Peace of mind
Someone on your side watches the scope, deadlines and changes, and you come back to the subject only for decisions.
A major IT project is also a change in the way people work. Often the first of its kind in your organisation, though not in my practice. I represent the board on the delivery team and guide the change so that people actually adopt the new system. The board only needs to step back in when a decision is required.
Questions worth knowing the answer to.
If the answer to any of them is “we don’t know”, that is exactly where I can help. I put these questions to boards, secretaries, county heads and company presidents before decisions are taken and money starts to flow.
- Who on our side decides when the vendor asks about the process?
- What will change in the work of the individual groups, and how will they find out?
- How will we know that people really work in the new way?
- What will we do when the project starts to slip or to grow?
What you get out of it.
Better results
People adopt the new system, so the investment pays off in everyday work.
Fewer reefs and mistakes
Acceptance against scenarios, not against a general impression.
The cost of a mistake at this stage. A system that people do not adopt costs just as much as one that works, and delivers no effect. An advisor usually costs less than a single badly chosen technology, a single wrong vendor or a single trap in a contract.
A major IT project is also a change in the way people work.
Often the first of its kind in your organisation, though not in my practice. I represent the board on the delivery team and guide the change so that people actually adopt the new system. The board only needs to step back in when a decision is required.
What you get.
- Oversight of scope, schedule and change decisions, with a log of changes and decisions.
- Change management: assessing the culture of the organisation and of its users, an adoption strategy, a communication plan, training, change ambassadors across departments, conversations with those not yet convinced, and metrics for implementation, adoption and impact. More on change management.
- Short summaries for the board and for communicating with IT, the council or head office.
- Acceptance against agreed test scenarios and criteria, verified data migration.
- A maintenance contract that doesn’t lock you into one vendor more than is necessary.
How I work at this stage.
- Before the vendor comes inAn adoption strategy: the organisation’s culture, user groups and the pace of change. Details on the digital transformation page.
- During the rolloutOversight of scope, schedule and changes, a communication plan, training, change ambassadors across departments, and acceptance against agreed scenarios.
- After acceptanceChecking whether people use the system and whether the effect has appeared, and a maintenance contract that doesn’t lock you into one vendor more than is necessary.
“He understands that effective transformation requires not only technology, but also the preparation of staff, the ordering of processes and consistent change management.”
My expertise at this stage.
Adapting an organisation has always been the hardest part, whatever the technology. Twenty years in many organisations has taught me to fit a change to people’s culture and pace.
Digital transformation and change management.
This is the key competence that ties all the stages together: over 20 years of work in many organisations, on the client’s side.
Frequently asked questions about this stage.
Do you represent us on the delivery team?
Yes, on the client’s side. I am not the vendor’s project manager and I am not responsible for the rollout, but I watch that it stays true to the board’s intent and I prepare decisions.
How do we check that the change has taken hold?
With three kinds of metrics: rollout, adoption and impact, each with an owner, a baseline and a date for checking. Responsibility does not end at acceptance.
Let’s talk about this stage.
The first conversation takes 30 minutes and costs nothing. I reply within 2 working days.