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Month: April 2022

Ness Digital Engineering and Confluent Tech Talk Series

Posted on by alexandrubordei
Ness Digital Engineering COnfluent events

Re-orchestrating and Modernizing Your Infrastructure with Cloud

Join Us Virtually

May 26, 2022: Mainframe Modernization

June 16, 2022: Data Warehouse Modernization

July 28, 2022: Re-Orchestration – Migrating to the Cloud

Modernize Your Data Architectures with Ness Digital Engineering and Confluent

From order processing to financial transactions, inventory control to payroll, mainframes continue to support many mission-critical applications, still performing most of the batch processing for many enterprises. Data-driven enterprises need real-time access to mainframe data to feed distributed applications, microservices, and other business operations and enable organizations to use all their data for competitive advantage.

A new generation of technologies is needed to consume and exploit today’s real-time, fast-moving data sources. With event streaming from Confluent, you can run your business in real-time, building fast-moving applications enriched with historical context.

Join Confluent and Ness Digital Engineering in this talk series to learn more about re-orchestrating and modernizing your infrastructure and how it will allow your organization to build sophisticated data and event-driven applications, uncovering data sources and deriving valuable insights, giving your business a competitive advantage.

May 26: Modernization of the Mainframe

June 16: Data Warehouse Modernization

July 28: Re-orchestration, the 7th R to Migrating to the Cloud

About Ness Digital Engineering

Ness is a full lifecycle digital engineering firm offering digital advisory through scaled engineering services. Combining our core competence in engineering with the latest in digital strategy and technology, we seamlessly manage Digital Transformation journeys from strategy through execution to help businesses thrive in the digital economy. As your tech partner, we help engineer your company’s future with cloud and data. For more information, visit ness.com.

About Confluent

Confluent is the data streaming platform pioneering a fundamentally new category of data infrastructure that sets data in motion. Confluent’s cloud-native offering is the foundational platform for data in motion, designed to be the intelligent connective tissue enabling real-time data from multiple sources to constantly stream across the organization. With Confluent, organizations can meet the new business imperative of delivering rich, digital front-end customer experiences and transitioning to sophisticated, real-time, software-driven backend operations. Visit www.confluent.io to learn more.

Modernization of the Mainframe

May 26, 2022 | 11:00 – 11:45 AM EDT

Mainframes are still hard at work, processing over 70% of the world’s most critical computing transactions every day. But high-cost monolithic architectures and a lack of in-house expertise remain the key challenges. Companies fall short of their newer and more agile counterparts due to a significant roadblock – the legacy systems. Though CIOs are well-aware of this existential threat of a slow transformation, modernizing legacy systems is not a simple task.

Organizations migrate and modernize mainframes to the cloud, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), for many reasons. Agility, time to market, diminishing COBOL developers, the move from structured programming to event processing, and reduced technical debt – are just a few reasons to modernize the mainframe footprint.

This discussion will examine the many ways to approach modernization and the many decisions needed to arrive at the right strategy for organizations. We plan to highlight the success factors for a successful mainframe modernization approach using several patterns while focusing on a native build approach using flow architecture. The most talked-about topic involving Mainframe modernizations involves the following:

  1. Unlock the power of real-time, streaming data on the mainframe
  2. Integrate with legacy CICS applications
  3. Bridge mainframe to the cloud

This discussion is for those who want to learn more about cost savings and performance enhancement and those who want to modernize their environment but can’t rip and replace it in its entirety.

Data Warehouse Modernization

June 16, 2022 | 11:00 – 11:45 AM EDT

Cloud has drastically changed the data analytics space as new technology has decoupled storage from compute to power new analytics, ranging from traditional BI to machine learning. Cloud data warehouses like Snowflake, Databricks, Redshift, Synapse, and BigQuery drive scalable, cost-effective analytics and reporting. Many organizations are looking to migrate away from legacy on-premises solutions (Teradata, Oracle, Cloudera, etc.) toward the cloud to take advantage of these new technologies.

By working with Confluent and Ness, organizations now have the opportunity to rethink how to populate these new data warehouses (DW). Instead of being left with traditional choices such as batch files, ETL, and legacy messaging, they can modernize their data movement architecture by connecting data across any environment (cloud or on-prem).

Data platform modernization is an integral component of most digital transformation initiatives. Kafka streaming capabilities can be a key element of these data warehouse and data lake modernization projects, enabling more efficient, performant, and cost-effective data pipelines.

Join us for this discussion to understand why Confluent’s data-in-motion platform is helping organizations connect hybrid and multi-cloud data to their cloud data warehouse of choice in real-time.

The discussion and demonstration will introduce the benefits of modernization, including:

  • Reduced time to analytics by connecting data sources (on-prem and cloud) into your data warehouse without writing a code
  • Normalizing, enriching, and transforming your source data in real-time before it is written to the data warehouse
  • Future-proofing your architecture and gaining increased overall flexibility and business agility

Modernizing your data warehouse doesn’t need to be a multi-year lift and shift.

Re-orchestration, the 7th R to Migrating to the Cloud

July 28, 2022 | 11:00 – 11:45 AM EDT

Microservices architecture enables organizations to evolve their systems away from the slow and unresponsive shared-state architectures. Event-driven microservices decouple systems, teams, and products and streamline application development. In this session, we will take a deep dive into how you can use Confluent Cloud to explore event-driven architectures and how they can be applied across industries.

This data must be evaluated against the seven common migration strategies (7 Rs) for moving applications to the Cloud. These strategies are re-host, re-platform, re-refactor, re-purchase, retire, retain, and re-orchestrate.

Your Mainframe Modernization SMEs

Lloyd Altman

Global Head of Business Development

 

Ness Digital Engineering

Jeremy Hogan

Sr. Solutions Architect

 

Confluent
Ness Digital Engineering Rankesh Kumar

Rankesh Kumar

Senior Systems Engineer

 

Confluent

Peter Meulbroek

Head of Cloud and Data Practices

 

Ness Digital Engineering
Ness Digital Engineering

Tom Morley

Senior Digital Transformation Architect

 

 

Ness Digital Engineering

Michael O’Brien

Business Development

 

 

Confluent

Ronald Olshausen

Global Head of Data & Analytics

 

 

Ness Digital Engineering

Jim Zucker

Solution Architect / Client Engagement Manager
Financial Services

 

Ness Digital Engineering

Program Sponsors

Ness Digital Engineering

Top Trends that Will Shape Digital Transformation in 2022

Posted on by kristapsasnins

Digital Transformation isn’t just a hip buzzword thrown around by marketers. It’s a business problem that most companies are trying to solve.

Ranjit Tinaikar, Chief Executive Officer, Ness Digital Engineering, speaks about how businesses no longer take digital transformation lightly, how Ness has been helping organizations achieve their digital transformation goals, and what can be found at the intersection of business domain and technology.

Watch his exclusive interview with CXO TV

About CXOTV.NEWS
A news web channel for corporate decision-makers, CXOTV.news produces a daily exclusive news capsule with insights on the role of technology in all kinds of businesses, emphasizing peer-to-peer learning of C-level audiences and entrepreneurs while producing daily webisodes on subject matters.

Ness Wins CEE Business Services Award 2022

Posted on by kristapsasnins

We are happy to announce that Ness Digital Engineering Romania has won the Business Services Firm of The Year – Romania award at the CEE Business Services Summit & Awards 2022 ceremony recently held in Warsaw, Poland. This is the second year, in a row, for Ness Digital Engineering, Romania to win this award.

About the CEE Awards

In a fast-evolving marketplace that demands leadership that brings results, the CEE Business Services produces a comprehensive list of companies in the business services sector across the entire region of Central and Eastern Europe. Global shared services firms, business services projects, and sector professionals were presented with awards by an independent jury from the industry for their contribution to the business services sector of CEE.

Ness Romania

With technology innovation centers in Isai and Timisoara, Ness Romania delivers state-of-the-art solutions for Ness customers across the globe to help businesses thrive in the digital economy.

To learn more about this award, click here.

Ness Connection: Andreea Badragan

Posted on by kristapsasnins

Meet Andreea Badragan, Director – Talent Acquisition (Europe) at Ness Digital Engineering. She joined Ness back in August 2013 as an HR Specialist, and in the past nine years has grown to head the talent acquisition department for Europe region. In this e-chat, Andreea tells us more about her journey with Ness, how she takes her coffee, and what motivates her to keep going.

Q: Tell us a bit about your role here at Ness. What do you do?

Since last summer, I have taken a new role of managing the Talent Acquisition team across Europe. I have a hardworking team of 26 people that we want to grow even further. My primary responsibility is to have motivated and productive team members who can hire the right people for Ness.

Q: How did you get started in the industry?

This goes back to 2010 when I started working as an HR assistant – having phone screenings with people who applied for open positions. It was an incredible thing that happened to me – to have the opportunity to take that first part-time job. This first job in the industry helped me have the “taste” of the domain and become convinced that this is what I want to do further! And now, more than a decade later, I still believe so.

Q: What is the best career advice you have ever had?

Hmm… Two things come to mind – 1. “Who does not work, does not make mistakes”. This pushed me always to exit my comfort zone and try new approaches, never being too afraid to make mistakes. And the second one – to listen to others when they say, “You can do this!”. The people who know me don’t say it for anything or as a simple encouragement; there’s usually something more there.

Q: What’s on your to-do list – personal as well as professional?

Well, this can turn around into a very long answer. Professionally speaking, I still have a lot of work to do in my current role – there are processes to align and improve, personalities to understand better, and great results to achieve consistently. After I am completely satisfied with my results, I will have to decide what to do with the HR part of the story – to blend it again with Talent Acquisition or to remain dedicated to the recruitment domain. We will wait and see, I guess.

On the personal front, I want time. To rest, read, travel, cook, paint, plant flowers. Time to meet friends and family more often!

Q: What’s the one word you would use to describe Ness and why?

Speed – this is the word that crosses my mind. We need it to stay in line with how the world evolves and how we want to be top players in it.

Q: What do you enjoy most about working here at Ness?

I have always enjoyed the freedom I got here to try new things and the trust I received from everyone in all these years; this year, I will celebrate nine years with Ness! Having space and not working in a defined “box” was crucial for my professional development. I had so much room to grow – I started back in 2013 as a Recruiter, being afterward promoted to Recruitment Lead and then Recruitment Manager. Later, in 2019 I took the HR manager role for the Iasi location and now the Director role for Talent Acquisition for all European centers.

Q: Everyone has their own morning routine to help get their day going. What is your morning routine like?

I like to wake up without an alarm and to have time for a large cup of coffee before all the meetings from that day begin. It’s a simple routine.

Q: And how do you take your coffee?

Black with two cubes of sugar. Neither too hot nor too cold. Besides that, some quiet time.

Wish to be a part of #LifeAtNess? Learn more about open opportunities on our Careers page.

Automated Network Device Provisioning and Configuration through ZTP

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Banner image - Automated Network Device Provisioning and Configuration through ZTP

Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP) alleviates complex network provisioning by introducing automation and enabling multipoint auto-configuration of network devices.

Nowadays, networks need to solve two significant tasks:

  • Provide seamless access to their users
  • Support new collaborative applications that are increasingly complex and dynamic in their scale, use distributed resources and require advanced networking services

Rapid deployment and automation of new network services provisioning are complex in large networks that incorporate different technologies and solutions. Providing a seamless user experience generates an additional burden for the configuration phases included in network provisioning.

Network or system administrators must maintain uptime, define provisioning policies, modify user access based on user roles, frequently upgrade the firmware, and finish the tasks within the stipulated timelines mentioned in the Service Level Agreement (SLA).

Types of network provisioning

Network provisioning is important as it makes sure the network resources are made available to users. The types of network provisioning include:

User provisioning: User provisioning is about setting up user accounts and permissions to access network resources and services.

Device provisioning: Network devices, such as switches, routers, and firewalls are configured to enable communication and data exchange between devices and users.

Virtual provisioning: Virtual resources are created and configured to enable users access network resources and services.

Service provisioning: Network services such as VPNs, load balancers, and content filtering are set up and configured to enable users to access network resources and services.

Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP)

Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP) alleviates complex network provisioning by introducing network automation and enabling multipoint auto-configuration of network devices for effective network management. ZTP ensures end to end automation of network management to deliver services with agility and speed.

We will discuss the issues related to manual network device provisioning, how ZTP can enable network automation and the steps involved in implementing ZTP for your network.

Key Layers of an Enterprise Network

Before diving into network administration's nuances, let us refresh our knowledge about the key layers of corporate networks.

  • Network Device Maker
    They are Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) who manufacture network hardware components. These companies sell products and services to communication service providers such as fixed-line or mobile operators and enterprise customers. Essentially, they establish the hardware backbone of device networks at customer locations.

  • Network Service Provider
    A network service provider is a business or organization that sells bandwidth or network access by providing direct Internet backbone access to Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and enabling access to the Network Access Points (NAP)s. Service providers may include telecommunications companies, data carriers, wireless communication providers, Internet Service Providers offering high-speed Internet access, and cable television operators. They are the firmware layer of the enterprise network.

Problems with Manual Network Device Provisioning

Network administrators often configure network devices one device at a time through a command line interface (CLI). However, in large networks in customer locations, network provisioning might mean thousands of devices to be provisioned and configured.

Configuring networks manually might easily make several expert network administrators work round the clock for days to finish the configuration and provisioning activities. Yet, there is no guarantee of successful provisioning for each network device.

Configuring networks manually leads to the following network management issues:
80% of all network downtime can be attributed to human error during network provisioning and configuration
Manual configuration is slow, decentralized, and prone to errors
People and travel are expensive as system engineers need physical access to the devices

What is Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP)

Zero touch provisioning (ZTP) can enable better network management by allowing network devices to be provisioned and configured automatically, eliminating effort, time, and issues arising from manual network provisioning at customer locations. This means customers can set up devices with minimal help from trained personnel.

Why is ZTP required, and what are its benefits

ZTP enables network automation through these steps for network administration and helps enhance efficiency:
Updating operating systems (Firmware) on the device.
Configuring the device with predefined custom configuration.

Ness Solution that enables ZTP

Three major components participate in the ZTP process:

  • Device Management Software
    ZTP Server
    Device

High-Level ZTP Architecture

Automated Network Device Provisioning and Configuration through ZTP

Before we dive into the actual steps of ZTP, let us look at the major components of the automated ZTP system.

  • Device Management Software
    It is the software that is used to manage networking devices. Using this software, network administrators can monitor, manage, and configure networking devices.

  • ZTP Server
    This is a centralized server managed by the IT/Sales team to identify the networking devices sold to various customers.

  • Device
    This device is stationed at the customer location and can be networking equipment such as VoIP devices, routers, and switches. A network can have several devices of various types and configurations.

Implementation Steps

Here are the implementation steps for registering a new device in an ZTP-enabled network.
Steps that require manual intervention:

  1. Register the Device Management Software with the ZTP Server
    When Device Management Software is sold to the customer, the sales team registers it with the ZTP server.
  2. Register the device with the ZTP Server
    When a device is sold to the customer, the sales team registers it with the ZTP server.
  3. Define provisioning policies
    Customer’s Network Administrator defines the configuration and the firmware version they want to install on the new devices using the device management software.
  4. ‘Auto-provision’ the device
    Customer’s network administrator enters the MAC address of the device/s to be auto-provisioned.
    Device Management Software validates the device/s with ZTP Server.
    Customer’s network administrator selects the provisioning policy to be applied on the device/s.
    The mapping of Device/s and Device Management Software (DMS) address gets saved on the ZTP Server.
  5. Plug-in’ and ‘Turn-on’ the device
    The network administrator plugs the device into the network and turns it on.

Steps that are performed automatically:

  1. As soon as the device gets plugged into the network and turned on, it sends a registration request to the ZTP server.

  2. ZTP Server sends the Device Management Software (DMS) address to the device.
  3. The device sends a registration request to Device Management Software.
  4. Device Management Software registers the device.
  5. Device Management Software, If required, upgrades the firmware of the device.
  6. Device Management Software, If required, applies the configuration defined in the provisioning policy on the device.
  7. Device Management Software sends back the register response to the device.

The device is now ready and can send heartbeat messages to the Device Management Software. Devices can now be monitored and managed from the Device Management Software.

FAQs

What is Network Management?

Network management can be understood as the administration and control of computer networks to optimize its performance and secure it from threats.

How Does Network Management Work?

Network Management is the use of software tools and protocols to empower administrators to monitor, configure and optimize devices in the network.

What are network automation tools?

Network automation tools are used to automate network management tasks and workflows.

How does Network Automation work?

Network automation consists of defining tasks and workflows, configuration and deployment of network devices, monitoring network data, and ensuring security and maintainence through patches and upgrades.

What is network configuration?

Network configuration is about setting and configuring devices like switches, routers, firewalls, and servers to ensure there is communication and data exchange between devices and users.

Ness Czech v ABB podporuje a rozvíjí informační systém SAP

Posted on by alexandrubordei

Praha, 19. dubna 2022: Přední český systémový integrátor Ness Czech začal poskytovat podporu provozu podnikového informačního systému SAP ve společnosti ABB v šesti zemích střední a východní Evropy.

Po mnoha letech spolupráce s globálními dodavateli se společnost ABB rozhodla vybrat lokálního partnera. Tento krok je v souladu s vysokými standardy kvality společnosti ABB, které se promítají i do výběru dodavatelů, u nichž společnost klade důraz na efektivitu, spolehlivost a flexibilitu.

„Lokální partner k nám může v případě potřeby snadno přijet a veškeré potřeby a zadání s naším interním týmem na místě prodiskutovat. Mluví jejich jazykem, pochází ze stejného prostředí a také jeho vhled do naší místní problematiky je na vyšší úrovni,“ vysvětluje Zdeněk Bejček, IT ředitel společnosti ABB a pokračuje: „Ness nás oslovil svojí kvalitou i tím, že umí zajistit místní podporu ve všech požadovaných zemích. Důležité pro nás byly také reference a úroveň partnerství SAP.“

Kromě ABB v České republice bude Ness podporovat i pobočky na Slovensku, v Maďarsku, Rumunsku, Bulharsku a na Ukrajině.

„Spolu s řešením incidentů a standardních změn bude Ness poskytovat také dodatečné vývojové kapacity, které doplní náš interní vývojový tým SAP. V nejbližší době se chystá například projekt rozšíření aplikace v SAP Fiori, která slouží k řízení projektů ve výrobě,“ uvádí závěrem Zdeněk Bejček.

O společnosti ABB

ABB (ABBN: SIX Swiss Ex) je přední globální technologická společnost, která podněcuje transformaci společnosti a průmyslu k dosažení produktivnější a trvale udržitelnější budoucnosti. Propojením software s portfoliem elektrotechniky, robotiky, automatizace a pohonů ABB posouvá hranice technologií na vyšší úroveň výkonnosti. Úspěch společnosti ABB, která je špičkou v oboru více než 130 let, tvoří 105 000 talentovaných zaměstnanců ve více než 100 zemích světa. Více na www.abb.com.

O společnostech Ness Czech a Ness Digital Engineering

Ness Czech, přední český systémový integrátor a součást mezinárodní skupiny Ness Digital Engineering, patří mezi největší poskytovatele IT služeb v České republice. Od roku 1993 se profiluje jako průkopník v zavádění nových technologií a softwarových produktů. Mezi nejvýznamnější zákazníky patří například O2 Czech Republic, Komerční Banka a ČÚZK. Ness Digital Engineering je globální poskytovatel komplexních řešení a služeb v oblasti informačních technologií.

Kontakt pro média
Kamil Pittner,
Media Consultant, PRCOM,
+420 604 241 482,
kamil.pittner@prcom.cz

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