Tamworth Borough Council Recognises Value of IT Service

Consistent Efficiency Gains as ISO/IEC 20000 Becomes 'Business as Usual'

CHESSINGTON, England, January 12 - Tamworth Borough Council's ICT has been praised for its performance,
having achieved year on year savings and increased performance levels since
becoming ISO/IEC 20000 accredited.

This success, which has won the accolades of the Council's senior
management and the national standards body, is the result of a long term
investment in implementing and following effective working processes,
supported by Sunrise Software's
(www.sunrisesoftware.co.uk/main/index.php) web based IT service
management platform Sostenuto.

Assistant Director of ICT Nicki Burton oversees the fully centralised
service desk, which provides support for 450 staff across headquarters and
eighteen remote sites. Having led the project which resulted in Tamworth
becoming one of the first accredited organisations (before BS 15000 was
superseded by ISO/IEC 20000), she submits her team to regular inspections by
the national standards body, BSI.

"At their last visit," says Nicki, "the BSI inspectors commented that the
ISO/IEC 20000 standard had truly become 'business as usual'."

As a relatively small team, Tamworth ICT took a down to earth approach to
the standard, as Nicki explains: "We began by looking at how existing
processes fit the standard, and any new processes had to demonstrate
appropriateness."

Following a procurement process which involved the evaluation of
different ITSM software solutions to support ISO/IEC 20000, Tamworth selected
Sostenuto in 2008.

"After carrying out some site visits, talking to partner councils, and
seeing various demonstrations, it became apparent that of the products
evaluated, Sostenuto was the most cost effective and provided our specified
functionality." says Nicki.

"Good change management capabilities were important for us and I have to
say, this was one of Sostenuto's strong points. Being ITIL aligned, Sostenuto
enables us to track a full incident lifecycle as well as deliver a
significantly more effective change management service. It has provided us
with an ideal platform to meet our ISO 20000 obligations."

Third party performance reports produced in Sostenuto enable the team to
closely monitor supplier performance and negotiate prices where appropriate,
ensuring that the Council is getting the best possible value. This, combined
with headcount savings resulting from efficiencies, has provided a huge boost
to the department's profile.

"We have received numerous positive comments from our customers and from
senior management," says Nicki. "The impact that ICT can have has truly been
recognised and this is very rewarding."

About Sunrise Software (www.sunrisesoftware.co.uk)

Sunrise was founded in 1994 and is a leading independent provider of IT
Service Management solutions to internal and external facing customer
operations.

Its customer base includes over 1,000 blue chip and public sector
organisations, including names such as Anglian Water, Mothercare, the NHS,
Harper Collins, Rugby Football Union and Arts Council England.

Sunrise launched Sostenuto, a process driven, entirely browser based ITSM
solution in 2003.

For further information, please visit www.sunrisesoftware.co.uk.

Note to Editors:

A picture accompanying this release is available through the PA
Photowire. It can be downloaded from www.pa-mediapoint.press.net or
viewed at www.mediapoint.press.net or www.prnewswire.co.uk.

    Media Contacts:

    Angela Steel
    Marketing Manager
    +44-(0)20-8391-9000
    asteel@sunrisesoftware.co.uk

    Jessica Humphrey
    NSPR
    +44-(0)1628-502-606
    jessica@nspr.co.uk

Media Contacts: Angela Steel, Marketing Manager, +44-(0)20-8391-9000, asteel at sunrisesoftware.co.uk. Jessica Humphrey, NSPR, +44-(0)1628-502-606, jessica at nspr.co.uk