Telesis, LLC Automates Software Testing In Agile Development Environment

EAST HARTFORD, CT and PAWTUCKET, RI –Telesis, LLC, a software automation testing company to the insurance industry, announced that it has successfully completed the software test automation for Narragansett Bay Insurance Company, which took place in an agile development environment. 

Narragansett Bay Insurance Company (NBIC), headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, is a leading specialty underwriter of homeowners’ insurance products and services on the Eastern seaboard, offered through an extensive network of independent agents.  In early 2010, Michael Anselmo, NBIC Chief Information Officer, launched a major technology modernization initiative, called APEX. 

In choosing a SaaS (software as a service) platform for APEX, Anselmo explained, “We use leading edge insurance carrier technology to make certain our partners and clients receive the best web-based, self-service portal and agency management integrated insurance processing platform available. APEX provides agents a 360° view of the customer – policy, billing and claims – allowing them to rate, quote and issue policies all within a SaaS environment.” Anselmo chose the paperless, web browser-based technology offered by Exigen Insurance Solutions (policy writing, billing and distribution), and BlueWave Technology (claims processing), for their ease-of-use integration, advanced product configurability, and light IT footprint. 

Both Exigen and BlueWave use the agile software development process. As NBIC required specialized changes made to the applications to accommodate its state-of-the-art, time-sensitive initiative, Exigen and BlueWave needed to deliver numerous agile sprint versions to accommodate the changes.  

In April, 2010, NBIC selected Telesis to be its strategic testing partner – to provide overall line of business test management services, test execution, and automation implementation services – for the Exigen and BlueWave software applications. Telesis was given only three and a half months to complete its work to meet Anselmo’s aggressive August 1 go-live date. 

Telesis used its TARS proprietary methodology (Telesis Automated Regression Solution) to automate regression testing for both Exigen’s and BlueWave’s agile user acceptance test environments.  With TARS, Telesis designed, configured, and built a turnkey automated regression test solution unique to each application, and delivered each one in less than 8 weeks.  According to John Rafferty, NBIC’s SVP of Underwriting, “I have never seen anything like Telesis’s regression tools in the industry. They were the key differentiator in the decision to hire Telesis.” 

Telesis’ automated regression test facility (RTF) was delivered on time, and within budget, including all agile development changes and hot fix deliveries. As more code was added, previously existing objects were regression tested, and changes did not affect their TARS architecture.  Meanwhile, Telesis automated the new objects, to make them re-usable as well.  Test script volume and coding were kept to a minimum, saving NBIC future maintenance costs.  According to Mike Anselmo, “The successful testing of our APEX Initiative depended on Telesis’s ability to provide reusable and reliable automation, as well as their thorough understanding of NBIC’s business requirements.  The Telesis team was very responsive to our needs and easy to work with, as well.”

According to Dennis Steckler, a consultant from STA Group that advised NBIC on the APEX project, “Telesis provided thought leadership throughout the engagement. What was surprising to the APEX teams and this consultant was how quickly Patty and Jason and their team were able to pick up the knowledge transfer on day one. Normally, consultants need to digest the client differences for a while before they are able to become effective with the assignment. Not so with Telesis. Within a couple of days, their team was able to determine which automated tool to use for our assignment and began configuring the tool and developing and testing claim scripts within two weeks. This probably saved us a month or more of internal work, and it would not have been nearly as accurate, or as efficient, as Telesis made it for us.”

About Telesis, LLC

Telesis, LLC, headquartered in Connecticut, is the leading automated testing and regression testing company in the Northeast, with 14 years of functional software experience and 350+ client engagements. With its proprietary TARS methodology (Telesis Automated Regression Solution), in 8 to 10 weeks, Telesis can design, configure, and build a turnkey automated regression test solution uniquely configured for each application.  To find out more information on Telesis, or to get a free copy of the case study on this project, visit www.telesisllc.com or contact Jeremy Greshin at 860.289.4504, or [email protected]  

About Narragansett Bay Insurance Company

Narragansett Bay Insurance Company, headquartered in Rhode Island, offers specialty insurance services and products to homeowners through an extensive network of independent agents along the Eastern seaboard. Backed by highly rated reinsurers and private equity partners, Narragansett Bay has received an "A, Exceptional" Financial Stability Rating (FSR) from Demotech, Inc., an independent financial analysis and actuarial services firm for property and casualty insurers. To find more information on NBIC, visit www.NBIC.com or contact Kristin Arias at 401.495.0777 or [email protected].