ITG Newsletter, New Software Management Functions
Introduction
- ITG’s Software Engineering department has been issued the requirements for the final releases of the current version of CENTRE.
- CENTRE Releases 4.5.3 and 4.5.4 will include ISO-related functions in the purchasing, change management, problem management, asset management and document management subsystems.
- The intent of these releases is to enable a wider use of CENTRE by our clients, fulfil ISO 20000 and ITIL requirements and move the company closer to CMMI Level IV compliance.
Background
The company 2006 Business Plan defined as its cornerstone goals the successful registration of ISO 20000, the ITIL certification of CENTRE and the attainment of CMMI Level IV appraisal. As such, we completed the definition of related functional requirements in Q1 and approved staged development in early Q2 2006.
The company anticipates gains in productivity and improvements to its Quality Management System through the implementation of these CENTRE releases. Further, the company anticipates substantial marketing benefit and name recognition by being one of a small number of companies, worldwide, to have achieved these levels of quality management.
Development
Release 4.5.3 will include a native Document Control System, the first .NET subsystem designed and produced by our staff. CENTRE residing Document Control paves the way for integrated document management throughout CENTRE modules, setting the product apart from competitive systems and improving productivity across all current users.
- Change Management will formalize and provide an automated means for requesting, approving and implementing changes in key areas of the business model.
- Problem Management will identify potential trends of defects, enabling users to recognize at-large problems through the processing of unitary technical incidents.
- Asset Management will enhance our current subsystem with the establishment of relationships between assets in a parent/child format and with the definition of impact levels in the event of an asset failure.
- User-defined fields are being introduced in the Purchasing Subsystem, enabling users to create environment unique entries and labels that best suit their needs.
Implementation
Releases 4.5.3 and 4.5.4 were published during the beginning and end of July 2006, respectively. Following these releases only maintenance updates will be performed in the current version of CENTRE. The first major implementation of the .NET re-write is anticipated in November 2006 and it will be focused on the Projects Subsystem.