Cameo E2E Bridge Business White Paper - No Magic · Bring!your!ideas!to!market!faster! 7!!!!! 2.1!!Principle!1:!Involving!all!stakeholders! Models!play!an!important!role!in!the!description!of!complex!scenarios!and!are

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CONTENT!1! OBSTACLES!FOR!YOUR!NEW!IDEAS......................................................!2!

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1.1! The!top!5!challenges!are!always!the!same!............................................................................!3!1.2! Calling!for!a!radically!new!approach!.....................................................................................!3!1.3! Tapping!into!the!Cloud!opportunity:!an!example!..................................................................!4!

2! GEARING!UP!FOR!RAPID!CHANGE!.......................................................!6!!

2.1! Principle!1:!Involving!all!stakeholders....................................................................................!7!2.2! Principle!2:!A!single!source!of!truth!.......................................................................................!8!2.3! Principle!3:!TopUdown!transparency!......................................................................................!9!2.4! Principle!4:!Clear!separation!of!concerns...............................................................................!9!2.5! Principle!5:!Simplification!by!abstraction.............................................................................!10!

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OLING!FOR!SUCCESS!.....................................................................! 11!!

ONE!tool!only:!the!Bridge!platform!.....................................................................................!11!

! 3.2! Specification!and!development............................................................................................!12!

! 3.3! Production!environment!and!operations!.............................................................................!12!

! 3.4! Quality!assurance!and!monitoring!......................................................................................!13!

! 3.5! Use!cases!and!tool!configurations!.......................................................................................!14!

4! HOW!TO!GET!STARTED......................................................................!15!!

4.1! Learning!from!a!real!case!....................................................................................................!15!4.2! Keeping!what!works,!changing!what!doesn’t!......................................................................!16!4.3! Selecting!an!effective!proofUofUconcept!...............................................................................!16!4.4! Gaining!confidence!with!an!early!win..................................................................................! 17!4.5! Modernizing!in!controllable!steps........................................................................................!17!

5! RESULTS!SPEAK!FOR!THEMSELVES.....................................................!18!!!!!

1! OBSTACLES!FOR!YOUR!NEW!IDEAS!Conducting!business!in!a!networked!economy!forces!companies!to!reinvent!their!

core!processes.!Customer!purchasing!behavior!has!changed!in!favor!of!flexible!choice!and!7x24!shopping!sprees!on!the!Web!at!home!or!on!a!mobile.!Supply!chains!have!become!increasingly!globalized.!Business!commodities!like!Cash!Collection,!

Return!Logistics!and!a!myriad!of!other!capabilities!are!no!longer!considered!core!and!are!more!and!more!farmed!out!to!external!Cloud!providers.!

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Not!long!ago,!few!companies!saw!more!in!the!Internet!than!a!marketing!tool!to!

reinforce!their!brand.!The!combination!of!acceptance,!technical!progress!and!economic!pressure!has!changed!this!view.!Terms!like!B2B,!B2C,!social!CRM!and!

multiUchanneling!have!taken!center!stage!in!building!and!maintaining!a!close!dialog!with!customers,!while!straightUthroughUprocessing!and!endUtoUend!process!optimization!aim!at!improving!and!controlling!operating!margins.!

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1.1!!The!top!5!challenges!are!always!the!same!Responding!to!these!external!changes!requires!a!high!degree!of!technical!and!

organizational!flexibility!–!which!is!usually!not!a!given.!Many!companies!are!trapped!in!their!legacy!application!silos,!operating!mostly!in!batch!mode.!Basic!

Not!understanding! the!status!quo!is!the!most!

serious!obstacle!to!successful!change!

internal!procedures!are!still!carried!out!manually,!in!particular!at!divisional!and!company!boundaries.!

Let’s!not!forget!the!financial!aspects.!As!if!the!economic!crisis!had!not!taken!its!toll!already,!desperately!needed!funds!for!innovation!compete!

with!the!high!running!cost!of!daily!business.!And!finally,!change!means!risk!and!the!looming!danger!of!interrupting!ongoing!operations.!

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Closer! examination! of! these! challenges! readily! points! to! the! same! five!obstacles! standing! in! the!way! of!effective! business! transformation,! and! they!are!unpleasantly!familiar:!

• Misunderstandings, are,the,norm!–!Business!and!IT!lack!a!common!language!and!mutual!trust.!To!be!successful,!all!stakeholders!must!be!on!board,!or!else!

the!transformation!will!be!nothing!more!than!just!another!infrastructure!

project.!• Critical,information, is,inaccessible!–!It’s!locked!away!in!the!brains!of!key!

people,!instead!of!being!readily!available!in!form!of!accurate,!upUtoUdate!documentation.!TimeUtoUmarket!hinges!on!how!available!these!individuals!are!–!and!usually!they!are!not.!

• Total,cost,is,out,of,balance!–!80%!of!the!total!bill!for!information!systems!is!going!to!maintenance!and!operations,!a!fact!which!most!have!come!to!accept!as!a!given.!But!in!reality,!this!cost!structure!is!the!consequence!of!dated!development!and!integration!methodologies.!

• Governance,is,not,free!–!The!transparency!required!by!modern!business!practices,!especially!the!compliance!with!legal!regulations,!causes!additional!overhead,!adds!more!cost!and!dampens!productivity.!But!–!shouldn’t!transparency!lead!to!higher!efficiency?!

• Infrastructure, reuse,is,a,must!–!There!is!not!enough!time!and!money!to!start!from!scratch.!Some!of!the!capabilities!can!be!replaced!by!external!Cloud!offerings,!but!clever!reuse!of!existing!applications!is!a!necessity,!not!an!

option.!Reuse!will!also!maximize!the!ROI!on!previous!investments.!!

1.2!!Calling!for!a!radically!new!approach!During!the!past!15!years,!we!have!faced!the!same!obstacles!and!learned!to!deal!

with!them.!Practical!experience!led!us!to!establish!an!original,!unique!and!exceptionally!effective!approach!to!eliminate!all!of!them.!Does!this!sound!too!good!

to!be!true?!Based!on!this!unique!approach,!we!can!look!back!to!more!than!100!successful!business!transformation!efforts.!Explaining!how!this!unique!approach!

works!is!the!topic!of!this!white!paper.!

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Figure!1:!Got!time!for!a!new!approach?!!!

In!the!following!chapters,!we!invite!you!to!join!us!on!a!journey!to!higher!levels!of!

organizational!productivity.!We!will!introduce!effective!techniques!to!hold!the!“reality!factor”!at!bay!which!–!despite!careful!precautions!–!tends!to!creep!into!

complex!business!initiatives.!To!that!extent,!we!will!discuss!five!principles!which!will!help!you!stay!clear!of!the!above!mentioned!obstacles,!along!with!some!comments!

how!these!principles!can!be!delivered.!We!will!present!an!innovative! toolset!–!the!E2E!Bridge!platform!–!which!implements!these!principles.!A!realUlife!case!anatomy!will!demonstrate!how!you!can!start!to!apply!the!approach!in!your!own!company.!

Finally,!we!will!discuss!the!results!you!can!expect,!measured!in!terms!of!faster!timeUtoUmarket,!reduced!total!cost!and!gained!business!flexibility.!

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But!before!we!dive!into!the!details,!let’s!provide!a!sneak!preview!of!what’s!ahead,!

by!looking!at!a!concrete!case!which!demonstrates!how!this!approach!supports!business!realUlife!business!transformation!initiatives.!

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1.3!!Tapping!into!the!Cloud!opportunity:! an!example!The!case!is!about!a!scenario!that!is!quite!common!these!days:!how!to!combine!

existing!applications!with!online!private!and!public!Cloud!solutions!for!business!commodities,!to!gain!flexibility!and!reduce!operational!cost.!The!company!in!question!is!a!wellUknown!global!brand!specializing!in!optics!and!imaging,!with!USD!10bn!in!turnover.!For!its!European!subsidiaries,!the!company!is!presently!overhauling!its!complete!B2C!and!B2B!strategy.!In!the!past,!all!interactions!with!

dealers!were!managed!via!its!countryUbased!operations,!predominantly!via!Fax!and!Email.!This!resulted!in!high!administrative!overhead!for!order!management,!leaving!

dealers!stranded!with!long!cycle!times!to!process!order!change!requests.!This!model!did!not!scale!–!a!major!obstacle!for!further!growth.!


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The!company!chose!a!serviceUoriented!approach!to!redo!its!supporting!business!information!backbone,!effectively!combining!reuse!of!legacy!applications!with!modern!CloudUbased!offerings!to!accelerate!the!implementation!of!the!business!

transformation!effort.!The!main!objective!was!to!achieve!a!high!degree!of!automation!across!the!endUtoUend!order!management!process,!and!to!facilitate!

better!scalability!for!revenue!generation!across!all!sales!channels.!At!the!same!time,!the!company!wanted!to!increase!its!flexibility!to!react!to!country!specific!needs.!It!also!wanted!to!be!prepared!for!changes!in!the!provider!landscape,!e.g.!for!Cash!

Collection!or!Return!Logistics.!As!part!of!the!transformation!effort,!country!organizations!were!refocused!on!expanding!the!dealer!network,!instead!of!spending!

their!time!with!administration!and!operations,!a!change!more!compatible!with!rapid!future!revenue!growth.!

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To!accelerate!its!transformation!effort,!the!company!applied!the!approach!outlined!in!this!white!paper!and!used!the!Bridge!platform!as!the!core!Business!Integration!engine!to!control!all!information!exchange!between!the!central!SAP!system!and!the!CloudUbased!Order!Entry,!Payment!Processing!and!Return!Logistics!(see!Figure!2).!

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!Figure!2:!Bridging!between!onUpremise,!private!and!public!Cloud!systems!

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With!the!central!SAP!system!firmly!engrained!into!the!company’s!internal!processes,!

its!replacement!would!have!been!too!costly,!too!timeUconsuming!–!and!too!risky.!To!effectively!reuse!ERP!core!services,!the!Bridge!was!used!to!wrap!the!custom!SAP!

installation,!so!it!could!communicate!effectively!with!the!online!Cloud!services.!With!an!expected!traffic!of!several!million!transactions!per!day,!triggered!by!up!to!27,000!

online!dealers,!the!Bridge!was!configured!for!high!availability.!To!avoid!exposing!the!SAP!system!to!high!fluctuations!in!transaction!volume!that!could!cause!unexpected!service!interruption,!the!Bridge!was!also!used!to!buffer!all!transactions!in!an!effort!to!limit!the!transaction!load!on!the!ERP!system.!Decoupling!the!ERP!from!all!other!eU!commerce!application!components!also!reduced!the!IT!risk!for!future!SAP!upgrades.!

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Three!factors!governed!the!selection!of!the!Bridge!for!this!particular!initiative:!!

• Transparency! –!As!we!will!see,!the!Bridge!uses!a!purely!modelUbased!approach!to!foster!unambiguous!communication!amongst!all!stakeholders!during!specification,!implementation!and!operations.!This!effectively!eliminates!misunderstandings!and!it!reduces!timeUtoUmarket,!requiring!fewer!

iterations.!For!this!initiative,!the!Bridge!ensured!architecture!and!processes!stayed!aligned!with!business!needs,!by!creating!a!shared!visual!record!of!the!company’s!new!multiUchannel!eUCommerce!blueprint.!The!transparency!of!

models!also!helped!with!the!security!aspects!of!the!Cloud!integration,!ensuring!all!policies!for!information!access!were!properly!enforced,!even!across!different!Cloud!providers.!In!other!words,!even!though!the!company’s!

business!information!was!externalized,!it!kept!full!control!over!who!accessed!what!information!and!when.!

• Productivity! U!TimeUtoUmarket!was!absolutely!critical!for!this!initiative.!A!longU!drawn!product!selection!process!had!delayed!the!start!of!the!project!for!more!than!five!months.!The!Bridge!has!a!unique!capability!to!keep!business!

specification,!technical!design!and!the!actual!production!systems!automatically!in!sync!at!all!times.!This,!combined!with!a!high!degree!of!automation,!which!accelerated!development!of!hundreds!of!interfaces!permitted!such!an!

aggressive!project!schedule!that!the!time!lost!during!product!evaluation!was!almost!compensated!for.!Project!implementation!was!shortened!by!several!

months,!allowing!the!first!subsidiaries!to!go!live!just!4!months!after!starting!the!initiative.!Based!on!the!synchronicity!of!documentation!and!production!environment,!the!productivity!increase!to!implement!change!requests!was!

substantial,!given!the!reduced!dependence!on!individuals.!• Performance!–!The!Bridge!has!unusually!modest!system!requirements.!For!

this!initiative,!this!meant!that!–!compared!to!more!traditional!infrastructure!software!–!only!a!fraction!of!the!server!resources!were!needed,!which!drastically!reduced!the!operating!cost.!At!the!same!time,!the!Bridge!can!easily!

scale!to!billions!of!transactions!per!day,!which!made!it!a!futureUproof!investment!for!this!case.!

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2! GEARING!UP!FOR!RAPID!CHANGE!Having!reviewed!the!main!obstacles!for!managing!business!information!systems,!we!

will!now!discuss!five!key!principles! that!can!be!employed!to!eliminate!these!obstacles!in!order!to!raise!productivity!levels.!In!turn,!these!principles!serve!to!introduce!the!Bridge!platform,!which!was!built!to!apply!these!principles!to!concrete!business!situations.!In!this!context,!you!will!see!that!the!term!“bridging”!refers!to!

three!different!aspects:!the!bridging!between!people!in!terms!of!communication!amongst!stakeholders,!the!bridging!between!systems!in!terms!of!connectivity,!and!finally,!the!bridging!between!stages!of!evolution!in!terms!of!managing!incremental!change.!


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2.1!!Principle!1:!Involving!all!stakeholders!Models!play!an!important!role!in!the!description!of!complex!scenarios!and!are!used!

extensively!in!the!development!of!information!systems.!They!are!well!suited!to!serve!as!a!communication! vehicle!between!collaborating!individuals!of!different!professions!–!a!visual!“lingua!franca”!that!offers!a!common!basis!of!understanding.!

They!convey!information!more!effectively!than!code!which!can!only!be!understood!by!developers.!Effective!use!of!models!for!interdisciplinary!communication!is!therefore!

an!essential!ingredient!to!involve!all!stakeholders!in!the!continued!evolution!of!information!systems!(see!Figure!3).!

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Figure!3:!Models!are!better!than!code!to!communicate!ideas!!!!

Models!eliminate!misU!understandings! by!serving!

as!a!common!language!between!business!and!IT!

It!is!established!practice!to!use!models!during!process!analysis,!for!highU!

level!design!of!information!systems,!as!well!as!description!of!data!structures!and!their!interrelations.!The!Bridge!expands!on!the!traditional!use!of!models!by!using!them!throughout!the!entire!lifecycle!from!specification!to!operational!use!to!describe:!

• Processes,!user!interfaces,!services,!data,!roles!and!access!rights!• Workflows,!business!logic,!service!composition!and!orchestration!• Semantic!transformation!of!metadata!between!applications!• System!landscape!specification!and!infrastructure!configurations!• Testing,!root!cause!analysis,!profiling!and!transaction!monitoring!

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Using!models!to!describe!all!aspects!of!information!systems!from!specification!to!operations,!the!Bridge!effectively!removes!the!tool!gaps!along!the!lifecycle!which!are!known!from!more!traditional!development!environments!(see!Figure!4).!

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Figure!4:!Using!models!to!bridge!the!tool!gaps!in!the!lifecycle!

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2.2!!Principle!2:!A!single!source!of!truth!Using!models!throughout!the!lifecycle!provides!an!opportunity!to!employ!them!for!

more!than!just!specification!and!documentation.!In!fact,!models!can!be!directly!transformed!into!running!programs,!a!concept!referred!to!as!Model!Execution.!

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Traditional!software!development!environments!make!more!and!more!use!of!such!

model!transformation!to!increase!software!quality.!They!do!so!by!producing!code!in!another!highUlevel!programming!language.!However,!in!most!cases!this!form!of!code!generation!covers!only!certain!aspects!of!development,!and!manual!steps!need!to!be!performed!to!produce!a!complete!system.!

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While!this!represents!certainly!a!productivity!enhancement,!such!model!transformation!leads!to!three!kinds!of!problems:!

• Lack,of,performance!–!Automatic!model!transformation!often!leads!to!systems!with!very!poor!performance!and!scalability!

• Synchronization, challenge!–!Manual!code!additions!need!to!be!kept!in!sync!with!the!original!design!models,!and!if!neglected,!inconsistencies!occur!which!make!further!use!of!models!difficult!

• Error,detection!–!Elimination!of!errors!has!to!be!performed!at!the!generated!code!level,!which!is!different!from!the!design!model!which!served!as!input.!

This!is!difficult!to!understand,!because!detecting!a!one!to!one!relationship!

between!model!and!code!is!nearly!impossible.!!

These!problems!can!be!solved!with!the!introduction!of!a!more!rigorous!approach!

that!skips!intermediate!code!generation,!directly!producing!a!running!system!from!the!models.!This!concept!is!referred!to!as!Direct!Model!Execution.!

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The!Bridge!is!one!of!the!first!platforms!worldwide!to!apply!this!concept.!In!doing!so!it!provides!an!implicit!insurance!policy!for!keeping!documentation!and!production!

systems!in!sync!without!manual!governance!steps.!In!fact,!the!documentation! is!the!code,!and!therefore,!the!specification!is!the!production!system,!serving!as!a!single!

source!of!truth!across!the!entire!lifecycle!(see!Figure!5).!!!!!!

Direct!Model!Execution!eliminates! the!dependency!on!individuals! by!keeping!

specification!and!production!systems!permanently! in!sync!

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Figure!5:!The!specification! IS!the!production!system!


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With!all!potential!discrepancies!between!design!view!and!implementation!removed,!the!Bridge!offers!a!powerful!platform!for!incremental!system!improvement,!where!all!stakeholders!can!collaborate!with!the!certainty!of!understanding!what!is!

currently!used!in!production.!!

2.3!!Principle!3:!TopUdown!transparency!Model!Execution!is!gaining!rapid!acceptance!at!the!process!level,!providing!drastic!

improvements!in!enterprise!level!agility.!But!with!the!use!of!models!constrained!to!

the!highUlevel!views,!too!many!gaps!persist!between!the!executable!

Using!models!across!the!full!software!stack! increases!

flexibility! and!fosters!reuse!

processes!and!the!actual!systems!which!serve!as!data!sources!for!these!processes,!causing!major!governance!hurdles.!

To!eliminate!these!gaps!and!achieve!complete!topUdown!transparency,!the!development!and!maintenance!of!processes,!services!and!interfaces!

must!be!combined!into!one!common!platform.!This!is!the!approach!which!was!

chosen!by!the!Bridge!to!provide!better!contextual!information!(see!Figure!6).!!

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Figure!6:!Process!integration!with!SAP!and!a!CloudUbased!Salesforce.com!service!!!

2.4!!Principle!4:!Clear!separation!of!concerns!Apart!from!the!actual!business!functionality,!any!information!system!covers!nonU!

functional!aspects!to!guarantee!its!proper!application.!Such!nonUfunctional!aspects!include!security,!in!terms!of!who!can!do!what!and!when,!technical!aspects,!such!as!

scalability!and!performance!management,!but!also!business!relevant!A!modelUbased!interceptor!reduces!governance! cost!by!simplifying! compliance!with!

nonUfunctional! policies!

aspects,!e.g.!the!extraction!of!key!performance!indicators,!microUbilling!or!the!safe!handling!of!transactions.!

In!traditional!information!systems,!functional!and!nonUfunctional!elements!are!often!mixed,!making!it!difficult!to!change!either!during!change!management,!causing!frustration!and!unnecessary!additional!

cost.!In!order!to!remedy!this!problem,!the!Bridge!introduces!a!powerful!concept!that!

allows!permanent!separation!of!functional!and!nonUfunctional!aspects.!

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The!Bridge!offers!this!separation!using!a!transparent!interceptor! approach! (see!Figure!7).!As!a!result,!policies!can!be!changed!at!any!time!without!impacting!the!functional!side!of!the!information!system.!

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Figure!7:!Separation!of!concerns!using!an!interceptor!approach!!!

In!combination!with!direct!model!execution,!this!interceptor!approach!represents!a!powerful!framework! for!policy!management.! Since!compliance!relevant!aspects!are!

executed!as!modeled,!their!separation!from!functional!elements!dramatically!simplifies!external!audits.!Furthermore,!isolating!all!nonUfunctional!aspects!into!their!own!realm!also!reduces!ramifications!on!functional!development,!which!leads!to!

substantial!reduction!of!timeUtoUmarket,!while!eliminating!frictions!and!

misunderstandings!between!functional!and!nonUfunctional!development!teams.!!

2.5!!Principle!5:!Simplification! by!abstraction!Abstraction!is!a!powerful!mechanism!to!exploit!commonalities!amongst!a!collection!

of!individual!concepts.!By!hiding!complexity!that!may!well!be!present!at!a!lower!level,!abstraction!leads!directly!to!simplification.!One!popular!application!of!

abstraction!in!modern!day!IT!is!the!virtualization! of!computing!environments.!It!provides!platform!independence!from!the!underlying!operating!environment,!granting!identical!behavior!of!a!business!application!on!a!variety!of!systems!and!less!

vendor!lockUin.!!

In!addition!to!platform!virtualization,!the!Bridge!pushes!the!stateUofUtheUart!in!using!abstraction!to!cover!an!even!broader!range!of!concepts,!including!connectivity,!

persistency! and!packaging.!Whereas!the!latter!two!offer!more!convenience!for!IT!specialists,!abstracting!connectivity!has!powerful!implication!at!the!business!level!and!deserves!a!closer!look.!!

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A!common!representation!of!all!backend!types!reduces!

complexity,! facilitates! reuse!and!reduces!cost!of!change!

Imagine!you!want!to!integrate!SAP!with!Oracle.!At!the!technical!and!the!

business!level,!their!interfaces!are!substantially!different.!To!simplify!integration,!the!Bridge!introduces!a!generic!backend!abstraction,!allowing!you!to!deal!with!both!interfaces!in!exactly!the!same!way.!In!

addition!to!SAP!and!Oracle,!the!Bridge!offers!this!capability!for!60+!types!of!backends.!This!means!it!can!act!as!a!universal! adapter,!which!hides!the!details!

of!individual!backends.!!

This!unique!capability!is!made!possible!by!two!mechanisms!the!Bridge!employs!to!facilitate!this!simplification.!The!first!is!a!common!structure!for!representing!backend!systems!within!the!executable!model.!The!second!mechanism!is!a!fully!

automated!analysis!of!existing!backend!interfaces.!


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In!addition!to!simplifying!the!management!of!application!interfaces,!and!therefore!

reducing!the!total!cost!of!ownership!on!a!per!interface!basis,!this!mechanism!also!facilitates!the!migration!and!consolidation!of!backend!systems,!providing!an!effective!infection!shield!that!can!be!used!temporarily!as!well!as!permanently.!

!!

3! TOOLING!FOR!SUCCESS!Now!that!the!basic!principles!of!the!all!model!execution!methodology!are!

established,!we!turn!our!attention!to!the!tooling!that!supports!it.!!

3.1!!ONE!tool!only:!the!Bridge!platform!Description!of!the!development!lifecycle!and!all!architectural!components!in!form!of!

executable!models!permits!for!a!radically!simple!design!choice:!one!single!tool!–!the!

Bridge!–!to!go!from!specification!to!production,!covering!all!aspects!of!A!single!tool!approach!reduces!complexity!and!

provides!more!reuse!

integrating!systems,!processes!and!user!interfaces.!!

Just!like!the!two!faces!of!a!coin,!the!Bridge!has!two!sides.!On!the!one!side,!it!provides!an!authoring!environment! called!Simplify.! It!offers!capabilities!required!for!creation!and!maintenance!of!models,!including!

validation,!testing!and!transformation!into!an!executable!form.!On!the!other!side,!

we!have!the!Bridge!server,!which!“executes”!models!in!production!(see!Figure!8).!!!

!!

Figure!8:!Cameo!E2E!platform!ecosystem!!!

This!singleUtoolUapproach!is!quite!different!from!traditional!enterprise!software!infrastructure.!With!the!approach!traditional!vendors!have!taken,!a!collection!of!several!tools!needs!to!be!mastered!to!cover!the!same!functional!breadth!and!depth.!

This!may!include!application!servers,!process!engines,!service!busses,!adapter!frameworks,!user!interface!technologies,!master!data!management!tools!and!

security!policy!management!frameworks.!The!Bridge!covers!all!these!functions!in!one!tool.!With!less!moving!parts,!the!remarkable!simplicity!–!and!flexibility!–!of!the!Bridge!

leads!to!a!major!boost!of!organizational!productivity.!

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3.2!!Specification!and!development!For!business!specifications,!predominantly!at!the!process!level,!the!standard!Business!

Process!Modeling!Notation!(BPMN®)!is!used!to!present!nonUtechnical!audiences!with!sufficient!abstraction!as!they!collect!their!requirements.!HighUlevel!models!can!have!informal!character!and!serve!as!complementary!documentation.!At!lower!levels,!

where!technical!processes!require!the!sourcing!of!information!from!individual!services!or!applications,!BPMN!models!represent!an!unambiguous!design!contract!

between!business!specification!and!technical!design.!At!this!level,!BPMN!models!take!on!a!more!formal!character,!which!is!relevant!for!process!execution.!

!

For!the!technical!design,!a!subset!of!the!Unified!Modeling!Language!Catering! for!different!

preferences:!BPMN!for!the!business,!UML!for!IT!

specialists!

(UML®)!provides!technical!users!such!as!developers,!security!staff,!test!

teams!and!operators!with!more!expressivity,!as!required!for!rapid!implementation!of!backend!connectivity,!application!logic,!process!automation,!and!user!interfaces.!Diagramming!capabilities!address!the!

complete!functional!design,!including!structural!models!to!represent!data!and!mappings,!dynamic!models!for!process!and!service!behavior,!and!archiU!tectural!models!to!define!packaging!and!deployment!schemes!for!production!use.!

!

The!authoring!environment!also!houses!a!full!suite!of!importers!that!allow!existing!application!interfaces!to!be!analyzed,!wrapped!and!reUdocumented!in!the!UML!standard.!OutUofUthe!box,!some!60+!interface!types!are!presently!supported,!which!

caters!for!most!known!integration!scenarios.!!

Essential!for!the!functioning!of!the!all!modelUdriven!approach!is!the!translation!of!

the!specification!models!into!something!that!can!be!executed,!just!as!you!would!with!a!regular!software!program.!This!task!is!performed!by!a!Compiler!(see!Figure!8),!which!is!an!integral!part!of!the!authoring!environment.!In!addition!to!transforming!

models!into!their!executable!form,!the!Compiler!is!also!in!charge!of!model!validation,!consistency!checking,!automatic!performance!optimization,!as!well!as!packaging!for!and!deployment!into!the!production!environment.!

!

3.3!!Production!environment!and!operations! !The!Bridge!server!owes!many!of!its!key!characteristics!to!the!challenging!requirements!of!the!financial!services!industry,!where!it!was!first!deployed,!most!notably!when!it!comes!to!transaction!volume,!resiliency!and!security.!As!a!result,!the!Bridge!server!constitutes!a!very!flexible,!highUperformance!execution!infrastructure!that!can!cope!with!Xtreme!Transaction!Processing.!Furthermore,!it!can!be!

configured!for!a!diverse!range!of!operational!needs.!!

Capable!of!handling!billions!of!transactions!per!day,!the!implementation!Infrastructure! efficiency!

reduces!total! cost!of!ownership!

and!design!of!the!Bridge!server!is!highly!resource!efficient.!In!addition,!it!

has!a!very!small!system!footprint.!This!reduces!the!server!cost!per!transaction!–!often!by!more!than!an!order!of!magnitude.!For!average!size!deployments,!e.g.!for!a!midUsize!organization!with!less!than!a!million!


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transactions!per!day,!this!means!that!the!Bridge!can!be!coUinstalled!on!a!server!that!is!already!in!use!by!another!application,!e.g.!an!eUCommerce!system.!This!is!a!major!factor!in!reducing!total!cost.!Following!the!same!logic,!the!Bridge!server!can!be!

effectively!operated!in!a!Cloud!environment,!or!even!as!an!onUpremise!appliance.!!

One!of!the!reasons!for!this!high!resource!efficiency!is!the!fact!that!the!Bridge!server!runs!directly!on!the!–!real!or!virtual!–!operating!system,!requiring!nothing!but!the!

operating!system!to!function!properly.!So!far,!it!has!been!ported!to!more!than!half!a!dozen!different!operating!systems,!providing!a!common!abstraction!layer!for!

executable!models,!resulting!in!100%!platform!independence.!I.e.!if!you!decide!to!move!from!an!initial!Bridge!installation!on!Microsoft!Windows®!to!a!more!scalable!Linux®!environment,!this!is!possible!without!any!functional!modifications,!which!is!a!

great!operational!advantage.!!

There!might!be!a!variety!of!reasons!for!operating!multiple!Bridge!server!instances,!

e.g.!if!computing!resources!are!distributed!across!multiple!countries!to!provide!local!operational!independence,!or!for!dynamic!scaling!and!loadUbalancing!as!part!of!an!elastic!Cloud!infrastructure,!or!to!provide!redundancy!and!failsafe!behavior!

that!limits!operational!risk.!Any!such!configurations!are!conveniently!described!as!UML!models.!Subsequent!deployment!follows!these!models!and!is!fully!automated.!

!

3.4!!Quality!assurance!and!monitoring!If!you!ever!had!to!track!down!the!reasons!for!a!failed!transaction!in!a!heterogeneous!

application!environment,!chances!are!you!know!what!it!means!to!suffer.!Traditional!software!development!tools!provide!formidable!mechanisms!to!chase!down!

erroneous!behavior!within!a!single!application,!but!they!leave!you!completely!

stranded!when!it!comes!down!to!chasing!problems!that!occur!between!applications.!!!

Effective!root!cause!analysis!in!distributed!environments!

drastically! reduces!timeUtoUmarket!

To!address!this!common!challenge!–!the!nightmare!of!virtually!every!integration!project!–!the!authoring!environment!of!the!Bridge!offers!a!

powerful!tool,!the!Analyzer! (see!Figure!8),!which!is!specifically!conceived!to!make!quality!assurance!in!distributed,!heterogeneous!

environments!as!transparent!as!possible.!It!fulfills!three!main!functions:!

• Automatic, test,case,generation!–!For!every!process,!service!or!interface,!the!Analyzer!automatically!creates!a!test!case,!which!can!then!be!fed!a!variety!of!

test!inputs!to!ensure!proper!functioning!of!the!component!in!question.!Such!

test!input!can!be!automatically!gathered!by!recording!business!data!from!production!use.!Later!capability!can!be!used!to!increase!test!coverage!before!

major!upgrades!or!modifications.!All!test!cases!can!be!conveniently!grouped!to!form!comprehensive!scenarios!for!regression!testing.!

• ModelBdriven, root,cause,analysis! –!Considered!by!many!to!be!the!leading!feature!of!the!Bridge!ecosystem,!the!Analyzer!provides!fully!modelUdriven!–!

static!and!dynamic!–!error!detection!capabilities!(see!Figure!9).!This!provides!highly!valuable!insight!into!the!behavior!of!any!component!developed!with!

the!Bridge,!as!it!visualizes!the!complete!data!flow,!it!collects!and!reports!

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status!information!from!all!surrounding!systems!directly!within!the!model!context,!and!it!provides!detailed!profiling!information!to!point!out!performance!bottlenecks!in!the!distributed!application!environment.!

• Monitoring, and,analysis,of,production,use!–!In!concert!with!the!Bridge!server,!the!Analyzer!can!investigate!individual!transactions!from!production!runs!in!case!of!operational!issues.!Within!seconds,!it!permits!exact!localization!

of!the!problem!and!allows!for!corrective!action.!It!can!also!provide!detailed!statistical!analysis!regarding!production!use!of!individual!components,!including!their!mutual!dependencies.!This!information!provides!crucial!insight!to!focus!modernization!efforts!on!those!components!that!are!actually!used.!

!

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Figure!9:!ModelUdriven!root!cause!analysis!!!

3.5!!Use!cases!and!tool!configurations!There!are!two!scenarios!for!ways!the!Bridge!can!be!used!in!practice:!as!a!tool!for!communication,!quality!management!and!policy!enforcement,!and!as!an!allUinUone!platform!for!serviceUoriented!development!and!integration.!

!

In!the!first!scenario,!the!Bridge!serves!as!an!Executable!Design!Contract!An!executable!design!

contract!allows! for!efficient!SLA!enforcement!

that!can!be!used!for!collaborative!specification!and!requirements!engineering!prior!to,!for!quality!assurance!during!and!for!acceptance!

testing!after!implementation!and!to!enforce!service!level!agreements!in!an!unambiguous!and!transparent!fashion.!In!this!scenario,!the!role!of!the!Bridge!is!to!build!up!precise!specifications!for!processes,!services!

and!interfaces,!and!to!produce!a!test!framework!against!which!implementations!based!on!other!development!tools!can!be!validated.!!!!

!

This!scenario!is!particularly!useful!in!situations!where!an!organization!has!outsourced!its!development!to!one!or!more!external!service!providers.!From!an!end!user!perspective,!the!Executable!Design!Contract!is!an!effective!way!to!limit!project!cost.!

For!service!providers,!it!provides!a!chance!to!better!control!their!margin!during!fixed!price!engagements.!Used!this!way,!the!Bridge!provides!a!highly!useful!insurance!

policy!–!a!real!pain!killer!to!keep!complex!projects!on!time!and!on!budget.!


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The!second!scenario,!the!AllUinUOne!SOA!Platform,!uses!the!full!capabilities!of!the!

Bridge!from!specification!to!production!use!–!a!natural!expansion!of!the!Executable!Design!Contract!introduced!in!the!previous!paragraph.!Use!of!the!Bridge!as!an!AllUinU!One!SOA!Platform!comes!in!three!flavors,!depending!on!the!project!characteristics:!

• System,Integration! –!The!Bridge!serves!as!last!mile!of!connectivity!for!

Application!Integration,!replacing!manual!interface!coding!to!reduce!total!cost.!In!this!use!case,!the!Bridge!is!often!used!as!adapter!framework!for!

middleware!from!other!vendors,!leading!to!higher!ROI!on!previous!

investments.!• Process,Integration! –!On!top!of!System!Integration,!the!Bridge!can!provide!

aggregation!and!orchestration!of!lowUlevel!services!into!higher!level!business!logic.!Initiatives!for!B2B!Integration,!Process!Control!or!multiUchannel!eU!Commerce!fall!into!this!category.!

• Business,Integration! –!Together!with!Process!and!System!Integration,!the!Bridge!can!be!used!for!the!complete!modernization!of!endUtoUend!processes,!covering!all!layers!from!process!to!backend,!including!the!development!of!user!interfaces.!

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4! HOW!TO!GET!STARTED!!

!

4.1!!Learning!from!a!real!case!In!order!to!understand!how!these!methods!can!be!applied!to!your!own!situation,!

and!to!propose!a!standardized!process!for!getting!started!with!the!Bridge,!it’s!best!to!look!at!a!realUlife!example.!The!case!we’ve!selected!is!representative!of!a!situation!many!organizations!face!today:!as!consumers!move!their!shopping!spree!into!the!

Internet,!companies!are!forced!to!substantially!restructure!their!sales!approach.!!

The!company!in!question!is!a!midUsize,!family!owned!fashion!retailer!with!700!employees!and!a!turnover!of!230m!USD.!In!the!past,!it!operated!as!a!traditional!

brickUandUmortar!business.!Its!revenues!were!collected!through!pointUofUsales!terminals!at!branded!stores.!Operations!were!managed!using!an!inUhouse!developed!ERP!system.!Processing!was!performed!once!per!day!using!batch!procedures.!The!

Internet!was!used!to!reinforce!the!brand,!but!not!for!more.!!

Over!the!years,!and!accelerated!by!the!economic!crisis,!the!buying!behavior!of!its!clients!had!changed.!Consumers!spent!more!time!with!price!comparisons!and!shopping!on!the!Internet,!and!not!in!its!branded!stores.!With!revenues!in!decline,!

the!company!was!forced!to!reinvent!the!way!it!did!business.!It!finally!had!to!embrace!a!24x7!multiUchannel!eUCommerce!approach,!where!its!branded!stores!

would!switch!places!with!the!previous!Internet!presence!to!reinforce!the!brand,!rather!than!being!the!main!revenue!source.!

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4.2!!Keeping!what!works,!changing!what!doesn’t!Transforming!from!batch!mode!to!realUtime!eUCommerce!was!a!nonUtrivial!change,!

requiring!a!massive!shift!in!business!processes!as!well!as!the!supporting!information!systems.!During!this!transformation,!business!had!to!go!on!as!usual,!and!previous!backlogs!in!IT!related!tasks!don’t!vanish.!

!

To!gain!speed,!the!company!decided!to!reuse!essential!infrastructure,!such!as!its!inU!

house!ERP!system,!and!to!externalize!commodity!functions!it!could!source!from!readily!available!Cloud!services,!such!as!the!new!CRM,!payment!services!and!credit!reference!checks!as!well!as!return!logistics.!

!

The!Bridge!was!selected!as!the!change!management!vehicle.!It!was!to!provide!a!common!platform!for!business!and!IT!to!control!every!step!of!the!transformation,!based!on!the!understanding!that!success!could!only!be!achieved!via!effective!

collaboration.!!

4.3!!Selecting!an!effective!proofUofUconcept!With!that!many!changes!ahead,!it!was!decided!to!engage!in!a!proofUofUconcept!to!

exercise!essential!capabilities!at!technical!and!organizational!levels.!Data!quality!management!was!chosen!as!the!target!process.!Its!function!was!to!isolate!

inconsistent!entries!for!manual!correction!as!the!order!processing!from!the!pointUofU!sales!systems!moved!from!batch!procedures!to!online!operations.!

!

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Figure!10:!Data!quality!management!as!proofUofUconcept!scenario!!!

For!the!proofUofUconcept!(see!Figure!10),!only!essential!functions!were!selected!for!

implementation.!After!3!days,!the!scenario!was!successfully!completed.!From!the!concrete!example,!the!organization!was!able!to!learn!how!the!methodology!could!be!applied!to!its!own!situation,!providing!hints!regarding!the!most!suitable!project!setup!for!the!next!steps!of!the!transformation.!


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The!Bridge!played!several!roles!during!this!proofUofUconcept:!!

• It!served!as!the!specification!platform!for!the!process!flow!as!well!as!the!user!

interfaces!required!for!manual!intervention!• It!was!used!as!the!development!platform!for!the!service!logic!and!the!

integration!layer!between!all!participating!systems,!and!finally!

• It!provided!the!means!to!wrap!essential!functions!of!the!existing!ERP!system!and!the!pointUofUsales!terminals!for!reuse!in!the!new!setup.!

!4.4!!Gaining!confidence!with!an!early!win!The!short!time!span!available!for!a!proofUofUconcept!was!sufficient!to!establish!the!

technical!feasibility!of!the!modernization!effort.!However,!it!didn’t!give!the!organization!enough!time!to!learn!a!new!approach!of!working!together.!Used!to!the!

old!ways!of!doing!things,!and!with!the!common!distrust!of!business!in!its!own!IT!still!in!place,!it!was!important!to!bring!a!first!project!to!conclusion!that!would!help!the!organization!gain!confidence!to!attack!the!following,!more!complex!parts!of!the!

transformation!effort.!!

Three!factors!were!critical!in!the!successful!implementation!of!such!an!early!win!

project:!

• Selection!of!a!business!case!that!provided!tangible!benefits!for!all!stakeholders!involved.!

• The!project!had!to!be!of!moderate!complexity,!so!it!could!be!completed!in!

just!a!few!weeks.!• The!team!selected!for!implementation!had!to!be!small!and!motivated!and!had!

to!be!shielded!from!the!dayUtoUday!operations.!!

Expansion!of!the!proofUofUconcept!scenario!into!a!real!process!that!Successful!completion!of!a!small!but!highly! visible!first!

project!builds!necessary!trust!amongst! all!stakeholders!

could!be!used!in!production!was!the!natural!choice!for!a!first!project.!With!the!limited!number!of!systems!and!stakeholders!involved,!it!provided!the!organization!with!a!scoped!challenge!that!could!be!easily!mastered,!even!though!a!new!way!of!working!together!between!business!and!IT!had!to!be!established.!

!4.5!!Modernizing! in!controllable!steps!Successful!completion!of!the!first!project!provided!the!blueprint!for!all!further!activities.!It!had!established!a!mode!of!functional!modernization,!where!the!company!could!progress!in!steps!that!produced!predictable!outcomes!while!minimizing!the!risk!of!failure.!

!

As!a!fundamental!principle,!the!transformation!continued!in!a!processUdriven!fashion.!I.e.,!only!the!components!required!to!bring!a!new!process!to!life!were!touched.!This!allowed!user!interfaces,!business!logic!and!technical!support!functions!to!evolve!stepUbyUstep,!involving!more!and!more!members!of!the!organization.!

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In!review,!the!Bridge!has!assumed!the!role!of!a!catalyst!for!interdisciplinary!communication,!to!keep!specifications!clear!between!business!and!IT!and!maintain!a!single!source!of!truth!from!conception!to!production.!

!!

5! RESULTS!SPEAK!FOR!THEMSELVES!The!ability!to!change!something!quickly!and!produce!predictable!results!relies!on!a!thorough!understanding!of!the!status!quo.!To!that!extent,!the!value!of!an!approach!that!acts!like!an!insurance!policy!to!keep!production!systems!and!their!documentation!permanently!in!sync!is!intuitively!understandable.!But!two!key!questions!remain:!can!the!impact!of!the!E2E!approach!be!quantified?!And!if!so,!is!it!applicable!to!your!own!situation?!

!The!impact!of!using!the!

Bridge!can!be!quantified! in!terms!of!timeUtoUmarket,!

TCO!and!flexibility!

!

The!answer!to!the!first!question!is!readily!given.!From!a!broad!range!of!projects!performed!by!companies!between!200!and!20,000!employees,!and!from!a!variety!of!industrial!backgrounds,!detailed!case!studies!have!been!produced!which!are!available!for!free!download.!!

!

All!cases!share!similar!traits,!which!can!be!summarized!as!follows:!!

• TimeBtoBmarket, is,shortened,by,factors,–,Some,examples:!1.!!!!A!business!unit!of!a!telecommunication!services!provider!uses!the!

Bridge!to!implement!change!requests!in!the!area!of!process!performance!management.!Going!from!idea!to!production!takes!now!

4!days!instead!of!3!weeks.!2.!!!!A!multiUnational!supply!chain!giant!accelerates!business!integration!

globally!from!3!months!down!to!15!days,!averaged!over!thousands!of!

integration!points!in!38!countries,!resulting!in!a!strategic!competitive!advantage.!

3.!!!!A!Cloud!service!provider!offering!managed!services!in!the!area!of!

electronic!billing!and!archiving!reduced!development!time!for!solution!integration!from!18!months!to!3!months,!going!live!with!its!offering!15!months!ahead!of!schedule.!Apart!from!substantial!reductions!in!development!cost,!during!those!15!months,!more!than!150!clients!

signed!up!for!the!service.!• Total,cost,can,be,drastically, reduced,–,Some,examples:!

1.!!!!Based!on!projects!of!comparable!complexity,!a!networking!service!provider!had!allocated!a!$300,000!annual!maintenance!budget.!After!introducing!the!Bridge,!the!annual!budget!could!be!reduced!to!!

$35,000,!a!maintenance!cost!reduction!of!90%.!

2.!!!!The!#1!services!group!in!Asia!built!thousands!of!interfaces!using!the!Bridge.!The!model!driven!approach!lead!to!higher!transparency!and!

better!service!reuse,!reducing!total!cost!by!80%.!


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3.!!!!The!national!subsidiary!of!a!global!financial!services!group!

implemented!800!business!services!with!2,500!interfaces!using!the!Bridge.!Total!cost!was!70%!lower!than!the!original!estimate!based!on!traditional!methodologies.!

• Simplification, leads,to,flexibility, –,Some,examples:!1.!!!!A!national!electricity!grid!operator!uses!the!Bridge!as!Enterprise!

Service!Bus,!for!Backend!Integration!and!Master!Data!Management.!

Based!on!the!unique!Interceptor!approach,!migration!to!a!new!Identity!and!Access!Management!solution!was!performed!at!minimal!cost.!

2.!!!!Regional!subsidiaries!of!a!credit!management!services!firm!used!the!Bridge!to!develop!a!complex!custom!ERP!system!to!manage!specialized!cash!flow!processes.!Tight!integration!between!processes!and!

supporting!IT!systems!led!to!6x!higher!efficiency.!3.!!!!An!infrastructure!services!group!in!Eastern!Europe!started!using!the!

Bridge!as!a!simple!replacement!for!SAP!Business!Connector.!The!efficiency!gains!realized!with!the!Bridge!led!to!expanding!its!

application!to!a!broad!variety!of!situations,!including!Backend!Connectivity!and!Portal!Integration.!

!

Reduction!of!timeUtoUmarket,!decrease!in!total!cost!as!well!as!increased!flexibility!all!

result!from!one!common!pattern:!the!Bridge!improves!stakeholder!dialog!while!reducing!dependency!on!individuals.!As!a!result,!IT!departments!become!more!responsive!without!stretching!themselves!to!the!limit.!This!encourages!business!

leaders!to!try!out!incremental!improvements,!whereas!previously,!they!would!have!simply!given!up!on!their!idea.!

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The!answer!to!the!second!question,!about!applicability!to!your!own!context,!depends!on!three!factors:!

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First,!managing!change!requires!leadership!–!your!leadership.!Successful!change!starts!always!with!a!champion!–!you!!It’s!your!personal!determination!in!combination!with!an!open!mind!to!try!a!new!approach!that!provides!the!foundation!for!successful!change.!

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The!second!factor!is!something!No!Magic!can!help!with:!selecting!the!right!project!to!start!with!and!pinpointing!immediate!opportunities!to!reduce!operational!cost!to!liberate!funds!for!innovation.!We!can!also!review!your!current!infrastructure!to!assess!what!can!be!kept!to!maximize!ROI!on!prior!investments.!To!answer!these!questions,!we!will!draw!upon!the!experience!from!hundreds!of!situations!just!like!yours.!

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And!thirdly:!we!need!to!talk!!We!at!No!Magic!look!forward!to!assisting!you!in!the!successful!transformation!of!your!business,!one!predictable!step!at!a!time,!and!

based!on!the!people!and!infrastructure!you!already!have.!We!look!forward!to!improving!levels!of!productivity!you!thought!were!impossible,!by!getting!business!

and!IT!to!collaborate!more!effectively!with!each!other!on!mission!critical!initiatives.!That!way!you!will!finally!achieve!the!level!of!flexibility!you!need!to!bring!your!ideas!to!market!faster.!

Documents

Cameo E2E Bridge Business White Paper - No Magic · Bring!your!ideas!to!market!faster! 7!!!!! 2.1!!Principle!1:!Involving!all!stakeholders! Models!play!an!important!role!in!the!description!of!complex!scenarios!and!are