Tennessee Department of Human Services

State Department Chooses Microsoft Software to Make Better Use of In-House Expertise

Several years ago, the State of Tennessee standardized on Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) and Oracle for large application development. The Tennessee Department of Human Services (DHS) adopted Microsoft® software to deliver high-impact, mission-critical applications at a lower cost, while continuing to improve citizen services through technology. Microsoft Visual Studio® Team System 2008 helps accelerate the development of new solutions and supports DHS’s application lifecycle management strategy, while Windows Server® 2008 and Microsoft SQL Server® 2008 provide a full-featured, reliable, cost-effective, and easy-to-manage platform for deploying and supporting those solutions—all of which is possible with in-house resources and expertise.

 

Situation

Every day, the Tennessee Department of Human Services (DHS) provides services and opportunities to tens of thousands of state residents in need. Whether it’s supplying food stamps, enforcing child-support payments, or helping persons with disabilities, DHS is working to improve the well-being of economically disadvantaged, disabled, and vulnerable Tennesseans through a network of financial, employment, rehabilitative, and protective services. The department has 5,500 state employees statewide, including 250 people in its Information Services (IS) division.

For the past several years, the state’s chosen platform for mainframe migration—and for new major systems—has been Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) and Oracle. However, that platform also presents some drawbacks, including high costs and long development timelines. In addition, because DHS has minimal in-house expertise using J2EE, the costs of training current employees are high.

In 2005, DHS Chief Information Officer Ralph Duke decided to try a different approach. His goal was to find a more cost-effective way to deliver major-impact systems. More specifically, he wanted to see what could be done with Microsoft® software and Microsoft .NET technology, which looked promising in terms of its ability to provide essential “enterprise” attributes such as reliability and scalability, while at the same time delivering faster time-to-market, lower costs, and, last but not least, better access to skilled resources.

At the time, DHS had scattered pockets of expertise in developing on Microsoft software, which had been used for several years for many smaller, departmental solutions. To pull that expertise together and apply it to the task at hand, DHS would need to develop a standardized architectural pattern for new solutions that supported best practices such as software reuse. That need prompted the department to consider implementing a service-oriented architecture. Before that could be done, however, DHS needed to get the right processes in place and come up with a consistent strategy for application lifecycle management (ALM).

“When I first stepped into my role, we had no formal processes or standards for building solutions with Microsoft software,” says IS Director Tracy White, who was hired two years ago to head the department’s distributed .NET development group. “There was no project management or documentation, and ‘silos’ of information were everywhere, in every format. Requirements were communicated through e-mail and in hallways, developers did their own thing, and technology decisions were left up to individual contributors. As a result, deadlines were frequently missed, and there was duplication of effort and information everywhere. I knew that we could deliver fairly large-scale applications faster and more cost-effectively on Windows, but first we had to put an ALM strategy in place and get people working as a team.”

Solution

DHS implemented an ALM strategy supported by the Microsoft Visual Studio® Team System development system, which the distributed .NET development group is using to build a reusable, services-based framework that runs the Windows Server® 2008 operating system and SQL Server® 2008 database software. Upon that framework, which is now in the final stages of development, the department has already started building new high-impact, mission-critical solutions, including some that will replace existing mainframe applications.

We’re developing new high-impact applications faster and more efficiently, which means we can deliver new citizen services faster and spend tax dollars more efficiently. Tracy White IS Director, Tennessee Department of Human Services

“With guidance from the Microsoft Developer and Platform Evangelism Public Sector Group and our local Microsoft account team, we’re using Visual Studio Team System to build a service-oriented architecture that will run on Windows Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008,” says Franc Stratton, IS Consultant and Lead Architect for the distributed .NET development team. “We’re employing all the latest Microsoft technologies and best practices, such as using Windows Workflow Foundation to implement business processes that are exposed through Windows Communication Foundation and hosted within Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 running under Internet Information Services 7.0. And we’re using or plan to use Visual Studio Team System for all aspects of application lifecycle management, from defining initial requirements through final user-acceptance testing.”

Working as a Team

By March 2007, the group had defined its desired roles and processes. It then decided that the best solution to support that strategy was Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008, an integrated application lifecycle management solution comprising tools, processes, and guidance to help all team members improve their skills and work more effectively together.

Each member of the 37-person group uses the Visual Studio Team System product that best supports his or her role. Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Suite gives team members assigned to multiple tasks an integrated set of tools for architecture, design, development, database development, and testing of applications. Other team members use the Architecture Edition, Development Edition, Database Edition, or Test Edition of Visual Studio Team System 2008, or Visual Studio Team System 2008 Test Load Agent. Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Foundation Server ties together the group’s efforts through functionality that includes a team portal, version control, work-item tracking, build management, process guidance, and business intelligence.

“We saw Visual Studio Team System 2008 as the ideal way to support our ALM strategy because it provides everything we need to come together and work as a team,” says White. “Not only can we now define and enforce consistent processes, but we can also communicate and collaborate more effectively, ensure quality throughout the development lifecycle, and have real-time visibility into project status.”

DHS is taking advantage of the process templates in Visual Studio Team System to drive predictability throughout the development process. “We customized the Microsoft Solutions Framework for Capability Maturity Model Integration process template provided with Team Foundation Server for our own set of roles,” says Jim Harkness, Programmer/Analyst Lead, who helped implement Team System Team Foundation Server. “We’ll eventually modify work-item types as well to map to things such as service candidates and service contracts. Process templates are fully integrated with other Visual Studio Team System features, such as work-item tracking and source code control, providing both the ability to define processes and the means for all team members to work productively within those processes.”

DHS is also taking advantage of the ability of Team System Team Foundation Server to integrate with Microsoft Office Project Server. “Integration with Project Server is a big benefit in that it lets us manage tasks and work within a familiar tool and easily extend access to project status to non-technical people,” says Kenneth Weems, Programmer/Analyst Lead, who also helped implement Team System Team Foundation Server. “One of the great things about Visual Studio Team System is that people can interact with it through tools they already know and use, such as Project Server or Microsoft Office Excel®.”

DHS plans to begin using other features of Team System Team Foundation Server, as well. “We’re moving more and more toward test-driven development, so the ability to define and manage unit tests with Visual Studio Team System will be a big plus, especially for database objects,” says Stratton. “We’ll also use its Team Build features to automate the build process and do continuous integration builds every time a developer checks in code. Basically, we’re taking advantage of Visual Studio Team System features as fast as we discover them.”

Building Better Web Applications

While Team System Team Foundation Server is helping the group to work together as a team more productively, features of the desktop integrated development environment (IDE) and the Microsoft .NET Framework version 3.5 are helping the group accelerate development of its services framework and the Web applications that will run on it. Some of the features that the group is taking advantage of—or plans to use—include:

• Windows® Communication Foundation, which enables developers to easily connect systems and applications—and create service endpoints—by programming to a common application programming interface regardless of the underlying transports and protocols used.  
  
  
• Windows Workflow Foundation, which enables developers to model real-world business processes in software by providing the means to easily visualize, create, edit, and debug both human and machine-based workflows.
  
  
• Language-Integrated Query (LINQ), a set of extensions to the C# and Visual Basic® languages and the .NET Framework 3.5 that enables developers to employ a consistent approach and write less code when querying and transforming object collections, Microsoft ADO.NET DataSet objects, XML data, and relational data from SQL Server–based databases.
  
  
• Support for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX), which enables developers to deliver richer, more responsive Web applications—and a more interactive user experience—by eliminating the need to reload an entire Web page when a user makes a change. DHS developers using AJAX can take advantage of IntelliSense® technology in Visual Studio 2008 to discover variables, objects, and their methods, and can debug JavaScript code by setting breakpoints—a capability that works with the most popular Web browsers.
  
  
• Model-View-Controller Extensions for ASP.NET, which will help developers enforce a clean separation between the models (business layers), views (user interfaces), and controllers (event and routing handlers) within a Web application. Using this programming pattern will make unit testing and maintenance of applications much easier because interface contracts between different application components are more clearly defined and articulated.

“We plan to make heavy use of features like Windows Workflow Foundation and Windows Communication Foundation to implement business logic and expose it as reusable services in a flexible way,” says Stratton. “And LINQ will revolutionize the data access layer—it’s intuitive and very powerful, especially when used with new C# 3.0 language enhancements such as lambda expressions. We’re also looking heavily at AJAX now that JavaScript is IntelliSense-compatible and fully supported by the debugger—capabilities that will help make quality and productivity for Web programming an order of magnitude better.”

As of November 2007, DHS was about 70 percent finished developing its services framework, which utilizes an n-tier architecture. Applications built upon the services framework will consist of a user interface tier and an application tier, with the common services tier handling business logic such as ZIP Code search, single sign on, and exception handling. The development team is now working on encapsulating business logic in Windows Workflow Foundation–based workflows and exposing them through Communication Foundation endpoints. The workflows will then be hosted within Windows SharePoint® Services 3.0 in the Windows Server 2008 operating system.

Working within its new services framework, the group is already developing two new Web-based applications. The first, for the Tennessee Food Program, replaces a manual, paper-based process and a mainframe application. The second, an Appeals Resolution Tracking System, replaces an aging Windows-based application. “We’re already demonstrating the services framework to other agencies,” says White, “and we’re working closely with our deputy CIO and .NET users’ group toward statewide adoption.”

Taking Advantage of the Latest Platforms

We’re using or plan to use Visual Studio Team System for all aspects of application lifecycle management, from defining initial requirements through final user-acceptance testing. Franc Stratton IS Consultant and Lead Architect, Tennessee Department of Human Services

DHS is developing its new services framework and applications to run on Windows Server 2008, which will deliver several advantages over Windows Server 2003. “With Windows Server 2008, we can host our services framework and deliver new Web applications more efficiently,” says Stratton. “Internet Information Services 7.0 is appealing because it integrates ASP.NET, Windows Communication Foundation, and Windows SharePoint Services, making it easier to deploy and manage solutions that use those technologies. The setup process using Server Manager is quite intuitive, requiring about half the steps that it took in the past, and the IIS Manager GUI puts everything that I need right in front of me, enabling me to set up all the bindings that are needed for the Web site right through the GUI.”

Adds White, “We’re moving forward with our new services framework running on Windows Server 2008 at the departmental level and will host that environment in the state data center as soon as it’s ready. Tennessee is on the path to make Windows Server 2008 another state standard, and DHS is helping to drive those requirements. Hosting the new solutions we’re developing on Windows Server 2008 will make them more supportable without requiring a lot of learning, which is a very good thing for us because we live in a contract-supported world.”

DHS also plans to begin using SQL Server 2008 as soon as the database software becomes part of the state’s standard IT configuration and is especially interested in several new features. “We’ll take advantage of the SQL Server 2008 Declarative Management Framework to prevent policy violations and evaluate a policy when a relevant change occurs, and we’ll use SQL Server Agent jobs to periodically evaluate database administration policies,” says Stratton. “In addition, SQL Server 2008 Data Compression will enable us to store and back up data more efficiently than ever. The Resource Governor will allow us to define resource limits and priorities for different workloads to ensure consistent performance and thus provide a more consistent user experience.”

Benefits

With Microsoft software, DHS has all it needs to deliver high-impact, mission-critical applications that will improve citizen services, including the tools to support its ALM strategy; a productive development environment; and a reliable, cost-effective platform for deploying and supporting new solutions—assets that the department now can take advantage of with in-house expertise.

Improved Citizen Services

The department’s new services framework and the applications developed on it will help DHS deliver better citizen service, both online and in person. “The Microsoft .NET Framework is already delivering the expected benefits,” says White. “We’re developing new high-impact applications faster and more efficiently, which means we can deliver new citizen services faster and spend tax dollars more efficiently.”

Adds Stratton, “Many of the core services we’re building will support internal applications used by DHS employees as well as online solutions for citizens, which means that a single new piece of software can now both help automate internal processes and extend those same services to taxpayers over the Web. And regardless of the target end user, our ability to efficiently employ programming techniques such as AJAX will help improve that user’s experience through richer and more responsive Web applications.”
 
The department’s new services framework will facilitate information sharing as well, both intradepartmental and interdepartmental. “The governor is focused on improving communication across state agencies, and our services framework will definitely help us get there,” says White. “Instead of silos of information, we’ll be able to have a single repository and share the data. For example, someone could update their address with the Department of Licensing, at which time other agencies also would have access to that information.”

Faster Solution Development

Thanks to the productivity advantages provided by Visual Studio Team System 2008, the .NET Framework 3.5, and a service-oriented architecture, DHS can deliver quality, maintainable applications faster. “We were used to object-oriented development, but now we’re thinking more in terms of reusable services,” says Stratton. “I estimate that a service-oriented architecture based on the .NET Framework will lead to at least a 25 percent improvement in time-to-market and associated development costs. We’re rapidly moving into the orchestration business, where we’ll focus on implementing business logic using existing services.”

The technologies that DHS is using to build its services layer—such as Visual Studio Team System Team Foundation Server, LINQ, ASP.NET AJAX, Windows Communication Foundation, and Windows Workflow Foundation—also are improving developer productivity and team output. “Team Foundation Server takes a lot of the ‘churn’ out of the development process and helps us keep everything running smoothly because we’re now all working within consistent processes, with real-time visibility into project status,” says Stratton. “LINQ will enable developers to add new data sources with less code, and Workflow Foundation and Communication Foundation will yield the same benefit for hosting and exposing the workflows that rely on that data. At the presentation level, the AJAX support increases productivity for Web development by several hundred percent by making it much easier and faster to write and debug JavaScript.”

Higher Quality

DHS is improving software quality—and the quality of state services supported by that software—as well. “Faster development is just one benefit we’re seeing,” says White. “An even larger one is increased quality of service for taxpayers, which is how government measures return on investment. The applications we can now deliver will streamline existing manual processes and help reduce the potential for human error. Because Visual Studio Team System enables us to put the necessary up-front controls in place and to ensure quality early and often throughout the development cycle, the underlying software supporting those new processes will be of higher quality, too.”

Lower Costs

DHS will be able to deliver new applications at a lower cost than in the past. “For the types of high-impact, mission-critical applications we’re looking at, the Microsoft .NET Framework will enable us to deliver faster and at lower costs,” says White. “The Visual Studio IDE is superior to anything else that’s out there, applications can be supported more cost-effectively, and software acquisition costs are lower as well. In the past, there was a hard dividing line between when we’d use J2EE versus the .NET Framework. Today that line is blurring, and it’s no longer one or the other. I think it’s fair to say that, with the .NET Framework, we can deliver applications that we couldn’t afford to build—or wait to have built—in the past.”

Improved Access to Skilled Resources

The department’s use of Microsoft software will help improve access to skilled resources—and do more with those resources it already has. “With the .NET Framework, that expertise goes into the system and stays in the system, which adds to the timesavings and cost benefits,” says White. “And Nashville has lots of .NET developers, so we can find additional help when needed. Our goal is to do more with in-house resources, but even if we do choose to outsource, we now have a second option. Choice is always a good thing, especially when trying to make the most of public funds to deliver needed services.”

 
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For more information about Tennessee Department of Human Services products and services, visit the Web site at:
state.tn.us/humanserv