CGS Technology Outsourcing Project Management Best Practices; Modernizing Enterprise Infrastructure presented by Michael Brandi, Vice President 16 September 2015 2015 CGS Computer Generated Solutions. Technology Outsourcing 1
TODAY S AGENDA: PMI INTRODUCTION INDUSTRY DRIVERS PROJECT MANAGEMENT BEST PRACTICES LESSONS LEARNED CGS CONFIDENTIAL - RESTRICTED ACCESS This document and the confidential information it contains may only be distributed, routed or made available to authorized persons within your organization having a need to know, except with the prior written consent of CGS. Technology Outsourcing 2
Michael Brandi Experience 15+ years working in technology Over 10 years Managing Infrastructure Teams and Projects Currently Vice President Technology Solutions at CGS Education MBA in Finance Fordham University MBA in Information Systems Fordham University BA Stony Brook University Contact info Twitter: @mbrandi LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelbrandi Email: mbrandi@cgsinc.com Technology Outsourcing 3
A P P L I C A T I O N S L E A R N I N G O U T S O U R C I N G MANAGING FUNDAMENTAL INFRASTRUCTURE Technology Outsourcing Managed Cloud Application Development Infrastructure Solutions email Archiving Remote Monitoring & Maintenance C H A L L E N G E S Stay current with new & emerging technology Cost of IT infrastructure, labor 24x7 system monitoring, support with limited IT resources Flexibility to scale capacity on demand Make data actionable in real time Technology Outsourcing 4
Q: WHAT IS TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE? A: The hardware, software and networking required to deliver an application including: Servers Switches Storage Operating Systems Databases Technology Outsourcing 5
UNPRECEDENTED PACE OF CHANGE IN TECHNOLOGY & BUSINESS NEEDS STREAMLINING IT SERVICES TO MEET BUDGET CHALLENGES 60% of CIOs say they will use automation and infrastructure as primary tools to address the speed and sprawl of mobile, cloud, and open source applications IDC Research Network 73% of IT leaders indicate that operational objectives present the biggest challenges: improving efficiency, consolidating, reducing costs, standardizing and streamlining Gartner Technology Outsourcing 6
GETTING THE FUNDAMENTALS RIGHT! MAINTENANCE, MIGRATIONS, CONTINUITY ALIGNING TECHNOLOGY WITH BUSINESS OUTCOMES Top 3 Infrastructure Priorities for CIOs: 1. Application modernization including cloud 2. Virtualization and mobility 3. Disaster recovery / business continuity planning 70% of CIOs identify delivery business outcomes through IT services as the most important element of their job CIO.com Deliotte CIO Survey Technology Outsourcing 7
MARKET INSIGHTS Infrastructure Project Drivers 71% 65% 48% 36% 28% APPLICATION IMPROVEMENTS to better fit business processes & technology changes NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS addressing availability, performance & backup LOWER IT INFRASTRUCTURE COSTS reallocating time and cost saving for innovation CLOUD SOLUTIONS for servers and data OPTIMIZED IT DELIVERY MODEL with improved agility Technology Outsourcing 8
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES PLACE TREMENDOUS PRESSURE ON INFRASTRUCTURE Technology Trends Architecting for Scale Analytically driven, stream-oriented, privacy protected, application platforms Cloud Platforms Mobility ERP Hosting Mobility and Omni Channel BI and Analytics Social Analytics Security Cloud Platforms C Y B E R Tuned to meet organization s growth and individual requirements Technology Outsourcing 9
INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS Common infrastructure projects 1. New software deployments (a component of an ERP deployment) 2. Operating system updates 3. Mobility initiatives 4. New database technologies 5. Cloud migrations 6. Big Data / Analytics projects Each one of these projects are either actual changes to the infrastructure or are a component of a larger project that has a significant infrastructure component Technology Outsourcing 10
DEFINING SUCCESS Traditional Project Delivers expected functionality Project is delivered on time Project is delivered on budget Minimal change control Minimize scope creep Additional considerations with infrastructure projects NEVER LOSE DATA Minimize down time Minimize custom configurations - Use standard methods for system configuration - Use standard methodologies for integration Technology Outsourcing 11
Top Most Underestimated Challenges for Projects Sticking to the work plan Managing timelines and milestones Managing the teams workload Communicating project benefits Making and sticking to decisions Technology Outsourcing 12
Top Reasons for Failed Projects Source: Fanatical about starting smart by Deloitte consulting Technology Outsourcing 13
INFRASTRUCTURE: CONSIDERATIONS AND BEST PRACTICES First-time new technology integration Customization Modernizing Legacy Systems Core Project Management Skills End of Life Concerns Downtime Risk Mitigation Legacy Systems Support Technology Outsourcing 14
STAKEHOLDERS Stakeholders vary significantly based on project: Tech. Dept. / Tech Team: Often aware of project risks, impact End Users: Rarely aware of infrastructure project scope / impact (plumbing) Line of Business: Aware of project criticality / LOB impacts, may not realize organizational impact (ex: new DB required for core application) Senior Management:Infrastructure often seen as cost of doing business not as competitive advantage (agility cloud, mobility productivity) Technology Outsourcing 15
Communication One of the top reasons for project failure Technical resources and PM s don t speak the same language Provide the technical teams with the organizational overview and importance of the project Ask technical resources to explain any issue from a higher level Ask a technical what is the impact to the project Request status updates from Engineers when updates are not being received frequently enough Provide engineers with frequent status updates- The challenge is not to just make this meeting notes but to be relevant to the individual/teams portion and the overall project status Take the team out for drinks get to know them. People work better with others they like Technology Outsourcing 16
An effective team should be Designed and engineered based on the priority objectives Integrated via open communication Enable with necessary decisions authority, training, direction and tools Reassured that their project experience will be a career building one Technology Outsourcing 17
UNIQUE RISKS Dependency risk: Estimation risk: Integrations: Improperly identifying dependent systems Engineers typically estimate 50% faster completion Identifying current (and future) integration points Delivery timeline: Downtime: Compatibility issues: Infrastructure engineers may encounter production related issues which can delay project work System failures can potentially cost companies $$ millions Hardware & software products may have undocumented compatibility issues difficult to identify in advance Technology Outsourcing 18
RISK MITIGATION Dedicate sufficient time to project plan for: Incorrect/over aggressive estimate Project disruptions due to late task delivery Spend sufficient time identifying dependencies Clearly identify dependent tasks Double and triple check dependent systems with business units and adjacent business units Create multiple testing phases inserting additional milestones for the completion of independent testing Speak with vendors to identify undocumented features ie bugs / compatibility issues Any changes to production systems ensure a rollback plan is created Create a hard stop time for task where rollback will need to be implemented BACKUP DATA before any change even if minor Technology Outsourcing 19
LESSONS LEARNED AND DOCUMENTATION Lessons learned is the most often neglected area of an infrastructure project Take time to complete this step and document it well Review previous project s lessons learned documents prior to start Technology Outsourcing 20
Cloud Migration Example Business case Develop a business case for why the Cloud for the application Evaluate 3-5 years worth of costs Technical Scoping Is the application suitable for the cloud? Vendor Selection Does the vendor support cloud Deployments? Are there latency requirements? Does this change the way users interact with the system? Does the application interface with other systems? What are the security requirements for the application? Sizing Requirements? Does the vendor have experience with this type of application? Is the Cloud Managed or Un-Managed? What are the SLA s? Are there financial penalties? Are there any security/compliance requirements? Contract terms? End the relationship? Technology Outsourcing 21
Cloud Migration Example Continued Planning Re-evaluate Business case Identify stakeholders, Goals of the project, timeline, resources etc Identify secondary stakeholders or adjacent parties- not system owners but downstream or adjacent parties that may be impacted Define Migration methodology: hot cut, go forward, go forward with back fill, Define tasks and timeline (increase engineers time estimates) Execution Try to identify potential issues early on Adjust timelines early in the process Perform testing at each Phase Systems integration Testing Quality Assurance Testing User Acceptance Testing Load Testing Adjust plan based on testing results and issues GO Live Technology Outsourcing 22
Thank You Technology Outsourcing 23