The capital-markets-critical IT of an investment bank — centred on the Summit-ALM system — was operated without a structured release process and without clearly defined SLAs with external service providers HP and Siemens. Portamus designed the ITIL release management for Summit-ALM including sign-off procedures and automated release note generation from Perforce, developed the ITIL problem management concept, and defined SLAs with HP and Siemens — creating the foundation for proactive, transparent incident and problem management in the investment banking context.
Banking
Investment Bank Modernises Release and Problem Management for Capital Markets IT
ITIL release management for Summit-ALM, Perforce integration for automated release notes, and problem management design for investment banking IT — with SLAs defined for two external service providers.
Executive Summary
The Engagement at a Glance
Challenge
Where the Organization Stood
An investment bank operated its capital-markets-critical IT — particularly the Summit-ALM system — without structured release management, without defined SLAs with external service providers HP and Siemens, and without ITIL-compliant problem management.
No Release Management for Summit-ALM
The capital-markets-critical Summit-ALM system was operated without a structured release process — releases were coordinated ad hoc, without standardised approval and sign-off procedures.
Undefined SLAs with External Providers
External service providers HP and Siemens operated without clearly defined SLAs — responsibilities in incident and problem management were not contractually fixed.
Manual Release Notes Creation
Release notes were created manually — automated generation from the Perforce version control system had not been implemented.
Solution
What We Did
ITIL Release Management for Summit-ALM
Portamus designed the release management for Summit-ALM, including access management, sign-off procedures, and automated release notes generation from Perforce.
Perforce Integration for Automated Release Notes
Application development via Perforce was directly integrated into the release process — release notes are now generated automatically from the version control system.
ITIL Problem Management
Portamus designed the problem management process in line with ITIL, defined SLAs with HP and Siemens, and established clear responsibilities in incident and problem management.
Results & Outcomes
What Changed
automated
Release Notes
Release notes are generated automatically from Perforce — all manual effort eliminated.
2
Providers Integrated
HP and Siemens are integrated into the incident and problem management process with clearly defined SLAs.
ITIL-compliant
Problem Management
Problem management follows the ITIL standard and is directly linked to incident management.
Summit-ALM
Release Process Established
Summit-ALM has a complete ITIL release process including approval and sign-off procedures.
Key Takeaways
What Made This Engagement Work
Release Management Is Risk Management
In investment banking, unstructured releases are an operational risk — a clear release process with approval and sign-off procedures is non-negotiable.
Automation Saves Time and Reduces Errors
Automated release note generation from version control is a simple but high-impact quality assurance step in any release process.
SLAs with Providers Must Be Explicit
Without explicit SLAs with external service providers, problem management remains reactive — clear agreements are the prerequisite for proactive incident resolution.
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