Case studies

Architecture through go-live, on IBM platforms.

Anonymized engagements in a consistent format: problem, environment, architecture, Guild role, controls, and outcomes. Every quantified result is classified: measured, client-reported, typical range, or firm composition.

Financial services · United States

IBM DataPower X2 to X3 modernization for a U.S. financial gateway

Business problem: A large U.S. financial institution needed to replace aging IBM DataPower X2 appliances with the next-generation X3 platform across non-production and production — without treating a mission-critical gateway as a weekend cutover.
Environment: Mission-critical API and partner gateway estate on IBM DataPower X2, with HSM/PKI, Enterprise Vault, and centralized logging already in the path.
Architecture: Transition architecture: X3 prepared in parallel, DataPower-as-Code (Git source of truth, change control, Ansible, REST/SOMA), secrets and cryptographic objects remaining in Vault and HSM.
Guild role: Transition architect and delivery partner. Guild sequenced non-production first, then authorized monthly production windows.
Delivery approach: Assess the X2 estate, prepare X3, migrate and validate non-production, resolve compatibility, then execute production through coordinated change windows.
Controls / governance: Change control before any execution. Vault, HSM/PKI, and centralized logging in the same automation loop. Production only through authorized monthly windows.

Measured

Non-production used as a risk-discovery environment before any production window

Measured
Production migrated incrementally through authorized monthly change windows
Measured
Gateway operating model shifted from appliance-by-appliance admin to version-controlled execution

IBM technologies · IBM DataPower Gateway · Ansible · Git / change control · HSM / PKI

Financial services · United States

IBM Cloud Pak modernization for a multi-region banking platform

Business problem: A large U.S. financial institution was running critical transaction-processing workloads on aging on-premise infrastructure, creating reliability risk and limiting peak capacity.
Environment: On-premise transaction processing with an existing IBM MQ backbone, multi-region continuity requirements, SOC 2 and PCI-DSS in scope.
Architecture: IBM Cloud Pak for Integration on Red Hat OpenShift, incremental workload modernization, automated failover, Instana across on-premise and cloud.
Guild role: Architecture and implementation partner. Guild designed the hybrid topology and executed the workload moves.
Delivery approach: Modernize incrementally without a production freeze. Wire the new platform into MQ, observe with Instana, and keep compliance evidence in the platform.
Controls / governance: SOC 2 and PCI-DSS controls implemented on the new platform. Unified monitoring before each workload cutover.

Measured

60% reduction in infrastructure provisioning time

Measured
Zero-downtime migration of 14 critical workloads
Measured
Unified monitoring across on-premise and cloud via IBM Instana

IBM technologies · Cloud Pak for Integration · Red Hat OpenShift · IBM MQ · IBM Instana

Insurance · United States & Canada

End-to-end claims automation with IBM BAW and RPA

Business problem: A multi-line carrier processed claims through manual approvals, legacy systems, and disconnected document workflows — 14-day average cycle time and a high error rate.
Environment: Multi-line P&C claims operation with legacy core systems, document intake, and disconnected approval chains across the U.S. and Canada.
Architecture: IBM Business Automation Workflow for lifecycle orchestration, IBM RPA for document extraction and system updates, Operational Decision Manager for consistent rules.
Guild role: Implementation partner for workflow, RPA, and decisioning. Guild owned the claims path design and go-live.
Delivery approach: Orchestrate the claims lifecycle, extract and update without swivel-chair work, and apply business rules once across claim types.
Controls / governance: Automated validation in the workflow. Decisioning centralized in ODM so rule changes are reviewable.

Measured

Claims cycle time from 14 days to under 3 days

Measured
82% of routine claims processed without human intervention
Measured
Error rate reduced by 74% through automated validation
Client-reported
Estimated $2.4M annual operational savings

IBM technologies · IBM BAW · IBM RPA · IBM ODM

Healthcare · United States

watsonx for clinical data governance across 11 facilities

Business problem: A regional network needed to consolidate siloed clinical and operational data, establish a governed catalog, and introduce AI-assisted analytics for care-quality reporting.
Environment: Eleven facilities with siloed clinical and operational stores, HIPAA in scope, CMS reporting obligations.
Architecture: watsonx.data as the lakehouse, IBM Knowledge Catalog for lineage and privacy, watsonx.ai models for readmission risk and resource utilization.
Guild role: Data and AI implementation partner. Guild stood up the lakehouse, catalog, and first production models.
Delivery approach: Consolidate into a governed catalog first, then introduce models against reporting and care-quality use cases — with HIPAA-compliant access in the platform.
Controls / governance: HIPAA-compliant access enforced in the catalog and lakehouse, not in a sidecar spreadsheet.

Measured

Single governed catalog spanning 11 facilities

Measured
Readmission model at 87% accuracy
Measured
CMS reporting preparation time reduced 65%

IBM technologies · watsonx.data · watsonx.ai · IBM Knowledge Catalog

Manufacturing · North America

OpenShift-based integration modernization across 8 plants

Business problem: Disparate ERP, MES, and supply-chain systems were glued together with brittle, undocumented point-to-point integrations.
Environment: Eight plants, mixed ERP/MES/supply-chain systems, production lines that cannot stop for an integration rewrite.
Architecture: IBM App Connect Enterprise on OpenShift as the hub, APIs managed in API Connect, plant-by-plant cutover.
Guild role: Integration architect and implementation partner. Guild replaced the point-to-point layer and catalogued the API estate.
Delivery approach: Stand up the hub, cut over plant by plant, and secure the API inventory as it is discovered.
Controls / governance: Full API inventory catalogued and secured in API Connect before each plant is considered done.

Measured

Legacy integrations consolidated into one governed hub

Measured
Integration incident volume down 68%
Measured
New plant onboarding from 12 weeks to 3 weeks

IBM technologies · App Connect Enterprise · API Connect · OpenShift

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