change enhancement process overview chris walsh north american area representative saggroup...
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Change Enhancement ProcessOverview
Chris WalshNorth American Area RepresentativeSAGGroup Executive Committee
In my spare time …Chief Technology ArchitectUtility Business Services, Inc. Union, New [email protected]
What are Change Enhancements?
A request for a new feature or product improvement submitted by customers
A process that provides Software AG customers a voice in the evolution of product development
Terminology varies based on stage:• ER enhancement request – “owned by you”• EP enhancement proposal – “owned by us”• CE change enhancement – “owned by
Software AG”
Where do CE’s come from?
Submitted directly by customers:– Online via ServLine24
( http://servline24.softwareag.com )– Manually via Support line
Created by Software AG:– Result of a support request– Internal request
Who Can Submit Enhancements?
Anyone with a ServLine24 ID:– must have a customer number with a
valid essential services contract – access obtained thru online registration
What if you can’t get access?– Send your request to the person in your
organization who has the access
Customer Customer
Submit ER
Change Enhancement Request
Customer
SAG R & D
Accept /RejectCE
Feedback
ServLine24Idea PoolER EP CE
Submit, Status / Info
SAG User Group
SAG User Group
ER -> EP
Filter /Prioritize
Hand-over
EP -> CE
SAGGroup Executive
Committee
Customer interaction with R&D
So the process begins…
Support reviews and verifies
Identify duplicate requests
Eliminate invalid requests
Determine whether to reclassify as Support Request for a product problem
Obtain clarification from submitter
Enhancement Proposal is created
Added to ServLine24 Knowledge Base
Assigned status “User Group Review”
Identifying info is removed for privacy
Eligible for review and feedback
Feedback opportunity
Searchable via ServLine24 search tool
Anyone can add comments to an EP that is in review status thru ServLine24
Comments and recommendations from user groups also generates good feedback
Ultimate feedback is Software AG’s decision to accept or reject
Users provide feedback to SAG Proposal discussed at regional meetings
User community is encouraged to “nominate” specific proposals for inclusion
Voting takes place & priority assigned – Recommended High, Medium, Low, or Rejected
Feedback and comments are documented and forwarded to Software AG
Product Managers and Development determine if CE should be accepted/rejected
Evaluation consideration examples Does it benefit the general population and
usage of the product?
Would there be a negative impact to performance and stability? Should it impact goal of platform portability?
Will it restrict a feature or particular usage? Feasible to be implemented as an option?
What is return on effort? Are there acceptable alternatives?
Decision accomplished…
Recommended EP’s become an official Change Enhancement (CE)
CE logged within SAG internal system for further consideration
Software AG provides feedback regarding their reply for the top CE´s
If rejected, a reason may be supplied
Decision accomplished…
If accepted, request could be documented with one or more of following:– How request will be implemented– How task can be accomplished– Which product release will incorporate
enhancement
Outstanding “recommended” requests are considered for future product releases
Opportunities for C/E Discussion
Fall 2006 SAGGroup Meetingshttp://www.softwareagusa.com/usergroups/
11/01 –Washington, DC 11/02 –Denver, CO
11/03 –Murray, UT 11/09 –Austin, TX
11/16 –Olympia, WA 11/17 –New York, NY
11/27 –Toronto, ON 11/29 –Edmonton, AB
11/29 –Sacramento, CA 11/30 –Cerritos, CA
12/01 –St. Paul, MN 12/06 –Malvern, PA
12/04 – Columbia , SC
Online Opportunities for C/E Discussion
ServLine24
http://servline24.softwareag.com
Developer Community
http://developer.softwareag.com
SAG-L
http://listserv.uark.edu/archives/sag-l.html
ServLine24
Demonstration
Click “Enhance Proposals’ link to search, submit, and display EP’s
http://servline24.softwareag.com
Search criteria aides in narrowing down the number
of requests to review
The Search page
Matching results are returned. Click on EP # link to view
proposal details.
Provide as much detail as possible to both describe and justify the request
Submit an ER
Additional information and comments can be added by clicking the “Add Info” button
View an ER
Recommendations
Proposed ideas for modernizing
the C/E process…
Opportunities for improvement
Access to ServLine24 is tightly controlled
C/E descriptions sometimes hard to interpret
C/E review process is attendance-based
C/E review audience mismatched to actual C/E
Communication of change enhancement feedback
Ideas to improve the process
Creation of “Read Only” ServLine24 User Credentials
– Open access to knowledgebase, documentation, technical papers, etc
– Cannot submit support requests
Ability to Request Clarification from Submitter – “Contact the submitter” option– Optional to participate – Privacy of submitter maintained
Ideas to improve the process
Online Discussion Forum– New secured forum on Community– Topics grouped by product & family– Interactive discussions
Electronic Polling– Obtain feedback on regular basis– Polling vs. Voting
Improve the Feedback Mechanism– Better information and prioritization to SAG– SAG feedback communicated with proper context– Timely response coordinated with polling periods
With increased participation,user groups are more effective
Let me know your thoughts
Chris Walsh
(908) 289-9433 x123
Thank you!