Services Snapshot: Operations & Totality

Our IT enabling approach called Totality facilitates business focussed services and solutions, aligned to business needs, for People, Processes and Tools.

Challenge

Whenever change is addressed in organisations, or new directions are defined, technology is impacted in some way, or new technologies may need to be implemented.
Any successful implementation of change or direction requires a keen understanding of the technology impact as well as the interaction of people with it.

Factors in Technology Implementation Success

From our experience we know the following factors reduce the chance of success in any implementation:

• Lack of meaningful sponsorship
• Dirty legacy data
• Failed agreement on business processes
• Lack of formal and disciplined project management
• Project team turn-over of staff
• Inability to identify and mitigate risks or remedy incidents
• Excessive software customisation
• Insufficient training
• User adoption factors
• Project viewed as an “IT” project

Business system implementations should be spearheaded and driven by business leaders. They should not be viewed as IT projects as they are in reality People projects.
User adoption of the change and the new systems is the bedrock of success. By empowering users to understand the new business environment and their place within it, they will be there to implement the systems, enable process improvements and be ready to make further improvements over time.

Solution

We have over 20 years experience in operations and technology with particular skills in identifying business needs and realising systems that meet those needs. We can provide the following services amongst others:

• Custom Application design and development
• ERP Implementation Consulting
• Mid-sourcing partner

In addition, our experience has enabled us to develop solutions such as:

• Alchemy: Reverse Supply Chain toolset
• Interim ERP Systems
• Global Market Analysis and forecasting systems

People are the Key 

It is people who will be working with any technology systems, so they are the key to mitigating any negative impact of change as well as being the driver for further performance improvement.

We use a change toolkit called Eclipse that will help people move to a position where they are ready for a new system. Our toolkit asks people what they think that they should be doing to improve their own performance in light of a new initiative.

Eclipse then enables users to set behavioural change targets that are clear, realistic and measurable.

Processes

Process design is a key part of any technology implementation from the blueprinting stage right through to final implementation and quality review.

In our experience many companies set a process design and stick to it, creating complex workarounds for the users with a system that does exactly what the initial design defined.

We use an iterative approach to process design, as we know that it is only when you get to grips with the reality of a technology implementation that all the nuances come to light.

Tools

We see software and hardware solutions as tools to support an integrated approach. They need to be simple and smart.

Our approach, from a consulting point of view, is to help the client keep focussed on the actual business requirements and how they are met by the technology. This focus can be easily lost over the life of a project. Using our Balanced Dynamic methodology (Snapshot sheet available), we can ensure that the business requirements are kept clearly in focus.

Our approach, from a practitioner point of view, is to maintain lean teams to avoid over complication and unnecessary expense. We use lean and agile development and design methodologies, which are tried and tested methods for delivering cost-effective solutions.

Benefits

Delivers success

Success in systems design and implementation is a legendary goal. Stories of failure abound. We can help in an advisory role, or get involved right down to development to ensure that your business requirements are met.

Success, however, is delivered by your people and, as such, it is possible to enhance the prospect of roll-out success as well as further improvements by taking users through the change process in a way that is cost-effective, measurable and can be benchmarked.

To gain maximum ROI from your systems your people need to be able to minimise any negative impact and drive improvements as quickly as possible after start up.

A clear understanding that the design and review processes are critical right up to and after project delivery is fundamental to being able to declare success. Our Balanced Dynamic methodology ensures that this will be the case by guiding us as partners through the development and delivery cycle.

Mitigates Negative Impact

There are factors which can cause a dip in business activity and performance at or just after a launch. By enabling your people to know how they need to change ahead of this, they can help to mitigate these factors.

People empowered to behave differently within the organisation, under new pressures and constraints, will enable issues to be resolved calmly and efficiently, reducing double-handling and other hidden costs.

People who feel empowered also communicate with your suppliers and customers more positively about the change that they are going through, which creates a sense of confidence in your organisation.

Drives Performance Improvement

People who feel that systems are there to support them rather than hinder them will feel enabled by technology. For this reason we involve your people in the full design and implementation processes.

People feel more secure in a new business environment knowing how they need to perform, will be more pro-active in driving further process and system implementation improvements soon after start-up.

Quantifies Outcomes

A technology system that matches and meets the business aims can be declared a success. However, it is only when all players involved feel this that success can be truly declared. Penumbra measures success by the use of KPIs, user feedback and other process alignment measures.

If the project involves large changes for the users, then Penumbra’s behaviour diagnostic Eclipse allows you to measure and monitor the progress of the change programme in a way that has not been possible until now.

To start moving your people, processes and systems to perform better and make your roll-out, upgrade or even your business more of a success, contact us now.