Its WANtastic

1
Its WAN-tastic!

• Karen Bridges
• Project Manager
• Brinker International

2
Why a WAN?

• Pre-WAN environment
• Already had a LAN in all restaurants
• NT (mix of 3.5 and 4.0)
• 28.8 Modems for dial-up connectivity to Home
  Office
• Issues with pre-WAN environment
• Software not fully Y2K Compliant
• Polling limitations
• Overall data quality/maintenance issues
• Scheduling limitations for software updates
  (limited window of opportunity, influenced by
  size of company)
• Inability to take advantage of emerging
  ePractices
• Slow email (lengthy turnaround)

3
The case for WAN

• WAN business case pushed for almost three years
• We knew it would overcome the limitations of
  dial-up based infrastructure
• BUT, expensive to purchase, install and maintain.
• Environmental changes offered the Right Time
  for the idea
• WAN costs dropped over time
• Y2K Retrofits needed
• Rather than expense Y2K visits/upgrades, WAN
  install allowed us to capitalize Y2K as an
  investment.
• Short window of opportunity forced quick
  implementation, allowing rapid returns on WAN
  implementation
• WAN would enable new functionality
• Training materials on the intranet
• Increase velocity/accuracy of credit card
  authorizations
• Internet-based applications (procurement, etc)
• Single Source PL
• Manager work-from-home scenarios

4
Our approach

• Metro Frame Relay architecture
• Restaurants
• Hub and Spoke schema
• T-1 for Hub
• 56k pipes for spokes
• Dual hubs in major markets
• Home Office
• Dual DS3s
• Redundancy for failures
• Additional infrastructure
• Dedicated telecom server equipment
• Dedicated server for CC authorizations
• Generator for disaster-recovery and to sustain
  WAN in event of power outage
• Plan B in case of WAN outage
• Alternative polling/credit card authorization
  procedures
• Contractual obligations from telecom service
  provider for uptime

5
WAN architecture
6
Ready, Set, GO!

• Approval from Executive Committee
• Business sponsors (Concept President, CIO)
• Project Teams
• Vendor selection
• Telecom (Service provider, Cabling, etc)
• Implementation specialist
• Y2K hardware/software fulfillment
• Build the Plan
• Complexity of all the dependency variables
• Scheduling conflicts
• Software compatibility testing
• Multiple parties
• Local Phone Companies
• Managers time
• Cabling
• Hub sites first, then spokes
• Project coordination with Y2K efforts/timeline
• Kickoff and Takeoff

7
Implementation Issues

• Communication issues with restaurants
• Local phone company nightmares
• Massive scheduling issues, forcing us into a
  dynamic project plan
• Major service outage
• Implementation challenges to our traditional
  support model
• Hardware challenges
• Y2K timing paramount, immovable deadline for
  retrofits regardless of WAN install
• Morale for project team

8
Post-Implementation Issues

• Lack of understanding of difference between this
  project and a typical software upgrade
• 56k WAN NOT the same as a corporate LAN
• Operations and Training got ahead of the
  technology
• Huge file sizes, not optimized for WAN
  environment
• Misunderstanding about bandwidth requirements for
  streaming video, audio, etc.
• Minimal training at store level on intranet usage
• Ongoing support model differences
• Additional responsibilities placed on network
  engineering group (never exposed to restaurant
  support in past, now mission critical)

9
Final Verdict

• Goals met
• WAN installed in record time (6 months)
• All stores Y2K compliant
• Credit card processing saw dramatic increase in
  speed/accuracy
• All concepts now have training materials
  available via intranet
• Enterprise-wide programs now proceeding
• Online procurement
• Single Source PL
• Lessons Learned
• Defining user expectations in simplified,
  identifiable terms
• Marketing, marketing, marketing
• Great sponsorship helped
• Any projects that involve multiple outsourced
  agents will require massive amounts of risk
  management

10
QA