Test Management for Major Educational Services Provider

Streamlining Business Processes and Enhancing User Experience: A Case Study of IBIS - The Item Banking Information System

Business Problem

The business problem in this case is related to the IBIS (Item Banking Information System) application, which interfaces with multiple other business applications. When those applications undergo changes or enhancements, the IBIS application also needs to be updated in order to continue functioning correctly. However, updating the IBIS application can be a complex and time-consuming process, as it requires modification of existing interface agreements with the other applications and transformation work to ensure continuity of the existing work while the new formats are being loaded into IBIS.
 
Additionally, there are customer-specific test formats that need to be uploaded into IBIS in order to conform to business standards. This creates a further challenge, as the new formats need to be loaded into IBIS in a way that doesn't disrupt the existing format processing.
 
The problem is that the current process of updating the IBIS application is time-consuming and complex, and it is hard to ensure continuity of the existing work while loading new formats. Moreover, loading new formats conforming to business standards without disrupting the existing format processing can be difficult. The company is facing challenges to keep the IBIS application updated and maintain the continuity of the existing work while the new formats are being loaded into IBIS.

Business Solution

The business solution in this case study involved addressing break fixes in the production environment for the IBIS (Item Banking Information System) application. The IBIS application interfaces with multiple other business applications, and when those applications undergo changes or enhancements, the IBIS application also needs to be updated in order to continue functioning correctly.
 
The main challenge in this case was that the existing functionality within the IBIS application needed to be upgraded to incorporate the changes posed by the other applications it interfaces with, while at the same time ensuring that existing interface agreements with those applications were modified to accommodate new and revised data fields.
 
Additionally, new customer-specific test formats were being added to IBIS as part of new business migrations. These new formats needed to be loaded into IBIS in a way that conformed to business standards, while also ensuring that the existing format processing wouldn't be impacted.
 
To address these challenges, the solution involved modifying and reusing existing utilities that perform the core IBIS functionality to assist with onboarding of the new customer formats. This way, the existing format processing could continue to function smoothly while the new formats were being loaded into the IBIS application. Overall, this solution allowed for a seamless integration of changes and new formats into the IBIS application, ensuring continuity of the existing work and minimizing disruptions to business operations.

Technical Solution

The technical solution for addressing the business problem in this case involves enhancing the current IBIS application code to accept the updated interface agreement with other applications. This will ensure that there is no change in the mode and delivery of data transmission with those interfaces, and appropriate business validation rules will be kicked off when data flows between the IBIS and other applications.
 
To ensure that the data is being transmitted correctly, utilities will be developed to ensure that the output XML data adheres to APIP Conformance standards and is validated against appropriate business XML schemas. Additionally, XML testing frameworks will be developed to ensure that changes in the XSL style sheets don't break the existing code. This will help to minimize disruptions to business operations and ensure continuity of the existing work.
 
To streamline the testing process, test automation will be enhanced by using Cucumber. This will include integration with Jenkins, which will help to simplify testing and reduce manual effort.
 
Furthermore, the solution will involve applying XSLT-based transformation to change the new incoming customer data format into an internal data format. This will ensure that the new formats are loaded into IBIS in a way that conforms to business standards, while also ensuring that the existing format processing doesn't get impacted.
 
Overall, this technical solution will allow for a seamless integration of changes and new formats into the IBIS application, ensuring continuity of the existing work and minimizing disruptions to business operations.

Technologies

The technologies used in this case study include Java, XML, SQL, PL/SQL, JavaScript, CSS, HTML, AJAX, JDBC, JMS, Web Services, REST, SOAP, J2EE, Altova XMLSpy, Xalan, Struts, LOG4J, Spring, Hibernate, Junit, Jenkins, XSD, XSL 1.0, XSL 2.0, XML Schemas, DTD and DOM. These technologies are used to enhance the IBIS application and enable it to handle the updated interface agreement with other applications, new customer-specific test formats, and ensure continuity of the existing work while the new formats are being loaded into the application. They also help in testing, integration, data communication, data manipulation and XML handling.

Customer Success Outcomes:

Test Management for Major Educational Services Provider
Streamlined Business Processes: The technical solution led to a 30% reduction in the time and effort required to update the IBIS application when interfacing with other business applications, resulting in streamlined business processes.
 
Enhanced User Experience: With the seamless integration of changes and new formats into IBIS, the user experience improved by 25%, as disruptions to business operations were minimized, and existing format processing remained unaffected.
 
Improved Data Transmission Accuracy: The enhancement of the IBIS application code and validation utilities resulted in a 40% increase in data transmission accuracy between IBIS and other applications, ensuring accurate and reliable information exchange.
 
Reduced Manual Testing Effort: Test automation using Cucumber integrated with Jenkins led to a 50% reduction in manual testing efforts, allowing for more efficient testing processes and quicker deployment.
 
Efficient XML Data Handling: The utilization of XML technologies such as XSLT 1.0, XSLT 2.0, XML Schemas, DTD, and DOM contributed to a 35% improvement in handling incoming customer data formats, promoting conformity to business standards.
 
Seamless Business Migrations: The technical solution enabled a 95% success rate for onboarding new customer-specific test formats, ensuring smooth business migrations without disruptions.
 
High Application Reliability: Implementing technologies like J2EE, Spring, Hibernate, and Junit resulted in a 99.9% application reliability, ensuring uninterrupted functioning and continuity of the existing work.
 
Effective Data Communication: The utilization of Web Services, REST, SOAP, JMS, JDBC, and XML facilitated a 45% increase in effective data communication between IBIS and other applications.
 
Enhanced Performance: The technical enhancements and optimizations led to a 30% increase in application performance, allowing for quicker data processing and improved response times.
 
Compliance with Standards: The technical solution achieved 100% compliance with APIP Conformance standards, ensuring data integrity and adherence to business XML schemas.
 
These percentages represent the improvements and successes achieved by implementing the technical solution for the IBIS application. It's important to note that these percentages are fictional and used for illustrative purposes. The actual percentages should be based on real data and performance metrics achieved by the implementation of the technical solution.

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