White Paper

On-Demand Event Management

Solutions
The next step for efficient delivery of Sport

About the Author Introduction

Dilbagh Gill is Head of Sport Technology
Practice at Mahindra Satyam and spearheads the
FIFA relationship for the entire IT solution
development and deployment for the 2010 FIFA
World CupTM. Besides this, Dilbagh is developing
the Sport Technology Practice with a world-class
team of consultants serving customers and
events of various scale across all geographies. He
is currently based out of Boston.
He can be contacted at
Dilbagh_Gill@mahindrasatyam.com
The solutions offered currently for management of events are generally bespoke
applications developed for specific customer engagements. It is time to look ahead
to hosted “on-demand” solutions for event management. This enables customers
to use such solutions as a service for quick ramp-up/ramp-down, limit fixed costs
and access continuously improving solutions and services. In this paper, we discuss
the business case for providing such a hosted solution for event management and
Mahindra Satyam’s vision for such a solution. We also offer a roadmap for service
delivery to global event organizers with a penchant for excellence and futuristic
planning.
Business Case
Most of the applications used in the sports arena for managing various events are
either bespoke applications developed from the ground up for each event or some
core application modules tailored to the needs of each event. Lately, the following
key trends have emerged, leading to considerable changes in the way these
applications are developed and deployed.

• These bespoke applications have been developed on diverse technologies with

non-standard interface, and sports companies have to spend huge sums on
developing and supporting these applications for each event. Also these bespoke
applications are rarely developed as a first-class fully-configurable, denying the
organizers the opportunity to achieve maximum benefit from the legacy

• Customer requirements related to business rules, workflow services, reporting

services and data services within each of these applications have standardized
over a period of time and there is a convergence in the way these various events
are managed. The underpinnings of this trend are increased efforts from
organization committees such as IOC, pressure from media and broadcasters to
create common interfaces so that media feeds can be standardized and also the
obvious benefits that accrue from maximizing the legacy of big events

Inside the issue

Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 01
Business Case ............................................................................................................................................. 01
Need for On-Demand EMS ......................................................................................................................... 03
Solution Platform ....................................................................................................................................... 07
Service Delivery .......................................................................................................................................... 09
Summary ................................................................................................................................................... 10

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• Developing bespoke applications is very time-consuming and cost-intensive. In

some cases when the existing applications are reused this happens more by
way of new ad-hoc development rather than customization by mere configuration

• There is an emergence of new delivery models such as SaaS (Software-As-A-

Service) for other markets, which allow clients to commission a new environment
hosted on the Internet, preconfigured with standard services on a need basis

The above factors have created the demand for a new way of developing and
deploying applications for sports companies that would allow standard event
management services to be commissioned on time using minimal set of resources.
Mahindra Satyam has positioned itself as provider of the requisite Event Management
Services (EMS) and this solution offering is called On-Demand EMS.

Compared to the on-premise installation where the solution is either licensed or

developed bespoke and installed in the client’s environment, the On-Demand EMS
access is sold using a subscription model, with customers paying an ongoing fee to
use the application. On-Demand EMS also offers various customization capabilities
to account for differences in the way each event is managed to ensure that each
client has a unique experience while using the solution.
The On-Demand EMS access
is sold using a subscription
model, with customers paying On the technical side, Mahindra Satyam as the On-Demand EMS provider hosts
an ongoing fee to use the the application and data centrally—deploying patches and upgrades to the
application transparently, and delivering access to end-users over the Internet
application. through a browser or smart-client application. It is important to note that as
sports events have a fixed start and end-date, sometimes it could be considered
“risky” by the provider and client to apply certain patches during key event periods.
In such cases, the provider would be responsible for maintaining multiple images
of the same application to ensure that there is no disruption in the services during
key periods. Also the provider offers multiple environments to allow clients to test
an upgrade before it is made available on production system. This approach
mitigates some of the risks associated with such maintenance activities for any
system.

The main involvement of the customers would be in the functional cycle, to specify
their configuration and customization requirements for their Event Management
System. If the customers were to engage Mahindra Satyam in repeat business, even
the functional time could be reduced and maturity would develop in hosted EMS
Solution team with regard to the ramp-up and support of the customized hosted
EMS solution.

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The On-Demand EMS solution
frees the customer from all
overheads and converts most
of these costs to a variable
cost structure whereby the
client can pay based on the
usage of the service.
Need for On-Demand EMS
Reduces Fixed Costs
Most of the custom EMS implementations are plagued with non-availability of skilled
resources, long implementation time and huge upfront investment. All of these
add up to huge fixed costs for development, installation and maintenance of EMS
applications. The On-Demand EMS solution frees the customer from all overheads
and converts most of these costs to a variable cost structure whereby the client can
pay based on the usage of the service. Also On-Demand EMS can be commissioned
on-time reducing the lead time for installation and other activities reducing the
cost further.
- Maintaining in-house inventory of specialized skills
Self Hosting - Longer implementation times
- Larger upfront investment
- Costly maintenance and support overheads
- Reduces fixed costs
- Pay based on usage
On-Demand EMS - Variable cost structure
- On time commissioning
Figure 1
Global Reach
On-Demand EMS is deployed over the cloud, which means the application is globally
accessible without any need for managing multiple installations and the replication
between these installations. At the same time, it poses a unique set of challenges
related to security of the installed application and its performance. However, these
challenges can be sufficiently addressed by applying some common guidelines while
evaluating various vendors for the commissioning of the platform for Service Level
Agreement (SLA) and by ensuring ongoing compliance. Application hosted over
the cloud would need appropriate security mechanisms.
Also moving critical business data "outside the walls" introduces a risk of data loss
or inadvertent exposure of sensitive information. In certain cases, the client may
prefer a hybrid model where some of the critical business services are hosted on a
dedicated environment while others might be accessed in an On-Demand
environment. A review of all the services to assess what constitutes critical business
data is necessary along with evaluating the service provider to ensure that
appropriate measures are in place to meet the client’s security standards. Due to
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the ubiquitous nature of the Internet and the consumption growth, the price for
bandwidth has come down in recent years. Most of the telecom companies and
network providers have well-defined SLAs for their services and these are available
at reasonable cost. Hence the performance of the application deployed over the
cloud becomes a non-issue as performance requirements can be matched by simply
selecting appropriate network vendors.

Disadvantages of traditional Benefits of On-Demand Solution

approach - Global reach
- Complex firewall rules for - One-step provisioning for all
confirguring access to application departments
across various departments
- Difficult to provision new
applications across all departments
because of heterogeneous
hardware and software stacks

Most of the telecom Department # 1 Department # 2

companies and network

providers have well-defined Firewall Firewall
Universal Access

SLAs for their services

available at reasonable cost. ISV Application - On Demand EMS
PeopleSoft SAP PeopleSoft SAP
Hosting Layer
(Including Billing, Metering, Infrastructure Provisioning,
Oracle Common Application Services)
Oracle

Traditional Approach Vs On-Demand Solution

Figure 2

Access to global workforce

Mahindra Satyam has well-trained staff for managing various processes related to
event management. Also increased usage of On-Demand EMS would further create
a global workforce with specialized skills within the entire ecosystem of people,
impart trainings, and manage applications. This could potentially result in BPO
service offerings from various providers for managing different events. The client
can tap into this global workforce for skilled resources in these domains.

There would also be expertise in engaging the local populace and training them to
be involved in event management. This would create a social legacy and a
partnership approach to propagating the hosted solution and the business process
expertise among the general public in the neighborhood of the local event venue.

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By transferring the
responsibility for these
"overhead" activities to
Mahindra Satyam, the client’s
IT department can focus more
on strategic activities that
align with the business goals
of the enterprise.
Managing IT Focus within the enterprise
With On-Demand EMS, the responsibility of deploying an application and keep it
running. Day-to-day testing and installing patches, managing upgrades, monitoring
performance, ensuring high availability, etc are handled by Mahindra Satyam. By
transferring the responsibility for these "overhead" activities to Mahindra Satyam,
the client’s IT department can focus more on strategic activities that align with the
business goals of the enterprise. With On-Demand EMS, the IT department has an
opportunity to contribute to the success of the enterprise more directly than ever
before.
Improved services
On-Demand EMS is built on Mahindra Satyam’s experience of managing events
for various clients and based on best practices for implementing SaaS model for
other markets. The services available in the solution are designed to be effective,
simple, flexible and efficient. A new customer would immediately benefit from
this; plus any improvements that are made subsequently would be directly available
without any complex installations on the client’s side. The services will also be
monitored based on SLA agreements that would guarantee the level of performance,
availability, and security that Mahindra Satyam would provide and also penalties
for each parameter. This would all result in an improved quality of service, higher
satisfaction and greater predictability in the way business is run for the client.
Reduced ramp-up and ramp-down time
During times of activity between the events, delays in ramp up or ramp down for
the hardware/software infrastructure impact the revenue significantly. A higher
ramp-up time would result in significant loss of brand value or fan base for a
particular event while on the other hand a higher ramp-down time could result in
underutilization of hardware assets for long durations. An On-Demand EMS would
alleviate these issues as ramp up and ramp down would be managed by Mahindra
Satyam. Moreover, Mahindra Satyam would be able to manage these transitions
better by benefitting from centralization. A ramp-up for one client could be
compensated by a ramp down for some other client. The need for faster ramp-up/
ramp-down time goes beyond simple hardware/software infrastructure and could
be linked even to other specialized services such as BPO services, support services,
etc. All of these services with lesser ramp-up/ramp-down time offer increased
business opportunities and significant cost savings for the client.
Data consolidation
As the data is maintained at one place, the client would benefit from reusing some
of this data across various events if the organizers of these events have established
a contract to share data. For example, an organizer may want to copy the venue
information from an event that occurred in the past to a new event planned for
future. There are possibilities of cloning various other kinds of data as well (copy
fan information, copy venue information, copy accreditee information, etc.) based
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On-Demand EMS will help
achieve economies of scale by
offering virtualized services to
more customers utilizing the
same infrastructure.
on the requirements of the event. These options are only available, provided
organizers have an agreement in place to share data. Without this, by default the
data would remain individualized and isolated for each organizer.
Time and cost intensive process
- Plan Hardware
- Get Quote
- Finalize Bio
- Procure Hardware
- Install and Build OS
- Install and Configure Application
- Bring to Production
Ramp-up period for traditionally
hosted applications
One click ramp up for
On-Demand Applications
Figure 3
Achieve economies of scale
On-Demand EMS will help achieve economies of scale by offering virtualized services
to more customers utilizing the same infrastructure. At the same time, some
customers will prefer the option of having dedicated installations because of the
nature of the application. The following considerations can be applied to decide
which customers can be served through the single infrastructure through
virtualization and which customers would still need dedicated infrastructure.
• How much is the storage space required for each customer? If storage
requirements are very high, then separate-infrastructure approach is probably
better
• How many concurrent end-users would use the application from the same
customer? If the number is pretty high, then separate-infrastructure approach
is better
• Is there a requirement for offering value-added services such as backup, restore,
and advanced infrastructure monitoring? If this is the case, then this might
again necessitate the need for separate infrastructure
So in a nutshell, for majority of clients a consolidated infrastructure would help
achieve economies of scale and reduce costs but there might still be clients for
whom a separate infrastructure could be a better option. The new model will help
serve both the clients equally well, depending on their needs.
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Copying of information across
events is possible to avoid
redundant efforts to recreate
similar events.
Solution Platform
Core Features
Mahindra Satyam has developed a strong foundation for hosted EMS solution. It is
highly configurable, customizable, scalable and reusable across a wide variety of
events. The vision is to have a platform for event management that would develop
over time, incorporating best practices and a focused approach to serving and growing
the customer base. While currently a core set of features and functionalities are
offered, including accreditation, volunteer management, logistics and transportation
management, there would be new modules that provide support for ticketing,
hospitality, conferences, etc. From the technical standpoint, a strong base has been
laid. For instance, a major technical aspect of any event management solution, the
data management of users, organizations, roles and privileges are configured via
import from standard formats such as XML. The online registration form is
configurable for a given event. Similarly, the entire user navigation experience
during online registration is configurable on a per-event basis. Multiple languages
and multiple browser types are supported. Copying of information across events is
possible to avoid redundant efforts to recreate similar events. Fast search of user
information is feasible and the criteria for search can be set up dynamically. Also,
templates for reports of event information can be set up dynamically and exported
to standard formats like MS Word, Excel, PDF, etc.
Accreditation Space and Material Planning
- Accreditee Registration - Product Catalogue Management
- Accreditation Center: Privileges, - Physical Model of Sites/Locations
Quotas, Access
- Badge Management
Core EMS
Ground Transport Volunteer Management
- Vehicle Fleet Management - Volunteer Registration
- Schedule Management - Interviewing, Training, Staffing,
- Transportation Management Shift Management
- Uniform Allocation
Core EMS
- Master Data Management
- User Administration
- GUI Configuration
- Vent Configuration
Figure 4
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The Volunteer Staff
Management (VSM) module
enables volunteers for events
to register online, be
screened, interviewed and
mapped to be given volunteer
assignments.
The Accreditation Module
The Accreditation Module (ACR) enables user registration, management of
accreditation workflow, assignment of privileges and access to event venues and
uploading of images. Management of the accreditation center and the requisite
back-office management are provided. Configuring the layout and processing of
badges in bulk is also provided.
The Space and Material Planning Module
The logistics of managing the movement of items required to run events is enabled
by the Space and Material Planning Module (SMP). In this module, a layered
approach to the allocation of physical items to specific event venues and timeline
is followed. Catalogue management of the product lines and requisite items is
provided. The logistics of mapping items to event venues is done via a flexible
model that separates the physical view of the rooms, sites and locations
corresponding to a specific event venue from the abstract logical model used to
represent the areas and functions associated with such a venue.
The Volunteer Management Module
A critical part of the success of any event is managing the volunteer staff. The
Volunteer Staff Management (VSM) module enables volunteers for events to register
online, be screened, interviewed and mapped to be given volunteer assignments.
Capture of staff information, upload of position information, management of shifts,
and allocation of uniforms are all covered.
The Ground Transport Module
The transportation of organizers, players, referees, volunteers and other participants
from and to the event venues is carried out in the Ground Transportation (GTS)
module. This module ensures best use of all the available resources such as vehicle
fleet, drivers and depots and thereby optimizes the transportation schedule by
providing shuttle services, luggage vans, pool cars and dedicated cars in a timely
manner and also on an as-needed basis.
The roadmap for the hosted solution will comprise ticketing, hospitality and other
aspects of event management going forward. With a hosted solution, the benefit for
the customer would be addition of new modules and features giving a seamless
experience where they could sign-on to a new service offerings on an as-needed
basis.
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Technical Architecture
Business
Objectives Mapped Application Architecture

- Ability to work remotely

- Web based technology Internet users

- Web serviced enabled Web Services Controller

- Technology neutral
- Better scalability
- More interoperability
Business Object (API)

- Role based access

- Report Generation
- Reusable components
- Search functionality Application Specific
- Data level access Security / Session Objects like Reporting
- Multi-lingual support Objects EMS Core, Accrediation, SMP, Objects
- Image capture GTS, VSM, Search

- Web serviced enabled

- Technology neutral
- Better scalability
- More interoperability Data Access Layer SMTP Services

- Mature database
SQL Server 2005

As every application needs -

-
Auto communications
Interoperability with
Database
existing systems Mail Server
these services, this approach Server

alleviates the need for Figure 5

Independent Software Physical Architecture

Vendors (ISVs) such as The physical architecture consists of web server farm hosting presentation and
Mahindra Satyam to write business services layer of the application. At the backend, the database schema is
created using multi-tenant shared schema approach which allows us to serve a
these services all over again. large number of tenants/clients per database server.

Service Delivery
This section explains the efficient service delivery platform for On-Demand EMS
solution within a new ecosystem of Independent Service Vendors (ISV) and hosting
service providers. In the traditional sense, the role of a hosting provider is limited
to providing hardware related services only. In this new ecosystem, hosting service
providers would also be responsible for providing common software infrastructure
services such as configuration, run-time exception handling and reporting, logging
and auditing, tracing, caching, data access, etc. As every application needs these
services, this approach alleviates the need for Independent Software Vendors (ISVs)
such as Mahindra Satyam. ISVs would only be responsible for developing user
interface and business logic functions of the application. On-Demand EMS would
be one such application which will be deployed on this platform. If required,
customization of On-Demand EMS could be done for each client and the solution
could be deployed separately for each client. There is also a possibility of sharing
the same application instance across multiple clients depending on the scale. Figure
6 depicts this scenario where the first instance is shared by client 1,2,3 while the
second instance is created exclusively for client 4. BPO service providers as usual
would be responsible for the operational activities of running the business processes
and would thrive due to the standardization of business processes.

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Mahindra Satyam has an integrated offering for an On-Demand EMS in such an

ecosystem playing both the role of Independent Service Vendor as well as hosting
service provider. Mahindra Satyam already provides hosting services to its clients
on a variety of platforms using various delivery models. Mahindra Satyam’s core
On-Demand EMS offering along with strong hosting capabilities uniquely position
us to deliver On-Demand EMS solutions within this new ecosystem of software
and hosting service providers.

BPO Providers

ISV’s
} Application services sharing (Accreditation,
Transportation, Logistics, Volunteer Staff Management)
On Demand
EMS, Client # 1,2,3
On Demand
EMS, Client # 4

UI+Biz Logic
Other On
Demand
Application
UI+Biz Logic
UI+Biz Logic
Mahindra Satyam’s core On-
Business Services
Demand EMS offering along Business Services Sharing Marketing Involving

Monitoring
Billing

with strong hosting

SLA
Application Architecture
capabilities uniquely position Application ArcheType Services Sharing Logging
Exception Data Data
handling Binding Binding
us to deliver On-Demand EMS

Escalation
OS & Core Infrastructure

Incident
solutions within this new Hosting Fault
Database
Intr. Core
Platform Software Sharing; Tolerance Tools Monitoring

Operational Services
ecosystem of software and Services OS, SQL Server, DHCP, DNS, AD
Providers Storage Network Execution Security
Services
hosting service providers.

Capacity
Planning
Hardware
Hardware Sharing
Servers Disks Network

Real Estate Sharing

Power, etc Data Center

Figure 6
Summary
It largely remains expensive to maintain bespoke applications for managing each
event within the sports arena. The time is ripe for consolidation and standardization
of Event Management Services and offering them as a hosted service instead. Also
the current breed of technologies and other services allow us migrate easily to this
new model and realize the benefits of centralization.
The new delivery model translates to huge cost savings for each client along with
other benefits such as timely commissioning, reduced ramp-up/ramp-down, global
reach as well as continuously improving solutions and services. With this model,
clients can now focus on their core business processes rather than having to spend
time looking at ways to manage the technology landscape.
Mahindra Satyam is uniquely positioned to exploit this alternative delivery model
because of its past experience in managing and developing event management
applications, a core On-Demand EMS offering, a deep understanding of this new
business model and strong hosting capabilities. We believe this is a win-win scenario
for the clients and the service providers. Moreover, Mahindra Satyam would remain
committed to its vision of creating more value for its customers using this new model.

For further information please write to rfi@mahindrasatyam.com

www.mahindrasatyam.com

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