Interoperability by Design at Microsoft Customer Solution Case Study
Credit Card Processor Utilizes Microsoft-Novell Agreement, Expects 55 Percent Savings
Customer: Conductor Web Site: www.conductor.com.br Customer Size: 1100 Country or Region: Brazil Industry: Financial services Customer Profile Conductor is the one of the largest creditcard processing outsourcers in Brazil. The company provides a full range of services from credit applications to billing services. Software and Services 2007 Microsoft Office System Microsoft Server Product Portfolio − Microsoft SQL Server 2000 − Microsoft SQL Server 2005 − Windows Server 2003 − Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Linux Server Product Portfolio − SUSE Linux Enterprise Server v10 SP1 Technologies − Open XML Formats Hardware Dell PowerEdge 1955
―I have solved my server consolidation and support problems…. I also have an answer to the server virtualization and document file compatibility issues that plagued our mixed environment for so long.‖
Jose Ricardo Ribeiro, Chief Information Officer, Conductor
Conductor, a credit-card processing outsourcer, provides credit card issuers with comprehensive services. Internally, it supports a mix of desktop systems and a heterogeneous IT infrastructure. However, the mixed environments led to support inefficiencies, lack of interoperability between servers, and difficulty exchanging files internally. By using the Microsoft-Novell interoperability agreement, Conductor has alleviated these issues and expects to save 55 percent on hardware, energy, and support costs. Business Needs
In 1998, the Brazilian company Conductor was founded to provide retail businesses and financial institutions with customized credit-card processing and billing systems. Conductor’s clients needed a supplier that could deliver the full range of credit-card services—from application processing to monthly billing. Conductor’s offerings include customer care, credit application processing, billing management, and fraud prevention. ―Today, we are Brazil’s leading private label credit-card processor, and a major provider of hybrid cards,‖ says Jose Ricardo Ribeiro,
Chief Information Officer at Conductor. ―We build custom solutions for nearly 10,000 retailers and some of the major private banks in Brazil. We maintain 8,000 card brands, process 200,000 credit applications monthly, and support more than 7 million individual cards and cardholders—our services must be reliable 24 hours a day, seven days a week.‖ Conductor supports a host of servers, operating systems, and applications. The mix includes the 2007 Microsoft® Office system and OpenOffice running on its more than
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600 desktops, Microsoft SQL Server™ 2000 and 2005 database software, the Windows Server® 2003 operating system, Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, and a range of Linuxbased systems upon which a key component of its data processing system runs. ―When I joined Conductor, I inherited a mixed Microsoft and Linux IT environment,‖ explains Ribeiro. ―I needed to reduce the company’s support needs and consolidate the systems as much as possible. Our customers have mixed environments, too, and, as our business grows, we must continue to maintain a very efficient and reliable IT and communication infrastructure in order to support them properly.‖ Conductor also experienced interoperability problems when exchanging OpenOffice and 2007 Office system–based documents internally.
He found that the move to SUSE Linux would be further enhanced by the Microsoft and Novell interoperability agreement. Representatives from the Microsoft office in Brazil encouraged Ribeiro to join a SUSE Linux support pilot program and to utilize sales and support components of the agreement as well as development benefits that would allow Conductor to run a Windows or Linux virtualized server environment. Today, he has consolidated support for the heterogeneous environment with two vendors: Microsoft and Novell. And with the development components of the agreement, Ribeiro has deployed Windows Server 2003 virtual machines running on a Linux virtualization solution. The file exchange difficulties between OpenOffice and the Microsoft Office system have now been eliminated as well. ―Suddenly, I have solved my server consolidation and support problems, and more,‖ says Ribeiro. ―I also have an answer to the server virtualization and document file compatibility issues that plagued our mixed environment for so long.‖
OpenDocument formats, Microsoft and Novell are improving interoperability between office productivity applications. Using these translators, Conductor information workers can send documents created in OpenOffice to a colleague using Microsoft Office applications and never worry that the file is unreadable. ―Call-center employees don’t have time to struggle with unreadable documents,‖ says Ribeiro. ―The interoperability between Open XML and the OpenDocument file format allows us to save and send documents in their original formats with no data loss.‖ Virtualization Resource Savings Running a virtualized server environment is bringing additional efficiencies to Conductor. Not only can Ribeiro remove older machines from the environment but he has also reduced the total number of machines needed to maintain the system. ―With our virtualized server environment we are doing more with less hardware. We expect to save 40 percent on hardware and energy costs,‖ says Ribeiro. Consolidated Support Using the support certificates purchased with the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server licenses, Conductor now enjoys support for its virtualized environment 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The certificates are valid for 12 months and can be renewed annually. In terms of support costs, Conductor expects to save 15 percent. ―If there is a problem with our system, I don’t have time to track down support technicians from multiple vendors. The Novell and Microsoft agreement allows me to make one call,‖ says Ribeiro.
Solution
In November 2006, Microsoft and Novell announced a set of business and technical collaboration agreements to build, market, and support a series of new solutions to make their products work better together. Some components of the agreement include a jointly developed virtualization solution, improved OpenOffice and Microsoft Office document format compatibility, federated identity, and standards-based system management for managing mixed Windows® and SUSE Linux Enterprise environments. In April 2006, Ribeiro, determined to improve IT efficiency, explored consolidating all his Linux-based systems onto SUSE Linux Enterprise Server from Novell. Though he couldn’t move to a single system environment, he wanted to at least move all his Linux systems to one vendor, take advantage of virtualization features, and consolidate his Linux support.
Benefits
Conductor is reaping rewards from the agreement. It has an efficient, virtualized server infrastructure and enjoys trouble-free document exchange. The company can continue to grow without fear of overburdening its systems and it has access to mission-critical support services from a single source. The processor’s ability to provide excellent service is bringing in new business as well. In 2007, Conductor added two major Brazilian banks to its list of clients and is now processing Visa and MasterCard transactions. Trouble-free Exchange of Documents By building translators to improve document format compatibility between Open XML and
This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY. Document published November 2007