Shearman and sterling uses readyworks to automate endpoint operations

Challenge: One of the largest law firms in the world, Shearman & Sterling, supports hundreds of lawyers around the world. Given the high stakes and sometimes public nature of their work, it’s imperative that IT failures never become an issue. As a result, the company wanted to continually provide those lawyers and other staff with the latest hardware, applications, and Windows OS updates in the least disruptive way and without creating a burden for the IT department.

With a typical suite of ITSM and systems management tools, the company found that none could properly deliver the command and control they required to manage their dynamically changing environment. They wanted a platform that was cost-effective, that could integrate with existing tools, and that could fill the gaps around reporting and workflows to maintain the environment.

“Our current systems were inadequate when it came to managing endpoint refresh cycles for hardware and applications along with Windows upgrades.”

Solution: The company chose ReadyWorks based on price and flexibility and gained a command and control platform that enabled:

• 30% reduction in endpoint support tickets.
• A single enhanced view of all endpoints
• More efficient program management.
• Improved client service with no business disruption.

ReadyWorks delivered this through:

• System Integration: The firm liked that ReadyWorks natively integrated with SCCM, ServiceNow, and Active Directory, and that could enhance the view of endpoints that those systems provided on their own.
• Data Intelligence: The team used ReadyWorks to monitor patch status, analyze Windows servicing rings, and leverage a simple to use report on the health of their ever-changing endpoint estate as well as Windows update status. They benefited from a clear view of the hardware inventory that is automatically organized by department, geographic location and business.
• Orchestration & Automation: They firm was drawn to the ability of ReadyWorksto manage Windows Servicing on an ongoing basis. Benefiting from an automated, fully rationalized application inventory, every Windows update was made quicker with less risk of failure.

“ReadyWorks integrates with our existing tools and provides the command and control functionality we need to analyze our current environment, automate workflows to minimize our team’s workload, and manage the entire process on an ongoing basis without business disruption.”