Administration publique

Third-party application maintenance (TPAM): more than 8,000 HR requests successfully handled without any service disruption

325

project days

5

Business Analysts, Product Owners and Fullstack

Projet de Tierce Maintenance Applicative

Every day, thousands of employees use an HR application that has become essential to a Swiss public administration’s day-to-day running. To guarantee its availability without having to mobilise internal resources over the long term, the Human Resources Department opted to outsource its application maintenance, thereby demonstrating some strategic decision-making. Qim info is now responsible for its stability, security and ongoing development. It is an effective, forward-looking partnership and it is a concrete example of effective TPAM, combining technical rigour with business support.

A tailor-made HR tool: the foundation of administrative operations

The ‘HR Requests’ business application, which was developed in-house, centralises administrative flows, automates validation circuits and guarantees complete traceability of interactions. Designed to streamline human resources management, it has been seamlessly integrated into the HR information system ecosystem. It provides a structure for day-to-day organisational tasks and plays an essential role in coordinating departments.

The challenge is therefore clear: to provide flawless continuity of service. Any interruption would have a direct impact on the HR department’s efficiency. Hence the need for proactive, well-structured application maintenance.

Application maintenance structured around 3 axes

To guarantee the continuity of a critical application, its lifecycle must be managed rigorously and proactively. This is the challenge that is met by TPAM, an outsourced service that covers the stabilisation, adaptation and security of applications in production. It guarantees a high level of service while freeing up in-house teams for other strategic priorities.

As part of this project, the administration has set up a tripartite maintenance system based on the following three components:

  • Corrective maintenance, to intervene quickly in the event of an incident and ensure service continuity is maintained.
  • Upgradable maintenance, to incorporate new business requirements and develop the application as needed.
  • Preventive maintenance, to anticipate technical risks, keep components up to date and apply security patches.

This system of organisation guarantees stable day-to-day operation, while preparing the tool to evolve smoothly over time.

Technos

Qim info, your TPAM partner in Switzerland: expertise, continuity, agility

To guide this demanding process of third-party application maintenance, the administration relies on a Qim info team made up of five experts:

The mission covers 325 days and is organised around five pillars:

  1. Business workshops: analysis and prioritisation of processes with the HR department.
  2. Functional specifications: drafting requirements and modelling workflows.
  3. Targeted developments: optimisation of existing processes, automation of processing, generation of dynamic documents.
  4. Ongoing maintenance: incident resolution, management of minor changes.
  5. Scope extension: a gradual opening up to other internal applications.

The project is based on a proven stack and is adapted to suit complex business environments:

  • Vue.js: a JavaScript framework for designing responsive user interfaces, adapted to modern usage and optimised for mobile and desktop devices.
  • Java: a reliable language widely adopted in mission-critical systems, offering robustness, performance and cross-platform compatibility for business logic.
  • Flowable: an open source workflow engine that enables HR processes to be modelled, automated and monitored flexibly and transparently.
  • Spring Boot: a Java framework that simplifies the creation of robust and secure web applications, while facilitating their deployment and long-term maintenance.

This architecture guarantees a reliable technical foundation that is capable of supporting the current and future needs of the HR department.

Measurable results: a stable, high-performance application that has been widely adopted

The approach adopted by Qim info is bearing fruit, confirming that the HR application plays a central role in the day-to-day running of departments:

  • More than 8,000 HR requests are processed each year via the application.
  • 1,500 separate users access it regularly, proof of its widespread adoption.
  • A specific department of the administration alone registers more than 600 requests per year, made by more than 60 users.
  • The tool provides fluid, reliable and traceable management of large-scale HR interactions.
  • The workload is kept under control, with no deterioration in service quality and no significant interruptions.

These indicators underline not only how robust the application is, but also how effective the application maintenance model implemented is, as it serves a modernised, user-oriented administration.

Why choose to outsource application management?

Organisations that outsource TPAM are able to focus on their internal priorities while benefiting from specialist expertise. The benefits are manifold:

  • Access to specialist skills: TPAM providers have in-depth technical expertise, offering efficient maintenance that is in line with industry best practice.
  • Flexibility and scalability: TPAM services can be adapted to the specific needs of each company, enabling flexible workload management without oversizing in-house teams.
  • Cost control: by outsourcing maintenance, businesses can reduce the costs associated with recruiting, training and managing in-house resources, while benefiting from flexible pricing models.
  • Improved quality of service: TPAM providers implement cutting-edge solutions to improve the performance and reliability of applications, thereby guaranteeing greater system availability.
  • Enhanced security: TPAM ensures that rigorous security measures, such as data encryption and access controls, are put in place, to protect sensitive information and guarantee compliance with the regulations.

This trend is particularly marked in the public sector, in both Switzerland and France alike, where TPAM accounts for a significant proportion of IT spending. In France, according to a report entitled ‘Les ressources humaines de l’État dans le numérique’, published in 2023, TPAM accounted for 21% of the State’s IT spending in 2021, or €306 million.

Against this backdrop, the Swiss public administration chose to entrust its TPAM to Qim info, thereby benefiting from cutting-edge technical expertise and a collaborative approach to guarantee the reliability and ongoing development of its HR application.

Qim info, your application maintenance partner

Qim info supports organisations through bespoke management of their application maintenance, by mobilising people with the right expertise for each environment. With offices in Geneva, Lausanne, Zurich, Basel and Annecy, Qim info works as closely as possible to where the local needs are, and has detailed knowledge of the French- and German-speaking parts of Switzerland.

What sets Qim info apart is its ability to combine technical rigour with good business acumen, to guarantee optimum performance and lay the groundwork for future developments.

As a 100% bespoke IT service provider, Qim info offers services tailored for each business context, from TPAM to digital transformation projects.

Are you looking to make your tools more reliable and bring comfort to your in-house teams? Contact us to design a TPAM service that meets your needs, and benefit from the support of our IT Operations & Support Services team, dedicated to the ongoing performance of your applications.