46
7X24MAGAZINE FALL 2013
Worldclassdatacenterreadinessrequirestheunderstandingofseveralkeyoperationalstrategiesandcapabilities.Theeffective
useof these strategies supports effectivemanagement that significantly reduces the riskprofileof amajor event happening
within themanageddatacenterenvironment. Thesekeyoperational categories include:
SITESTAFFING
Oneofthemostcriticalelementstooperational successwithinadatacenter isensuringthattheprogram isstaffedwithenough
resources. It ischallenging tobalance theefficientexecutionofalloperationsandmaintenancewhilestillhaving thecapacity to
respondtodowntime incidents.Oneofthemostcommonmistakesownersofmissioncriticaldatacentersmake isusingamodel
thatskimpsonheadcountortechnicianskill level inordertoreduceoperatingcosts.Rigorousrecruitingandhiringprocessesare
crucial tobuildingaqualified team that isprepared tomaintaincritical equipmentand reduce the riskofdowntime.
TRANSITION
The transitionand startupof adata center includes a significant number of critical tasks,most ofwhich typicallyneed tobe
completed inarelativelyshortamountoftime.These includehiringanonsite facilitymanagementservicesteam,developingand
implementing hundreds of procedures (MOPs, SOPs and EOPs), implementing maintenance plans, developing vendor
contractual relationships, and trainingandcertifying theonsite teamso theyareable toeffectivelyexecuteall elementsof the
overallprogram.
PROCEDUREDEVELOPMENT
Developingstandardizedprocessesandprocedures iskeytoensuringexcellence inoperations.Priortoanyserviceactivity inthe
datacenter, theseoperatingproceduresshouldbe reviewedandapprovedona regularbasis.
TRAINING
Inaddition tohiring the right skillsetofpersonnelwhenbuildinga team, successful operationsprogramsplaceanemphasison
routine,structuredtraining forsitestaff.This includescritical techniciantrainingdesignedtobuildthecoresystemscompetencies
forthesiteengineersaswellassafetytrainingandsitespecifictrainingrelatedtoestablishedprocedures.Best-in-classprograms
institute regulardrills to test thesite team’soperational readiness.
byKevinRitter
