ITNA tasked with the continuity of the National Library of South Africa

In this age of cheap information, one can easily forget the value of a good book! Books are invaluable, whether you need information on African culture or looking for a biography on Carl Peters.  Imagine the joy of curling up on the couch with the latest page turner by your favorite author. Books also still play a major role in the education of our children, nowhere more so than in rural areas of South Africa where computers and the Internet are a lesser known luxury. Books have been around for centuries and even in the age of digital information they still play an important role.  I suspect that they are going to be around for a while longer.

Marius Richter, head of ITNA’s Business Development, was given the opportunity to showcase ITNA’s immense experience in data backup solutions and consulting services to the National Library of South Africa’s CIO, Lesiba Ledwaba.

ITNA was given the huge challenge of validating that the Library’s mission critical data was backed up and secure as well as evaluating that their backup infrastructure and current solution was suitable to the library’s requirements. This was the first step in testing and improving a practical and reliable Disaster Recovery Plan for the Library.

This task was taken up in November 2011 by ITNA’s Solutions Specialists consisting of Marius Richter,  Dale Buckett (Strategic Consultant) and ITNA’s experienced Operations Team. The Project is currently divided into two phases:

Phase 1 - Scoping and Information gathering

This phase is critical as it creates the base on which the solution will be built.

It starts with an interview of the senior business and technology users in the Library in order to determine the business process flows for each department.  The tools and systems used for every step of the process are identified and the rules and conditions around the data for each tool and system are  established.   Most importantly, ITNA has to understand the business requirement around the data, how important it is to the business and the timing governing it.

The results from Phase 1 will allow us to draft a comprehensive data manual, which will be the basis upon which the rules for backups will be created. This data manual will also form the foundation for future Business Continuity planning.

Phase 2 - Draft policies on data management and protection, including recommendations

This phase starts off with a review of the current policies covering the management and protection of data already in place at the Library. This, in conjunction with the new data gathered in Phase 1, will be the basis of the new policies. The ITNA team will then evaluate the technologies currently available in the market and match it to the gaps identified in the data manual.

A formal recommendation of the way forward is then presented to the CIO, and pending sign-off can be implemented.

Through this project, the National Library can ensure that their data is secure and that their technology is able to cope with future demands from members.  Ensuring the continuity of the Library is just another way in which ITNA brings Trusted Value not only to businesses but also to communities.