Business | Opinion
Driving change successfully
A project can be defined as an undertaking to achieve an objective in a finite time-frame.
- By Sanjiv Anand and Abhishek VS, Special to Gulf News
- Published: 00:15 May 21, 2008
A project can be defined as an undertaking to achieve an objective in a finite time-frame. To be able to deliver this, the project needs to be staffed with resources who are able to internalise the objective and have the requisite skills to meet timelines. IT projects additionally require an appreciation of the business technology continuum.
The IT project structure should be a flat matrix organisation where groups closely interact within the project, the organisation as well as outside vendor teams.
This becomes a self-contained unit within the organisation with the need for specialised job descriptions and compensation structures. For the project team, their KPIs need to be aligned to the project rather than their organisational roles.
The project needs to be led by a director who has experience in driving business change and is able to dovetail technology to business strategy.
To support the project director, there needs to be a project management office in the organisation which can loan project managers adept at planning, executing and tracking project activities.
The project should also be supported by a business and technical team. It is imperative that this team is removed from its day to day routine and fully engaged on the project.
The business core team members need be knowledgeable of business processes and come from leadership roles in line management. This ensures relevant knowledge base experience and authority required to crystallise business requirements, spearhead product testing and system rollout across the organisation.
The technical core team members need to be selected based on their knowledge of legacy systems and also their adaptability to the 'to be' architecture to ensure a seamless takeover of the system post project closure.
Apart from this core team, there is also a need for a transient team of business experts who engage on specific project activities and provide the necessary specialist input. Same could hold true to technology experts whose domains are not directly involved in the project.
Risk representative
A critical part of the team is the audit and risk representatives who need to be engaged on an ongoing basis to risk mitigate and identify process lapses.
The external vendor teams also need to be carefully managed to ensure that they are qualified, competent and diligent. IT skills are high in demand and constantly evolving.
To be able to get trained and technologically up to date staff, another critical staffing option are independent IT resource providers that provide necessary skilled manpower for projects.
The advantage of this option is that it reduces the need for a deep IT organisation that may become an overhead once the project is completed.
Lastly, successful project delivery needs to be driven top down. There needs to be committed top management support and no less a personage than the CEO should be the primary sponsor of key organisational change IT projects.
For smaller projects, sponsors can be the business head who will benefit the most from the project. The sponsor is the pinnacle of the project structure and his determination and support will be the primary enabler for project completion.
Sanjiv Anand is the managing director and Abhishek VS is an engagement manager at Cedar Management Consulting International.
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