Royal Ahold Signs $500 million Enterprise Outsourcing Agreement
AMSTERDAM, the Netherlands -- In an effort to support its global strategic growth initiatives, Dutch grocer Royal Ahold entered a $500 million, 5-year agreement for a global information technology enterprise outsourcing solution.
EDS will provide Ahold with a flexible IT infrastructure and applications management services to re-engineer its global operations, which include more than 4,000 supermarkets and retail outlets in Europe and the United States. According to EDS, the IT strategy will provide the grocer with the agility to respond to market opportunities while EDS purchases, maintains and supports the needed hardware and software.
"Our competitive markets and strategic goals require us to focus our attention and resources on our core food retail business," said Anders Moberg, president and c.e.o. for Ahold. "EDS worked with us to develop a global solution for our current geographic areas, and has demonstrated a commitment to a global integrated service delivery that will help us execute our business strategy."
EDS will assume responsibility for the global retailer's IT infrastructure, which will include hosting Ahold's mainframe and midrange servers, providing local area network, and voice network support. This will help reduce Ahold's total cost of ownership while allowing it to more effectively manage front- and back-office technology investments.
EDS Agility Alliance partners Cisco, EMC, Microsoft, Sun, among others, have jointly collaborated on the contract and will work together to deliver IT and business solutions to Ahold.
This agreement also consolidates Ahold's helpdesk support. EDS will manage Ahold's computing workplace of more than 9,600 desktop and laptops, printers, and e-mail users and provide help desk support for more than 10,000 users.
Approximately 450 Ahold employees located in the Netherlands and in the U.S. will transition to EDS.
Ahold's food retail operations in the United States comprise of Stop & Shop, Giant-Landover, Giant-Carlisle, and Tops. Ahold's European retail operations include brand names such as Albert Heijn, Hypernova, Etos, and Gall & Gall.
EDS will provide Ahold with a flexible IT infrastructure and applications management services to re-engineer its global operations, which include more than 4,000 supermarkets and retail outlets in Europe and the United States. According to EDS, the IT strategy will provide the grocer with the agility to respond to market opportunities while EDS purchases, maintains and supports the needed hardware and software.
"Our competitive markets and strategic goals require us to focus our attention and resources on our core food retail business," said Anders Moberg, president and c.e.o. for Ahold. "EDS worked with us to develop a global solution for our current geographic areas, and has demonstrated a commitment to a global integrated service delivery that will help us execute our business strategy."
EDS will assume responsibility for the global retailer's IT infrastructure, which will include hosting Ahold's mainframe and midrange servers, providing local area network, and voice network support. This will help reduce Ahold's total cost of ownership while allowing it to more effectively manage front- and back-office technology investments.
EDS Agility Alliance partners Cisco, EMC, Microsoft, Sun, among others, have jointly collaborated on the contract and will work together to deliver IT and business solutions to Ahold.
This agreement also consolidates Ahold's helpdesk support. EDS will manage Ahold's computing workplace of more than 9,600 desktop and laptops, printers, and e-mail users and provide help desk support for more than 10,000 users.
Approximately 450 Ahold employees located in the Netherlands and in the U.S. will transition to EDS.
Ahold's food retail operations in the United States comprise of Stop & Shop, Giant-Landover, Giant-Carlisle, and Tops. Ahold's European retail operations include brand names such as Albert Heijn, Hypernova, Etos, and Gall & Gall.