Modernizing an Enterprise Data Warehouse
of a Major Nonprofit Health Insurer
Executive Summary
The case study examines a major nonprofit’s effort to modernize its critical data infrastructure and how Advizex helped it do it. The company’s Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW) and primary business application were showing age and approaching end-of-support from backend providers. Our collaboration resulted in enhanced performance, extended support, and optimized cost efficiency.
About the Client
The client is a prominent nonprofit health insurance organization that provides health insurance to nearly 1.5 million members across its state and offers long-term care insurance nationwide. With over 4,000 employees, they are committed to delivering high-quality healthcare services and innovative insurance solutions. To that end, they offer a comprehensive range of health insurance plans, including:
· Individual and family plans
· Medicare plans
· Business health plans
· Preventive health services
· Tools for managing healthcare expenses
The organization also provides value-added services such as prescription drug discounts and wellness tracking tools to provide additional benefits to its members.
The Challenge
The EDW and primary business applications were both running on an Oracle Exadata infrastructure, which was approaching end-of-support in 2025. The company needed to switch to technologies that would ensure long-term support. This presented them with several challenges:
1. Outdated Infrastructure: The current tech stack was nearing obsolescence, putting performance and security at risk.
2. Capacity Constraints: The company’s needs were growing. They needed a solution that could handle the increased volume and user demands.
3. Performance Optimization: The new solution needed to match, and hopefully exceed, the one it was replacing.
4. Time Pressure: The new system needed to be in place in time for a full migration to happen before support ended on the old one.
5. Budget Cycle Constraints: The organization's budget cycle required the refresh of the EDW in 2024 and that of the primary business application in 2025.
The Advizex Solution
Advizex assembled a team of experts to address these challenges. They worked closely with the client to create a comprehensive solution that included:
1. Oracle Exadata Infrastructure: A new Exadata system that would meet the client's current and future needs.
2. Consulting Services: Advisory and implementation consulting to ensure a smooth transition and optimal configuration.
3. Custom Configuration: A custom-tailored solution for both the EDW and primary business application.
4. Creative Financing: A unique approach to accommodate the client's budget cycle without sacrificing buying power with Oracle.
The Implementation Process
To maximize the chances of success and minimize disruption, the Advizex team implemented the solution in a series of strategic phases:
1. Data Collection and Analysis: The team gathered data from the client's environment and performed an in-depth analysis of the current usage.
2. Blueprint Development: They created a detailed blueprint for the new configuration based on lessons learned from that analysis.
3. Holistic Approach: Upon realizing the benefits of upgrading both systems at once, the team pivoted to include both systems in the configuration discussions.
4. Negotiation with Oracle: Advizex leveraged our relationship with Oracle to bundle both purchases and save the client money.
5. Creative Solution for Facets: To accommodate the client's budget cycle, Advizex warehoused the primary business application until the client could take delivery in January 2025.
6. Extended Terms: Advizex worked with the client and their distributor, TD Synnex, to align payment terms with the 2025 delivery.
Overcoming Challenges
The biggest challenge for this project was aligning the upgrade timeline with the client’s budget cycle. Three aspects of the implementation plan helped make this happen:
1. Combining the enterprise data warehouse and business application upgrades to maximize Oracle discounts.
2. Arranging for the primary business application to be warehoused until 2025.
3. Negotiating extended payment terms to accommodate the delayed delivery.
In crafting this plan, Advizex demonstrated flexibility and innovation to develop an approach that gave the client immediate cost savings and aligned with their budgetary constraints.
Results and Benefits
The solution provided by Advizex delivers significant benefits to the client compared to their old solution, addressing each of their pain points:
1. Extended Support: The new infrastructure comes with a longer-term support plan, granting stability and security for years to come.
2. Enhanced Performance: The upgraded Exadata environment is powerful enough to provide superior performance for both applications.
3. Scalability: The new infrastructure is built with scalability in mind, allowing the client to grow their footprint without overwhelming its systems.
4. Cost Optimization: By bundling both upgrades, the client saved more money on licensing fees with Oracle.
5. Minimized Disruption: The phased implementation will prevent disruptions of regular business operations and aid in a smooth transition.
Client Satisfaction
The client has been extremely satisfied with the solution provided by Advizex. Their key points of praise have been:
1. Regular Communication: Weekly meetings since the end of 2023 kept the Advizex team and the client in alignment.
2. Client-Centric Approach: Advizex and the client drove the projects, informing Oracle to work off their agenda.
3. Maximized Value: The custom deals negotiated by Advizex fully leveraged the constrained buyer power of the client.
Future Outlook
The client’s satisfaction with this project was high enough that they immediately began looking for other areas to collaborate with Advizex. They’ve recently announced an affiliation with another insurance company. To help facilitate that partnership, they’ve asked Advizex to develop a plan for an Active Directory migration.