GTS CenTral europe aCCeleraTeS InTernal TranSformaTIon by ImplemenTInG webmeThodS bpmS, an InTeGraTed proCeSS manaGemenT plaTform

Customer reference Story GTS Central europe | Telecommunication | webmethods bpmS

GTS Central europe is a leading infrastructure-based provider of telecommunications services in Central and eastern europe. GTS owns and operates an extensive fiber optic and data center network throughout the region. In the Czech republic, hungary, poland, romania and Slovakia, the company combines its regional footprint with deep local networks to deliver a broad range of services. from basic voice and data to complex virtual private networks and managed data center services, GTS assembles the latest technology with its extensive network to provide industry-leading customer solutions. with a rich operating history of nearly 20 years in Cee, the company is committed to providing service excellence and value to its nearly 40,000 business, carrier and government customers.

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Challenge In 2009, GTS Central Europe began a transformation that merged its subsidiaries in five countries, employing a total of approximately 1,500 people, into a single organization. Country-based structures were replaced by an international organization, enabling the company to win regional customers more effectively. At the same time, however, new organizational and operational challenges emerged. GTS Central Europe determined that the ultimate solution to these challenges would be to define and automate business processes that span all business units. Since the company had no solution capable of meeting its long-term expectations in that area, GTS Central Europe chose to acquire and implement a brand new process manage-ment framework.

SolutionHaving analyzed a number of potential solutions, GTS chose to implement webMethods BPMS from Software AG. The choice was largely determined by the solution’s versatility. GTS appreci- ated the fact that, in addition to process management capabilities, webMethods BPMS also provides tools to define and execute business rules, integration functionality (including an ESB), adapters for many enterprise-class applications, and tools for designing and generating process reports. benefits• Versatility that allows a wide range of processes (including automated integration processes

and workflow processes) of different types and levels of complexity to be defined and im-plemented within a single framework.

• Open architecture and easy integration that enables data and functionality from multiple systems and applications to be utilized within a single process.

• Business agility to modify process parameters easily by using rules, without making signifi-cant changes to the flow of each process.

• Process visibility, supervision and control with BAM (Business Activity Monitoring) function-ality and tools to monitor processes and create reports, indicators, charts, etc. built directly into the platform.

• Low acquisition cost with an affordable QuickStart license that provides complete platform functionality with a limited number of managed processes.

• Low maintenance cost with a single framework capable of supporting various process man-agement needs.

multiple processes on a single platform

GTS began deploying its universal process management framework with a pilot implementa-tion of a solution to automate periodic employee performance appraisals. Each country-based business unit used a slightly different set of procedures that normally relied on e-mails and Microsoft Excel spreadsheets. This made it difficult to merge and interpret appraisal results, and to oversee the progress of the appraisal process itself. Consequently, developing a single solution for all countries was an obvious choice; the list of processes that posed similar challenges goes on.

“As part of the pilot project, we implemented a uniform periodic appraisal management solution across the entire group. Now, we are implementing another process, this time for approving invest-ment expenses. We are gaining valuable experi-ence, and end-users are becoming familiar with the system’s capabilities, which helps them to precisely express their requirements. We expect that by mid-2012, we will be able to automate around ten internal processes in total. The assumption is that, by that time, we will be able to prove to ourselves and to the company that webMethods BPMS is reliable and flexible enough to be used for supporting processes related to customer and partner relationships,” says Piotr Kiszkiel, IS/IT Director, GTS Poland.

multiple aspects of flexibility

The ability to support the integration of various business processes within a single platform was a major factor that determined the choice of webMethods BPMS. “We assumed that the solution would have to be capable of handling workflow and document flow processes as well as auto-mated processes, including any combination of the above. At the same time, we wanted to be able to call on the data and logic of any application used

by GTS Central Europe within a single process. The requirement to integrate the systems was, in our assessment, inextricably linked with the need to automate processes,” explains Piotr Kiszkiel..

One of GTS’s key requirements was the ability to modify process parameters easily without having to change the core flow of each process. “Process needs evolve with market and organizational changes, and process redefinition is a major issue that affects the company’s operational efficiency. Much more often, it is only necessary to change business process parameters at selected stages, and this is possible with webMethods BPMS and its built-in business rules engine, among other things,” emphasizes Janusz Konik, CEO of CrossVista Polska, the Software AG Polska Business Partner that implemented webMethods BPMS at GTS and now provides technical support for the platform.

Visibility and operational efficiency

GTS’s decision was validated by the very first process implemented on the webMethods BPMS platform. “Appraisals are conducted every quarter, and the questionnaires are quite long. I have a total of 11 employees in three countries reporting to me, so the unification of the periodic appraisal process has given me substantial time savings. Definitions and details are consistent across all countries and stored at a single location, and the progress of the appraisal process can be reviewed at any time by using the reporting capabilities built into the platform,” says Piotr Kiszkiel.

The benefits of increased visibility are not limited to business department managers. “With this implementation, our HR organization can view the employees’ goals in real time, verify the quality and consistency of the performance appraisal process, and plan training needs effectively,” says Agnieszka Marciniak, Process Implementation Program Leader, GTS Central Europe.

maintenance and changes without unnecessary spending

One of the reasons why the webMethods BPMS integrated process platform was selected was GTS’s desire to control the cost of maintaining and modifying the process solutions scheduled for deployment. “With a unified platform and the ability to use existing skills, the cost of implement-ing additional processes will be reduced, and supporting the processes will no longer require a large team,” says Piotr Kiszkiel.

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Key ComponenTS

“With a unified platform and the ability to use existing skills, the cost of implementing additional processes will be reduced, and supporting the processes will no longer require a large team.”

Piotr Kiszkiel | IS/IT Director | GTS Poland

abouT SofTware aGSoftware AG is the global leader in Business Process Excellence. Our 40 years of innovation include the invention of the first high-performance transactional database, Adabas; the first business process analysis platform, ARIS; and the first B2B server and SOA-based integration platform, webMethods.

We offer our customers end-to-end Business Process Management (BPM) solutions delivering low Total-Cost-of-Ownership and high ease of use. Our industry-leading brands, ARIS, webMethods, Adabas, Natural, CentraSite, Terracotta and IDS Scheer Consulting, represent a unique portfolio encompassing: process strategy, design, integration and control; SOA-based integration and data management; process-driven SAP implementation; and strategic process consulting and services.

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