The client is a standards development organization, a non-profit that shapes industry standards in close collaboration with a federal regulatory partner. Its committees ran their daily voting, collaboration, and event scheduling on an application that had become outdated and unsupported, so i3solutions built a custom committee collaboration platform through custom application development: a custom .NET application with SharePoint as the document repository, hosted in the Azure cloud. Each committee or topic group works in its own workspace for discussions, document comments, event scheduling, and voting on industry standards, with a permission structure that sets each person’s access level and administrative functions for maintaining the platform, managing workspace rosters, and running meeting-attendance reports. Approximately 5,000 users have worked in the system since it went live, and i3solutions continues to support it: JIRA handles bug tracking and release management, with a one-day response time on tickets labeled as bugs.
Revolutionizing Operations With a Custom Collaboration Platform
Case Study
Streamlining Operations
with a Custom Committee
Collaboration Platform
The Customer
And Their Challenge
The client, a non-profit standards development organization, occupies a pivotal position in shaping industry standards and driving technological progress. In close collaboration with a federal regulatory partner, the organization encountered a significant hurdle. Their reliance on an existing application for daily committee operations encompassing voting, collaboration, and event scheduling, presented a pressing challenge. This application had become outdated and unsupported, failing to align with the organization’s evolving requirements.
The organization needed a modern, custom solution to facilitate seamless collaboration among users from different organizations and committees.
Each committee or topic group required a separate workspace for discussions, document comments, and voting on industry standards.
Additionally, administrative functions were essential for system maintenance, roster management, and generating reports on meeting attendance. i3solutions was approached to create this innovative system and provide ongoing support.
The Solution
Workspace Creation and Support
i3solutions embarked on the task of developing a custom NET application, leveraging SharePoint as the document repository, and hosting the entire system in the Azure cloud. The goal was to create a user-friendly platform that would allow seamless collaboration and efficient management of industry standards discussions.
The new system features separate workspaces for each committee or topic group, ensuring a focused and organized environment for discussions and decision-making. Users can schedule events, comment on documents, and vote on topics relevant to industry regulation. The permission structure guarantees that individuals have the appropriate access levels, enhancing security and control.
To streamline administrative tasks, the system includes functions for maintaining the platform, adding users to workspace rosters, and running reports on meeting attendance. This ensures that the organization has the necessary tools to manage and optimize the system for sustained effectiveness.
i3solutions demonstrates its unwavering dedication to delivering top-tier solutions through its continuous support for the organization. As part of this commitment, i3solutions seamlessly integrated JIRA into the solution, enhancing efficiency in bug tracking and release management processes. To maintain swift responsiveness, a one-day response time for tickets labeled as bugs was established. Additionally, employing JIRA for automating release schedules equips the organization with transparent insights into forthcoming releases and the integration of specific tickets. This refined methodology amplifies transparency, fostering efficient planning and coordination across the board.
The partnership between i3solutions and the organization has led to the development of a cutting-edge collaboration system and a continuous support solution, enabling the organization to concentrate on its standards-development mission.
Technologies
Used in the Solution
Microsoft SharePoint is a collaboration platform that provides a centralized location for document management, content sharing, and team collaboration. For the organization, SharePoint serves as the document repository for their industry standards discussions which facilitates secure storage, easy access, and collaboration on important documents related to industry regulation. Users can comment on and discuss documents within the system, enhancing collaboration and ensuring that the latest versions of documents are readily available.
JIRA, developed by Atlassian, stands as a cornerstone in modern project management and issue tracking solutions. Its versatility extends beyond mere task management, offering the organization a comprehensive suite of functionalities tailored to their needs. Within JIRA’s ecosystem, i3solutions can seamlessly track bugs, manage tasks with agility and precision, and meticulously plan schedules for future system releases. This empowers the organization with the ability to maintain a clear overview of task progress, swiftly address any issues that arise, and allows i3solutions to adhere to tight deadlines with confidence and efficiency.
Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing platform that offers a wide range of services, including virtual computing, storage, and networking. i3solutions’ decision to host the solution in Azure brought several advantages including a scalable and flexible cloud environment that ensures that the system can adapt to the changing needs of the organization. The cloud-based approach also allows for increased accessibility, making the platform available to users from different locations.
Microsoft .NET is a robust framework that serves as a versatile foundation for building applications, spanning web, desktop, and mobile platforms. i3solutions leveraged these capabilities to create a feature-rich, scalable, and easily maintainable platform for industry standards discussions tailored to the organization’s specific needs.
The strategic integration of these technologies allowed i3solutions to address the organization's unique challenges effectively. The combination of a custom NET application, SharePoint document management, Azure hosting, and JIRA automation contributed to the creation of a tailored solution that not only meets the organization's current needs but also provides a scalable and adaptable platform for future requirements in industry standards discussions.
Measurable Benefits
and Business Impact
Since implementation, the system has accommodated approximately 5,000 users, streamlining committee activities and discussions related to industry standards. The impact has been substantial, with measurable benefits including:
Enhanced Collaboration
The new system fosters collaboration among users from different organizations and committees, facilitating more informed decision-making and efficient communication, voting and event management.
Improved Security and Control
The permission structure ensures that users have appropriate access levels, enhancing the security and control of the system. This is crucial for managing sensitive industry standards discussions.
Future Scalability
The system infrastructure is designed to adapt and expand seamlessly to accommodate growth and increased demands in the future, eliminating the need for costly upgrades or replacements down the line. The organization can easily implement new initiatives knowing the infrastructure can support them as they grow.
Efficient Bug Resolution
For tickets labeled as bugs, i3solutions implemented a one-day response time from creation. The progress of each bug is tracked through JIRA automation, ensuring swift resolution and minimizing disruptions.
Transparent Release Schedule
JIRA automation is also utilized to automate the release schedule. This provides the organization with full awareness of upcoming drops, including details on included tickets. The transparency contributes to better planning and coordination.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did i3solutions build for the organization?
A custom .NET application hosted in the Azure cloud with Microsoft SharePoint as the document repository. It gives each committee or topic group a separate workspace for discussions, document comments, event scheduling, and voting on the topics relevant to industry regulation, plus administrative functions for maintaining the platform, adding users to workspace rosters, and running reports on meeting attendance.
How many people use the platform?
Approximately 5,000 users have worked in the system since it went live, spread across the different organizations and committees whose members develop industry standards.
Can members from different organizations be held to different access levels?
Yes. The permission structure gives each individual the appropriate access level, which is what makes the platform usable for sensitive industry standards discussions. Each committee or topic group also has its own workspace, and administrators control who is on each workspace roster.
What does ongoing support cover after launch?
i3solutions integrated JIRA for bug tracking and release management. Tickets labeled as bugs carry a one-day response time from creation, and each one is tracked to resolution through JIRA automation. The same automation drives the release schedule, so the organization knows what is in each upcoming drop and which tickets it includes.
If the application your committees or members work in every day is no longer supported, the cost usually shows up first in the workarounds people have built around it. A first conversation covers what the current application still does well, what has to be rebuilt, and how the work can be sequenced so committee business keeps running while it happens. You leave with a written scope and a phased plan, which is what a board or steering committee normally asks for before it approves a rebuild. Start the conversation
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