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Integration projects are booming, especially in industries where the Internet has become almost indispensable. The telecommunications industry is a prime example. In this dynamic and intensely competitive sector, breakdowns in communication between online shops and their respective EDP systems result in lengthy delivery and activation times, which soon leads to dissatisfaction among users. The key to success is avoiding this kind of delay, which is exactly what prompted the telecommunications provider VIAG Interkom to implement a complex enterprise application integration (EAI) project.
eBusiness is more than just running a web shop. Before you can make full use of the potential on offer in this era of digital selling, you need to tailor all your eBusiness IT applications accordingly. VIAG Interkom took this on board with an integration project that established a constant flow of data between enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and online shops, effectively eliminating any breakdowns in communication between different media. The communication breakdowns took up a lot of valuable time and made it difficult to locate causes of error. Initially, for example, the project team had to transfer Internet orders manually into the company's Oracle eBusiness suite before orders could be processed automatically. With smaller numbers of orders, this could be achieved by hand, but when the volume of orders became critical an automated process was required.
Complex processes and complex products
Identify a problem successfully and you're half way to a solution. Since the business processes at VIAG Interkom are distributed across several systems, the company took the plunge in December 2000 and became the first company in the telecommunications sector to implement a complex integration programme. "The telecommunications market is never static", says Bert Müller, Project Manager of the VIOS Project at VIAG Interkom, of the problems involved with this particular industry. "Due to the dynamic features of the market for our industry, the task of combining different distribution channels made considerable demands on development and co-ordination resources. Adjustments had to be considered and implemented while the project was running", he adds.
A heterogeneous product portfolio
In addition to the dynamics of the market, the complexity of the sales process, which is closely connected to the product portfolio of the different telecommunications providers, also presented a problem. The sales process includes orders for goods such as mobile phones and any related services, for example, phone contracts, which have pre-determined runtimes that can be extended if required (retention). This type of industry-specific detail had to be taken into account during the integration program, as did the different payment options, including creditworthiness checks. To shorten delivery and response times, all of these processes had to be automated and integrated into the process chain.
End-To-End tests guarantee successful integration
Software and consulting house PROMATIS was one of the companies involved in the integration project. With many years' experience in the Oracle environment and the telecommunications industry, employees from the IT service provider brought with them the know-how necessary to connect a range of front-end systems, including a web shop, to the Oracle eBusiness Suite standard software. This integration ensured a smooth follow-through in the process chain, beginning with an initial logistics process triggered by an online order, through delivery and on to invoicing and posting the sale in the corresponding ERP system. Today, workflows are used to import the individual data into corresponding back-end software, such as retail systems. During the project phase, the integrity and functions of the processes involved were checked in end-to-end tests by the VIOS project team supported by PROMATIS' consultants. These tests checked, for example, that data sent automatically to the SCHUFA module and assessed positively for creditworthiness were subsequently transferred to order management in the Oracle system, where it was processed as an order. "In this case, two different processes, called workstreams, are triggered automatically - one for logistics and one for contract processing", explains Bert Müller. However, before this can happen, the contract workstream has to be connected to the CRM system. Ursula Jarl, IT Project Manager at VIAG Interkom, describes the process as follows: "Today, when a customer places an order through one of our portals, a fully automated process is started on the system side. This process encompasses adding the customer's details to the CRM system, and the subsequent activation and physical delivery of the mobile phone, SIM card, contract, and invoicing documents". To make the whole process chain more transparent, the individual steps in the process are displayed internally in the VIOS EDP system.
Order status updates on demand
The aim of a second phase of the project was to make the order management tool (OMT) available to internal departments, such as customer service and sales operations. The OMT tool is based on Internet technology and is used for processing and following-up orders. It is connected to the Oracle eBusiness Suite with existing and enhanced interfaces. Users are able to check the availability of a product at the time the order is placed and an order-tracking function allows them to monitor the progress of the order online, down to the packet number of the carrier. At the same time, VIAG Interkom uses SMS or e-mail to inform customers proactively about the delivery of their goods.
There are plans to introduce the program, which has already been implemented internally, to the retail trade. Retail traders already use the VIAG Interkom portal to place their orders, but a third project phase will automate the processes involved--the difference being that data are stored directly in the EDP system without having to be transferred manually. To implement this plan, business partners will receive newly developed frontends. The third and final part of the EAI project is now in the analysis phase and first results are already apparent. "With shorter delivery times and faster activation of services, despite ever-increasing order volumes, we are able to set new standards in the telecommunications market", says Ursula Jarl.
VIAG Interkom
VIAG Interkom operates in all areas of the telecommunications market for the cellular devices industry. With its own comprehensive network infrastructure, this subsidiary of the British firm mmO2 plc (formerly BT Wireless) offers a range of products, including innovative post-paid and pre-paid products, as well as mobile data services based on GPRS technology. The implementation of the next mobile generation, UMTS, is planned. The cellular technology provider was founded in 1995 and today has around 6000 employees. In the fiscal year for 2000, its turnover was 1,6 billion EUR.
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