Karl Flinders | Computerweekly
Law firm Addleshaw Goddard is using an IT service management (ITSM) service in the cloud as part of a programme to improve IT for the business that has 1,250 IT users in the UK and Singapore.
After analysing the market and putting out a request for proposal (RFP) for service management software the company chose ServiceNow’s cloud-based service.
John Whitlow, head of IT at Addleshaw Goddard, said most law firms look at the competition to see what they use as a guide, but Addleshaw Goddard wanted to be different and looked at what it considered the best ITSM offerings regardless of the sectors that use them.
The RFP received bids from all the big players such as HP, BMC and CA as well as some niche players.
“ServiceNow was the only truly cloud-based offering we received although we did have some purporting to be cloud that lacked the true cloud advantages we wanted such as security, performance and true software as a service delivery,” said Whitlow.
Whitlow said another major advantage of a cloud service is the ease of implementation. “It took six weeks from signing the contract with ServiceNow to having the service fully up and running.”
It replaced software from Hornbill.
The implementation was complete in early April and the company is continuing to develop and expand its use, said Whitlow.
While cost savings were a key factor influencing the decision on what technology to use, the main driver was the need to improve the maturity of the company’s ITSM, added Whitlow.
Because the cloud service is intuitive with self-help functionality, there are fewer IT staff required to work full time on ITSM.
“We were able to redeploy IT people that were dedicated to keeping the lights on and bring them into the broader business transformation that requires lots of IT projects.”
Whitlow said that the ServiceNow deal does not mean the company is going to use cloud-based services throughout the business.
“As a law form there is a lot of nervousness about our data,” said Whitlow. The company uses one other cloud service, which is software for law firms related to managing clients but as a rule, if an application contains any client information it will not go in the cloud.
Addleshaw Goddard joins organisations such as Imperial College, Deloitte, SkyIQ, Enterprise Holdings and the Wellcome Trust in moving ITSM to ServiceNow’s cloud.
