Welcome to B & M Bulletin, produced specifically for users of IT technical services. In this issue:
 
•  Making the most of M&A opportunities
•  Tech View: Middleware past and present, by Technical Consultant Tim Crossland
•  Top 10 IT projects arising from M&As 
•  B & M TechConsult - authoritative technical consultancy
Making the most of M&A opportunities
 Jerry Smart looks at what has changed with regard to IT involvement in mergers and acquisitions over the past few years and considers the opportunities these present for the CIO
“…some integration projects have gone well..”
When organisations merge, or one organisation acquires another, it always means a major headache for the IT departments. It is well known that the critical issue with M&A activity in all parts of the business is financial delivery against expectations within the predicted timescale. In IT, some integration projects have gone well and delivered the predicted savings, but others have not.

This is a topic that we follow with interest, and have commented in the past on the issues around integration of IT systems following a merger or acquisition. It seems that the problem has changed little since 2007; the main reason for lack of achievement is the failure to predict the amount or complexity of work effort involved, either because of insufficient examination of systems at due diligence or simply a lack of appreciation of technology.

Just last month, Hugo Sarrazi, director in the Silicon Valley office of McKinsey & Co., wrote on the i-CIO blog that the CIO (or IT Director) must be a strategic partner in both the identification of acquisition opportunities and in the process of due diligence. He asserts that “As companies begin to plan an acquisition, IT must have a seat at the due diligence table. The technology team can spot potential obstacles to integration in the acquisition target or identify potential liabilities. This is particularly important as companies review cost and revenue synergies. All too often, forecasts are driven by financial formulae or rules of thumb provided by the merger’s advisers.”

The examination of IT systems and operations may indeed reveal opportunities for cost savings post-integration; or perhaps it is an opportunity to discover benefits from existing systems that add value to the prospective acquisition.

Either way, it is an opportunity for the CIO/IT Director to make their mark.
Tech View: Middleware past and present
 Technical Consultant Tim Crossland takes a further look at the history of Middleware and its role in business today
For those of us who have worked in IT for a while, the concept of Middleware may seem like a relatively new technology. Yet, the earliest reference to Middleware can be traced back to the 1968 NATO Software Engineering Conference which describes Middleware as a layer that sits between Application programs and Operating System services routines (e.g. file handlers).

However it was not until the 1980s that the concept of Middleware really developed, as people wanted to connect their new (often GUI-based) applications up to their proven legacy systems.

Middleware can be defined simply as software that is positioned in the middle - between operating systems and applications.

But what exactly does Middleware do? It enables applications to communicate with each other or to access services without having to be tied to a specific platform.

As with many other emerging technologies, there has been a rush by vendors to ensure that their product is classified as Middleware and there are now too many different types of Middleware to list them all. However, the following list outlines some of the types of Middleware that are used most commonly in business today:
  • Message Oriented Middleware - allows applications to communicate with each other across platforms by sending and receiving messages. Leading products are IBM's WebSphere MQ, Apache's ActiveMQ and Microsoft's MSMQ.
  • Enterprise Service Bus - enables access to services, an important component of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). Leading products are IBM's WebSphere Message Broker, Apache's ServiceMix and Mule ESB.
  • Application Servers - provides an environment for applications (especially web-based Java applications). Examples are Oracle Application Server, Apache Tomcat, JBoss and WebSphere Application Server.
  • Transaction Processing Monitors - supports transactional applications, usually in high volume, on-line environments. Examples are the (primarily) mainframe based CICS and BEA's (now part of Oracle) Tuxedo.
  • Data Access - Middleware that sits between applications and databases, providing access via techniques such as Java Database Connectivity, Open Database Connectivity and SQL.
As the trend for businesses to merge with one another grows, there is a tendency for organisations to increase the number of platforms that they use with each successive merger or acquisition. Today, businesses need to integrate their systems more and more; so the role of Middleware is set to be one of growing importance for the foreseeable future.
 
Top 10 IT projects arising from M&As
 Corporate mergers and acquisitions inevitably lead to a raft of IT homogenisation and rationalisation projects. At B & M, our experience shows that these 'top ten' technical projects occur during a time of M&A activity:
  1. Network unification
  2. Storage rationalisation and optimisation
  3. Data migration and consolidation
  4. Security standards and compliance
  5. Systems integration
  6. Software auditing (licensing and convergence)
  7. Web site amalgamation
  8. Disaster recovery mapping
  9. Infrastructure convergence
  10. Data centre relocation
B & M TechConsult 
 authoritative technical consultancy
B & M TechConsult is a specialist technical consultancy service for large enterprise systems, delivering strategic advice and recommendations to enable projects to be implemented in a timely and cost-effective manner.

We offer authoritative technical consultancy services for z/OS, AIX, HP-UX, Solaris and Linux environments and network connectivity, with consultancy projects typically including:
  • Strategic Reviews
  • Feasibility Studies
  • Audits
  • ICT Health Checks
  • Process development
  • Technical assurance services
B & M TechConsult delivers tailored services that enable customers to make the most of their large platform IT investments. Our consultants use their in-depth knowledge to make recommendations that can deliver dramatic improvements in an organisation’s IT infrastructure - typically delivering results in a short timescale. Consultancy is undertaken using best practice standards and objectives and deliverables are always agreed in advance.
B & M Europe Limited
B & M has specialised in delivering skilled ICT specialists to meet the needs of leading organisations throughout Europe since 1992. We focus exclusively on providing technical services, consultancy and support for z/OS, UNIX and Linux enterprise systems, including third-party systems software, open systems and networking connectivity. We add real value for HR and IT professionals by taking the time to understand their needs and applying best practice methods to deliver results.

To find out more about our approach to providing the best skills for each business, go to B & M Services.

The views, opinions, positions or strategies expressed by the authors are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, positions or strategies of B & M Europe Limited or any employee thereof.

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