How To Run A Cloud Service For A Large Business

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1 Lot: 4 Specialist Cloud Services Service 25: Digital Continuity - ediscovery Solutions An overview of the G-Cloud Service (functional, non functional) Discover Information based on content, metadata and context Identify related Information based on content, metadata and context Provide customisable access controls in which access to the Information discovered by the software can be granted or denied Provide audit trails of access to Information and actions taken by the user within the discovery solution Information assurance Impact Level (IL) at which the G-Cloud Service is accredited to hold and process information Qi Consulting currently holds ISO accreditation. We would be happy to complement this with an RMADS in future. We are therefore operating at IL 1 with a target of IL 2. Details of the level of backup/restore and disaster recovery that will be provided Backup and restore processes are in place and we backup our servers every 24 hours with data being held in our off-site backup facility located in Crawley. Qi Consulting has a comprehensive business recovery process in place. In the event of a disaster or crisis Qi Consulting employees will have a clear understanding of who should be contacted and what should be done to ensure that communications and working practices can be quickly re-established in order to ensure business continuity. In the event of a systems failure we instigate an immediate cut over to the backup system located in Crawley. All our data is backed up overnight so we would be able to recover and work off a mirror image of our files which would be, in the worst case, only a few hours out of date. No s would be lost. Over 50% of staff would be working normally at alternative locations within four hours of a systems crash using remote working capabilities. On-boarding and Off-boarding processes/scope etc. This is not applicable as we provide consulting services.

2 Pricing (including unit prices, volume discounts (if any), data extraction etc.) Please see the attached file; Qi Consulting SFIA Definitions & Rate Card. We make every effort to provide staff at competitive day rates and undertake internal and external benchmarking to ensure that we bid at attractive market rates. Internal benchmarks are based on feedback regarding our rates on both successful and unsuccessful tenders, while external benchmarks are based on information published by bodies such as trade associations as well as some of our clients. Service management details Our team of service managers focus on providing a seamless service to our clients. They examine requests for resources, locate suitable candidates, draft tender bids and maintain contact with our consultants during their assignments. Customers are allocated dedicated Service Managers who will: Maintain contact with key buyers at mutually agreed intervals. Quarterly Contract Review meetings are usually sufficient. be available to answer requests or queries during the hours agreed. This is typically office hours, via mobile phone. work towards the following response times for the provision of services; Start date Target Response Time Same Day 1 hour Next Business day 3 hours 1-2 Business days 4 hours 3-6 Business days 1 Business day 7 or more Business days 3 Business days We have an established set of processes and procedures to deal with any issues raised regarding the performance of both our consultants and account management team. This forms an integral part of our ISO9001:2008 accredited Quality Management System. Service constraints (e.g. maintenance windows, level of customisation permitted, schedule for deprecation of functionality/features etc.) Our services are not constrained in any manner. Service Levels (e.g. performance, availability, support hours, severity definitions etc.) Over a number of years, Qi Consulting has been providing management information to customers about assignment status; our consultants are used to providing customerspecific management information during their assignments and at their conclusion. This ranges from high level management information reports to reports specific to the programme or project on which they are engaged. Our Assignment Lead will agree with the customer at project initiation exactly what management reports will be required and in what format. We then commit to deliver these reports to the required timescales. Key performance indicators are developed and agreed with the customer to ensure the effective measurement of performance and the outcomes of all assignments.

3 During the course of the assignment continuous dialogue on progress takes place between the consultants and the customer and monthly Keep in Touch progress meetings (KITs) are arranged to formally report on the progress of the project. In addition, where appropriate, a sign-off meeting is held to present the final report, finalise the project and discuss post-contract completion support, if any is necessary. A project quality officer is appointed to provide independent assurance that project quality activities are undertaken appropriately. Our approach is to provide robust processes and systems, supported by strong leadership. We view effective leadership as a pre-requisite in managing performance, and each team member will undertake to embrace a positive performance management regime. We ensure structured and regular feedback from both the customer and our supply team. Where reports are required by the customer we are prepared to be flexible in terms of how the reports are constructed. We can tailor the existing management information reports as produced for Government Procurement Service or tailor them to specific requirements by agreement with the customer specifically to include the performance of the consultant or team against any targets or milestones set by the customer. Financial recompense model for not meeting service levels We would be happy to discuss an appropriate arrangement with potential customers. Training We recognise the importance of training and keeping our consultants up to date with changes in the business environment and technology advances. Staff acquire and maintain subject matter knowledge through: briefings; internal training courses on specific topics; external training courses, workshops, seminars and industry conferences which provide opportunities to network amongst field experts; subject specific user groups; continual professional development events and training; our specialist peer group meetings where in-depth briefings are provided; team meetings where market and solution knowledge is shared. Our consultants are encouraged to obtain relevant professional accreditations as well as maintaining memberships of relevant professional bodies (e.g. British Computer Society, Institute of Business Consulting). These provide access to professional networks and information sources. Such professional memberships also carry a continued professional development obligation and we make considerable efforts to ensure that our consultants are able to meet them. Our Service Managers also undertake continuous monitoring of the public sector environment to maintain their knowledge, relevant public sector policies and political issues including legislative and statutory changes via our: relationships with customers, review of the policy environment and official information: interaction with relevant industry groups including: Intellect; the Management Consultancies Association and The Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed (IPSE, formerly the PCG). Ordering and invoicing process Customers can order services using the standard CCS pro forma or issue their own Purchase Orders. Our invoicing processes are fully integrated with:

4 individual customers Purchase to Pay (P2P) paperless systems (typically by registering with a secure web-based P2P system) supply chain/subcontractor paperless systems - all invoices, effort returns, expense claims and scanned evidence (e.g. receipts) are routed to a nominated account; all payments are made by BACS, with remittance advices by . Depending on customer requirements, invoices can be: monthly or weekly consolidated personnel invoices consolidated single invoices of all consultants in a team. Our secure system ensures verification and accuracy through checking at each stage in the process: Excel templates are used with built-in calculations to ensure accurate totalling of effort, rates, expenses and VAT independent audit ensures that the contracted terms detailed in our management information system, including thresholds for discounts, are applied accurately. Invoicing is undertaken monthly in arrears. Termination terms o o By consumers (i.e. consumption); 30 days notice By the Supplier (removal of the G-Cloud Service); 30 days notice Data restoration / service migration Client s data is maintained rigorously to the highest standards of quality and timeliness. We have a full version control system in place. This means that, at any point, we are able to inform clients of the state of their data, including full versioning details, which updates have been incorporated (and which, if any, have not) as well as user and format details, and other information necessary for them to manage their data upon return, or migration to another service provider. Consumer responsibilities The Customer shall (a) provide Qi Consulting with cooperation and such information as may be reasonably required by us in order to render the Services, (b) provide such assistance, including support services, information and other assistance, and (c) pay undisputed fees for the Services when due. Technical requirements (service dependencies and detailed technical interfaces, e.g. client side requirements, bandwidth/latency requirements etc.) We have an open source policy with office systems based on Microsoft products. Details of any trial service available. We would be happy to discuss this with potential customers. Data extraction/removal:

5 Suppliers will provide a simple and quick exit process to enable consumers to move to a different supplier for each of their G-Cloud Services and/or retrieve their data. Suppliers will commit to providing details of this, clearly and unambiguously in the Service Definition for each service. This will include, but not be limited to: The data standards that will be in use (within the service). We are able to use a variety of data standards. We normally use the Microsoft Office suite as an internal standard but are also able to work with open source documents e.g. Open Office. A commitment to returning all consumer generated data (e.g. content, metadata, structure, configuration etc.) and a list of the data that will be available for extraction. Where there is a risk of confusion, data that will not be available for later extraction will also be published. Qi Consulting confirms full compliance with this requirement. We maintain full version control and stringent security over all data, including client data and consumer generated data as listed here. This will always be returned, securely, to our clients or other stakeholders whenever required. We confirm that, to avoid confusion, data that will not be available for later extraction will also be included. The formats/standards into which data will be able to be extracted and preferably a list other common services/technologies to which an export/import mechanism is available. We will work with customers to meet requirements in this area. A price for the extraction of consumer generated data (or the migration to another service provider s service). We confirm that we do not normally charge for this service. Confirmation that the Supplier will purge and destroy (as defined in security accreditation for different ILs) consumer data from any computers, storage devices and storage media that are to be retained by the Supplier after the end of the subscription period and the subsequent extraction of consumer data (if requested by the consumer). Qi Consulting confirms that we will purge and destroy all consumer data from any computers, storage devices and storage media that we retain after the end of an assignment. We will ensure our clients are completely satisfied with the data returned to them, before undertaking this step.