EDS and Dell unite to help manage desktops

by Deni Connor

May 21, 2001 —

ROUND ROCK, TEXAS (05/21/2001) - Dell Computer Corp. and Electronic Data Systems Corp. last week announced they are joining forces with a new "seat management" offering designed to help firms avoid managing desktops by the seats of their pants.

Customers buying Dell OptiPlex PCs, Latitude notebooks and Precision workstations can now sign on for the Dell Seat Management Service, which entails planning, procurement, integration, asset management, software distribution, help desk, and hardware and software maintenance services.

The service is designed for companies with 1,000 to 10,000 Dell computer users. Dell says demand for such a service has increased in light of IT staffers getting harder to come by.

The service will give end users and network administrators access to a toll-free number or a customized Web portal to receive help configuring new printer queues; installing Microsoft Office applications; adding, moving or configuring new workstations; fixing troublesome workstations; and dispatching on-site service, among other things. If the issue cannot be solved remotely, a Dell or EDS technician will be dispatched to the customer site.

Outsourced desktop management is attracting corporate customers because they like the idea of charges being tied to the number of desktops being managed, says Rob Enderle, research fellow for Giga Information Group Inc. Among other things, this practice helps companies charge back departments for IS services, he says. It also lets companies redeploy IS staff to more strategic initiatives, he adds.

Gartner Group Inc. estimates the total cost per ownership of a desktop PC can be US$7,500 per year, with 88 percent of that cost to cover operations, management and support.

The Dell Seat Management Service costs $70 to $90 per user per month.

Dell: www.dell.com

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