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IQ collaborates with industry leaders to provide world first with Spoornet

Sybase Enterprise Portal integrates multiple applications with single sign-on functionality

Johannesburg, 16 Sep 2003

Recent collaboration between local industry players has resulted in a world first! Project teams from The IQ Business Group, Sybase, arivia.kom and Spoornet got together for a 25-day project, the result of which was the implementation of a Sybase Enterprise Portal (EP). This enables Spoornet employees, customers and partners to access various applications and services using, for the first time, single sign-on.

The integration of Spoornets` disparate and mutually exclusive systems into one environment allows employees to access content from a single consistent interface, without having to launch multiple application interfaces. The integration of Spoornet`s existing FileNet content management system, provided by The IQ Business Group, into the portal was critical to the success of the project.

"In the past, Spoornet Executive Managers have used up to 19 passwords in order to access the various applications," says Vernon Zwiers, Sybase Project Manager. "As a result of the integration project it is now possible to sign-on once at the beginning of the day and make full use of all available systems and applications."

"The solution saves time, is efficient and easy to use and takes the tedium out of logging onto separate systems," he adds.

Spoornet approached Sybase to integrate all the organisations` systems on a single front-end, using Internet technology in order to make full use of the Web capabilities inherent in many of Spoornet`s systems, including its` FileNet Content Management solution.

This was in line with Spoornet`s strategy to make information crucial for planning and decision-making within the organisation readily accessible. Sybase portal technologies were carefully selected to enable this.

"The success of the integration project has been a major achievement for Spoornet as a whole. In the past, Spoornet employees have been unable to effectively access the wealth of information available to them. Now, with one access window into all major applications, employees can easily access this information. Their world is simpler and less cluttered, increasing job efficiency and satisfaction," says Juanita Hiscox, Project manager for Spoornet.

"The portal also allows customers limited access to whatever information they may require. Spoornet can place a bigger demand on existing IT tools and obtain a return on these past investments. For the future, we plan to integrate more onto the portal and continue to grow in terms of interoperability," she continues.

Sybase then approached The IQ Business Group`s content management division to take the front-end of the FileNet Content Management system and integrate it into the Sybase Portal.

"There were initial challenges in that Sybase had to write an application to meet IQ`s and FileNet`s requirements, but in the end the solution worked beautifully. As a collaborative team, IQ and Sybase worked really well together, overcoming the obstacles to realise the best possible solution," comments Zwiers.

"After logging on to the Microsoft Windows NT domain, users are automatically logged on to the FileNet content services repository, made accessible through the Sybase EP. This was made possible by synchronising FileNet security with the Windows NT domain security, as well as integrating the single sign-on functionality into the Sybase Portal," says Steven Lauter, Head of Business Development for IQ`s content management division.

"Based on the individual profile of the person who logs in only once, the user goes straight to his/her working points, skipping the usual intermediary steps. Also, because users access applications through the Web, no installations were required on their machines. All that was needed was an Internet browser, saving Spoornet time and money," he adds.

The project was done using the Sybase EP 5.0, which is currently being updated to the 5.1 version. Acting as a true portal, Sybase EP offers a single access point to all critical information and the primary applications necessary to individuals performing their business operations. It is an open and scalable solution that provides a secure and individualised view of multiple online resources and interactive services.

Future plans for extending this functionality include being able to launch enterprise processes from the portal interface with associated content, for enhanced customer service as well as complying with regulatory and corporate governance requirements.

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The IQ Business Group

The IQ Business Group is a thought leadership organisation, focussing on the holistic design, implementation and management of business process solutions, focussed in the financial services, healthcare, and supply chain industries. The IQ Group has operations in Sydney and Melbourne in Australia, Boston and Atlanta in the USA and in London in the UK.

Editorial contacts

Steven Lauter
IQ Business Group
(011) 259 4000
slauter@iqgroup.net