It meets strict security and compliance requirements, including the Dutch government’s information security baseline certification. The on-premise environment had to be converted without users being aware of the changes. There were many interested parties and stakeholders who all had to be on the same page. These were the main challenges of the Province of North Brabant’s cloud migration. Ctac took on those challenges together with SAP – and the results are impressive.
Aart van der Wilt
SAP project advisor
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Customer
Provincie Noord-Brabant
Label
Cloud Infrastructure
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The first step was to switch data to a so-called acceptance environment. “There, we could work on the technical underlay with test scripts. That produced findings that the project team could work with,” Kuijpers says. “The next step was a development environment, in which we could test further. From there, we could quickly proceed with a dry run. That means we deliver a productive system, without current data. When all the findings there conformed to expectations, we went live. That went smoothly. The end-user did not notice anything of the transition. There were no functional changes or pain points. That is, of course, what you want and the team at SAP also deserves credit for that. Thanks to the expertise of SAP, Ctac and PNB’s SAP team, we pulled out all the pain points.”
A successful go-live based on in-depth preliminary research
The Province of North Brabant’s servers in the basement were indispensable. However, their existing management and support contracts were expiring. This is why the Province of North Brabant was looking for a solution for a more future-proof, data-driven approach. It opted to migrate SAP to the cloud. This process required in-depth preparation. “We spent a lot of time on doing preliminary research,” states Rob Kuijpers. Rob is a consultant with Partners in Technology, an SAP certified partner, and managed the project on behalf of the Province of North Brabant. “Proper preliminary research saves a lot of time. It allows you to resolve issues quickly without the users noticing anything.”
"PNB sees Ctac not as a supplier, but as a trusted advisor."
Rob Kuijpers, project manager on behalf of PNB
Dutch government information security baseline certification, security and compliance
For the switch to the cloud, we were meticulous in our approach to the Dutch government’s strict requirements. “The new cloud system observes all compliance and security legislation,” confirms Kuijpers. “In addition, the Province of North Brabant is certified for the Dutch government’s information security baseline. Compliance with this basic information security framework for all layers of the Dutch public sector required deeper insight into the SAP environment. We made that happen together. As a supplier to the PNB, Ctac was subjected to a gap analysis in terms of the government information security baseline. Consequently, Ctac will soon also be fully certified according to the Dutch government’s information security baseline.”
The wishes of stakeholders were also taken into account. “A major organisation like the Province of North Brabant employs many different people. Everyone wants to see their own interests reflected in the process. From the very beginning, it was very important for us to have everyone working towards a common goal. We worked very hard on that. It is why we managed to complete this process within one year.”
"That means that Ctac is the single point of contact for PNB. That's nice for PNB."
Rob Kuijpers, project manager on behalf of PNBPartner Managed Cloud
Ctac will remain the PNB’s point of contact after the go-live. “We provide a Partner Managed Cloud solution,” states Kuijpers. “This means Ctac is the only point of contact for the PNB. This is convenient, because they know who to get in touch with. As the management coordinator, Ctac is positioned between the PNB and the other suppliers. This reduces the workload and guarantees peace of mind.”
Pleased with its collaboration with Ctac.
“We chose Ctac for this cloud migration because the Province of Brabant has been very satisfied with its work for years. It sees Ctac as a trusted advisor rather than a supplier,” adds Kuijpers. “Ctac makes a genuine contribution to better, smarter solutions for the Province of North Brabant.”
Kuijpers looks back on the project with Ctac, SAP and the PNB with supreme satisfaction: “In a project like this, you work together very closely and intensively, but our collaboration was always excellent. This is what enabled us to achieve this result.” Consequently, the Province of North Brabant now has three clouds: an SAP RISE Private Cloud, a Public Cloud for SAP Business Technology Platform and an Azure Private Cloud. Kuijpers: “The PNB now has a complete solution it can continue to build on. It is an important step towards a data-driven approach. Now that this journey from the basement to the cloud is complete, the Province of North Brabant is ready for the future.”
