Windows 2000 Advantage - Features - Selling TCO to the CEO

By now, you're probably well aware of the technical benefits Windows NT 4.0 Workstation and Server bring to your IT environment. But how do you sell those benefits to the CEO of your company in his or her language? How do the technical benefits of Windows NT 4.0 translate into a total cost of ownership (TCO) that is well-received by your CEO?

In this article, we will examine some of the technical reasons behind Windows NT 4.0's popularity. But more important, we will explore the business justifications you can take to your CEO.

Translating Technology to Economics

In a recent Computerworld survey, 102 corporate IT managers were asked which operating system they expect will provide the greatest cost savings over the next year. To realize TCO savings, 45% of Computerworld's respondents named Windows NT Server as the operating system they would choose, and Windows NT Workstation got 41% of the vote.

Windows NT 4.0 offers several technical benefits, including the following:

A Familiar (Inter)face

Windows NT Workstation 4.0's user interface and features closely resemble the familiar Windows 95 interface. This interface enables you to provide a consistent user interface for all your organization's Windows-based, 32-bit desktops and servers. The Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 interfaces include the following:

But what does this mean to your CEO? From a business perspective, how can your organization benefit from having a common user interface? Let's look at it from a training and administration standpoint. Windows NT 4.0 allows your organization to better manage its platform training costs. Your end users can make an easier transition from Windows 95 to Windows NT 4.0, with little or no training. The user interface for Windows 95 and Windows 98 is so similar to that of Windows NT 4.0 that little end-user training is necessary. And to anticipate your organization's future technology migrations, Windows NT 4.0 will prepare your end users for a move to Windows 2000 Professional. Windows 2000 Professional is expected to implement an updated version of the Internet Explorer 4.0 shell-integration interface, but incorporating some of the same features as Windows NT 4.0. Windows NT 4.0 also brings the stability of Windows NT to the desktop. A smooth transition from one desktop environment to another minimizes disruptions in workflow. It also eases the frustration experienced by nontechnical employees when a familiar, comfortable technical environment is altered.

Maintaining Control

Windows NT Server allows your organization to maintain tight control over the desktop environment.

Your organization can realize greater cost savings by implementing a tightly managed Windows NT Workstation network. Windows NT 4.0 allows administrators to restrict users' privileges and minimize, if not eliminate, their abilities to change desktop and network settings. You can limit your end users' configuration - or administrative - rights on their desktop machines. This minimizes configuration problems that may arise when end users have the equivalent of administrative privileges on their computers. A tightly-managed network allows administrators to handle the majority of configuration for end users, thus minimizing the possibility of errors and providing consistency within the desktop environment. When end users have the ability to change network settings and other configurations with their systems, your network administrators spend valuable time making multiple, and expensive, visits to correct needless mistakes.

Windows NT 4.0, according to a study by Technology Business Research Inc. (TBR), also is shown to reduce help-desk costs by up to $483 per user per year. Windows NT 4.0 can reduce the number of help-desk calls by 15% to 29%. The study was based on approximately 9,600 PCs, with a reduced call volume of approximately 1,200 calls per month. Windows NT 4.0 also enables easy remote administration.

Installation is also simplified with Windows NT 4.0 when upgrading to Windows NT Workstation. Enhancements to the setup procedure include an easy-to-use interface, improved hardware detection, installation wizards and a series of tools that make it easy for corporate customers to deploy Windows NT Workstation on multiple systems.

A Secure Transaction

The Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) provides a way to use public data networks, such as the Internet, to create virtual private networks (VPN). These VPNs connect client PCs with servers using protocol encapsulation to support multiple protocols over TCP/IP connections. Data encryption provides privacy for safely sending information over nonsecure networks. PPTP also extends dial-up networking, enabling remote access while securely extending VPNs across the Internet - ideal when you have a large number of remote users, such as a distributed salesforce.

So what's the selling point to your CEO? Your data traveling across the Internet is more secure than ever before. Even if your competition, or a hacker, intercepts the TCP/IP packets as they travel across the Internet, the contents of the packets will be encrypted so that your data is protected. Even if information flows across an unsecured network, your data is protected.

Crossing to the Other Side of the Tracks

Windows NT Workstation 4.0 includes an enhanced version of Client Services for NetWare, which now supports Novell Directory Services (NDS). NDS enables Windows NT Workstation 4.0 users to log on to Novell NetWare 4.x servers running NDS, to access NetWare's file and print services.

Client Services for NetWare is integrated into Windows NT Workstation, providing key Novell features such as the following:

What does this mean for your organization's business? The answer is simple: Hardware and software between two operating systems are compatible so your organization spends less on hardware and software procurement costs. In addition, your IT department doesn't have to figure out a way to link two disparate operating systems because some Windows users need access to NetWare servers. Also, it can help in the migration of your company network from NetWare to Windows NT. You don't need to take down and replace all your servers at one time, which is risky. Instead you can take a safer approach and migrate one department at a time.

Aggregation for Maximization

Dial-up networking in Windows NT 4.0 provides channel aggregation that enables users to combine all available dial-up lines. For example, you can combine two or more standard modem lines and two or more Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)-compliant ISDN channels, attaining speeds of up to 128K bit/sec. This allows you to combine ISDN lines with analog modem lines for higher throughput.

What does this do for your business? It allows your end users to achieve higher transfer speeds and increased bandwidth. What's the selling point to your CEO? Simply put, your organization is spending less money transferring information, and less time waiting for such information, by sending more information more quickly.

Productivity Plus Performance Equals Profitability

Windows NT 4.0 has proven that it provides a more stable 32-bit operating environment than previous Windows environments. A Microsoft study ("Windows NT Workstation: The Business Case for Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Today") indicates that Windows NT 4.0 increases productivity by up to $2,133 per user per year through better performance. The Microsoft study also indicates that NT 4.0 reduces end-user downtime costs by as much as $73 per user per year in terms of improved reliability. The selling points for your CEO are obvious here.

Sold

While technology features and benefits of Windows NT 4.0 speak loud and clear to you as an IT manager, CEOs speak a different language. Money talks. And if you can't justify the technological advantages of Windows NT 4.0 in terms of a reduced total cost of ownership, you may as well be speaking a foreign language. Your CEO may understand technology very clearly and relate to your technical jargon, but that's not what he wants to hear to justify Windows NT 4.0 implementation. Your best approach is to support your technical claims with solid business cost savings and a low TCO.

About the author
Shari Jones is a consultant for a large international consulting company. She is a technical writer and freelance journalist and covers all areas of the high-tech industry.