Peer to Peer
November,
2001
Easing the Pain of IT Systems Mergers: Thin Client to the Rescue
by Brad Taylor, Elegrity, Inc.
The scenario is not uncommon, and one which strikes fear in the hearts of every IT
professional: The Director of IT is called before the CEO (or Managing Partner in this
case) and is given the news, "We've acquired Firm XYZ… this is a great step forward for
our organization and will propel us to the forefront of our industry… oh, and we need
you to integrate all of our systems with theirs by next Monday."
Now picture the flashy technology provider logo with glib tagline which is supposed to
make us all feel confident that by Monday morning everything will be running smoothly.
Does a true panacea exist to the inherent complexity of merging disparate IT systems into
a single seamless whole? Thin client technology may be the answer.
More Than Just Remote Access
While many firms utilize Windows Terminal Services and/or Citrix MetaFrame as a
remote access solution, it is often overlooked as a primary application delivery method
for the LAN and WAN. Application Servers deployed to support the firm's road-warriors
and telecommuters often sit idle during most business hours when they could be used to
deliver business critical applications across the enterprise.
Moreover, in a complex merger and acquisition (M&A) environment, thin client provides
a flexible, cost effective solution that can be rapidly deployed and, with proper
implementation, can even be used to support "dual systems" as part of a phased approach
to technology mergers. These attributes in particular -- flexibility, rapid deployment and
cost effectiveness -- make a thin client solution uniquely suited to M&A projects.
A Case in Point: Seyfarth Shaw & McCullough Sherrill
Rather than just abstract talk about technology mergers, it is more compelling to examine
a particular success story where thin client technology played a pivotal role in bringing
two separate organizations and IT systems together. As a case study we will review the
technical details of a merger of the Atlanta office of Seyfarth Shaw with the local firm of
McCullough Sherrill.
The challenges in this merger from a technology perspective were typical of the demands
of an M&A scenario: complete the integration of disparate systems as quickly as possible
with minimal disruption to users and with minimal impact to productivity. The use of
thin client technologies was a central requirement to achieve these goals.
To add logistical complexity to the project, only half of the employees of the acquired
firm were to move into the new office. The remaining users would be split across two
sites until build-out of office space could be completed. This mandated a phased
approach to the merger and made an even stronger case for thin client as various
applications would have to be delivered across multiple sites at varying times throughout
the project.
Phase 1: Straddling the Fence
With half of the McCullough Sherrill firm relocating to Seyfarth's Atlanta office and the
remainder staying in their original offices for an interim period, the challenge to deliver
applications was compounded. In addition to providing Seyfarth applications to the new
user population across two sites, legacy applications also had to be provided across the
same two sites. The solution was simple: locally hosted MetaFrame Servers in both sites
would provide access to applications across the two offices and two platforms regardless
of the location of the end user.
With this approach, relocated users were able to remotely access a legacy desktop
environment at their old location via the Citrix ICA client, while access to new time and
billing systems was local. Similarly, McCullough users who stayed behind in their
original offices could seamlessly work in their legacy environment while accessing
published applications of the time and billing apps located in the remote Seyfarth site.
This divide and conquer approach, using thin client to deliver apps remotely where
necessary, allowed the McCullough Sherrill employees to remain productive on day one
using the same tools and software in which they were already proficient while also using
the Seyfarth time and billing applications. The emphasis in this phase was the integration
of those applications that mattered most for the merger of the two firms while allowing
workflow to continue uninterrupted with little or no learning curve.
Phase 2: All Together Now
With the completion of office space build-out at the Seyfarth site, it was finally possible
to have all employees working from one single location. By simply relocating the
application servers hosting the legacy environment and providing thin client access for
the second half of the relocated users, the entire environment was simply "lifted" from
one physical location to another with very little need for much configuration change other
than re-assignment of static IP addresses.
The cost benefits of this approach are readily apparent: new desktops were provided to
incoming staff without the need for the loading of legacy applications (only the Citrix
ICA client was required and it was already a part of standard baseline images), support of
the legacy environment was only required on the centralized application server platforms
which lowered management overhead, and the entire user population was "rolled out" in
a single weekend making for an extremely smooth transition.
Phase 3: One Big Happy Family
The third and final phase resulted in complete integration of all data and applications into
the standard Seyfarth environment. Ironically, this step ultimately resulted in the removal
of the thin client services that were so central to the initial migration. But, the lack of
disruption to productivity and the ability to support dual environments locally for some
time made for a seamless transition in this final phase. Computing resources used to
support the application server platforms were simply re-deployed to other offices, and in
particular to a centralized office which already delivered firm-wide accounting
applications via thin client.
Lessons Learned
The challenges of effective integration in M&A projects extend well beyond the
technology landscape. Careful prioritization of technology based integration activities to
maximize cost efficiency and to minimize operational disruption will go a long way to
contributing to the success of any M&A project. Employ-ing thin client technology can
greatly enhance the efforts of IT staff and integrators in attaining these objectives.
At times the complexity of information systems will not allow for rapid integration and a
staggered or phased implementation is required. The inherent flexibility of thin client
systems and application delivery that is independent of geography or system environment
constraints provides the most effective approach. For those firms currently leveraging
this technology, it is a natural progression and a formidable tool to be used in rapid
deployment situations, which is often the case with M&A projects. In the event that thin
client technology is not in place prior to a merger, it is an excellent opportunity to
introduce such systems.
Brad Taylor is the Chief Technology Officer of Elegrity, Inc., a consultancy dedicated to
helping law firms achieve business goals through the use of technology. He can be
reached at (415) 821-0900 or by e-mail at btaylor@elegrity.com.
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