WISL Maintenance Philosophy

WISL's maintenance philosophy is predicated upon the reality that information systems require on-going change. Whether driven by customer requirements, government or industry regulation or internal organizational needs, the requirement for periodic change is a certainty.

In the initial implementation cycle of the acquisition of a WISL software product by a customer WISL addresses the need for changes by offering a period (typically 3 months) beyond the date of initial installation during which any change required within the context of the software module is implemented without additional cost to the customer. This gives the customer a period of time to kick the tires in production mode and identify misunderstandings of the capabilities of the product relative to their needs or discover needs that were not anticipated within the context of the new information flow.

After the warranty period, all customer initiated change requests are evaluated to determine whether or not they are chargeable. Typically new reporting or processing requirements within the context of a given software module are chargeable. The resulting innovations are considered as added to the module.

WISL offers a maintenance agreement that covers support for all software modules installed for a customer that is renewable annually. The charge for this service is a percentage of the license fee of each installed module. This agreement defines the operational structure within which maintenance is performed. Maintenance of software modules includes the customer requested changes outlined above but also many other updates that may result from government or industry regulation, technical innovation and changes requested by other customers.

A second major category of services covered by the maintenance agreement is user support for exploitation of WISL software capabilities. Typically this service is imparted during informal telephone queries during which the customer is informed or reminded of features that may address immediate needs. This may be characterized as impromptu training and can be a significant factor in improving customer productivity relative to utilizing WISL software products.

A third category of services covered by the maintenance agreement is the periodic "fixing" of data due to workstation failure, user error or other problem. This involves WISL personnel logging onto the system and editing data at the data base level allowing the standard process flow to continue.

A fourth category of services covered by the maintenance agreement is technical support for the computing environment on which the WISL software resides. WISL does not offer comprehensive hardware or OS support but does provide significant assistance in those areas where WISL software and third party software which WISL also supports(Universe DBMS, AccuTerm terminal emulation software, PC Miler) overlaps with other aspects of the computing environment. Typically this involves the use of printers, scanners and other hardware or the impact of upgrades or changes in the computing environment hardware or OS.

The existence of the maintenance agreement enables a free flow of information between WISL and customer which fosters a vital relationship resulting in constantly improving information systems that benefits all involved.