Keeping Go-Live Expectations in Check:
Planning for the realities of a new matter management system
Planning for the realities of a new matter management system
By Doug Schulke
You’ve finally implemented the latest Matter Management system; users are trained, integrations are running, everything is looking good. Project complete? Not yet. It would be easy to think the project is over, but the reality is that no matter how much planning, designing, and testing has been done there are always items that come up after go-live. Managing your go-live expectations is the key to success.
As project management would define it, once the business requirements are in place the project is closed. However, with an integrated matter management system, the needs of the business sometimes (possibly always) change during the implementation cycle. It would be easy to write these changes off as items the implementation team should have accounted for. However, they often do not surface until after go-live. Expecting design changes to occur gives you an advantage. With this knowledge you are able to create the appropriate forums to manage the change and hang on to the resources needed to make the changes.
Identifying Change Requests
The majority of design changes are identified during two phases of a project. The first phase is user testing. This is often the first time users have been able to ‘see’ what they asked for. The second phase is post go-live. This is the first time users have been able to ‘feel’ the consequences of their design.
During the user testing phase, users typically find minor changes such as fields to add or remove, or perhaps changes to screen layout. These changes may be due to an oversight during design or simply due to the fact that the design phase took place months earlier. Once the project is at this phase, prior acknowledgement that issues are going to develop is needed for the implementation to proceed on schedule, with the understanding that issues may be resolved after-the-fact. Delaying the project to make minor fixes may actually cause additional errors because many of the analysis steps will be skipped. Adding these issues to your enhancement or issues lists will ensure that they are not forgotten.
The second phase during which many requirement changes are identified comes immediately following go-live. During this time, it is typical for more complex modifications to be requested. New business processes implemented in the system may be causing issues. What about that new task that is generated every few days? It was a great idea, but may end up being an administrative nightmare. There may be performance issues not realized until all of the users are working in the system. Your interfaces may need to provide better error handling. You may realize you have too many required fields... or too few. Setting a clear expectation ahead of time that there will be a number of changes shortly after go-live is key to a successful project.
Addressing Change Requests
Let’s face it, after new applications are installed, project teams are dissolved, resources are reallocated, and support is turned over. Just knowing that there will be items to address after go-live will not help you if you do not keep the project team in place for some period of time after go-live. Keeping project resources engaged allows issues to be handled effectively and efficiently. Having key customers engaged allows for the discussion of change requests to ensure that they do not compromise the overall strategy of the department. Addressing the issues immediately also provides a smoother transition to the support team in the future.
In order to keep resources in place, you must budget accordingly. Whether you used outside consultants or the work was done in-house, allowing time and funding to carry the project through the "go live" issues is key to having your project viewed as a success.
Setting Expectations
So how do you keep expectations in check? Plan for the unexpected, follow-through with the resources and budget accordingly. Project plans often get to Go-Live and then stop. The time to visit and address any issues or enhancements is out of scope. This may work well to force the project to come in on schedule, but in reality, it will drag out the actual timeline.
Summary
The implementation of a new matter management system is a large undertaking in both time and money. Expecting change requests and keeping expectations under control as the go-live date nears helps to maintain the integrity of the system. Having a resolution plan for the issues following the project go-live date will ensure that the project truly meets the business needs and objectives. Keeping project teams intact to address the issues in a timely manner will facilitate an efficient resolution to the issues and a smoother transition into a support mode.
