IBM India Software Labs team
 puts the client first

Companies that reach their customers through Web commerce rather than brick and mortar stores are critical around the world now as more people stay home to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Keeping those businesses running and products moving becomes more challenging as the disease outbreak spreads.
To make sure a client could continue operating successfully in this challenging time, a team of three IBMers in India did everything they could to put the client first.

Sowjanya Tummala, Sheik Nizamudeen and Satheesh Nair—all with IBM's Cognitive Applications (Sterling) team at IBM India Software Labs (ISL)—needed to ensure a successful deployment of an order-management solution at an e-commerce company in Japan that sells industrial supply products. The colleagues fill three key roles: Test Architect, OMS Architect and Enterprise Architect, respectively.

They were in Japan working with the client when the COVID-19 outbreak started in that country. Sowjanya worked from the hotel and also at the client site to support a critical testing milestone crucial for the deployment. Nizam, in addition to his work on the project, brought more than 100 face masks from India to Japan for IBMers and client teams. It helped immensely , as Japan was facing a shortage of face masks during that time.

When the others returned to India, Satheesh,—like the captain of the ship—remained in Japan for another day to minimize the impact of their departures on the client. The successful deployment alleviated the client's apprehensions about the project in the midst of the global health crisis and strengthened the relationship with IBM.

Back in India, all three IBMers along with a larger team continue to work across time zones during Japan's hours to provide crucial support. Through their efforts, the deployment was completed successfully and the work continues for the next milestone.

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