The Operational and Cost Benefits of Remote Database Administration

What is a DBA?return on investment (ROI), including:
Most enterprise applications are designed to utilize and- Fixed cost: Remote DBA services are not only
be stored on relational databases. In order for thesesignificantly less expensive than in-house DBAs, they
enterprise applications to run efficiently, constantare usually delivered at a contractually set price,
attention must be given to the database componentsallowing for more granular and effective financial
upon which they depend.planning for future IT expenditures.
Large companies typically have teams of Database- Increased team productivity: Skilled IT employees that
Administrators (DBAs) dedicated to administering themight have otherwise been used for in-house
environmental aspects of their application databases,database administration can be re-deployed to more
while smaller firms might share DBA resourcesbusiness-critical, revenue-producing projects.
throughout various areas. A DBA might wear many- Accelerated problem resolution: Remote DBA
hats within an organization; he or she usually maintainssolutions focus entirely upon administrative support,
a running knowledge of operating system24x7. This minimizes response times for problem
requirements, and works comfortably with dataresolution, user requests, and performance-related
architects and application developers.issues.
His or her responsibilities nearly always include disaster- Increased availability to 24/7: While many firms
recovery, performance analysis and tuning, datapursue cost savings by outsourcing development and
dictionary maintenance, some database design, andadministration tasks overseas, differences in time
sometimes network administration tasks, such aszones and workdays can create gaps in coverage
troubleshooting system errors. However, the DBA'sand response times and force in-house staff to work
main responsibility is to ensure the availability andoff-hours. On-shore remote DBA eliminates these
continued optimization of the data storageissues.
infrastructure.- Leveraging state-of-the-art monitoring tools:
Why outsource the DBA function?Outsourcing to a remote DBA eliminates the costs
Even in the most dynamic of developmentthat a firm would have to spend on expensive
environments much, if not most, of a DBA's time andin-house monitoring tools.
resources are spent doing low-level administration- Tracking and auditing database management work:
work. While such routine tasks are critical to theFull accounting of work performed, including case
support of your organization, rarely are they related totracking and resolution analysis, is a valuable IT
a company's core competencies around revenuemanagement tool that can allow more granular
generation.breakdown of DBA expenditures.
In tough economic times, in-house database- DBA mentoring: Expert DBAs provide valuable
administration can be problematic for a variety ofguidance to IT managers who are adopting new
reasons, including reduced IT budgets, employeetechnologies or who only have junior-level DBAs in
turnover, leave, or other reasons for declininghouse.
head-count (and the associated costs of on boarding- A second pair of eyes: IT managers who do not
and training replacements).have the budget to increase headcount can use
One of the more compelling reasons that manyremote DBA to add an additional level of support at a
companies are turning toward outsourcing the DBAfraction of the expense.
function is that firms are looking to maintain or improveCost savings
their competitive advantages. One-way to do this is toAs access to capital becomes scarcer, companies of
utilize managed services, including remote DBAall sizes are turning to remote database management
providers.expertise so that they can focus their resources on
As companies tighten their belts, they increasingly lookcore competencies. The standard industry maxim is
toward their IT departments to streamline andthat remote DBA clients find typical cost savings are
automate processes, including that of databaseat least 40 percent, and can be as much as 60
administration. However, database environments arepercent, compared to using in-house DBAs.
expansive and extensive, containing data that hasAdditional ROI
been collected from every possible corner of every- Ensure incident response times of as little as fifteen
corporation -- and, in some cases, the DBAs whominutes, per some providers' contractual guarantee.
manage these databases are being let go. Companies,- Redeploy IT talent and capital resources from
IT managers, and CIOs are seeing this, correctly, as adatabase administration to more strategic initiatives.
risk: "I'm laying off my DBAs, but somebody still has to- Leverage database administration best practices and
manage this infrastructure, containing huge amounts ofservice expertise.
sensitive, proprietary, and mission-critical information --- Quickly absorb new database platforms during
and they've got to do it cost-effectively and withmergers and acquisitions.
minimum risk to the organization."- Reduce staff turnover.
The ROI of remote database administration- Eliminate night, weekend, and holiday shifts.
In order to cut costs and optimize IT operations,- Increase security, compliance, and governance best
companies are turning to remote databasepractices.
administration solutions. Established, effective remote- Eliminate time and cost for ongoing training.
DBA providers help businesses increase productivityIncreasing the mileage for a company's financial
and reduce the cost of enterprise computing-enablingresources is the prime concern for all IT executives
clients to compete in today's demanding businesstoday. Turning to remote DBA specialists is the most
environment, maintain institutional integrity, and reduceestablished, sustainable, and cost effective way to
system vulnerability.improve database coverage and efficiency and
A remote DBA program can provide a considerablesecure peace of mind with 24/7 proactive support.