Role of InfrastructureIn Enhancing Business Continuity in Banks

Tarun MakhijaAPC

Agenda

• Infrastructure & Business Continuity• Business Continuity challenges in Banking

– ATM (Remote) sites– Branches – Data-center and DRC

• Infrastructure recommendation for Business Continuity

Introducing NCPI

Essential Foundation of

Business Continuity

Payment Systems & Availability

• Customer interacts with the payment system in multiple ways:– ATMs– Cash deposit or withdrawal– Cheque clearing– Internet banking

• Payment transaction is the moment of truth – IT availability is critical

• Robust NCPI is key in ensuring IT availability

Business Continuity Challenges in ATM sites• Unskilled manpower or unmanned sites• Failure known only when reported• Response does not mean resolution

What could make a difference ?

• ATM NCPI managed over the WAN

• NCPI elements standardized like the ATM/WAN• Online pre-failure alert• Online failure location detection• Online fault identification and vendor notification• Vendor response equals resolution

Device Status SummaryRed: urgent

Yellow: needs attentionGreen; functioning normallyGrey; maintenance mode

Device Status SummaryRed: urgent

Yellow: needs attentionGreen; functioning normallyGrey; maintenance mode

Notification Groups

Ensure the right people receive

warnings

Notification Groups

Ensure the right people receive

warnings

Recommended ActionsReduces training, eases deployment

and speeds troubleshooting.

Recommended ActionsReduces training, eases deployment

and speeds troubleshooting.

Business Continuity Challenges at a Branch

• Standardized IT but not the NCPI• Limited trouble-shooting skill at branch level• No two branches have similar NCPI• IT is managed but not NCPI

IT Services Management Today

NCPI Layer Not Standardized - managed by multiple tribal expertise

PeopleSTAFFING TRAINING

ProcessesSTANDARDIZATION SIMPLICITY DOCUMENTATION

.

IT layer Standardized

TechnologyDATA PROCESSING COMMUNICATIONS DATA STORAGE

POWER COOLING RACKS SERVICE MANAGEMENT

HIGHLY

AVAILABLE

NETWORK

Total Business Continuity Need

PeopleSTAFFING TRAINING

ProcessesSTANDARDIZATION SIMPLICITY DOCUMENTATION

.

TechnologyDATA PROCESSING COMMUNICATIONS DATA STORAGE

POWER COOLING RACKS SERVICE MANAGEMENT

HIGHLY

AVAILABLE

NETWORK

All Levels Standardized

NCPI + IT

All IT + NCPI managed

What could be of value for a Branch ?• Topology map for the entire NCPI

• NCPI elements standardized like the IT layer• Online pre-failure alert• Online failure location detection• Online fault identification and vendor notification• Vendor response equals resolution

Illustrative blue-print of a managed NCPI

NCPI and Business Continuity so far … Today

• Complex, unmanaged, “custom-evolved”• Impacts Business Continuity

Road ahead• Simple, managed, standardized• Enhances Business Availability

Business Continuity challenges in Data-Centers

• Rapidly changing technology• Dynamic load characteristics• “Custom-built” data-centers• Over-building

Thermodynamics in computing…

Chaos in Data-centers

They were not planned at all

These systems were not planned to look like this

• Architecture based on “Lego” building blocks of Standardized, Off-the-shelf components

• Design concept is Modular & Scalable• Is available Pre-engineered and Pre-configured

Can a Data-center be built like this ?

Standardization improves Business Continuity

• Modularize• Factory pre-test• Hot-swappable• Integrated diagnostics

• One-time engineering• Unique training needs• On-site assembly• On-site testing• Custom programming

Standardize To Eliminate

Standardization accelerates learning, reduces human error and increases availability

Urge you to consider…

• Standardize NCPI • Create a Modular & Scalable blue-print for NCPI • Manage you NCPI like you manage your IT

Business Continuity is not just about IT or the data-center…

Its is about being Available for Business….

And NCPI impacts availability!

Questions ?

Email id: tarun.makhija@apc.com