Company: Netezza Corporation, Marlboro, MA
Company Description: Netezza (NYSE: NZ) is the global leader in data warehouse and analytic appliances that dramatically simplify high-performance analytics for business users across the extended enterprise, delivering significant competitive and operational advantage in today’s information-intensive marketplaces.
Nomination Category: Support Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Support Team of the Year

Nomination Title: Netezza Installation Team – Hybrid Scaling Plan Optimizes Performance and Customer Satisfaction

Tell the story about what this nominated team achieved since January 1 2008 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

The installation was seamless. The engineers addressed all our questions and
comments with knowledge and enthusiasm.  I was very pleased with the install.
6/2008 Omega survey

Netezza Customer Support began providing a differentiated support experience
to Netezza Customers in September, 2002 when Support installed the first
Netezza System.

Netezza Customer Support consists of three groups – Technical Support (Call
Desk), Technical Account Management (TAM), and Customer Applications
Engineering (includes the Installation Team).
 
Netezza Installation has always been about meticulous preplanning,
understanding the rules of the customers’ data centers, and on-time delivery
and installation.  Detailed site surveys are performed long before a new
system ships from Netezza.  The preplanning and site surveys are so accurate
that Netezza Customer Support opens a new system file with location data in
the Customer Call Ticket System before the Customer’s system ships from
Netezza.  This enables new Customers to enter call tickets to ask questions on
day one after the installation.

The preplanning almost always paid off.  Historical on-time installation rates
are 98%+.  Complex system installations are completed without major issues in
2 to 3 days.  Netezza’s definition of completed is installed, tested, data
loaded, and the Customer is actually able to begin working with the system –
all highly unique accomplishments in the database system world where systems
are often not ready for Customer use for weeks.  The Netezza Installation Team
completed one 12 system rack/150 terabyte installation in 3 days.

I truly cannot imagine how Netezza can possibly improve their service. I know
that we have been a difficult customer, but Netezza has risen to every
challenge.
7/2008 Omega survey

Last year Support implemented across the board strategic changes to support
Netezza business objectives and optimize profitability.  The challenge for CAE
Director Jim Morton was achieving scalability without sacrificing Customer
Satisfaction or slipping schedules.  An installation is the first post sales
opportunity a company has to make a good impression with a Customer – a late
delivery or botched installation results in a Customer Satisfaction hole that
is difficult to dig out of. 

Jim implemented and executed a well thought out hybrid Installation plan.  He
trained Technical Account Managers, Sales Engineers, and Service Partners to
perform or help with installations.  He sometimes utilized these new
Installers to do some of the unpacking prior to the arrival of an experienced
installer.  He worked closely with Netezza Sales and Manufacturing to closely
schedule installations in the same region so he could minimize how often he
had to put experienced Installers on planes.

Once again, good planning paid off for Jim.  Productivity increased – system
racks installed/de-installed/moved per Installer increased by 25%; this
contributed to a Customer Support Gross Margin% increase of 16%.  On-time
installation was 98.6% for last fiscal year, and the Installation Team
achieved an Omega audited CSAT score of 4.1 and a world class Omega Net
Advocacy loyalty score of 52.2%.

The install group and the pre-sales team are unbelievable. They stayed on top
of things like no other vendor that I have worked with - kudos to a great team.
6/2008 Omega survey

Major Accomplishments:

•             98.6% on-time installation
•             52.2% Net Advocacy/Promoter Loyalty Score (based on monthly Omega
surveys)
•             Installation won 2008 Omega NorthFace Awards for world class CSAT
score of 4.1 (1 to 5 scale with 5 being the best)

List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

http://www.netezza.com/releases/2009/release041409.htm

http://thestevies.com/ABA09Attachments/Netezza/Installation/

Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the nominated team:

CAE Director Jim Morton has been at Netezza for 8 years.  Jim was the Netezza
IT Manager for 4 years before starting CAE.  Jim has almost 25 years
experience in high tech as a software engineer, product manager, IT manager,
and support manager.  Jim has an engineering degree from Worcester Polytechnic
Institute.