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www.mitrai.com
WHITE PAPER
Successfully managing systemsintegration through agile workflows
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Many businesses - from SMEs to large enterprises - are currently thinking about or undergoing a process of systems integration, whether this involves
integrating a variety of software systems in the cloud, or integrating legacy on-premise systems to new cloud software. Mitra Innovation manages this
process for many clients from a variety of industries. This article shows how we typically manage a systems integration project, step by step, and how
we follow an agile approach.
What are the benefits of integrated systems?
Up Next
Mitra Innovation’s six step
systems integration process
• Single sign on (SSO)
• centrally configurable systems
• distributed data is made accessible via a single request
• lowered risk of unidentified security breach
• improved reporting and systems monitoring.
Integrated systems allow for visibility and visualisation of end-to-end
organisational functions. Other benefits of fully integrated organisational
systems include:
Ashok Suppiah, CEO - Mitra Innovation states that
“The primary benefit of integrating systems is to be able to view
accurate, aggregated information in the form of comprehensive
operations dashboards. This provides business owners, divisional
heads and key decision makers with up to date insights relating to
organisational functions and performances.This is invaluable to
organisational heads who are increasingly pressed to make
spontaneous decisions.’
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Mitra Innovation’s six step systems integration process
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Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
Step 6
Quick Start Programme
Discovery
Design
Build
Deploy
Support
CompellingBusiness
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At Mitra Innovation, we follow an agile approach, normally utilising
WSO2 technologies, when building comprehensive integrated
platforms for our clients. The integration team, starting with a
shared vision of an integration map covering all applicable
components, initiates a typical systems integrations project utilising
the step-by-step process shown below (Diagram 1):
Step 1: Quick start programme
When a client engages Mitra Innovation to manage a
systems integration project on their behalf, the first step
in our process is the quick start programme. During this phase, Mitra
Innovation experts spend time at the client’s site to understand what the
client’s problem is, assess the client’s systems and decide
if they will align to a WSO2 technology solution. The quick start process
normally takes two weeks. At the end of the two weeks our Mitra
Innovation experts present the client with a proposal to carry out the
whole project.
Diagram 1: Step by step process
Step 2: Discovery
The Discovery phase comes next and allows our
integration team to familiarise themselves in more detail, with the
overall requirements and expectations of the ‘to-be delivered’
integrated system. During this phase, our team is further exposed
to the client’s current way of doing things, to gain an understanding of
the ‘as is’ set up of their organisational systems.
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The integration team focuses on identifying and gathering requirements
to successfully conclude the project. Requirements that will be identified
as part of the integration include:
• APIs, interfaces, volumes of data flow
• workflow endpoints and related behaviour
• protocols on each interface
• security policies
• privacy policies
• system administration and governance
• getting a clear, agreed upon picture of ‘as is’ set up.
Steps 3 - 5
The next three steps are the ‘continuous integration’ part of the
project, where we design, build and deploy the integration.
At Mitra Innovation, our integration teams follow agile methods, and
invariably use WSO2 technologies (such as API Management,
Analytics, Identity Management, and Integration), through these phases.
Steps 3-5 are outlined below.
Step 3: Design
The main objective during the design phase, is to
conceptualise and direct the architecture stack that will
power the middleware platform. During this phase, the integration team
focuses on identifying and mapping out the middleware platform that
will be the glue to the wholly integrated system. We often use WSO2
middleware as our preferred platform.
The key activities we consider during this phase are:
• the high-level integration design
• mapping the source and target systems through integration
• selecting the necessary components of middleware
• low level design describing the functionality of each
component in detail.
Design Build Deploy
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Step 4: Build
During this phase, our integration teams use agile
methodologies to seamlessly switch between Designing,
Building and Deploying the integration solution to deliver timely, all
encompassing, comprehensively integrated systems. Agile methodologies
enable integration teams at Mitra Innovation to closely work with clients in
iterative cycles, to deliver the best possible integration solution.
While building the designed solution, integration teams at Mitra
Innovation concentrate on a few key activities such as:
• implementing message mediation flow
• end-to-end orchestration
• integrating different types of systems using different protocols
(HTTP/S, JMS, SFTP, etc)
• unit tests and integration tests
• continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD)
• message transformation - (JSON to XML/ XML to JSON).
Step 5: Deploy
Whilst designing and implementing the integration project,
our integration teams also work on deploying the integrated
solution. Continuing to use agile methodologies, our expert teams can
iterate the right development to best solve any issues arising from any
individual stage. Whilst working on deploying integrated systems, the
team concentrates on a few key activities such as:
• User Acceptance Testing (UAT)
• Quality Assurance (QA)
• Automated Acceptance Testing (AAT)
• Systems Integration Testing (SIT)
• local development and developer testing
• performance testing
• pre-production and production deployment.
Step 6: Support
Once a newly integrated system has been deployed, and is
ready to be used by the client, Mitra Innovation then
provides ongoing support and maintenance for the client.
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We provide up to three levels of support, listed below:
Level 1:
At Level 1 we support basic customer issues such as difficulties in usage
of the system and service desk requests that require technical expertise.
If our Level 1 technicians are unable to solve an issue, it is escalated to
Level two support.
Level 2:
At Level 2, we provide support using experienced and knowledgeable
technicians who assess support requests and deliver solutions for
problems that cannot be handled by Level 1 support personnel.
Level 3:
At Level 3, we provide the highest level of technical resources necessary
for problem resolution. We even consider new feature creation in rare
cases. Level 3 support technicians attempt to define root causes of
problems using product design, code, or specifications.
New fixes created are then documented for use by Level 1 and Level 2
support personnel.
Craig Anderson, Managing Director Cloud Operations
at Mitra Innovation states: “When all of your organisational
systems are integrated, your organisation is geared to almost
spontaneously respond to emerging situations with informed
decisions. At Mitra Innovation we aim to help organisations and
businesses reach this level of integration and decision-making.”
For more information on how we carry out successful systems integration
projects on behalf of clients at Mitra Innovation, please talk to us
on +44 (0) 203 908 1977 or write to us at [email protected]
to let us know your requirements.
LEVEL 1 LEVEL 2 LEVEL 3
Would you like to know more?Get in touch today!
[email protected] | +44 (0) 203 908 1977 | www.mitrai.com
Mitra Innovation is passionate about helping smart entrepreneurs, enterprises and public service organisations to accelerate innovative ideas into amazing global businesses or solutions.
We are specialists in product incubation, digital transformation, and Cloud-to-Cloud systems integration, with expertise in WSO2 and AWS technologies.
Think Integration. Think Incubation. Think Innovation. THINK MITRA
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