company overview

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Company Overview

August 2011

A premier custom software development, consulting and outsourcing company

Contents

Message from the President .......................................................................... 3

General Information ...................................................................................... 4

Business Units ............................................................................................................... 4 Expertise ....................................................................................................................... 5 Domain Awareness ........................................................................................................ 6 Representative Clients ................................................................................................... 7 Certification and Technology Partnerships ...................................................................... 9

Engagement Models ....................................................................................10

Time-and-Material Engagements ................................................................................... 10 Dedicated Development Center ..................................................................................... 11 Fixed Price Engagements .............................................................................................. 11 Contract Documentation ............................................................................................... 12 Engagement Models at a Glance .................................................................................... 13 Subcontracting and White Labeling ............................................................................... 13

Technical Infrastructure................................................................................ 15

Hardware and Equipment .............................................................................................. 15 Data Backup ................................................................................................................. 15 Security and Data Protection at a Glance ........................................................................ 17

Development Methodologies ....................................................................... 18

Agile Methodologies .................................................................................................... 18 Other Iterative Approaches........................................................................................... 18 Prototyping ................................................................................................................. 19 Concurrent Development ............................................................................................. 19

Confidentiality and IP Protection ..................................................................20

Project Management.................................................................................... 21

Risk Management ......................................................................................................... 21 Release Management .................................................................................................... 23 Change Management ................................................................................................... 24 Quality Management ................................................................................................... 24 Communication ............................................................................................................ 25

The iTechArt Difference ............................................................................... 27

Appendix – Skills by Platform ...................................................................... 28


Message from the President

“Efficient communication is the key ingredient of a successful outsourced software development project.”

Message from the President During the first wave of outsourcing in the early 1990s, the three entrepreneurs that were to become iTechArt’s founders worked as developers and project managers for global IT companies. We had an opportunity to analyze the typical challenges facing this business and were trying to figure out the best possible way to make IT outsourcing more effective for clients. With this valuable experience under our belts, we decided to start our own small IT company specializing in Java Technology. Two months later, iTechArt had 3 contracts and was actively exploring other major technology platforms.

In Q2 2004 iTechArt signed a key long-term contract with a major security and data control systems provider. Since then, iTechArt’s growth has been fueled by our commitment to providing highly focused software solutions.

In our view, succeeding in the highly competitive IT outsourcing market requires not only extensive technology knowledge, but also solid project management expertise. Efficient communication is the key ingredient of a successful outsourced software development project. While working with our clients, we prioritize process transparency and seamless collaboration within and across project teams.

By delivering quality and exceeding clients’ expectations, we cultivate long-lasting and mutually beneficial business relationships.

We take the time to develop a deep understanding of our clients’ diverse needs, and, year in and year out, have demonstrated our ability to meet their exacting requirements, earning the reputation of a reliable IT service provider. Today, iTechArt helps major companies from all over the world to grow, boost performance, optimize business processes, and outperform competition.

Focus on Technology Startups

iTechArt has a particular focus on software product R&D for emerging technology companies. So many startups have great technology but no real go-to-market plan or a strategy. Moreover, in this age of stiff competition and rapidly changing markets environments, start-ups are faced with a multitude of challenges, including limited technology and process expertise, strapped budgets, or steep learning curves while exploring new technologies.

Launching a business is not just about raising capital, but about building great teams. To take advantage of unique market opportunities, startup companies need to reach talent fast. At a certain point in our history, we had to face these challenges ourselves. Today, we help technology startups accelerate innovation and assume market leadership.

Sergei Kovalenko, iTechArt CEO

Sergei Kovalenko Founding Partner and CEO


General Information

General Information • Business Units • Expertise • Domain Expertise • Representative

Clients • Technology

Partnerships

General Information iTechArt Group is a custom software development, consulting and outsourcing company headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey, with two business units in Eastern Europe and a team of over 300 professional developers with 2 500 man-years of collective experience working with a variety of technology platforms. iTechArt operates a delivery and client support center located in Minsk, Belarus and a software development center in Kiev, Ukraine. Leveraging deep domain knowledge and market-leading capabilities, iTechArt provides second to none outsourcing services and has already helped hundreds of companies improve their productivity and meet business challenges of today and tomorrow.

Business Units

iTechArt’s executive management team and the North America sales division are based at our Iselin, NJ headquarters, which is the centre of corporate finance management, marketing, business development and business analytics. The iTechArt headquarters is a key element of the corporate structure which coordinates strategic planning, corporate communications, human resources as well as tax and legal issues. Our headquarters team includes executive management and the U.S. business development division.

The Minsk delivery and client support center is our main development branch, where

the bulk of the development work is performed. The iTechArt delivery and client support center comprises several technology-specific departments and the European business development division.

iTechArt also has a development center in Kiev, Ukraine, which is primarily focused on solutions for the telecommunication industry. The Kiev team delivers predictive

Figure 1 - iTechArt Business Units


General Information

network impact analysis for communication service providers. Leading telecom companies from around the globe rely on our software in order to deliver superior customer experience to their subscribers.

Expertise

Service Areas Practice Areas

Custom Software Development - End-to-end custom software

development - Application customization &

extension - Project recovery

Enterprise Mobile Development - Mobile data access and field

worker solutions for enterprise clients

- Mobile client solutions and product development services for ISVs

Application Modernization - Optimization and reengineering - Platform migration - Application integration

Testing & QA - Specialized testing services - Independent validation and

verification - Dedicated testing labs

Software Maintenance IT Staff Augmentation

Enterprise Platforms − Microsoft .NET − Java EE − C/C++

Business Intelligence − Oracle BI − IBM Cognos − TIBCO Spotfire − Microsoft BI

Rich Internet Applications − Adobe Flex & AIR − Silverlight & WPF − TIBCO General Interface

Middleware − TIBCO Messaging − Microsoft Message Queue Server − IBM WebSphere MQ − Microsoft BizTalk Server

Web & Intranet − Microsoft SharePoint 2007/2010 − IBM WebSphere Portal − CRM System Implementation − Web CMS Implementation

Mobile − Android − BlackBerry − iPhone OS & iOS − Symbian − Windows Phone & Windows Mobile

and others


General Information

Domain Awareness

Successful software solutions enable businesses to improve operational efficiency and entice returning customers by providing superior service. In order to deliver genuinely useful solutions, iTechArt is committed to maintaining a high level of domain awareness, serving clients with different industry backgrounds and business needs. iTechArt’s domain expertise embraces, yet is not limited to, the following areas:

Marketing and Advertising

Digital signage network management Multimedia content management Predictive planning Campaign management Reporting and analytics

Retail

E-commerce and m-commerce Storefront solutions Inventory management Interactive product configurators Point of sale solutions CRM

Healthcare

Time tracking Appointment management Point of care solutions Paperless record management Clinical decision support

Security Personal identity verification Remote device management Out of band network management Encryption and authentication

Finance Online trading Real-time data feeds Portfolio management Analytics

Insurance Information portals Data collection and CRM Workflow automation

iTechArt also has vast experience working with other industries, including Media and Entertainment, Restaurants and Hospitality, Education, Real Estate, Manufacturing, Telecom, and many more.


General Information

Track Record

iTechArt has delivered over 250 solutions to businesses across Europe and North America.

Representative Clients

iTechArt has an extremely diverse client base, from internet startups to non-profit organization to global corporations. Just a few examples of the countless companies we have worked with include GAIN Capital Holdings, Inc, friendlyway AG, 15miles, and Commdevices, Inc.

GAIN Capital Holdings, Inc.

In early 2010, iTechArt was selected as a strategic outsourcing partner by GAIN Capital Holdings, Inc., a

pioneer in online forex trading. GAIN Capital provides execution, clearing, custody and technology products and services to an institutional client base including asset managers, broker/dealers and other financial services firms. GAIN also operates FOREX.com, one of the largest and best-known brands in the retail forex industry servicing customers in over 140 countries.

Friendlyway AG

Friendlyway AG is one of Euro pe's leading companies providing interactive internet kiosk and digital signage solutions to a number of high-profile customers, such as

BMW, MTV, Nokia, Deutsche Telekom, Boeing, Siemens, and Fortis. iTechArt collaborates with Friendlyway on a large proportion of its IT and product development projects.

Figure 2 - iTechArt Clients by Location

http://www.friendlyway.com/

http://www.gaincapital.com/


General Information

15miles

15miles is a stand-alone interactive search marketing division of New York-based TMP Directional Marketing (TMPDM). TMPDM is the world's largest local search agency specializing in offline, online and

mobile solutions. iTechArt partners with 15miles in custom application development and legacy system migration and re-engineering.

Commdevices, Inc.

CDI is a global provider of network security solutions to customers including AT&T, Bank of

America, British Petroleum, Credit Suisse, Saudi Telecom, and Verizon. iTechArt provides software evolution and on-going maintenance services for the company's core software products.

A Selection of Other Notable Clients

http://www.oracle.com/us/products/applications/atg/index.html

http://www.15miles.com

http://www.commdevices.com/

http://sensorytechnologies.com/

http://www.humanconcepts.com/

http://www.mdscience.com/

http://daq.icxt.com/

http://www.bonniercorp.com/

http://www.pfizer.com


General Information

Certification and Technology Partnerships

We have been working hard to keep abreast of the latest technology and seeking certification and partnerships opportunities that are critical for supporting our clients and providing them with advanced software solutions. Our partnerships reflect our business focus, underpin our identity in the market, testify to our maturity as a technology service provider, and enable us to gain access to vendor-provided training resources.

iTechArt has been awarded the Microsoft Gold Certified Partner status, which is the highest level of recognition within the Microsoft Partner Program. Our proven competencies span Custom Development Solutions, Data Management Solutions, SOA and Business Processes. The Gold Certified Partner status underscores our solid expertise in Microsoft technologies, our proven ability to meet customers’ needs, and our overall impact in the global IT marketplace.

As an IBM Business Partner, we provide customers with e-business solutions encompassing the entire portfolio of IBM’s products and technologies. Our expertise enables us to accelerate time-to-value for businesses reliant on these technologies for supporting their business processes.

Our Oracle ISV partner status enables us to spend less time and resources on development, deployment and support for Oracle’s technologies, bringing solutions to market quicker and serving our Clients in a highly efficient manner.

We rely on the Adobe Certified Expert credential as a reliable benchmark of proficiency with Adobe’s market-leading technologies, such as Flash, Flex, and AIR and are committed to encouraging our employees to gain this recognition.

iTechArt has substantial experience developing enterprise-ready mobile applications targeting rugged Motorola devices, most notably, the MC70 and MC75 series portable computers. Motorola’s PartnerSelect ISV program, designed to support companies providing enterprise mobility software solutions and services for Motorola smartphone and enterprise digital assistant (EDA) devices, offers extensive technical and engineering assistance and access to testing facilities and pre-release equipment, as well as to a vast community of Motorola solution partners.

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Engagement Models

Engagement Models Business models and organizational approaches are negotiated individually with each client to best meet their specific needs. The applicability of a particular engagement model depends on a number of factors, including the scope of a project, its estimated duration, and the type of service provided.

Time-and-Material Engagements

Applicability

The Time-and-Material model is selected when the extent and duration of a project cannot be accurately estimated in advance, which is the case with open-ended or iterative projects. The client pays for the actual labor hours at pre-determined rates.

Time-and-Material arrangements provide more flexibility while managing change, and, as a rule, assume a relatively high degree of involvement on the part of the client, who often remains responsible for providing the required documentation, coordinating overall project activities, and assigning tasks.

This model is the typical choice for staff augmentation and product co-sourcing projects, but can also be employed for large, dynamically evolving initiatives managed by iTechArt single-handedly.

Engagement Models • Time-and-Material

Engagements • Dedicated

Development Center

• Fixed Price Engagements

• Contract Documentation

• Engagement Models at a Glance

• Subcontracting and White Labeling

Figure 3 - Time-and-Material Engagement Model

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Engagement Models

Invoicing

Invoices are submitted on a monthly basis via email and are payable within fifteen days upon receipt. All invoices are accompanied with tabulations of time spent on project tasks. Notifications of payment are always appreciated.

Dedicated Development Center

Applicability

For clients managing ongoing projects that require long-term commitment and stable teams with advanced technology-specific skills, iTechArt offers engagements based on the Dedicated Development Center model. Dedicated teams are fully integrated with the client’s in-house IT or product development team, accountable directly to the client, and usually engaged over a prolonged time span.

Invoicing

The client is billed monthly based on size of the dedicated team. Invoices are submitted via email and are payable within fifteen days upon receipt. Notifications of payment are always appreciated.

Fixed Price Engagements

Applicability

The Fixed Price model is best suited for projects with stable, clear-cut requirements that can be fully specified and estimated. Costs, deliverables, and delivery schedules are

Figure 4 - Dedicated Development Center Business Model

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Engagement Models

defined in the Development Agreement in sufficient detail; requirements and implementation specifics are outlined in the accompanying technical documentation.

Fixed Price projects often span the entire concept to market value chain, including design, implementation, QA, technical writing, and customer care.

Invoicing

For larger Fixed Price projects, the client is billed following the delivery of each project milestone. Thus a common payment scheme is as follows: 30 percent after the alpha release, another 30 percent after the beta release, and the remaining 40 percent after the final release.

Short-term projects, on the other hand, may require a 50-percent prepayment, with the rest due upon delivery.

Contract Documentation

Obligatory contract documentation for each project includes a Consulting / Development Agreement and a Non-Disclosure Agreement. Agent and framework agreements can be drawn up if required.

All agreements are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New Jersey, USA.

Figure 5 - Fixed Price Engagement Model

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Engagement Models

Engagement Models at a Glance

Scalability / Adaptability

Duration / Recurrence

Client Involvement / Administrative Burden

Billing Delivery

Time-and-Material Contracts

Advanced

Long-term or loosely defined projects, recurrent or non-recurrent

Moderate / High

Monthly, based on hourly rates

Offsite, onsite or hybrid

Dedicated Development Center

Advanced Prolonged projects, ongoing or recurrent

High

Monthly, based on hourly rates

Fixed Price Contracts Limited

Well-defined projects with a clear-cut schedule, chiefly non-recurrent

Low Lump sum / by milestone

Subcontracting and White Labeling

iTechArt offers subcontracting and white label services for businesses seeking to reduce software development costs, shorten lead time, and augment their expertise. With our white label partner program, we enable technology consultancies working on behalf of their customers, software vendors, and a variety of professional service providers to add value to the product and service offerings marketed under their brand:

− Develop new software products or add capabilities to the existing ones − Provide better and more complete services to customers − Get faltering software projects on the right track − Explore new technology and additional service areas with minimal extra

investment into training and infrastructure − Allocate more time and resources to core business activities − Cope with product backlogs at periods of peak activity

Using flexible collaboration and staffing arrangements to provide seamless virtual extensions to clients’ in-house teams, we have served dozens of European and US based companies. We focus on establishing sustainable, long-term business relationships: some of our partnerships are built upon over three years of continued close collaboration.

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Engagement Models

Acting in the client’s best interest, we guarantee confidentiality, data security, and IP protection, giving our partners the confidence of knowing that our involvement in their projects will not be disclosed unless they choose otherwise. Any references to iTechArt will be removed from all the project documentation and associated materials prior to delivery.

Partnering and Subcontracting with iTechArt

To learn more about the specific types of services available on a subcontracting/white label basis and discuss partnership opportunities, please contact our business development representative. Please make sure to provide your corporate profile brochure along with your request to help us understand your needs better and suggest the most adequate collaboration approach.

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Technical Infrastructure


Hardware and Equipment

Workstations 258 PC (Intel Platform) 42 Mac (Intel Platform)

Dedicated Servers 25 (Intel Platform)

Virtual Dedicated Servers 50 (VMWare Platform)

10 GB Network

3Com network equipment Zyxel equipment – 1 GB /100 Mb connection CAT-5e and CAT-6 Ethernet Cables LinkSys Wireless Access Point

Data Warehouse RAID10 and RAID5

Internet Channels

Fiber channel 10x10 Mb Fiber channel 10x10 Mb DSL channel 4x4 Mb

Data Backup

For centralized data management, security, and data backup, iTechArt Group relies on the Veritas BackUp Exec Technology, which has the following advantages:

− Back-up agents supporting various platforms. − Simplified data management thanks to single instance storage functionality − Secure and reliable data storage: any platform and supplier information and

backup copies are easily identified, cataloged and restored.

iTechArt’s data backup policies cover all internal and project-related data:

− Active Directory / system state − Mail server data and related IIS metadata − Project-specific data, including source code, documentation, bug tracking and

testing data − Microsoft SQL Server databases − Web and FTP content

Technical Infrastructure • Hardware and

Equipment • Data Backup • Security and Data

Protection at a Glance

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All data are backed up to local safe storage on a daily, weekly and monthly basis and subsequently moved to remote safe data storage.

Differential backup Daily

Full weekly backup Every Saturday

Full monthly backup On the 1st of every month

External Access

iTechArt clients access project-related information via DMZ, which provides a scalable environment for exposing internal project resources to remote users. Additionally, we set up VPN environments that enable project staff to connect to clients’ remote local area networks seamlessly and securely.

Figure 6 – Backup Data Storage Locations

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Security and Data Protection at a Glance

Data Protection

− Data backup testing and verification − Data access policies and permission-based

access − Network password policies

Network Security

− Regular software and platform updates − Firewall protection − Network encryption − Corporate antivirus software − Personal device usage policies

Physical Security and Contingency Procedures

− Redundant data storage using the RAID technology

− Access control and video surveillance − Infrastructure monitoring − Emergency power supply system

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Development Methodologies

Development Methodologies In managing software development projects, we adhere to internationally recognized standards and proven practices. For each individual project, approaches and methodologies are selected depending on the client’s specific needs and in-house routines. Most commonly, we opt for agile methodologies. However, linear approaches can also be selected if warranted by the context at hand.

Agile Methodologies

Built upon the values of collaboration, agile methodologies provide an efficient approach to managing the complexity of the software development process. Agile methodologies assume cyclic, iteration-based process models focused on the continuous delivery of working software. Although iterative delivery is the hallmark of these methodologies, their key differentiating characteristic as compared to other non-linear approaches is rather the emphasis on direct face-to-face collaboration and comprehensive stakeholder involvement. Thus, the software is evolved iteration by iteration, with its working versions continually verified by end users. Stakeholder feedback provides the basis for adapting subsequent iterations. Overall, agile methodologies make it easier to manage change and control a whole range of implementation risks. An agile team may include software engineers, product managers, business analysts, QA engineers, interaction designers, technical writers, and other specialists as per the project scope.

Due to the uniqueness of each project, as well as to the fact that we often work as part of remote teams with established process approaches, we do not make restrictive decisions by selecting a single preferred agile framework. In contrast, we have experience implementing a whole range of frameworks, such as Scrum, MSF for Agile, or RUP.

Other Iterative Approaches

Certain contexts warrant the use of iterative approaches that combine elements of both linear and cyclic methodologies. Being oriented at frequent incremental delivery, hybrid iterative approaches ensure a high level of flexibility in managing change, while at the same time being applicable in situations where the adoption of an agile mindset is not feasible, whether culturally or organizationally.

With hybrid iterative approaches, the development process assumes a preliminary requirement gathering phase and is split into iterations, three to five weeks each, that incorporate all the stages of the conventional linear process (planning, implementation,

Development Methodologies • Agile

Methodologies • Other Iterative

Approaches • Prototyping • Concurrent

Development

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Development Methodologies

testing, verification, and deployment) and deliver subsets of the target application that have immediate value to the end user.

Iterative development, whether in its agile or hybrid forms, allows discovering and resolving issues early in the project, minimizing risks, and verifying the implementation process.

Prototyping

Another approach that can be used to ensure alignment and minimize rework is prototyping, which is helpful both as a proof-of-concept technique and as a way to handle complex or vaguely defined parts of cyclic software projects. Initial proof-of-concept prototyping is a common activity undertaken as part of projects with a clear-cut set of requirements (often managed using the Fixed Price engagement model). Together with supporting documentation and presentation materials, proof-of-concept prototypes visually represent the future system and enable the client to determine whether it would be able to answer their requirements before the implementation process is launched and change becomes more problematic. A preliminary prototyping stage helps elicit the previously overlooked and unverbalized requirements, thus leading to more reliable scope and schedule estimations and giving the client the confidence of being able to control the direction their project is taking. Prototyping activities also have their place in the context of complex incrementally delivered projects or evolving software systems, where prototypes are instrumental in quickly exploring the possible solutions and ensuring functional adequacy and completeness. The resulting prototypes may or may not be used as the basis for the actual application, but they do facilitate informed design- and implementation-level decisions.

Concurrent Development

The concurrent development approach is a fundamental concept underlying agile or other iterative methodologies in that it gives due prominence to the collaborative nature of an efficient software development process, where project tasks are completed in parallel, issues are viewed from different perspectives and resolved collectively, and everyone on the team are enabled to have their say. In our software development projects, seamless collaboration is achieved both by means of cultivating the collaborative mindset and by providing an adequate workplace environment for knowledge management and version control. As a result, efficient collaboration enables superior productivity and better product quality, while collapsing the implementation cycle and keeping the costs down.

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Project Management

Confidentiality and IP Protection iTechArt is committed to safeguarding intellectual property, trade secrets, and any other sensitive information obtained from clients and partners throughout its business activities. iTechArt enforces confidentiality and security policies to prevent project-related information from being intentionally or accidentally disclosed to third parties within or outside the company

Confidentiality Agreements

We sign collective mutual NDAs with each client. If necessary, the client can also request that individual NDAs be signed by the employees engaged in a particular project.

Furthermore, confidentiality agreements are signed by everyone our staff upon employment.

Intellectual Property Rights

Unless otherwise specified, intellectual property rights are retained by the client upon project completion.

Security

iTechArt is takes full responsibility for protecting proprietary or confidential project materials, including technical documentation, reports, and software source files from unauthorized access, using the following steps:

− Password security − Permission based access restricted to the project team only − Firewall and antivirus security − Encrypted data transfer − Physical security and access control

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Project Management

Project Management • Risk Management • Expertise • Domain Expertise • Representative

Clients • Technology

Partnerships

Project Management

Risk Management

The uncertainty inherent to software development requires the application of a reliable risk management plan. iTechArt is committed to minimizing risk conditions from the earliest phases of the software development lifecycle to safeguard project success in the face of risks of various nature, whether known or unknown, that can jeopardize product quality and lead to schedule or budget overruns.

Categories of Risks

Technical risks include those associated with the adoption of a new technology, platform or development approach; unrealistic performance benchmarks, vague or poorly specified project goals, flawed requirement management processes or inadequate technical infrastructures.

Project management risks can emerge due to insufficient planning, inefficient time and resource allocation, unregulated decision-making processes, or poor communication.

Organizational risks are caused by business process inefficiencies.

External risks include legal and regulatory compliance issues, as well as communication or cultural barriers.

Risk Management Workflow

Our risk management strategy and, as a result, the respective workflows are based on a number of concepts:

− Risk assessment is the process of evaluating the context of a project and identifying potential risks. To identify risks at the earliest stages of the project lifecycle, we rely on a combination of standardized checklists based on our previous experience with analogous projects, assumption analyses completed by project managers at the planning stage, brainstorming sessions, and subject-matter expert advisory. Once the risks are identified, we move on to the risk analysis step.

− The purpose of risk control is to develop step-by-step action plans so as to reduce or eliminate risks altogether. Risk management planning involves developing risk management strategies for each category of risks, assigning responsible persons, and establishing timelines. Risk resolution is accompanied by continuous risk monitoring, so emerging risks would be identified and dealt with in a timely manner.

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Project Management

Common Risk Factors and Mitigation Steps

Although software development are by definition associated with a high degree of uncertainty and vary significantly in terms of the risks involved, there is a category of common problematic areas that typify a large proportion of software projects. Generalizing from our extensive project work, we have developed a set of best practices for managing the most commonly encountered risk factors.

Risk Factors Risk Management Approaches

Unclear or ambiguous deliverables

− Detailed technical specification − Prototyping and continuous client feedback − Iterative, milestone-based delivery to ensure

that the solution fully meets the client’s requirements

Unclear or ambiguous requirements to the project team

− Task assignment based on detailed technical specifications

− Project plan development and approval − Efficient communication to ensure that those

on the team have a clear understanding of their tasks as part of the project

Unstable requirements − Well-defined and mutually approved requirement management process

− Requirements sign-off by the client − Compensation based on the Time-and-

Material business model

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Project Management

Risk Factors Risk Management Approaches

Unrealistic performance requirements

− Well-defined and mutually approved performance benchmarks

− Well-defined standards to be applied in order to meet the performance criteria

− Feasibility prototyping for performance-sensitive components

− Stress testing

Miscommunication − Communication management plan − Regular (daily / weekly) status reporting − Conference calls and open meetings − Remote access to project-related

documentation and the code base (if applicable)

Unfamiliar technology − In-house training − Knowledge exchange and onsite training − Phased delivery, starting with critical

functionality

Inaccurate cost estimation − Detailed technical specification − Requirement management processes to

ensure that the client’s requirements are fully met

− Requirements signoff by the client − Multiple independent project estimations

Schedule overruns − Detailed technical specification − Project plan documentation − Task tracking and reporting − Daily / weekly status meetings − Well-defined change management

processes

Release Management

Each software release is supplied with functional specifications and project plan documentation. A configuration management plan can also be created to define the specific terminology and criteria for project status evaluation.

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Project Management

Change Management

Any changes that can affect software requirements, project schedule or budget are negotiated and agreed upon with the client. Depending on the type of engagement, responsibility for change-related decisions rests with either the project manager or with the client, the latter being the case with Time-and-Material engagements.

Quality Management

To gain the competitive advantage, businesses need to innovate fast. However, compressing development cycles can make software quality particularly problematic. To help clients meet these challenges and deliver robust, maintainable software solutions, iTechArt relies on mature quality assurance and control practices rather than relegating software quality to the status of a mere afterthought.

Since quality is defined relative to each unique context, first of all we focus on eliciting and documenting user needs. Moreover, a disciplined agile process methodology enables us to eliminate a wide range of quality-related issues, including functional defects, performance and scalability issues at earlier stages.

Our quality assurance approach underpins the entire process from beginning to end and encompasses the following aspects:

− Proven architectural approaches, design patterns and best practices − Comprehensive QA involvement from the earliest phases of the development

lifecycle − End-to-end testing using both manual and automated techniques − Iterative delivery and feedback-driven processes − Established collaboration processes and risk management policies − Seamless communication

Quality control policies, processes, and activities are recorded in the relevant documentation and include all the relevant details, such as resource allocation, implementation specifics, and evaluation metrics. The overall quality assurance methodology is continually monitored and adjusted whenever necessary.

Our end-to-end quality management approach translates into tangible business benefits:

− Reduced immediate costs through better development productivity, less rework, and better use of resources

− Reduced lead time − Reduced long-term costs through improved software stability and maintainability − Increased value for the end user − Increased competitiveness for commercial software products

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Project Management

Communication

Miscommunication, belated involvement, and lack of trust account for a large percentage of project failures, which is especially the case with geographically distributed teams.

iTechArt’s process approach is designed to compensate for the common communication bottlenecks, ensure responsiveness, minimize latency in decision-making, and establish collaborative environments for seamless teamwork.

The applicability of individual communication approaches may vary depending on whether the staff on the team or co-located or distributed, as well as on the delivery mechanisms employed.

External Communication

External communication approaches span both client-vendor interactions and collaboration within non-collocated teams.

Local Representation Direct personal interaction (face-to-face meetings, mutual visits, or onsite representation) is particularly valuable at the early phases of the project cycle, either to negotiate engagement models and process-related details, or to enable those on the project teams to gain insight into the inner workings of the client’s business in order to build a better understanding of their software needs.

Reporting − Daily and/or weekly status reports − Status meetings and conference calls

Daily Remote Collaboration

− VoIP, email, and IM (Windows Live, Skype, Yahoo, etc.) − Issue tracking, knowledge management and

collaboration software − Remote web or VPN access to the project source code

and documentation − Ad hoc or status update meetings − Web conferencing (GoToMeeting, etc.)

Working Language

By default, English is used for project-related documentation, emailing and messaging team-wide. Other languages, including German, French, and Dutch, can also be used if required.

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Project Management

Availability and Communication Schedules

For non-collocated teams, working hours can be adjusted to minimize the time zone gap. Specific communication routines are agreed upon and regulated by the project plan and company policies. In case of emergency situations of any kind, timely notification and prompt resolution are guaranteed.

Internal Communication and Collaboration

Internal communication approaches are defined and regulated by company-wide policies, as well as methodology-specific requirements for each particular project team.

Internal Corporate Communications

− Policy documentation and newsfeeds via the corporate intranet

− Weekly management meetings − Departmental meetings

Project Team Collaboration and Reporting

− Project plans and other technical documentation − Team collaboration via SVN and Microsoft Office

Project Server − Knowledge management via a Confluence-based

wiki − Daily and weekly status update meetings − Daily and/or weekly status reporting − Daily face-to-face collaboration − Communication via IM and email

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The iTechArt Difference

The iTechArt Difference Technology Expertise

− Technological diversity (modern / legacy; proprietary / open source) − Inside-out understanding of individual platforms − Upwards of 2,500 man-years of collective experience − Continuity of expertise and knowledge transfer − Industry standards and best practices

Domain Awareness

− Upwards of 250 projects delivered to businesses and organizations across industries − Market responsiveness − Focus on unique business needs

Process Efficiency

− Local representation − Project management expertise − Tried and tested methodologies − Stakeholder involvement

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Appendix – Skills by Platform

Appendix – Skills by Platform

Platform Total By Experience Level

Novice Advanced Expert Web Technology

.NET 106 29 60 17 Ruby on Rails 7 2 2 3 MOSS 13 4 3 6 Delphi 8 2 3 3 JavaScript 49 19 20 10 Perl 7 3 2 2 PHP 12 2 4 6 Flex & Flash 9 2 3 4 Silverlight/WPF 14 2 8 4 ActionScript 7 3 2 2

Operating Systems

MS Server 2000/XP/2003 102 3 75 24 Linux 11 6 3 2 MAC OS X 21 9 7 5

Application Servers

MS Commerce Server 7 2 3 2 Oracle Application Server 10 2 5 3 WebLogic 7 3 2 2 WebSphere 9 3 4 2

Database DB2 8 2 4 2 MS SQL Server 70 29 26 15 MySQL 33 14 14 5 Oracle/Oracle DBA 7 2 3 2

Mobile Platforms

iPhone 38 13 11 14 Windows Mobile 19 3 9 7 Android 27 9 7 11 Symbian 10 2 5 3 Blackberry 11 3 5 3

Component Technology

ATL 8 2 4 2 COM/COM+ 8 3 3 2 Java EE 37 10 17 10 JavaBeans 14 3 4 7 JavaSpaces 11 3 3 4 JMS 13 4 4 5 Java SE 38 14 12 12 C++ 29 9 9 11

Programming Languages / Development Tools

VC++ 14 3 6 5 C 18 2 3 3 C# 106 29 60 17 Java 37 10 17 10 9i Oracle JDeveloper 7 2 2 3 VB.NET 10 3 4 3 MFC 9 4 3 2

QA Tools QuickTest Pro 10 3 3 4 TestComplete 11 2 4 5 Selenium 9 2 5 2 WatiN, WatiJ 7 2 3 2 JUnit 6 2 2 2 NUnit 8 3 3 2 JMeter 6 2 2 2 Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate Testing Tools 8 2 4 2

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