1. Hosted by Planning For A Storage Array Purchase and Developing an RFP Randy Kerns Evaluator Group Copyright © 2003 - All Rights Reserved Evaluator Group, Inc. 7720 E. Belleview Avenue Suite 210 Greenwood Village, CO 80111 (303) 221-7867 Fax: (303) 221-1615 http://www.evaluatorgroup.com

2. Hosted by Business Imperatives Storage Strategy Need a strategy to address storage  Storage is crucial to business Investment Company growth Transact business  Strategy must cover all aspects – connectivity, security, performance, capacity, storage devices, administration, archiving, storage networking, etc. Must fit in with overall corporate strategy  Closely aligned with other plans  Promoted to peer organizations Effective storage decisions are integral to the strategy

3. Hosted by Business requirements Understanding business requirements will help determine what are product requirements  Function  Economics – TCO / ROI  Characteristics – example: whether SAN, NAS, other type of storage is needed Minimizes risk of getting the wrong solution Business Imperatives

4. Hosted by Complexity of Choices Many vendors with many solutions Some will satisfy your needs  Many different attributes  Different features/capabilities accentuated Are they important to you? Long-term implications  Commitment to a specific vendor  Support issues  May change the way you do business How do you decide?

5. Hosted by Types of Storage Systems Cache-centric storage All data through the same cache Used in mainframes – adapted for open systems Distributed storage Separate controllers (usually two) Cache distributed on controllers Failover between controller Clustered distributed storage Multiple distributed storage systems Connected via internal mesh / fabric Presents single image

6. Hosted by Types of Storage Systems

7. Hosted by Types of Storage Systems Standard base storage systems Trend to use standard platform for storage  Faster time to market Built on base platforms Quick turn for new technology incorporation Proven technology – low risk for “do over”  Leverage other company R&D money Invest in areas to add value  Added value in other areas Feature/functions enabled by software Differentiated from other products – unique  Expected lower product cost – more competitive

8. Hosted by Standard Platform Storage

9. Hosted by Process to Make an Effective Decision Solutions Evaluate the solutions – whether storage products or storage management software Create a set of criteria for analysis  What is important  What you use to evaluate  Translate terminology  Review relevance  Compare solutions on an equal, unbiased footing

10. Hosted by Information Sources Acquire information from vendors  Remember, they’re selling  Will highlight strengths, ignore weaknesses Use independent, unbiased source  Accurate information  Better if expert analysis provided  Capitalize on expertise of specialists Process to Make an Effective Decision

11. Hosted by Information – Misinformation Yes or No to criteria is not good enough  Example: Point-In-Time copy supported – but is resynchronization supported? Big difference in time for clone copies  Example: Remote Copy supported – but are consistency groups supported? If not, Remote Copy usability is limited  Example: Raw Capacity – one vendor reports 74.6 TB. BUT, usable is only 55.6 in current best case configuration Many reasons to do more in-depth research Process to Make an Effective Decision

12. Hosted by Assemble product information From chosen sources Ensure accuracy Compare against criteria Create comparison of relevant data Use to bring decision to limited number of choices Leverage information when dealing with vendors Process to Make an Effective Decision

13. Hosted by Comparison Matrices Create or acquire matrices to compare products features / functions

14. Hosted by Developing an RFP General guidelines Clearly state what you want  Don’t mix multiple purchases in one RFP Have criteria well-defined  Do homework first Very narrow definitions  Reduce variations  Limit vendor “stretching the definition” Establish the rules  Dates  Format  Protests  Clarifications  Process

15. Hosted by Developing an RFP RFP Content Contractual Terms and Conditions  Describe the legal mechanics that your company uses  Very specific about rules, resolution, etc. Factors to be Considered  Describe consideration priorities  Timeline with specific dates for submittal, award, etc. Vendor information  Company information  History of providing similar product / solution  Criteria key to show vendor credibility

16. Hosted by Developing an RFP RFP Content - continued Specifications  Product / solution specifications  Environment for usage / operation  Details – derived from criteria  Service / support / training  Performance guarantee Pricing  Details on product / solution (hardware and software)  Include maintenance, licensing  Guarantee of completeness

17. Hosted by Developing an RFP RFP Content - continued Proposal Response Format  Specific format for reply from vendor  Provide common set of information for evaluation Evaluation Criteria / Process  Description of process of the criteria that will be used in decision process

18. Hosted by RFP Legal Issues RFP is part of a binding legal contract. Put it in writing (an unsigned e-copy won’t do) Retain it as you would other capital-goods trade contracts Signed by the authorized representative of both parties If more than one supplier, be sure that your “prime” can commit its subcontractors Designate a formal point of contact and method of communicating (eg. John Jones, e-mail)

19. Hosted by RFP Legal Issues Be very specific  Remedies expected in event of breach of SLAs  Change/interpretation/clarification process. Be sure all the bidders get all amendments and clarifications  Define a termination date for the RFP, eg. end of selection period (when contract is awarded), end of successful implementation, etc. You will need to provide formal notification when that occurs  Define who keeps (or returns) any work product Assume it will be appealed Agree in advance on an arbitration process if you want to stay out of court  Court is expensive, time-consuming and resource intensive

20. Hosted by Cost of Making Decision Requires Resources and time to do investigation  Use of experts  Analysis data Executive support Results in cost and time Needs to be part of overall storage strategy

21. Hosted by Making An Effective Decision Critical choices to be made for storage strategy Storage strategy  Accommodating growth  Plans for acquisition of storage  Retirement (lifespan) of storage systems Software and infrastructure has long life  Vendor choices Multiple vendors - % as incentive Qualifications

22. Hosted by Conclusion Storage is critical to a business Make effective decision requires an investment Potential to impact the corporation without adequate plans and procedures Develop process for making decision Part of overall strategy Use independent, unbiased resources – cost effective Leverage their information, expertise Make best possible decision based on timely, accurate, in-depth information

23. Hosted by www.evaluatorgroup.com TMTM