The architectural objectives of the IBM(R) Branch Transformation Toolkit for WebSphere(R) Studio
align with IT strategies that have a basis in controlling costs over time.
Following are the objectives:
- Reduce costs - A network computing architecture should exploit
the network in order to reduce costs. It allows reduction of the computing
resources required on the client and supports deployment on network computers,
using the network as a vehicle for on-demand distribution of software components.
In addition, the architecture supports deployment of reusable business components
in a managed server environment.
- Preserve investment - An important goal is to preserve the financial
institution's investment in host systems and computing infrastructure, as
well as in the toolkit-based solutions themselves and other new technologies.
This makes it important to carefully consider technology selections in order
to ensure that they are strategic and will have enduring value.
- Offer choices - Allow customers the flexibility to choose their
hardware, operating systems, networking systems, databases, communication
protocols, and third-party software products. The system must also support
flexible distribution of function and data based on the network environment
and physical topology.
- Evolve gracefully - The system must be flexible and resilient
to both business and technological changes. This helps to support rapid application
development and to increase competitiveness by improving time to market.
- Provide manageability - Once deployed and in production, the system
must be easy to manage and resilient to changes in the runtime environment.
- Allow incremental investment - The system must support the ability
to incrementally develop and deploy new business function and technology.
In addition, it must support the ability to include new toolkit-based solutions
as they become available.
- Maximize usability - The system as a whole must be well suited
to the needs of its users: not only end users but also developers and systems
management personnel.
- Maximize reusability - The system must be constructed in such
a way as to maximize reuse of components in all retail delivery solutions.
In addition, it must be able to meet the diverse needs of solutions and access
channels in financial institutions around the world.