System Solutions Made to Measure for Every Customer

T-Systems

Published: 25/01/02

System Solutions Made to Measure for Every Customer

Deutsche Telekom AG is bundling its system solutions business for large companies under the umbrella of T-Systems. This new division will work with its customers during the entire technology, telecommunications lifecycle – from planning through to implementation and operation.

To support its new strategy Deutsche Telekom AG has launched the Online Business Service Operation Centre (OBSOC) which enables customers to order and pay for online services and products. For example, Web services, Click&Pay net900 (online payment systems) and Grapheno (exchange of large quantities of data in real time in the graphics industry). This considerably reduces process and production costs, service provision times while increasing productivity.

To support this new strategy it has launched the Online Business Service Operation Centre (OBSOC) which enables customers to order and pay for online services and products. For example, Web services, Click&Pay net900 (online payment systems) and Grapheno (exchange of large quantities of data in real time in the graphics industry). This considerably reduces process and production costs, service provision times while increasing productivity.

Deutsche Telekom – the second-largest systems house in Europe – was determined to enhance the sale of Internet products to its business customers. It wanted to replace a number of disparate solutions with an integrated system that covered ordering and set-up through to support and accounting. This would enable the company to deliver up-to-date products, services and applications while better meeting the needs of its customers.

The Commerce Services division at T-Systems is a team of product managers for e-business solutions. The service ranges from small virtual Web servers and complex systems, to user-friendly and secure online payment procedures that have been developed specifically for the settlement of small e-commerce transactions. Using shops that enable business customers to sell products via the Internet, services range from small standardised applications to large, individually programmable solutions.

Reducing Cost, Maximising Quality

OBSOC's customer was Stephan Priss, head of Commerce Services at T-Systems. "We wanted to offer our business customers a simple, quick and secure online ordering facility that matched Deutsche Telekom's growth strategy. Everything should be fully automatic – from information and configuration of individual services through to ordering, provision and invoicing. A high-quality, customer-friendly and cost-reducing service that accelerates and simplifies order management has always been a primary objective."

Combining Skills from Two Expert Teams

Priss commissioned a team of experts from T-Systems in Detmold to design and develop OBSOC and brought on board Microsoft Services for the Enterprise to implement and develop the project. "Microsoft, thanks to SQL Server 2000 on Windows 2000 and Internet Information Server offers a good solution platform and we selected Microsoft Services for the Enterprise because of its developer know-how, service-oriented approach and partnerships with other expert vendors. We also collaborated successfully on the previous solution OBS (Online Business Service)," says Klaus-Peter Neumann, head of the department responsible for the development of OBSOC at T-Systems.

Working with Microsoft Services for the Enterprise, T-Systems developed a highly intuitive, fully automatic ordering and delivery service for Internet products. It comprises detailed product and price information, a choice of services, individual configuration and ordering facilities, and service provision through to operation, comprehensive services and accounting facilities. The team, which comprises only 20 people, was put together at the beginning of 1999 and is headed by the two OBSOC project leaders Rüdiger Spieler (T-Systems) and Wolfgang Werner (Microsoft Services for the Enterprise).

Once the team had decided against a modular design, consisting of database and workflow systems and an online front-end, the team gave priority to the creation of orders that were absolutely production-ready. The team of developers analysed the data structures of the Telekom master systems, met all the resulting requirements, and designed the data in OBSOC required for a valid order.

Spieler explains: "With an initial order, the customer data first goes through the Customer Care Centre where it is matched against data held by the Telekom master systems. Once the match has been made, the OBSOC database stores the customer data along with the contract data. This makes it possible to guarantee creation of production-ready orders."

Total Convenience from Ordering to Accounting

When an order has been accepted and approved, information is automatically sent simultaneously to the Telekom order recording section and the relevant production points. The ordered service is then automatically prepared or produced. For example, a Web service product will be available online within a few minutes. As Wolfgang Werner explains: "OBSOC operates all connected services with a data record in XML format, which connects all service databases regardless of the platform. Things then progress rapidly. The customer can immediately track the status of their order online and respond directly by adapting their own administration to the current status of the project. At the same time, the associated customer account is opened in the Telekom accounting section and the success of the distribution process is recorded. As soon as service has been successfully delivered, the Centre automatically sends the account-related data to the accounting section.

Once the service has been delivered, Telekom support staff can access customer and contract data via an online front-end at the user help desk. At the same time, account-related questions can be dealt with using a front-end, which controls data matching for accounting purposes. It is also possible to respond to such account-related questions and take any steps as necessary.

Dr. Harry Bretthauer and Dr. Jörg Johnson-Schaaf of the OBSOC team of T-Systems have also developed a product configurator that enables customers to assemble any product that they desire. It also automatically calculates the price of the selected service configuration.

The Database at the Heart of the Online System

The OBSOC database runs on a fail-safe, clustered enterprise version of Microsoft SQL Server 2000. The operating system platform is Windows 2000 Advanced Server, while Microsoft Internet Information Server 5.0 is the Web server. All customer, contract, product, profile, track, line path, control system and accounting data are held in this database.

It's a highly scalable solution, which can grow to match customer demand without any disruption to the business. The members' database is equally important and includes access accounts for logging on to the system. The database uses Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 – also in a fail-safe, clustered enterprise version. The OBSOC solution is also highly robust, thanks to the reliability of Windows 2000 Advanced Server and SQL Server 7.0 and SQL Server 2000. An automatic server usage system supports the front-end servers, guaranteeing optimum load distribution and additional security against failure.

The system's workflow module integrates all the internal business processes for ordering, provision, matching, accounting and automation. In order to guarantee the long-term flexibility of the solution and even faster workflow integration, the development team recently converted the workflow processes to Microsoft BizTalk Server 2000. This provides an infrastructure for the integration, administration and automation of business processes while business documents, such as orders and invoices are exchanged between applications, within companies or across companies. Thanks to a connection both to the Internet and the Telekom intranet, the HTML and XML-based front-ends can be reached anywhere in the world at any time. A comprehensive role and authorisation system protects all functions against unauthorised access.

OBSOC was developed entirely using Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0. The modular architecture delivers a high quality, customer-friendly and cost-effective service, while at the same time accelerating and simplifying the whole order management process. This modular architecture consists of pre-assembled, incomplete solutions tailored precisely to exact customer requirements. The customer only buys and pays for the software that they really need. A reporting tool with a graphics interface, based on SQL Server 2000 Analysis Service, is also being implemented so that managers can carry out their own product-specific evaluations.

OBSOC is based in a T-Systems service and computer centre in Kiel. The system is housed in a high-security wing, which is monitored around the clock. All server systems run on high-end computers, while 155 MBit/s permanent connections with 34 MBit/s backup ensure that the system is connected both to the Telekom intranet and the high-availability Internet backbone of Deutsche Telekom.

The Internet Portal – a Bridge to the Customer

Above all, OBSOC is built around the needs of the customer. Order management, service and product delivery are vastly accelerated and much simpler than before. Add to this detailed product and price information, choice of service and individual configuration options, and it's easy to see how Deutsche Telekom is able to offer its customers permanent and direct access to a fully-automatic, stable online system – from ordering and service provision to comprehensive services and accounting. Most importantly the new system reduces order costs and processing times – an unbeatable combination.

For More Information

For more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Resource Centre at (800) 563-9048. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to: http://www.microsoft.com/

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY. Microsoft, Windows, Visual Studio and Visio are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.