Monthly Archives: August 2015

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A great potential but not sure how to tap into it

Alright, for once, I’ll do things differently: I’ll come to you for help.

As mentioned before, there is a great tool called job recovery. Very simply, when a batch of feeders fails, you can re-run the batch of feeders on the failed sub-set and again and again, till effectively you narrow it down to 1 trade or 1 group of trades.

This is a massive improvement over the good old, deal scan watching + narrowing it down by filtering more and more.

I found that usually it takes about 7-8 iterations to get to the guilty trades with the first ones taking quite some time but the later ones running in a couple of minutes or so.

What I don’t like about the tool is that it is manual. I need to watch over it for when the recovery tried and failed to re-run it again and again, till I get to the deal number and then can filter it out (if I don’t have time to investigate it further).

So I am trying to solve as to how to automate it. There is no processing script for it, so you’re stuck with XML macros if you want to re-run it again. On top that, you usually click on the job id which is a number that gets incremented everytime. So it would mean a mix of SQL and scripting to produce the right XML macros. And you probably how much I don’t like XML macros so definitely not the best option for me there.

But maybe there is another solution (or something else is coming?) which would make this a breeze. I’ve asked around but never had any answer. My feeling is that it is a tool with great potential but could do with few extras and turn it into gold.

Back to my original request: if anyone found a better way to leverage this to the maximum, I’d be very keen to know how to do it!

Thanks!!

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What is it like to work for Murex…

Found this little article (google translate will be your friend if you don’t read French): JDN article

And if you then want to look at the actual numbers and the feedback from current and former employees: Glassdoor info

Lost the last hour going through the last one, while representing only the part of people who expresses themselves (usually the unhappy ones), the results are very good.

Tips

Psychology 101 or remembering that we help people

Working on Murex, we found ourselves in a support role. People are coming to us with problems and requests and we need to help/guide/handhold/advise/explain/assist/… others. As such a little bit of psychology never hurts.

I see sometimes support people with the finesse of a sledgehammer hitting a glass table at full speed. Just being  blunt, not interested really in the whole problem. As support role, at the end of the day, we are the ones who will be evaluated based on the feedback of people who we support. If you have the nasty habit of making others feeling dumb and try to show that you know more than them, you’re either in the wrong career path or the current career will come to a close quickly. Put in your mind once and for all that your role is to help others achieve what they need.

For those of you with the social skills of an oyster (and I’m not talking about the Caribbean oyster well know for its social gatherings, its after church discussions and its theater skills), couple of pointers:

– Don’t hide behind email/messaging system/portal, a face to face or a phone call builds a more personal relationship. It also helps understanding if something else is at stake

– Try to feel the mood of the people and adapt. If the trader just hit the jackpot or if he is over exposed, then the news that you won’t work on his/her issues for the next 6 months is probably not going to be received the same.

– Interest yourself to what they are doing. This is essential. Even if your work is different, understanding, caring about what they do will not only help you build stronger bonds but also make you a much better support person.

This common sense might seem obvious to most of you, but I have seen quite few times people which must believe that they are of a different breed to the rest of us and we should accept what they say as gospel. Support is a 2 way street, building a strong relationship is essential.

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Summer quizz!

I wish you to be on a nice summery like place, laying in a hammock, feet in the water, holding a nice cold beer with gentle breeze cooling you down. And if you manage to read this with your other hand, you’re a champ!

Time for a summer quizz to see if beer did not kill the good brain cells! Just 5 questions and you can self rate yourself!

  1. Where are the RTBS errors logged to? (well, most errors end up there)
  2. How many simulation viewer assignments are there (only 1 works but there are more than 1)
  3. Name 5 Murex services which can be started from launchmxj.app
  4. Which file needs to be edited to add/change the text appearing on top of your session?
  5. What is the name of the functionality which lets a user save the screens he/she had opened?

 

 

 

Answers below, no cheating!

 

 

  1. errors.log ! Under logs directory
  2. 3! (enduser-simulation views (layouts?) assignments, configurator-layout assignment, FO Settings- simulation screen assignment, just the last one works!)
  3. Fileserver, XMLserver, murexnet, MXMLexchange, MXSession, monit, MXcontribution, Activityfeeders, Mandatory. Well, if you found 5 they are probably there!
  4. client.xml
  5. screenset. Very handy 🙂

0-1 good answer: Hum, probably that 5th pina colada last night explains this result (I hope!)

2-3 good answers: Not too bad, it’s holidays, keep relaxing

4-5 good answers: you’re a machine! Well done!