have license services that provide entitlement validation, audit support, and consulting on various software licensing issues. Their team of experts focuses exclusively on software licensing and can provide tailored guidance and risk mitigation recommendations to address potential compliance issues before they become problems.
Our e-book, “Sustainability in Software: Extend the Life of Your IT Investments,” details Origina’s software maintenance and support services. We leverage deep technical expertise and a customer-first philosophy to go above and beyond what is available through the traditional OEM support model.
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