Topologe to Offer CIO-for-Hire and Audit Services; Services include IT and Security audits, infrastructure planning & security
March 22, 2004 www.Businesswire.com

BURLINGTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 22, 2004--Topologe LLC (www.topologe.com) today announced it has established a business to offer temporary Chief Information Officer (CIO) services to organizations seeking an interim CIO placement or small businesses that only require a part-time CIO staff position.

The outsourced service is based upon the CIO-for-hire principle, allowing businesses to have access to the services of a CIO, without incurring the high cost involved. Topologe services include IT audits, security audits, infrastructure planning and implementation, security solutions, project management, disaster recovery advice and other IT related services.

"I believe that clients don't buy products and services, they buy results," said Topologe founder Alejandro ("Ali") Sarmiento. "A result that an IT audit or security audit would yield is IT governance. A company that is properly IT governed has its risk minimized for a disaster. Information technology has become a business necessity. And like every other aspect of a successful business, IT must be properly governed through proper leadership, structure and process."

Topologe believes that information technology governance is responsible for the strategic direction of the enterprise, ensuring that objectives are achieved and that resources are used appropriately. IT Audit services are designed to meet the diverse requirements of organizations in a variety of industries with respect to risk identification/evaluation and IT controls. It embraces both technical and organizational considerations in suggesting the optimal recommended solutions to fit the IT strategy.

"As effective IT governance can generate real business benefits, such as reputation, trust, and credibility, since poor management carries risks. The speed of business today often requires near-immediate decisions based on operational excellence and customer intimacy. Those decisions cannot be made if the systems providing that information are down," said Sarmiento.

Topologe approaches each new client engagement by applying the following goals, which reflect the company's core values:

-- To align IT strategy with the business strategy

-- To cascade strategy and goals down into the enterprise

-- To provide organizational structures that facilitate the implementation of strategy and goals

-- To insist that an IT control framework be adopted and implemented

-- To measure information technology's performance

Topologe was founded by Alejandro Sarmiento who achieved his CIO wings from working with IT consulting firms Cambridge Technology Group, WT Chen , PriceWaterhouseCoopers and a co-founder of The Amaral Group. Sarmiento has played an active CIO role for such diverse organizations as BTS Asset Management, Milton Academy, Harvard University, Jagenberg, Inc., and Advanced Pain Management Centre. He earned a Masters degree in Computer Science and his MBA from Boston University.