Matrix

Published on September 2016 | Categories: Documents | Downloads: 86 | Comments: 0 | Views: 675
of 4
Download PDF   Embed   Report

Comments

Content

Case study BT Matrix architecture

SOA freedom from legacy system constraints
“Our systems were exploding in size and complexity. We had scant standardisation, and there was no single truth. If a core process broke we’d change it to fit the application, rather than the other way round. This was crazily expensive to maintain. It was also a big brake on speed to market.”
Phil Dance Chief Information Officer for Technology BT

An enterprise-wide service-oriented architecture is conferring big commercial and sustainability benefits on BT
The Matrix method
BT is nearing the end of a four-year enterprise-wide IT transformation programme. Called the BT Matrix project, it is one of the world’s largest service-oriented architecture (SOA) deployments. Its unwavering goal is to rationalise an original assortment of BT legacy systems into re-usable general-purpose functionality blocks. Able to be continuously and seamlessly architected to support different products and services and their associated business processes, those functionality blocks are the very essence of the BT Matrix SOA. In fact, the size of the task was immense. Back in 2004 when the BT Matrix project was launched, BT managed its networks – and the products and services that run on them – through some 4,000 bespoke operational support systems (some of which were only discovered as the project progressed), around 15,000 servers, and 26 data centres, within a loose-knit hardwarecentric framework. Phil Dance, Chief Information Officer for Technology at BT, recalls: “Our systems were exploding in size and complexity. We had scant standardisation, and there was no single truth. If a core process broke we’d change it to fit the application, rather than the other way round. This was crazily expensive to maintain. It was also a big brake on speed to market.” The implementation methodology went far beyond the outdated idea of wrapping a middleware layer around the company’s legacy systems. Called the continuous migration process (CMP) it gave the BT systems architects the freedom to move to just 14 simplified platforms to support the company’s three core business processes: lead-to-cash, trouble-to-resolve, and concept-to-market. (Note that those core business processes are, in themselves, a masterpiece of simplification.)

The BT differentiators
• The Matrix architecture supports the BT 21CN to deliver the next generation of IP-based products and services • Standardised architecture – driven by customer-focused business processes rather than system-centric inflexibility – enables agility and innovation • Enterprise-wide implementation has proven the BT approach for major organisations considering embarking on a similar journey • Improved business sustainability comes naturally with SOA-enabled IT rationalisation and consolidation

Case study BT Matrix architecture
Each of the new platforms represents a domain of business functionality such as customer management, billing, or service management. For example, a function like billing would previously have depended upon over 300 support systems. Already rationalised down to 70 systems, the eventual target is to reduce the billing platform to just 10 systems sharing application logic and data. The transition includes database migration, and consolidation of web and application servers, which will all operate under one consistent governance model. George Glass, Chief Architect in BT Global Services, explains: “An encapsulation utility exposes our legacy systems as web services, and an enterprise service bus provides the interface between them. A central hub enables workflow between applications, while new services are built on Java-based models.” Under the Matrix project BT has now closed down over 1,500 systems and remains on track to achieve a reduction of 80 per cent from the 2004 total. Already, BT mass-market products and services such as standard telephony, mobile broadband, and global MPLS connections are running across the BT Matrix SOA. encourage development teams to move away from waterfall models and forge tighter links with internal and external customers. Today, developers run hothouse sessions to consult with users prior to starting work. Performance measures are more closely linked to, for example, getting projects right first time and the re-use of functionality. George Glass comments: “The process now begins with our customer experience team, because the primary consideration for any proposed service is how current and future customers would need to interact with it. So the Matrix method defines what the ideal customer experience should be – rather than handing it down as an afterthought.” BT created new roles to reflect the new model: capability designers responsible for designing and implementing the service interface; and solutions designers to create the required IT functionalities. They all start work from the same customer-agreed design specification and they speak one common language about capabilities (reusable standards-based blocks of processes, systems, and associated data, designed to assure a repeatable business outcome).

“Moving to a service-oriented architecture requires fundamental organisational and cultural shifts. Our architects and designers had to think and behave very differently, because SOA vision quickly turns to dust unless you take everyone with you.”
Steve Holt General Manager, IT Services BT Global Services

The key to competitiveness
The value that BT is unlocking through the Matrix project includes greater staff satisfaction and more resilient IT services: the sustainability benefits are significant (see separate box). George Glass observes: “The new architecture is enabling us to bring new products and services to market much faster and more cost effectively.” For example, previously, a small reduction in a BT Wholesale line rental required changes to 42 systems – followed by three months of testing. Now just one platform is adjusted through an interface that automates the change process. Average lead times are being slashed from a year-and-a-half to just six months. When BT had to implement the VAT revision in late-2008 the changes were completed and tested right across the company in six days. A similar exercise in 1991 took months of painstaking effort.

Customer-centric processes
The BT story is compelling for companies about to embark on a similar journey. For example, BT realised very early on that technology was but one part of the Matrix project. Steve Holt, General Manager of IT Services in BT Global Services, says: “Moving to a service-oriented architecture requires fundamental organisational and cultural shifts. Our architects and designers had to think and behave very differently, because SOA vision quickly turns to dust unless you take everyone with you.” A prerequisite was to demolish the old systems-centric mindset in favour of a platform-centric culture, and BT strove hard to (successfully) win over the hearts and minds of its technical community. A new agile delivery model was introduced to

Case study BT Matrix architecture
The project has saved BT huge amounts in non-recurring costs. Specific examples include: • The decommissioning of over 6,900 hardware devices such as surplus servers and routers • A Windows consolidation programme that has virtualised 2,400 operational servers onto 160 blade servers • Capital avoidance through re-utilising redundant servers and only purchasing physical servers as a last resort • A standardised software build that has reduced the cost and complexity of patch management across the entire BT estate By the end of the project, BT could see a reduction in recurring overheads estimated to be as much as £60 million per annum. The new architecture will significantly contribute to the BT drive to realise industry leading customer service levels and therefore achieve greater competitive edge. As the company’s newfound agility enables it to offer self-service, zero touch, real time experiences, customers will see BT becoming totally responsive to their needs. For example the BT 21st Century Network (21CN) combined with the Matrix architecture will allow BT to turn on services automatically for customers – virtually as soon as they place their orders – with no intervention from an agent or engineer. In terms of its effect upon BT employees, the BT Matrix SOA project has made it possible to reorient the efforts of around 3,000 people – some 20 per cent of the company’s IT staff. From internally focused projects they are now adopting customer-facing roles that generate revenue for the company. As a result those people are learning new skills and feeling more fulfilled. The BT Matrix SOA project has also helped to raise the bar on IT performance and availability. In the previous elaborate architecture, upgrades would interrupt the business as engineers grappled with complexity; and the effects of faults would ripple throughout the system. That is no longer the case. A service-oriented architecture means that a change need only affect a single capability and, should problems occur, they can be isolated and rectified much more rapidly. It is also much easier to retire redundant systems, while re-using any still-valuable functionality.

“The process now begins with our customer experience team, because the primary consideration for any proposed service is how current and future customers would need to interact with it. So the Matrix SOA defines what the ideal customer experience should be – rather than handing it down as an afterthought.”
George Glass Chief Architect BT Global Services

Sharing success
There is no question that BT has climbed a huge learning curve during the Matrix SOA project. In so doing, it has captured and codified best practice: invaluable insight for organisations facing similar systems challenges in industries as diverse as financial services, high-tech manufacturing, and national and local government. Now those skills are being marketed as strategic consulting services, through which BT intends to help its customers avoid the potential pitfalls of SOA adoption. For example, as part of proof of concept considerations, BT SOA Assessment services fast track the critical discovery phase through objective gap analysis and the development of a high-level SOA roadmap. Where a well-developed SOA ambition already exists, BT SOA Realisation services offer architectural validation, project support, and awareness programmes to speed delivery of the vision. Mark James, Head of Integration Services at BT Global Services, explains: “It’s a hard fact that nearly all do-it-yourself SOA projects take longer than originally anticipated and can fail to deliver on the anticipated business benefits. They will always face challenges ranging from cementing the commitment of key stakeholders, to conflict over goals and resource allocation. In addition, unpredicted pressures such as M&A activity can throw things off course. Our SOA consultancy propositions are designed to help customers navigate such choppy waters through proven methods and best practice, while realising benefits faster.”

Case study BT Matrix architecture
BT customers are already benefiting from this hands-on approach. For one large government organisation using the BT CMP way to SOA adoption has eliminated the need for a previously planned 12-month multi-million pound expansion of its data centre facilities. Another US retail banking client chose the BT CMP method over more prescriptive solutions presented by five top IT consultancies. BT is currently providing ongoing guidance and regular health checks to ensure that the bank’s SOA roadmap remains on track. Craig Parker, Head of Global Propositions for IT Services in BT Global Services, concludes: “BT SOA processes are proven in practice, which means that customers need no longer make blind leaps of faith. Whether the imperative is to take costs out of a top-heavy IT infrastructure, adopt a more agile enterprise architecture, or assure business sustainability, we have the people and the skills to assist.”

“BT SOA processes are proven in practice, which means that customers need no longer make blind leaps of faith. Whether the imperative is to take costs out of a top-heavy IT infrastructure, adopt a more agile enterprise architecture, or assure business sustainability, we have the people and the skills to assist.”
Craig Parker Head of Global Propositions, IT Services BT Global Services

Core BT services
• BT Continuous Migration Process • BT SOA Assessment consultancy services • BT SOA Realisation consultancy services

SOA sustainability dividends
Although not the primary objective of the original BT Matrix SOA project in 2004, the business sustainability benefits of the programme have grown hugely in prominence and effect during the intervening period. In fact, the Matrix has become one of the key contributors to the BT goal of reducing its UK business carbon footprint by 80 per cent by 2016 (relative to 1996 figures). A significant factor in this is the retirement of approaching 10,000 redundant hardware devices. BT is one of the world’s largest purchasers of green electricity. In fact, 98 per cent of the electricity BT uses in the UK now comes from renewable sources or combined heat-and-power schemes. BT also has low-carbon electricity contracts in Belgium, Germany, Italy, and Ireland. Already power savings of £3.5 million have been achieved since January 2006 through the Matrix project, and there is a knock-on benefit in terms of releasing carbon efficient capacity for other uses. Moreover, this SOA-enabled rationalisation is helping BT transform data centre efficiency by using techniques such as free air cooling and cold aisle segregation. For example, free air cooling at the BT Tinsley Park data centre is saving some 255,000kW per annum, and a similar approach is being deployed across 5,500 multi-service access nodes and 106 metro nodes at the core of 21CN. Cold aisle segregation at the BT Rochdale Hall data centre is improving the overall energy efficiency of its cooling systems by some 16 per cent. Meanwhile, at BT Adastral Park combined cooling, heating, and power systems that harvest waste heat are in use. Factored across the entire BT global data centre estate, such incremental gains add up to huge environmental benefits.
Offices worldwide
The services described in this publication are subject to availability and may be modified from time to time. Services and equipment are provided subject to British Telecommunications plc’s respective standard conditions of contract. Nothing in this publication forms any part of any contract. © British Telecommunications plc 2009. Registered office: 81 Newgate Street, London EC1A 7AJ Registered in England No: 1800000

Sponsor Documents

Or use your account on DocShare.tips

Hide

Forgot your password?

Or register your new account on DocShare.tips

Hide

Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive a link to create a new password.

Back to log-in

Close