Interviews

Accelerating Software Engineering with Ascendion AVA: An Intelligent Digital Engineering Platform with Transparency

CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Prakash Balasubramanian, Executive Vice President and Global Head, Engineering Practices and Delivery, Ascendion. 

1.What is Ascendion AVA and how it was conceptualized and developed by Ascendion?

Organizations face challenges in achieving maturity in their Agile, DevSecOps journey, including ensuring that best practices are followed across multiple teams for Agile, DevOps, and security processes. This can be achieved by establishing clear guidelines. Additionally, it is crucial to monitor the health and maturity of software delivery to prevent any issues during releases, such as insufficient testing or security measures. Identifying bottlenecks that hinder engineers’ productivity is another challenge that requires insights to increase velocity effectively. Finally, improving product and code quality is essential for success.

Ascendion realized the above need for a platform like Ascendion AVA(A.AVA) to change the game of Software engineering.

A.AVA is an intelligent digital engineering platform that accelerates the pace of change across business, IT, and operations.

The Platform drives the engineering quotient of the client’s IT organization higher by improving the below engineering outcomes,

  • Accessible user experience (web experience compliant with WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards)
  • Improved test coverage (requirement & acceptance criteria coverage %, ~30% increase in test data reusability)
  • Higher Automated Test execution (95%+ regression automation, 3x faster in automation script development)
  • Improved Test efficiency (3x better in finding bugs)
  • Best practices driven engineering delivery (Improved Team Velocity & Developer Productivity ~20% Productivity Gain)
  • Efficient Machine Learning operations (i.e. 50% effort savings on data collection and data preparation, 70% effort saving on retraining, redeployment of the model and monitoring the models)
  • Optimized cloud services spend (i.e. Unit Cost optimization, Usage optimization, Rates optimization)

A.AVA is a platform designed to help software engineers work more efficiently and effectively. It’s like a handy toolbox that contains all the necessary tools for software development, including pre-written code libraries, debugging, and testing tools, and other useful resources.

By using A.AVA , software engineers can concentrate on their unique software projects without worrying about already solved challenges. A.AVA provides a stable and dependable foundation that helps software engineers create software more quickly and reliably. It’s a vital tool that simplifies and streamlines the software development process, allowing engineers to focus on what they do best – creating excellent software.

2.What are the features of this platform?

A.AVA leverages artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and automation. This combination accelerates software engineering processes and improves overall quality and transparency with systems for quality engineering, accessibility assurance, and applied ML.

  • AI-driven Automation first approach

o   Leverage AI ML and Automation in the engineering activities to drive efficiency and effectiveness, continuously evolving to improve overall engineers experience by identifying opportunities to improve

  • Transparent omnichannel digital delivery dashboard

o   Connecting meta data of engineering delivery through real time APIs to identify bottle neck and provide meaningful insights to improve

  • Prebuilt engineering solutions catalog available for trial before adoption

o   Engineering Solution catalog with top industry problems with the technology solutions available for demonstration and same is customized for client needs.

  • Deliver predictable solutions – solutions that are tailored, reduce dependency on skill sets or talent and increases processes built on self-healing

o   Leveraging the AIML(Artificial Intelligence Modelling Language) and automation capabilities to convert the manual activities into meaningful automations

3.What are the unique offerings of Ascendion AVA?

  1. A.AVA OneView platform with near real time view on all stages of software delivery, this is achieved by connecting with the existing SDLC(Software Development Lifecycle), STLC(Software Testing Lifecycle) tools. Platform included key features like Best Practices Driven Software Delivery, Benchmarking for Continuous Improvement, Visibility & Benchmarking for Leaders, Role based Visibility and Dashboards
  2. A.AVA Intelligent Test Automation (ITA) applies cognitive self-learning, natural language processing, ML algorithms, and process orchestration to automate testing across the engineering process
  3. A.AVA Intelligent Accessibility Framework (IAF) auto-remediation system improves content access to disabled software users. IAF uses AI and ML to help businesses meet legislative requirements and standards (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)2.1, (A, AA) and Americans with Disabilities Act(ADA)) and receive compliance certification
  4. A.AVA MLOps streamlines machine learning operational (MLOps) and governance processes to shorten development cycles. This capability helps implement an automated MLOps framework for on-premises, Cloud, hybrid model, and ML projects
  5. A.AVA DataSwitch is an insight driven intelligent engineering platform that accelerates the pace of Data Modernization through no-code/low-code data modernization studio.
  6. A.AVA ICE – AI/ML Powered Recommendations, Anomaly Detection and Compliance platform for Cost and Utilization Visibility, Unit Economics Governance and Controls, Cloud Cost Optimization (Usage optimization, Rates optimization) & engineering Integrated with DevOps (Shift-left cloud economics)

4.How does A.AVA fit in amongst the other software solutions offered by Ascendion?

A.AVA platform includes key studios complementing Ascendion solution offerings like below;

  • A.AVA Intelligent Test Automation (AVA ITA) Studio supports the Ascendion’s Quality Engineering Solution offerings through the Low Code Automation in Test Execution, take automation beyond the Test execution enable automation in the Requirement analysis, Test Design and Test planning activities
  • A.AVA OneView ensures Engineering Excellence through Best Practices (100+) driven Software Delivery and benchmarking (KPIs) for continuous improvement in engineering solutions
  • A.AVA Intelligent Accessibility Framework (IAF) to web scan for accessibility issues and recommend suggestions based on WCAG 2.1 AA. Framework uses AI and Machine Learning to help businesses meet legislation and standards (WCAG 2.1 (A, AA) and ADA) in the experiences engineering solution offerings from Ascendion
  • A.AVA DataSwitch is an insight driven intelligent engineering platform that accelerates the pace of Data Modernization through no-code/low-code data modernization studio. This aligns with the data engineering solutions offerings from Ascendion.
  • A.AVA MLOps helps implement an automated MLOps framework for On-Premises, Cloud, Hybrid model, and machine learning projects. This aligns with the AI/ML solution offerings from Ascendion

A.AVA studios are impacting the clients’ goals positively by enabling the engineers for accelerated delivery. With the increased hybrid working mode, clients need to know how their IT teams are working, and where there are opportunities for improvement.

5.How is A.AVA aiding Ascendion’s business?

A.AVA is a methodology plus technology for better engineering experience, it can help improve software outcomes leading to an exceptional engineering experience from start to finish. Each studio of A.AVA can add significant value toward the customer deliverable and differentiate Ascendion from other vendors partners for customers. Below are the outcomes we see for our clients:

  • Improved Team Velocity & Developer Productivity ~20% Productivity Gain
  • Improved Quality, Predictability & Resilience for the Products ~24% improved Quality
  • 30% increase in test data reusability
  • 20% reduction in test data generation effort
  • 60% effort savings accelerating ML operations using Ascendion AVA studios
  • 60% reduction in the accessibility scanning and validation
  • Transparency – Ascendion AVA aggregates data from multiple sources to provide a clear view into the end-to-end engineering process. This visibility improves engineering outcomes and confidence that risks are identified and managed early. Fully Automated platform which can integrate with 60+ Enterprise Integrated Tools. AVA OneView brings the transparency through real time integrations and helps build trust.
  1. How can A.AVA as an engineering platform create better customer experience for businesses?

Nearly every personal or professional experience is shaped by software: apps, platforms, and digital interfaces to nearly every person, place, or thing. What companies and consumers want is software that provides beautiful experiences. The experience doesn’t start with a tap, click, or swipe, it begins with intelligent engineering based on powerful methods and tools, from design to development, to testing, all the way to delivery, for improved engineering outcomes. To get insight and monitor the engineering process, it would ideally be great to have the radical transparency of an Uber Eats or DoorDash experience for software engineering.

A.AVA OneView studio provides a consumer-grade user experience for the engineering teams to view anytime, anywhere how their software is being cooked, OneView provides real-time status on the engineering delivery, increasing the transparency in the ecosystem.

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