BT Global Services

BT Global Services (formerly BT Ignite and re-named in April 2003) is BT’s managed services and solutions provider, serving multi-site organisations worldwide. Its core target market is the top 10,000 global multi-site organisations with European operations. Building on the existing relationships BT has with large multi-site organisations in the UK and internationally, BT Global Services provides global reach and a complete range of ICT solutions and services.

Meeting customers’ needs

We have a highly experienced and skilled workforce, serving our customers around the world. Almost 50% of BT Global Services’ people are employed outside the UK, ensuring a local understanding and approach. We deliver global account and service management to our major corporate customers around the world.

BT’s extensive global communications network and strong strategic partnerships enable us to serve customers in all key commercial centres of Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. In Europe, this network links more than 250 towns and cities across 16 countries back into our ubiquitous UK network, and beyond into the Americas and Asia Pacific.

BT Global Services is a supplier of leading-edge global communications services, with a portfolio ranging from desktop and network equipment and software, transport and connectivity, managed LAN, WAN and IP-VPN (internet protocol virtual private network) services, applications hosting, storage and security services, through to business transformation and change management for complex global requirements. Our award-winning, flagship MPLS (multi-protocol label switching) product was launched in 2000. With 500 points of presence around the globe, it can be accessed from over 60 countries, and is recognised as a leading product in the marketplace. MPLS-based IP virtual private networks are the next generation of data networks for corporate customers, supporting voice, data and video applications. These networks offer more flexibility and greater service performance. During the 2003 financial year, quarter-on-quarter order growth for MPLS services averaged around 50%.

Solutions and value-added services

BT Global Services’ larger and more complex customer contracts are delivered through or managed by BT Global Solutions and Syntegra.

BT Global Solutions’ portfolio covers a number of key ICT-related areas, including: IP infrastructure, CRM, applications and hosting, and outsourcing.

BT Global Solutions has over 5,000 employees and delivers services for customers in 136 countries. Its sales order value was £3.6 billion in the 2003 financial year, up 33% on 2002.

Syntegra, BT’s experts in business transformation and change management, employs around 5,000 people worldwide, with particular strengths in financial services and government. Syntegra is a key player in the global trading systems market. In the 2003 financial year, Syntegra signed UK Government business worth more than £500 million.

Customer wins

In addition to contracts signed in conjunction with BT Retail, BT Global Services entered into a number of other significant customer contracts in 2003. Examples include:

• In November 2002, working closely with BT Retail, we signed a seven-year contract worth around €1 billion with Unilever, to manage and develop the company’s global communications infrastructure. This is one of the largest outsourcing contracts in UK corporate history and the majority of revenues will come from operations outside the UK. BT Global Services will supply Unilever with a range of voice, data and mobile services, as well as developing new technologies on its behalf.
• In January 2003, we were awarded the contract to restructure the communications platform of the Bavarian state in Germany. The seven-year contract is the largest government contract BT has signed outside the UK and involves the fundamental restructuring and harmonisation of the Bavarian state’s entire communications platform.
• In January 2003, we won a four-year contract with the Ministry of Public Administration in Spain, worth over €20 million, to provide fixed-voice, data and internet services. The ministry, which has more than 400 sites throughout Spain, provides administrative support to government at the central, regional and local levels.
• In April 2003, we signed a three-year contract with high street bank HBOS plc to manage its voice and data services.
• Syntegra signed deals worth in excess of £800 million, including a ten-year strategic partnership with Essex County Council – one of the biggest partnerships of its kind ever established by a county council.

Business realignment

On 1 April 2002, the management of BT’s contracts with former Concert customers was transferred to BT Global Services and BT Retail.

During 2003, the Concert MPLS virtual private network platform, with its global presence in Europe, USA and Asia, was integrated with the BT Global Services European platform, to enhance reach and coverage, on schedule and within budget.

BT Global Services also achieved greater integration of its European businesses through continued product harmonisation, network and customer service centre consolidation and people realignment.

Global reach

In Europe, BT Global Services owns operations in: Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain, the Nordics and Central and Eastern Europe. We deliver services to customers in Italy through our joint venture Albacom and I.Net (our applications hosting company). In the Americas and Asia Pacific, we deliver service to our customers through a combination of direct sales and services operations and strategic partners.

BT Global Services’ network-based services (Frame Relay, ATM, IP-VPN) extend to and across North and South America, and the Asia Pacific region. This means that BT Global Services’ products are delivered seamlessly within and from Europe to our own locations in the Americas, and delivered locally through interconnect and supply agreements with regional carriers. In the Asia Pacific region, we deliver services locally to customers via a network of partners in the key commercial centres of Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia, and provide reach across the region through other regional operators.

Global customer service is provided via service and network management centres around the world, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As part of BT Global Services’ programme to deliver a standard operating environment across our operations, all network operations are in the process of being consolidated into a single network control centre in Brussels. This centre will manage BT’s networks across 16 European countries, and through functions such as shared incident management and fault resolution, performance monitoring, and seamless customer service, help customers maximise the use of their infrastructure.