Alm Integration: Meeting The Challenges Of Global Teams

By Author: Martin Lobo
Total Articles: 355
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The modern business environment with its technologically enhanced infrastructure demands organization to pool in large amounts from their exchequer for various application tools. The enterprises involved in development of the applications also spend in millions to develop functions tools such as coding, software testing, tracking, requirements management, release management etc. However, since these functional applications are developed based on individual or separate requirements, these tend to depend on manual procedures in case of synchronizing the data of one tool with another.

Every application has its own life cycle phases. However, as organizations tend to use the best-of-the-breed application tools from different vendors during various phases of the lifecycle, ALM integration between these tools becomes a far cry. Organizations thus need to take effective measure to ensure that all the functional tools used during the application lifecycle management needs to be synchronized for maximum benefits.

Application Lifecycle management ...
... is a continuous process of managing the development, maintenance, governance and compatibility between the various stages in the life cycle of an application. With governance and compliance being considered as mandated competencies in a techno-centric environment, the business value of a software application is dependent on its governance, development and operation aspects in the ALM process.

However, today's globalized environment with various handled by distantly located teams, the IT service management tools should cover requirements management, release management, test management, collaboration management etc. Under such circumstances it becomes necessary for the enterprises to use integrated tools for OSLC integration, sharepoint integration, eclipse integration. This would help the project managers gain control over the projects and provide them with a better traceability matrix between project artifacts.

An ideal integration is one which is both horizontal and vertical. The leading service providers however offer their client three alternative approaches to the ALM integration process. This includes a point-to-point integrated multi-vendor tools, single vendor integrated ALM tools and a multi-vendor best of breed integrated ALM Tools. However, in case of best-of-the-breed tools from multiple vendors for different lifecycle phases, there is no integration. The ALM integration of these tools offers the organizations a number of benefits such as:

* Gaining greater insights into projects,
* Enacting best practice processes,
* Overcoming the challenges of globally distributed development,
* Enable collaboration between the stakeholders,
* Increase productivity, with improvement in quality and a faster delivery,
* Enhanced customer satisfaction
* Managing change

The integration of best-of-the-breed ALM tools provides a platform for simpler application development. Further, this process protects the investments and allows enterprise to benefit from integration systems like TFS integration from various vendors under a single ecosystem.

Read more about- traceability matrix, ALM tools