Web - UNICEF | Continuous Drupal technical services
Governance, security, and continuous evolution of Drupal (PHP) digital products with enterprise-grade quality and operations.
Transforming Drupal lifecycle management with predictability
UNICEF operates globally and relies on digital platforms to deliver content, knowledge, and services with high availability, security, and governance. In this context, the organization needed a technical partner able to sustain and evolve Drupal initiatives with operational consistency, robust documentation, and clear delivery metrics.
X-Apps was selected as a technical partner in an end-to-end model for continuous Drupal services, combining software engineering, quality, operations, and outcome-driven management.
The challenge
In Drupal programs with multiple teams and parallel workstreams, risk is not only in initial development but in maintaining quality, security, and governance over time.
- Standardize architecture and code for continuous evolution, avoiding one-off solutions that are hard to maintain. Operate with segregated environments (Dev/Stage/Prod), CI/CD, and deployment traceability to reduce go-live risk. Ensure compliance with security, privacy, and accessibility practices across every delivery. * Increase operational visibility through monitoring, alerts, reporting, and SLA evidence.
Key capabilities
- Continuous Drupal (PHP) development and maintenance focused on safe evolution.
- Dev/Stage/Prod environments and CI/CD with deployment traceability and history.
- Configuration Management for environment predictability and reduced drift.
- 24x7 monitoring with real-time dashboards and automatic alerts for critical incidents.
- SLAs and escalation processes with periodically reported KPIs.
- Security and privacy checklists (OWASP, LGPD/GDPR), including patch and log management.
- Accessibility (WCAG 2.2 AA) and SEO/performance as acceptance criteria.
- Formal Change Request and Handover process with transition documentation.
Our approach
X-Apps adopted a strategy that combined product engineering, agile governance, and auditable quality processes for continuous operation.
Discovery and requirements alignment
Mapping of objectives, dependencies, integrations, risks, and acceptance criteria. In scenarios involving content, infrastructure, or URL migration, the plan included timeline, milestones, contingencies, and post-go-live validation.
Build with standards and reuse
Implementation and maintenance of modules and themes using code standards, technical documentation, Configuration Management, and component-oriented practices to ensure consistency and scalability.
DevOps and observability in operation
Automated build, test, and deploy pipelines, segregated environments, backup routines, proactive monitoring with dashboards and alerts, and regular reports on performance and stability.
Continuous governance
Backlog-driven management and agile rituals (Scrum/Kanban), with accessible technical documentation, decision history, and structured SLA tracking.
More on the applied practices and capabilities
Technical standards and engineering quality Git-based versioning, automated code standard validation (such as PHP_CodeSniffer), module/theme documentation, and Configuration Management to keep environments consistent.
DevOps, multi-platform governance, and migration readiness Operations include containerized development environments, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud environment governance focused on portability. In cloud-to-cloud migration scenarios, execution includes migration planning, full backups, testing in the target environment, DNS coordination, and rollback planning.
Observability, SLAs, and reporting Sustaining services with proactive 24x7 monitoring, real-time dashboards, automated alerts, and periodic severity-based reporting with ticket-level traceability.
Security, privacy, accessibility, and SEO/performance Deliveries guided by security and privacy checklists, continuous patch management, log-based evidence, and acceptance criteria for accessibility (WCAG 2.2 AA) and performance (including Core Web Vitals).
Integrations and secure content layer When enterprise repositories must be integrated with a public Drupal experience, the recommended practice is to separate ingestion/synchronization from the publishing layer, using secure APIs and access controls compatible with enterprise environments.
Results
- Drupal operations with continuous governance, traceability, and predictable releases. Reduced deployment and change risk through environment segregation, CI/CD, and rollback planning. Greater stakeholder visibility through monitoring, dashboards, and regular reporting. * Technical foundation prepared for migrations, consolidations, and continuous evolution focused on SEO, security, and compliance.
Stack and practices
- Drupal (10+), PHP (8.1+) Git + Configuration Management CI/CD (e.g., GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins), Docker Monitoring and observability (dashboards, alerts, logs) Security: patch management and alignment with Drupal ecosystem recommendations SEO: migration strategy with redirects and post-go-live monitoring Accessibility: WCAG 2.2 AA
Accelerate your Drupal operation with X-Apps
If you need to migrate, consolidate, and sustain a Drupal portal with SLA, governance, and full documentation, X-Apps structures a dedicated squad (Dev, QA, DevOps, and Management) to operate with transparency and predictability.