Selected Customer Stories about VMS
“Despite not really having optimal conditions, we got a very good result. The information from VMS were clear, solid, and very helpful.”
Christian Habegger, IS Service Manager, ABB Switzerland
“VMS did excellent work for us. Even though we already have above-average performance, VMS was able to show us where we could attain improvements, in a highly professional manner. The VMS Report was created after a comprehensive introduction of various SAP modules. We used it as a way to ensure the quality of our IT people’s work, and also to achieve transparency in expenses and results, which we could present to the board of directors. Both aspects have been a big success.”
Eberhard Hahn, CIO / IT Central Manager, Bauerfeind AG
“VMS provided us with important information on how to consolidate the regional systems, which is to be done in 2010. In addition, we were able to obtain suggestions for some quick wins, which are measures that optimize the performance of the existing systems over the short term. A lot of our own conclusions were confirmed by VMS. What made working with VMS so valuable was the fact that VMS was ready to communicate with us in a completely open manner. By being able to view our situation from the outside, we were able to gain new insights.”
Uwe Schenk, Head of Application Services, Bayer Business Services GmbH
“Questionnaires were filled out and workshops were prepared in a very open and uncomplicated manner. Since then, the time and costs required for those measures have also been kept within limits. VMS’s results confirm our expectations and came with recommendations on what to do, which we were then immediately able to implement.”
Thomas Denker, SAP Basis and Profiles, Beiersdorf Shared Services GmbH
“VMS verified our strategic orientation. Our decision to rely heavily on consolidation and dynamic structures in IT operations is, with respect to cost and effort, clearly superior.
In addition, the analysis showed how to proceed to achieve additional increases in efficiency, and to attain additional business.”
Dr Rolf-Eckat Bandl, Managing Director, Burda Digital Systems GmbH
“Working with VMS was uncomplicated and very goal-directed, from the start. At the start of the project, the challenge was in determining the proportionate SAP system costs within the overall IT landscape. VMS helped us to define the usual cost categories and keys, and by doing that, showed concrete information on the current costs. Data processing in VMS’s database went well, and the measurements ran almost as an afterthought, and the SAP team achieved a minimally-intensive benchmark.
The VMS Report that was delivered provided us with precisely formulated and graphically prepared recommendations on availability, and that supported us in achieving an efficient system. The large number of SAP systems that VMS has measured clinched it for us for working with VMS, and they were only called on when they were really comparable with the benchmark. The ability to compare our system landscape with other corporate SAP users, without comparing apples with oranges, is for me the essential unique selling point for working with VMS.
VMS really helped us to achieve our goals. The project was able to deliver actionable and substantial results. I can really recommend VMS. We will also call on VMS in future in order to ensure the efficiency of our system operations.”
Curt Hellwig, Manager, SAP Workgroup - Standard Software , DAK - Unternehmen Leben
“VMS was recommended to us and was so convincing in the SLA check that we would be glad to call on them again in future. I could go through a long list of positive attributes of working with them. VMS is dependable, highly competent, punctual, flexible, and fast. Based on everything, I can say that the way that VMS worked with us on this project was first class.”
Dr. Dirk ter Huerne, IT Planning, Controlling and Sourcing, E.ON AG
“VMS is the only provider that has these details and this level of data for SAP. It was important to us that the complexity among the SAP systems was taken into account in a holistic view, and not just the number of SAP systems. The very detailed delimitation of tasks that VMS carried out using DNA-level benchmark gave us a good feeling that we had received really well-founded and strong information. The results we received from VMS gave us an excellent foundation for additional development of our SAP Basis operations at EnBW.
We also really liked it that the result, which was based on solid facts, required very little time and effort on our part: just three workshops were needed to achieve an excellent result.”
Sven Gilles, Head of IT Operations, EnBW AG
“We are extremely satisfied, because VMS is a very competent partner that presents itself not only as a classical service provider, but also provides goal-directed alternatives for discussion, based on its broad expertise. Our users appreciate it that we assign IT costs on a use basis, but that we can also respond flexibly to specific local situations. And we then make available to Controlling and to the business auditor a well-documented, origin-based calculation for the international companies.”
Bernhard Gebhart, Head of Applications, Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH
"The measuring software installed by VMS allowed us to carry out the Benchmarking with minimal effort and without any disruptions to our daily work. The depth of detail and precision of the resulting analyses is impressive.
A calculation based on actual use would be a big improvement, because the individual cost centers use SAP resources very differently.”
Werner Glaser, Center Manager, IT Applications and Solutions, Gieseke & Devrient GmbH
"VMS' Benchmarking confirmed the high quality and cost efficiency of our SAP landscape. The analysis also confirmed our opinion that current cost allocation did not fully correspond with actual use."
Peter Clotten, Group CIO, Giesecke & Devrient GmbH
"The reason why we decided to use VMS was its convincing concept of a value-oriented benchmarking. Besides its excellent knowledge in the SAP environment, we were convinced by the analytical, scientific and highly efficient method. The pragmatic approach and the very reasonable cost-effectiveness with success-oriented pricing were what finally decided us."
Michael Prange, Vice-President, Computing and Network Services, Henkel AG & Co. KG, Düsseldorf
“The VMS benchmark provides real insights that go way beyond Early Watch and other Tools. Only VMS benchmarking provides a substantial analysis of the investments and costs as they interact with performance, and compares them to the relevant comparison installations.”
Dr. Martin Petry, CIO, Hilti AG
“After two half-day workshops with three employees, all the required data from the system regarding costs and operative expenses was collected and then put into the VMS online TCO system.
What I have seen from VMS, but not seen from any other provider is the mathematical algorithm that allows an analysis of the costs and performance of various company SAP installations, with their varying business systems and processes. VMS delivers a lot more than the usual marketing pitches; they provide a solid comparison based on a set point of what already works well, and what can be improved.”
Werner Lutz, Manager IT Infrastructure, Hilti AG
“Before VMS, we knew of no way to get a realistic view of our SAP landscape, all the interfaces that connect downstream and upstream systems to it, and all the various smaller SAP products that go along with that. VMS’s adaptive TCO model mastered that task very well.
VMS’s analyses were very detailed, and clearly identified what buttons to push, so to speak, to begin the optimization measures. In addition, the VMS benchmark ensured that our specific SAP landscape, from the Bank Analyzer to the administrative functions such as HR, time accounting, FI, CO, and on to BW would be taken into account.”
Wolfgang Pfeiffer, Head of Team SAP Basic Components, HVB Information Services GmbH
“Even the initial benchmarking round brought results that justified the entire project, from an economic point of view. Along with the results, there were also a lot of concrete suggestions in detail, which spurred on the individual working groups and teams.
We also see a lot of long-term advantage in the use of VMS for planning SAP projects. For that reason, we will regularly carry out VMS benchmarking.
My team and I view working with VMS as being very good and very partner-like. The quality of constructive, intensive dialogue continuously underscores for us that we are dealing with professionals.”
Peter Spitzer, Head of SAP Customer Competence Center, HVB Information Services GmbH
“Our expectations with respect to VMS were not only met, but vastly exceeded. VMS was successful in taking a very emotional topic and laying the foundation for a rational, business decision from it.”
Jörg Behnisch, Head of IT Management, impress decor GmbH
“VMS analyzed our system at those spots where we had previously suspected that improvements were required. Unfortunately, we were missing the capacity to assign an internal team to identify the weak points; on the other hand, you need the right tools for the search. VMS had those tools and thus was able to analyze our system from a different point of view, and in a much more detailed manner. We had already tried a lot of things, but only with VMS’s help were we able to gain a definitive picture of the performance and the expenses of our SAP system.”
Kay Goetze, Production Unit Head, Info AG
“The investigation by VMS of our entire SAP landscape, with more than 16 productive systems, was technically sound, quick and effective. As a result, VMS provided us with clear, detailed information on the costs, use, and quality of our IT. The VMS Benchmark gave us a clear blueprint for a more effective SAP strategy.
VMS now uses the VMS Monitor to support us in implementing the measures we introduced. With this tool, our IT Controlling is first-rate. And we continue to orient ourselves around best practices, from a technical and business point of view. In VMS, we have found a very competent partner for doing that.”
Ulf Busch, CIO, OMV AG
“Our work with VMS began with comprehensive benchmarking. The detailed analysis gave us a lot of very useful information about our system landscape, that we were able to put into practice. The benchmark provided us with comprehensive transparency of the condition of our system landscape, and supported its strategic development well into the future.
Since then, we have used the VMS Monitor for quality assurance. On a quarterly basis, we get a picture that helps us identify optimization potential, to take the corresponding measures, and to plan for the future in a more efficient way. I have come to value VMS as a customer-oriented partner with an intelligent service portfolio. Working with them has been very productive and takes place in a very pleasant and uncomplicated atmosphere. I recommend VMS wholeheartedly.”
Mike König, Head of IT, Otto Bock HealthCare GmbH
“With the support and wide-ranging experience of VMS, we were able to find the right hosting partner for supporting our SAP systems, very quickly, and with minimal time and effort. The project went as planned with respect to the budget and the timeframe, but we did not expect anything less, based on our work with VMS over many years.”
Werner Schultheis, Director ICT and Director of the Central Division, Randstad Deutschland GmbH
“Utilization of our IT system varies greatly, depending on the season. For this reason, optimal resource-use is very important to us. Due to this cyclical pattern, we have to avoid running into a cost-trap. Thanks to VMS, the VMS Benchmark allowed us to find out how to optimize the design of our IT landscape.
The monthly report with the VMS Monitor allows us to operate our SAP systems to our best advantage in regard to costs, use and quality. This long-term assistance is ideal, because we get excellent, action-oriented reports without any effort on our part and without any interruptions to our daily routine.
VMS did all the work on time, with good quality, and under budget. We have been totally satisfied with VMS, for many years. The things we have worked together on include strategy, costs, and operative quality. I can say, in short: VMS is the place for detailed SAP internal knowledge.”
Marcus Dreßler, CIO, Ravensburger AG
“We are very happy with VMS, because they respond fast to questions and support us in a very unbureaucratic way.”
Andreas Langsdorf, Head of IS SAP Services Germany, Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH
“The ‘Performance Health Check’ is comparable to medical preventive measures and is thus a MUST for all SAP applications, if you have the desire to provide your customers with optimal performance.
We feel like we are well equipped with our ERP system for the coming two to three years. After that, we will definitely carry out a ‘health check’ with VMS, in order to discover any hidden problems.”
Kurt Trautmann, CIO, Schüco International KG
"It's definitely a service I would recommend to other global organizations using SAP, as VMS has a really unique methodology which takes into account the technical as well as the economical aspects of SAP to provide a 360 degree view of the system landscape. The VMS consultants are very knowledgeable in the SAP environment, especially in how SAP interacts with infrastructure, which is rare."
Frank Cunnane, Director - Infrastructure Services & SAP
Solutions (iS3), Information Systems Europe, Sony Europe
“Our guiding principle is to reduce costs through standardization. VMS analyzes our SAP landscape, creates perfect cost and performance transparency, and thus helps toward that goal.”
Dr Mathias Mehrtens, CIO of the Düsseldorf City Works Department
“We decided on DNA-level benchmark from VMS, because it could give us a detailed best practices analysis of our entire IT, SAP, and non-SAP landscape. The quality and precision of the results exceeded our expectations. We received a detailed measures catalog with concrete recommendations for the IT strategy, the organization, and the technical infrastructure.
I am very happy with the results, as well as with the way that VMS worked. VMS proved to be a very professional and competent partner, who I would very much recommend.”
Dr. Thomas Wachsmuth, CIO, Stadtwerke Erfurt
“What is so special about VMS is that it provided us with concrete, quantified points of attack for improvements with regard to costs and performance, so that we know exactly where VMS can start the implementation process. This is VMS’s particular strength.
With the background in mind that the IT costs at Deutsche Telekom needed to be considerably reduced, we wanted to find out what cost reduction potential there was in our area. The VMS benchmark provided us with concrete information on that.
The VMS benchmark showed clear savings potential. Measures are now being undertaken to realize that potential.
The VMS benchmark was very useful to us. And the costs of it were almost negligible, compared to the identified savings potential.”
Franz Miller, Senior Executive Vice President, Information and Process Management, T-Com, Deutsche Telekom
“VMS confirmed that our performance is at the top, from a competitive and from a price/performance relationship point of view. Our policy is to be continuously open to our customers regarding pricing, and to search for a win-win solution, in order to retain customers over the long term.”
Brian Karl Sislak, Service Director at T-Systems
“VMS provided us with quick and usable information, so that we could take our systems, which were already pretty well distributed, and make them even more optimal. We really expected to get a few good pieces of information from VMS, but we did not expect this level of very helpful recommendations. VMS worked in a highly professional manner, showed great understanding for our desires and expectations, and adapted its work quickly to them.”
Dr. Ullrich Sattes, Director Enterprise Operations, TechData GmbH & Co. KG
„Using the VMS Benchmark, we have a site definition of our IT landscape which far exceeds the listing of KPIs in its precision and depth.
With the VMS Benchmark, the IT manager now has a card he can play if the question of costs and performance arises. The internal expense/effort for the Benchmark was really limited. It took us two about to three days to put together and allocate the cost data, and the rest ran completely automatically.
In my view, VMS is unique in respect to the efficiency of its implementation and the quality of its results. It brings an objectivity to the subject that I have not seen anywhere else.”
Manfred Löwer, Group Manager, Service Systems Core Processes (Development), Techem Energie Services GmbH
“We are very satisfied with the amount of valuable information, which helps us to continuously evaluate and optimize the use of our SAP systems. As part of that, we welcome the option of talking with VMS and then defining new areas of focus for analysis. Working with VMS provided a great deal of information, both on the business side, and on the technical side, from which concrete recommendations for action were derived.”
Frank-Markus Schöppner, head of business and sales systems, Techem Energy Services GmbH
“Working with VMS went off without a hitch. VMS provided us with detailed and well-grounded information about the cost structure of our SAP production systems. We are working on increasing synergies at our IT service provider. We have achieved cost savings of 30 % to 50 % with the measures that we have already put in place.”
Otto Rüding, Central Information Management, ThyssenKrupp AG
“There are two possible reasons for a CIO to carry out benchmarking. Either he or she is trying to gather arguments in order to curry favor with upper management, or he or she really is looking for ideas on better control methods.
If you are looking for concrete, realizable suggestions on the way to better control your options, VMS is a great choice. We were able to considerably raise our efficiency through a stringent application management strategy suggested by VMS.”
Dr. Simone Rehm, CIO, TRUMPF Werkzeugmaschinen GmbH + CO. KG
“What impressed me most was the depth of detail in the benchmarking.
By looking at VMS’s analysis, we know exactly where we have to carry out optimization.”
Matthias Schmitt, IT Strategy, Vattenfall Europe AG
“VMS has provided us with concrete information and has recommended measures we can take to increase the efficiency of Vattenfall Europe’s SAP system.”
Hans Rösch, CIO, Vattenfall Europe AG
“Without tying down our personal and technical resources, VMS looked at our SAP landscape thoroughly and evaluated the optimization alternatives very convincingly.
The mathematical modelling method and the know-how gained from their efficient benchmarking database provided convincing arguments for reconfiguring our SAP landscape together with our external service provider, thereby achieving more efficient IT use for Viterra.
VM Solutions proved to be a reliable partner and a trusted advisor throughout the entire project.”
Dr Michael Niklas, CIO Viterra AG, Bochum/Essen