Traceable Time Keeps Getting Easier

Accurate, traceable time is needed for many different applications. Whether it’s meeting banking regulations, providing verifiable timestamps on medical records, providing a common sync reference for security and access control systems, or even ensuring the performance of basic distributed network operations, accurate, traceable time is needed. However, getting access to a traceable time source hasn’t always been easy.

Traditionally, the most common way to get accurate, traceable time is to deploy a GNSS based time server with an antenna receiving time from one or more of the GNSS constellations. For sure, this is the gold standard for most time and sync applications. With time from GNSS, accuracy to UTC is measured in nanoseconds. And because time is coming from an official time source via the different GNSS constellations, that time is also traceable. This means the accuracy of the time source being used by a network can be verified to be true within some threshold of error.

Time from GNSS based time servers may be the most commonly available way to get accurate, traceable time, but deploying them isn’t always simple. In order to receive the GNSS signals, an antenna must be installed, and that can sometimes pose significant challenges. In some cases, such as in leased spaces, it’s not possible to get permission to install an antenna on the roof or access isn’t possible. In other cases, the costs for installation combined with a reoccurring cost to keep an antenna on the roof makes installing an antenna cost prohibitive.

To complicate matters, while the nanosecond level accuracy achieved from GNSS is nice to have, it’s overkill for many applications. So the entire concept of needing to install a GNSS Antenna and incur the associated cost and hassle just for traceable time can be frustrating. Eliminating that frustration was the purpose behind Traceable Time as a Service (TTaaS).

Traceable Time as a Service delivers accurate, traceable time over a secure VPN connection to provide a traceable time reference for your network. Because TTaaS is delivered over a VPN, setup is easy and familiar, especially compared to installing antennas, coax cable, surge arrestors, amplifiers, and more.

In addition to being easy to install, TTaaS is also accurate. Using just a VPN connection, accuracies can range between microseconds to milliseconds offset to UTC / NIST / etc. Accuracy aside, the important thing is that you know what your offset is, can verify it, and can therefore ensure traceability. That’s what TTaaS does.

Traceable Time as a Service by Hoptroff, has a network of timing hubs at datacenters around the globe, getting time from GNSS, this network connects directly to national labs such as RISE in Sweden and NIST in the US. Using proprietary techniques, Hoptroff’s software is able to accurately determine time offset by comparing time at your location to the time at other locations within that network. That capability combined with the direct connection to national labs and GNSS allow for clear, easy traceability between the time delivered to you over TTaaS and the timing hubs it’s coming from.

The concept of Time as a Service may be new to some people, but it’s been around for quite some time. Until somewhat recently, services were mostly setup to accommodate certain industries, such as Financial trading, and were only available within certain datacenters or co-location facilities. But with new advances in networking technology and protocols, it’s becoming possible to make those kinds of timing services more widely available and to more markets that need traceable time. And because services like TTaaS are over a VPN and are so easy to setup and maintain, the shift towards these kinds of services will continue to grow.

A Better Way to Test the Functionality of Your IVR Application

If you have deployed or are about to deploy a hosted or premise-based IVR application, you understand how much time and money go into the design of a really effective application. It must offer easy to use self-service functionality to customers or users with a wide range of expectations, requirements and experiences with your company and its communications processes. The design must balance the need to make opting out to an agent simple while still making it easy and desirable for customers to use self-service functionality. It has to deliver callers to the right routines and agents based on complex business rules. It must be user-friendly for new customers and power users alike and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

So how can you be sure your complex application is actually developed and functioning according to the design?

Current Methods For Testing Your IVR Application

Businesses understand the need to test IVR application functionality before putting a new application into production.  If selecting option 3 for Make a Payment really takes customers to an agent queue or the Place an Order routine, customers will be frustrated and your contact center will be forced to handle more calls than necessary or desired.

Before a business can select an appropriate IVR application test method, it must consider a variety of general and test method factors:

  • What is your risk tolerance?
    • What will the impact be if something doesn’t work as expected?
    • Do you need to test every application state and every possible input or situation at each state?
    • Are there key test cases or call flows through the application that will clearly indicate whether or not the application is production ready?
  • Is the IVR application revenue generating?
    • Is there revenue on the line if the application doesn’t work as expected?
    • Are there significant productivity gains on the line?
    • Could you frustrate and/or lose customers if the application isn’t developed as designed?
  • How often do you need to test?
    • Is periodic regression testing of the application required or appropriate?

Once a business has considered these basic questions, it should be clear how much of the new, upgraded or fixed application must be tested before it is put into production. The way a business eventually chooses to test IVR application functionality is as varied as the applications and business requirements being tested. The options range from not testing at all to hiring loads of temporary testers/callers to purchasing in-house testing products.  Of course there are pros and cons to each test method, which are explored in detail in the benefits matrix below. But in general, businesses without sufficient time, budget and resources are left with inadequate options for testing their IVR application functionality.

Test IVR Applications with Application Feature Function Testing

There is another way to test IVR functionality that is better and more appropriate for many businesses. Our clients tell us their developers have never had so much helpful and robust data to help with issue identification and resolution as they have with the following methodology.

Application Feature Function Testing is a highly flexible managed service approach for testing IVR application functionality. It is unique in that it can be configured to complement each business’ risk tolerance, resources and other requirements. The process can:

  • Complement in-house resources or perform all testing
  • Test hosted or premise based applications
  • Perform comprehensive state-based testing as well as testing based on a pre-defined set of test cases/call flows
  • Build test cases from scratch or leverage existing test cases provided by a client
  • Precisely replicate a previous test call
  • Deliver online, real-time results
  • Provide robust test call information including recordings, discrepancy descriptions and evaluations/scores
  • Be available whenever you or your over-worked team need it
  • Change the way your developers think about QA and functionality testing!

Testing can no longer take a back seat. Customers demand quality interactions from your business including interactions with your IVR application. If they don’t get what they want, they will go to your competitor. To learn more about this testing approach and other services for improving the quality of customer communications and interactions, visit here and check out the IVR Functionality Testing matrix below:

IVR Application Feature Testing

Comparing Private and Public Cloud Deployments

Companies in every industry are moving all or part of their infrastructure to cloud solutions.  Deciding to use a public cloud or your own private cloud or mixture is a decision we must make, Private clouds can deliver many of the benefits and savings that a public cloud solution can offer. Some of the most common benefits cited for cloud solutions come from the consolidation into a centralized model.

Let’s take a closer look at the list of benefits for moving to the cloud and how it can be sliced up between public and private cloud options. In the graphic below, you can see that where the consolidation occurs does not matter, as the features and functionality are typically the same, just the physical location of the servers has changed. What is different though, is the benefits of each distinct model, which I outline below.

Public/Private Cloud Contact Centre

Benefits of Private or Public Cloud

  • Increased Flexibility – Being able to add new features and functionality in a rapid fashion or move/re-assign those features to where they’re most needed across the organization.
  • Elasticity – The ability to scale up or down to meet seasonality and growth needs.
  • Resiliency – With fewer moving parts, the use of virtual servers and redundant architecture, a more hardened infrastructure can be deployed to provide for better continuity across all systems.
  • Streamlined maintenance and upgrades – The burden of continued maintenance and eventual upgrades is lessened as the point solutions and individual servers at multiple sites are brought under a central maintenance model.

Benefits of Private Cloud

  • Customization and integration – With all parts of the solution on an organizations local site, the ability to mold the solution to fit exactly their business model and integration to in-house solutions is much easier.
  • Security – While many public cloud options offers many levels of security, the private cloud affords an organization the ability to physically have access to all parts of their infrastructure, as it relates to data security and compliance issues.

Benefits of Public Cloud

  • Minimal Capital Expenditures – If cost is an issue the public cloud has the advantage. With all parts of the physical hardware shifted to the hosting provider, the IT group no longer is in the hardware acquisition business.
  • limination of maintenance and upgrades – While in the private cloud model maintenance and upgrades were made easier, with the public cloud model that burden shifts completely from the organizations’ IT staff to the hosting provider.
  • Reduction in staff – With the offloading of the physical hardware and the burden of the software maintenance moved to the hosting provider, the organization can expect the role of their IT staff to change.

Clearly, the benefits you gain depend on which method of deployment you choose. If you’re in the process of planning cloud  infrastructure, don’t just compare premise and public cloud. My advice? Make sure the products you’re looking at can give you an option between the two so you can select the best option for your business.

10 Reasons Why Time is Critical for Trading Systems

Time synchronization is crucial in financial trading systems for several reasons. Here are the top 10:

1. Order Execution

Time synchronization ensures that order execution occurs accurately and consistently across different trading platforms. It allows traders to enter and execute orders at the intended time, avoiding discrepancies or delays that could impact trade outcomes.

2. Market Data Analysis

Financial trading relies heavily on real-time market data analysis. Time synchronization ensures that traders and algorithms receive market data feeds simultaneously, enabling them to make informed decisions based on the most up-to-date information.

3. Trade Settlement

Accurate time synchronization is essential for trade settlement processes, such as trade matching, confirmation, and clearing. It helps ensure that transactions occur in the correct sequence, reducing the risk of errors, disputes, or failed settlements.

4. Regulatory Compliance

Financial markets operate under strict regulations that often require precise timekeeping. Time synchronization enables compliance with reporting requirements, audit trails, and regulatory mandates, such as recording trade timestamps or meeting transaction reporting deadlines.

5. Event Sequence Reconstruction

In the event of a trade dispute or investigation, time synchronization allows for the accurate reconstruction of events. Traders can rely on synchronized timestamps to establish the sequence of trades, identify potential issues, and resolve disputes more effectively.

6. Algorithmic Trading

Many trading strategies rely on complex algorithms that execute trades based on specific market conditions. Time synchronization ensures that these algorithms operate with consistent timing, preventing discrepancies between different components of the system and optimizing trade execution.

7. Market Data Aggregation

Financial institutions often aggregate market data from various sources for analysis and decision-making. Accurate time synchronization allows for precise data alignment, ensuring that information from different exchanges or data providers is combined correctly and avoiding data inconsistencies.

8. High-Frequency Trading (HFT)

In high-frequency trading, where trades are executed in microseconds or even nanoseconds, time synchronization becomes critical. HFT firms depend on synchronized clocks to measure and react to small market inefficiencies and execute trades at lightning-fast speeds.

9. Risk Management

Effective risk management in financial trading requires accurate time synchronization. It allows risk models to factor in the timing of trades, market events, and other variables, enabling institutions to assess and mitigate risks more accurately.

10. CROSS-Platform Compatibility

Traders often operate across multiple trading platforms, such as exchanges, dark pools, or alternative trading systems. Time synchronization ensures compatibility between these platforms, facilitating the seamless transfer of orders and information across different systems.

Overall, time synchronization is essential in financial trading systems to ensure accurate order execution, reliable data analysis, regulatory compliance, risk management, and seamless integration across various platforms. It plays a vital role in maintaining fairness, transparency, and efficiency in the global financial markets.