Better solutions.
Better deals.
Better partnerships.
HES Technology identifies and provides more effective technology solutions for the higher education sector.
HES continues to bolster its technology portfolio and its offerings for the higher education sector. Over the past year, HES Technology has executed a wide array of projects, emphasising technology’s pivotal role in higher education. We are currently in the midst of a transformation journey as we shift our operational focus to value-added services. This strategic evolution is aimed at fostering deeper engagement within the sector by offering services tailored to the specific needs of our members.
HES has been successful in generating significant savings for the sector while negotiating highly technical contracts.
By 2025, HES will be a comprehensive cloud services provider with a range
of services and solutions designed specifically for the sector. Academic institutions are already experiencing tangible benefits from our evolving approach. Macquarie University, for example, achieved cost savings in excess of $1 million migrating database workloads to AWS. HES played an integral role, providing invaluable insight and program management throughout the project.
Subsequently, HES has extended its expertise by conducting Migration Readiness Assessments for more than ten universities, each aiming to replicate the success witnessed at Macquarie. Additionally, HES is actively collaborating with our partners to operationalise
cloud managed services and Financial Operations (FinOps) solutions, which will be made accessible to our members at preferential rates.
Offering even greater value to the sector.
HES secures sector-wide price deals
Sector-wide price deals have been instrumental in optimising cost efficiencies and enhancing operational agility across various technology domains.
Through Oracle pricing aggregation, universities benefited from streamlined procurement processes and favourable pricing structures. Similarly, negotiated agreements with industry giants like Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and Azul Intelligence Cloud unlocked cost- effective access to scalable, high-value higher education solutions.
These sector-wide deals negotiated
by HES facilitated the seamless adoption of cutting-edge technologies and empowered universities to stay competitive in the rapidly evolving digital landscape.
Java initiative saves millions
HES orchestrated a series of Java achievements in a groundbreaking move, ensuring substantial cost savings and forging strategic alliances. Through deal aggregation and negotiations with Oracle, HES secured an agreement to uphold older licensing metrics for Java, shielding member institutions from a potential 300% price hike associated with the new employee-based metric.
By providing detailed instructions and scripts for Java deployments, HES also facilitated accurate reporting, earning recognition from Oracle for the approach.
HES on the road
This year, expanding our networking and business development initiatives, our Technology practice leaders will embark on a national roadshow, engaging decision-makers from both higher education and dual sectors.
This outreach effort aims to foster valuable connections and partnerships.
Additionally, HES representatives actively participated in relevant higher education conferences throughout the year, seizing opportunities to engage with industry leaders, share insights, and explore collaborative ventures.
The introduction of lunch and learn events served as a platform to facilitate knowledge exchange and relationship- building within the community. HES also prioritised direct engagement with key decision-makers at major technology companies like AWS, Oracle, and Google, leveraging these interactions to forge strategic alliances and stay abreast of industry trends and developments.
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Trusted by top companies.
Cloud migrations
HES boasts robust commercial affiliations with top-tier Migration Partners, renowned for their proficiency in tackling the most intricate
migration challenges. These partners undergo a vetting process by HES, ensuring their capabilities, customer satisfaction, and track record in past migration.
Our cloud migration partners currently include Shine Solutions, DNX, CyberCX, Blue Crystal Solutions, Versent, NEXTGEN, Fusion5, and Data Foundry with additional partners slated to join the roster in 2025.
Ronin.Cloud join as new vendors
Integrating new vendors into the HES ecosystem presents exciting avenues for innovation and strategic partnerships.
Initiatives with Ronin.Cloud focus on establishing bespoke pricing structures for members of the HES consortium and optimising accessibility to an extablished Cloud management platform for educational institutions.
Additionally, we are exploring a High Performance Cloud Computing (HPCC) managed service for research groups within Ronin.Cloud as the underlying cloud management platform.
This underscores a commitment to fostering collaborative relationships with individual researchers while assisting internal IT teams in supporting research loads.
FinOps service
The introduction of financial modelling for operational cloud services marks a significant milestone for HES. It represents a new service geared towards optimising operational cloud services. Due to launch this year, it embodies a strategic approach to financial modelling, enabling universities to make informed decisions when selecting optimal cloud environments.
A pivotal moment in this journey is the partnership with the University of Wollongong (UoW), where HES is deeply integrated in their Cloud Migration Program and working collaboratively as one team with UoW`s IT leadership.
Zero-cost cloud migration readiness assessments
HES has achieved significant milestones in AWS Cloud Migration Readiness Assessments, with the service model reaching maturity after successfully delivering over 15 assessments in the current year.
These assessments are fully subsidised, meaning they come at zero cost to the sector, exemplifying a cost-effective approach to technological advancement.
Migration readiness support
Embracing our role as the principal supplier and project manager for large-scale migrations, this new service involves embedding the expert HES team into migration projects from inception to completion.
Our approach to large-scale migration support smooths transitions and minimises disruption.
This immersive approach ensures comprehensive oversight and guidance throughout the migration journey, guaranteeing smooth transitions and minimal disruption to operations.
A testament to its efficacy is our engagement with the University of Wollongong, signalling confidence in HES’s capabilities.
Augmented resourcing support
Our members are struggling to find the skilled resources they need on technology projects. We understand the frustration of navigating utilisation challenges and the hassle of maintaining available talent. To address this challenge, HES has developed an augmented resourcing solution for our members.
Our flexible rate card is tailored to the seniority of the resource, engagement duration, and project complexity to ensure you get the best value for your investment. With HES as your prime contractor, our members have the convenience of a simplified sourcing mechanism for your resourcing needs.
Universities can request a diverse range of resources from HES and its partner eco-system. We currently have access to resources with following capabilities:
Enterprise Architecture
Business Analysis
BI Analysis
Licensing Specialist
Solution Design and Architecture (AWS/AZURE/OCI/GCP)
Database Administration & Support
User Experience Design
Full-stack Software Engineering • Java Development
NET Development
UX/Front-end Development
Development/Operations
Agile Project Management
Cloud Architecture and Engineering
About HES Technology
The focus of HES Technology is to provide more effective technology solutions for the higher education sector. We do that by identifying technology providers that possess technology or software platforms that are beneficial to the sector and helping to establish and manage collaborative partnerships between those providers and higher education institutions.
Importantly, HES negotiates favourable terms with these providers and develops a level of service that makes their product more effective or easier to use. We then advise the higher education sector of the availability of the technology, facilitate its adoption and ensure that technology licences are understood and managed correctly.
For more information please contact Amarish.
Amarish Thakur
Director, Technology
athakur@hes.edu.au
