IBM Case Studies CareCore National uses DevOps approach to cut defects by 50 percent

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	CareCore National uses DevOps approach to cut defects by 50 percent IBM

CareCore National uses DevOps approach to cut defects by 50 percent

IBM

Technology Category	Application Infrastructure & Middleware - API Integration & Management Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms
Applicable Industries	Healthcare & Hospitals
Use Cases	Predictive Maintenance
Services	Software Design & Engineering Services System Integration
Challenge	CareCore National, a specialty benefit management company, was facing challenges with its software development processes. The company was using a reactive, project-focused approach that was not providing the speed and responsiveness needed to meet customer needs. The lack of integration between development applications was hindering overall speed. The company was tracking requirements and work items using Microsoft Team Foundation Server (TFS) software. However, many stakeholders were still submitting requirements using email or other methods, making it difficult to gain a comprehensive picture of all the requirements needed. As a result, 70 percent of the company’s software defects were attributed to poor requirements development. The company wanted to overhaul its processes and shift from a project-focused approach to a more strategic approach. Read More
About Customer	CareCore National is a specialty benefit management company founded in 1994. The company offers customized programs to improve the use of diagnostic imaging and enhance the quality of patient care. It also provides solutions for managing cardiac and oncology care, and programs for sleep apnea, musculoskeletal pain management, and lab services. CareCore serves health plans in the United States and currently manages treatment affecting more than 30 million people. One of CareCore's primary goals is to react quickly to meet customer needs. Over the years, the company’s core development applications had grown to meet these changing needs. Read More
Solution	CareCore National decided to implement IBM Rational DOORS Next Generation, IBM Rational Focal Point, and IBM Rational Team Concert software, integrating these applications with its existing IBM Rational Quality Manager software. The company used Rational Focal Point software to create the project and distribute the necessary components to the other Rational applications. Stakeholders put information from spreadsheets, diagrams, and text documents into the requirements software, without worrying about prioritizing the information. Software architects then worked in the software to analyze the information and create requirements. Developers built work items from the set of artifacts and assigned the work items to appropriate staff members. As developers worked on their assigned tasks, they used Rational Team Concert software to track their progress and verify that they were meeting the requirements established through the Rational DOORS Next Generation software. Quality assurance (QA) staff then used the same requirements to build test cases and plans. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Application Infrastructure & Middleware - API Integration & Management

Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms

Applicable Industries

Healthcare & Hospitals

Use Cases

Predictive Maintenance

Services

Software Design & Engineering Services

System Integration

Challenge

CareCore National, a specialty benefit management company, was facing challenges with its software development processes. The company was using a reactive, project-focused approach that was not providing the speed and responsiveness needed to meet customer needs. The lack of integration between development applications was hindering overall speed. The company was tracking requirements and work items using Microsoft Team Foundation Server (TFS) software. However, many stakeholders were still submitting requirements using email or other methods, making it difficult to gain a comprehensive picture of all the requirements needed. As a result, 70 percent of the company’s software defects were attributed to poor requirements development. The company wanted to overhaul its processes and shift from a project-focused approach to a more strategic approach.

About Customer

CareCore National is a specialty benefit management company founded in 1994. The company offers customized programs to improve the use of diagnostic imaging and enhance the quality of patient care. It also provides solutions for managing cardiac and oncology care, and programs for sleep apnea, musculoskeletal pain management, and lab services. CareCore serves health plans in the United States and currently manages treatment affecting more than 30 million people. One of CareCore's primary goals is to react quickly to meet customer needs. Over the years, the company’s core development applications had grown to meet these changing needs.

Solution

CareCore National decided to implement IBM Rational DOORS Next Generation, IBM Rational Focal Point, and IBM Rational Team Concert software, integrating these applications with its existing IBM Rational Quality Manager software. The company used Rational Focal Point software to create the project and distribute the necessary components to the other Rational applications. Stakeholders put information from spreadsheets, diagrams, and text documents into the requirements software, without worrying about prioritizing the information. Software architects then worked in the software to analyze the information and create requirements. Developers built work items from the set of artifacts and assigned the work items to appropriate staff members. As developers worked on their assigned tasks, they used Rational Team Concert software to track their progress and verify that they were meeting the requirements established through the Rational DOORS Next Generation software. Quality assurance (QA) staff then used the same requirements to build test cases and plans.

Impact #1	CareCore anticipates that it will see a 50 percent reduction in the number of defects that are due to requirements problems as it continues to use the Rational solution.
Impact #2	The company has gained greater insight into its requirements and how they fit into the bigger picture. With this insight, the company can create its development plans in a more strategic and less reactive manner.

Impact #1

CareCore anticipates that it will see a 50 percent reduction in the number of defects that are due to requirements problems as it continues to use the Rational solution.

Impact #2

The company has gained greater insight into its requirements and how they fit into the bigger picture. With this insight, the company can create its development plans in a more strategic and less reactive manner.

Benefit #1	50 percent reduction in the number of defects due to requirements problems.

Benefit #1

50 percent reduction in the number of defects due to requirements problems.

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Overview

CareCore National uses DevOps approach to cut defects by 50 percent

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit