FLEXIBILITY PUTS DCG IN THE NEWS
“With DCG Managed Services in place, we don’t have to worry about our data – we know it is being backed up securely and is in safe hands. Only DCG were able to offer us the flexibility in services which we need.”
Ben Dyer, Joint Head of IT at leading media group Northern & Shell.
DCG provides its data backup and disaster recovery Managed Services to Northern & Shell, owners of Express Newspapers, Channel 5, OK! Magazine and a host of other successful fitles. As well as providing flexibility in services, DCG offer the assurance of the ISO27001 standard for information security.
NORTHERN & SHELL GROUP
Northern & Shell was founded in December 1974 with the vision of becoming a significant force in British and worldwide media. That ambition was developed through a broad portfolio of magazines and broadcast interests and came of age with the acquisitions of Express Newspapers in November 2000 and Channel 5 in July 2010. Today, Northern & Shell owns four national newspapers and is a 50 per cent joint venture partner in two more in Ireland. In Channel 5 the company owns one of Britain’s leading national terrestrial television networks. It is also at the forefront of digital media as a key stakeholder in YouView, the world’s leading internet television service. Northern & Shell dominates important parts of the consumer magazine market both in the UK and worldwide, including OK! And Star! Magazines. It operates in all major areas of publishing and has diverse interests in new media, print, distribution, investment and property. As Britain’s leading independent publisher and a key player in both broadcasting and digital media, the future is brighter than ever for Northern & Shell, with the launch of the Health Lottery scheduled for this autumn.
GROWTH DRIVES NEED FOR CHANGE
Northern & Shell has offices around UK and overseas, with all operations run from the headquarters building in London. A team of 23 people run IT services for the whole group, operating at maximum levels of efficiency to provide everything from programming to front line support for an international workforce of around 2,000 staff.
Rapid growth in the business was bringing sharp increases in data volumes to be safely stored and backed up. Ben Dyer, Joint Head of IT at the Group, was looking at how best to manage backup securely in the future and provide for further growth in data volumes.
“We had previously used NetBackup on site here, managed internally, using our own hardware and purchasing necessary licences,” he explains. “However, the system was at the end of its life, already at capacity, with hardware due for replacement. We were going to have to upgrade and buy new software. We would need to continue to use internal resources to support and manage our backup.”
“We had also recently purchased a new finance system, which was not compatible with our existing backup, and the requirement from our auditors was that we must achieve a viable new solution for data backup and disaster recovery.”
OPTING FOR MANAGED SERVICES
Ben Dyer and his team reviewed the costs of investing in their own new backup system and managing it themselves but there would be major challenges.
“The costs of going out and buying a new system and operating it were high and we particularly wanted to free up internal resources,” he says. “Backup was very time-consuming for the team – a two hour task each morning changing tapes and dealing with any issues that happened overnight.”
“We need our team to be working on more high-level tasks.”
Ben decided to investigate alternative ways of managing Northern & Shell data backup, with a Managed Services provider, in order to reduce costs and save time.
A CLEAR SOLUTION
Northern & Shell maintains its products and activities as benchmarks of excellence to its readers, customers, advertisers and business partners. It was therefore important that Ben Dyer found a provider of Managed Services for data backup who would be aligned with the highest standards in its quality of service and customer focus.
After presentations from leading providers, Northern & Shell decided to award the contract for management of their data backup to DCG Group.
“DCG Group is providing a completed managed data backup and disaster recovery solution for the entire estate of Northern & Shell on an international basis,” confirms Ben Dyer. “This includes backup of all data for Express Newspapers, OK! Magazine, Star! Magazine, Channel 5, and now for the new Health Lottery to be launched this year.”
FLEXIBILITY IS KEY
Essential to the operations of Northern & Shell is the building of dedicated teams with pride in what they produce and a willingness to respond to customer needs. This spirit is matched by DCG Group, who demonstrated the willingness to offer flexible services to win Northern & Shell business.
“Only DCG Group could offer us the flexibility in Managed Services which we require, with several options which we can tailor to our needs,” says Ben Dyer. “This is a big factor for us, as the expectation is that we will grow, and need to adapt services. Other suppliers could provide us with only one fixed solution.”
“DCG has already provided us with a seamless upgrade to the services estate as our data volumes have increased – it’s a great example of how scalable and flexible they are.”
“It’s a classic example of not knowing what’s round the corner. The DCG team understands our requirements, gives us options in services and a contract with flexibility.”
ACCREDITATION MATTERS
Another key factor for Ben Dyer in selecting DCG Group to provide Managed Services to Northern & Shell was the requirement of company auditors that data backup from the new finance system must be carried out to recognised standards.
“The auditors on their annual visit are looking at our finance systems to check that data is being backed up consistently and retained securely, and that we can restore data in the case of any corruption or loss,” explains Ben.
DCG proved that their technical skills and standards for data backup and disaster recovery were at the highest level.
“The fact that DCG Group holds the ISO27001 standard for information security was important for us and for the auditors,” says Ben.
COST BENEFITS
“DCG costs are also competitive in their costings,” adds Ben Dyer.
DCG Managed Services are charged on a regular subscription basis and this made it easier for Ben Dyer to get Board approval to go ahead with the DCG contract.
“It was going to be big capital expenditure project for us to replace our backup hardware and purchase new backup licences,” he explains. “It was a big advantage in winning our case with the Board that there are no big initial costs and regular predictable monthly instalments rather than a lump sum investment.”
“We are spending less and getting value for money.”
“Because of the flexibility of our contract with DCG, we know that we can adapt services as the business changes, without having to go back to the Board for increased payments.”
BUSINESS BENEFITS
“The biggest benefit for us in our contract with DCG Group is that we have freed up resources in the IT team which are expensive and which are valuable to us,” says Ben Dyer. “
“Routine backups are crucial and with the managed service provided by DCG, our IT support team are on hand to focus on business priority tasks – as a result we are getting added value from the service.”
“Also, we have peace of mind, knowing that our data backup is not only running but is being checked. DCG engineers are pro-active on any failures overnight and notify us in the morning – they fix it for us before we even know we have a problem.”
“We are comfortable our data is in safe hands and the business benefits from the cost savings as well,” concludes Ben Dyer. “Without question, I would recommend DCG Group and we are exploring buying extra services from them already.”
CUSTOMER OPTIONS
“We are committed to matching our customers’ requirements and have the technical skills to be able to offer flexibility to fast-moving businesses like Northern & Shell,” says Peter Wilks, Director, DCG Group.
Northern & Shell Group Case Study Download | Northern & Shell’s Website
