Cross-org intranet portal for the First International Bank of Israel

How to Build a Cross-Organizational Intranet Portal for a Top Israeli Bank?

Industry

Banking

Services

Web Development

UI/UX

Digital Strategy

DevOps

Technology

Drupal 8, Angular, Design System, LDAP Integration

Multisite Drupal 8 foundation
Web component-based design system
Advanced security protocols and data security for development, deployment, and maintenance
Modular and customized roles and permissions system
LDAP integration

→ The challenge

The First International Bank of Israel (FIBI) was founded in 1972 following a merger of several major regional banks. FIBI serves both commercial and private banking clients and was one of the first banks in Israel to offer documentation in English.

FIBI’s internal systems were in an end-of-life state. They needed a long-term solution that would gradually replace its existing legacy systems. Open-source technologies were the answer.

The bank chose us to lead this project based on our long history of executing complex projects centered around compliance and data security. But building a system to support the bank’s 4,000+ employees would not be easy. Here are some of the challenges we faced:

Multiple Teams, Each with Unique Needs. We received unique requirements from multiple departments, so we immediately understood that we needed to find the “sweet spot” between the custom features each department wanted and an efficient common infrastructure.

Multi-Site Support. Each department required its own website for administrative and managerial purposes, but those sites needed to maintain a uniform look and feel across organizational lines. Naturally, this led to a more general requirement of cross-site componentization.

Compliance and Data Security. The bank’s compliance requirements and overall data security guidelines were significant. A detailed security design was needed to ensure the delivery process and all development followed their policies to the letter.

Advanced Roles and Permissions System. A highly advanced roles and permissions system was needed to provide precise control and supervision alongside LDAP integration and a single sign-on mechanism.

→ The Solution

Drupal 8 with Multi-Site Architecture. The decision to go with Drupal was among the easiest we made on this project. Drupal’s state-of-the-art security, multi-site support features, and powerful componentization capabilities are just some of the reasons why Drupal was the right technology for the job. We developed a Drupal 8-based multi-site infrastructure that uses a single code base for all different websites while providing per-site customizations and component creation as needed. We also worked closely with the bank’s cybersecurity department on development and delivery protocols and offered Drupal-related security training.

DevOps Infrastructure for New Site Creations. We developed a DevOps infrastructure to streamline the process of creating new sub-sites. This infrastructure enabled the creation of new sub-sites with basic configuration and several themes to choose from using one simple CLI command.

Advanced LDAP Integration. To provide a highly stable, seamless roles and permissions system, we created an LDAP integration to connect to the Drupal infrastructure. Roles in Drupal are derived from groups in LDAP, and the organization can manage all permissions at the org level. In other words, the Drupal infrastructure follows the organization’s roles and permissions and allows stakeholders to manage users and permissions from a single interface.

→ Success

We successfully modernized FIBI’s internal systems, transforming them into a unified, secure intranet portal that aligns with the bank’s stringent compliance and data security standards. We deftly managed the unique needs of multiple departments, delivering a solution that maintains a consistent user experience while catering to each department’s specific requirements. This revitalized platform not only meets the present needs of FIBI’s extensive workforce but also establishes a robust, scalable foundation for the bank’s future.