Careers Wales Website - Technical Architecture and CI/ CD Pipeline Implementation

Description

Summary of the work Careers Wales are re-platforming their website and require support with the technical architecture, implementation of the target architecture, CI/ CD Pipeline, automated software testing, and integration of the UI and business logic developed by different third party suppliers. Careers Wales will own and manage the target architecture and CI/CD Pipeline. Expected Contract Length 8 months (potential for extension) Latest start date Monday 13 August 2018 Why the Work is Being Done To enable Careers Wales to implement their vision 'Changing Lives', the organisation intend to re-platform their website to maximise the use of digital services to meet client needs. The newly defined microservices architecture will support a standards based website that is agile, adaptable, scalable and secure. Careers Wales intend to host the backend of the solution on Azure, whilst the frontend will be hosted by a third party on an alternative Cloud platform. Careers Wales will own the technical architecture, and manage the technical integration of the UI and business logic developed and the software deployment to all Cloud environments. Problem to Be Solved The frontend of the Careers Wales website will be designed and developed by a third party digital agency, hosted on a different Cloud platform to the backend. The backend will be developed by a newly appointed systems integrator hosted on the Azure Cloud platform (suppliers already contracted). There is a requirement in Careers Wales for enterprise architecture support and implementation of the target architecture, the CI/ CD Pipeline, automated testing, testing processes, and the technical integration of the UI and business logic developed by the identified third party suppliers. Careers Wales intend to own and manage the CI/ CD Pipeline. Who Are the Users Careers Wales must deliver digital services that are all age, bilingual and offer impartial careers information, advice and guidance to users. Digital services must adhere to usability, accessibility, security and performance standards (NFR's). Users must be able to: - Login securely - Search for content - Create a user profile, saving personal information - Access relevant content, tools and resources - View and book events - Apply for opportunities - Receive push notifications - Access tools designed and developed for individuals with specific learning needs Work Already Done Careers Wales has been working with its third party advisor and an Enterprise Architect to technically design the new solution for Careers Wales, and to support the procurement of a new service integrator (SI) for the backend development of the website. The new SI is due to start work in August 2018. The frontend digital agency are already in place and have commenced work. To enable Careers Wales to progress, the organisation requires internal support with the technical architecture and implementation of the target architecture, CI/ CD Pipeline, and automated software testing processes. Existing Team The existing internal Careers Wales digital team includes: Product Development Manager for the website; Enterprise Architect (Contract); Technical Project Managers; Business Analyst (Contract); Software Tester (Manual); UX Design. In addition, there is a separate content team. All development is outsourced to third parties. Current Phase Discovery Skills & Experience • Demonstrate in-depth experience of defining and implementing target microservices architectures (using Open Source technologies where appropriate), and transition architectures for legacy transformation projects. • Demonstrate experience of enterprise data modelling, policies and standards. • Demonstrate experience of defining and architecting data transformation and migration strategies for legacy systems to new data models. • Demonstrate experience of developing continuous delivery pipelines for continuous integration and continuous deployment to Cloud environments (specifically Microsoft Azure) using widely adopted tooling. • Demonstrate experience of developing a micro-services infrastructure, including the usage of common tools for containerisation and orchestration of containers. • Demonstrate experience with version control software, specifically git, and job execution tools. • Demonstrate extensive experience with automation using scripting languages, as well as configuration of infrastructure with code automation. • Demonstrate practical knowledge of the use of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) to define infrastructure that can be redeployed easily. • Demonstrate experience of secure coding and testing across a variety of tools and vulnerability management. • Demonstrate experience of developing monitoring solutions for Cloud environments to ensure deployed applications are fault tolerant (self healing), highly available and can scale on demand. • Demonstrate experience of automated testing of web applications and websites. • Demonstrate extensive knowledge of web technologies and a fluent understanding of at least one programming language, preferably C#, JavaScript, Java or PHP. • Demonstrate experience of automated testing of RESTful web services. • Demonstrate experience of automated testing of software components within a microservices architecture. • Demonstrate experience of working with DevOps Engineers to setup automated test suites as part of continuous delivery pipelines. • Describe experience of implementing a full set of test driven development processes, where unit tests and continuous integration are part of the deliverable. Nice to Haves • Demonstrate experience of working on medium - large size projects with multiple teams in remote locations. • Professional Cloud certification, specifically Microsoft Azure or AWS certifications. • ISTQB Test Automation Engineer Certification. • Demonstrate experience of developing solutions for Public Services in Cloud based environments. • Demonstrate experience of automated tests for public services in Cloud based environments. Work Location Cardiff, Wales. Working Arrangments On-site when required/ Some work can be conducted remotely. Security Clearance BPSS (Baseline Personnel Security Standards) BPSS are not formal security clearances; they are a package of pre-employment checks that represent good recruitment and employment practice. Additional T&Cs A degree of flexibility will be required in terms of time/ resource management. No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 3 Proposal Criteria • Technical Solution • Approach and methodology • How they’ve identified risks and dependencies and offered approaches to manage them • Team structure • Value for money Cultural Fit Criteria • Demonstrate experience of working within an agile SDLC. • Work as part of a team in our organisation and with third party suppliers. • Be transparent and collaborative when making decisions. • Transfer knowledge to our organisation. Payment Approach Time and materials Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 70% Cultural fit 10% Price 20% Questions from Suppliers 1. Do you have any idea of the budget available for this procurement? There is a maximum contract value of £250,000 for this engagement. 2. You mention "Careers Wales has been working with its third party advisor and an Enterprise Architect to technically design the new solution for Careers Wales" - are you able to share this design? Yes, Careers Wales will share the high level target architecture with those suppliers shortlisted for the evaluation stage.