How to Deliver a Technology Project

1. How to Deliver a Technology Project Dr. Zoya Kinstler Harvard Extension School Graduate Program in Information Management Systems

2. Outline Educational Technology is Information Technology (IT) IT system – three viewpoints What does it take to deliver an IT project in a business setting? Do you know what you want? Getting requirements clear Framework for student IT projects Student project samples

3. E-104 – Excerpts from the Project Assignment Objective. Your audience and what you want them to achieve in learning? Technology Proposal. Need web tools to mediate learning? Setting. Where the project web site will be implemented. If appropriate, stress the link between this project web site and other web sites in the setting you are working in, even if the setting is hypothetical. Functionality. Activities that students/target audience will engage in. Results. What’s the final outcome? Example – a deeper understanding of the subject

4. Educational Technology is Information Technology Gartner Inc. - IT Research on Educational Technologies To access Gartner, Inc. research papers, go to the Harvard CIO page: http://www.universitycio.harvard.edu/strategic_vendors_and_resources/research_services.php. Findings: Contrasting Findings on the Digital Native. 9 January 2009. IT Leaders in K-12 Education Can Cure 'Technesia’. 6 March 2009. Virtual Worlds: What to Expect in 2009. 6 February 2009 Key Issues for Creating a Networked Learning Environment, 2008. 27 March 2008 Case Study: Michelin Uses Virtual Environment to Teach Complex Material. 29 September 2008 Use This Model to Create an E-Learning Request for Information. 13 December 2004

5. Information Technology Systems • Informal definition of an Information Technology (IT) System: • A COMPUTER SOFTWARE APPLICATION • DELIVERS A REQUIRED CAPABILITY • INTEGRATES with OTHER IT SYSTEMS • Purpose - to deliver services via technology • Automating manual processes and tasks • Controlling activities and events • Providing information • Enabling communication, collaboration, integration, etc. • Three viewpoints: • Business: the system is funded, owned and consumed by the Business Enterprise; • Technical: as a product of information technology • Organizational: a project to be designed, implemented, and deployed • System Examples in Education Technology: • Administrative systems (Enterprise Resource Planning, Human Resource, Payroll, Employee Portal, etc.) • Research support (Collaboration and Knowledge Management, Document Management, etc.) • Teaching and Learning systems

6. Business Viewpoint • What are the business objectives? • Which business processes are in scope? • What business problem needs solving with technology? • How will we measure success? "We will be doing __A____ to make __ B____ better, as measured by ___C___, which is worth ____D___." The Foundation of Sound Technology Investment: The Total Economic Impact™ Methodology. Forrester, Chip Gliedman, 2003. A . Proposed Solution B.Problem Statement C.Service Level Metrics D.Financial Metrics

7. Business Requests for Technology Projects

8. Technical Viewpoint: a Sample IT System • How can the posted business problem be solved with technology? • Which new applications and other technology elements would apply? • What is the existing systems landscape for the business process / area/ problem? • What is the overall application architecture and how the new solution would fit? • What data will flow between systems, where is will be stored and how it will be controlled? • What changes have to be made to the infrastructure (hardware, software, network, and processes) e-Procurement through Supply Chain Integration. Reaching out to the SMB’s. Dr. Graham R Smith, SAP Supply Chain Superintendent, Sohar Aluminium, Sultanate of Oman. 2006. http://www.simnet.org/Library/SIMposiumDocumentLibrary/tabid/506/Default.aspx

9. IT Project Pipeline Business Case Business Requirements Business Process Model Application Architecture System Integration Design Data Model Software Package Websites, Tools & Applications Deployment Plan Operations & Support Plan IT Operations Data Center Support Services The Business Organization IT Organization CEO Business Strategy CIO Technology Strategy Organizational Viewpoint:GLOCO University and its Technology Department CFO Financial Management IT Budget IT Project Management Education Departments Courses & Learning Processes

10. What does it take to deliver an IT project in a business setting? • 1. What is an Information Technology System? • A COMPUTER SOFTWARE APPLICATION • DELIVERS A REQUIRED CAPABILITY • INTEGRATES with OTHER IT SYSTEMS • 2. What leads a company to build or buy an IT system? A business example: • Gloco University needs a faster turnaround in handling student financial aid requests • aBUSINESS PROCESS needs to be automated • a SOFTWARE APPLICATION is required to automate the process… • 3. What is a typical path from a business initiative to an technology system? • A business case is issued to obtain funding for IT solution. • The case is decomposed into “business requirements”. • Each “business requirement statement” leads to several “system specifications” • System specifications guide the implementation of the “system solution”

11. Business Requirements Template • Executive Summary • Business Initiative Description: strategy, objectives, scope • Statement of Purpose - a succinct specification communicating the business goals and functions of the initiative. Doesn’t have to include the implementation of technology • Business Objectives, Assumptions and Constraints • Business objectives • Scope: list impacted geographic regions, business units, products, customer segments, etc. • Assumptions and Constraints • Unknowns and Risks • Legal Compliance: impacts, constraints, and risks • Business sponsor and other stakeholders (name, title, role, contact info, time zone) • Functional Requirements • Required Functions / Features: list desired result, priority, requirement id • Business Process Flows for the impacted function, e.g. ordering, marketing, pricing, logistics, customer contact, etc. • IT Scope: list impacted systems and services • Technical Requirements: list desired result, priority, requirement id • Security impacts, constraints, and risks • Testing Considerations • Production Implementation Considerations • Non-functional requirements • IT stakeholders (name, title, role, contact info, time zone) • Project success criteria: measurements and expected results • Results Expected: non-financial business performance metrics • Results Expected: metrics of technical capabilities aka service levels • Objective/ Metric Name/ Metric Value/ How to Collect/ Frequency/ Owner • Financial Metrics • Level of Effort (LOE) estimates • Results Expected: potential annual revenue, expense reduction, projected savings

12. IT Project Cycle Maintenance & Operations 9 Business Initiative 1 Business Sponsor Deployment 8 Business Case 2 Project Cycle for Internal IT Service Delivery Testing 7 3 Budgeting 6 IT Solution Development 4 Statement of Business Requirements 5 Solution Design & Project Plan In-house IT

13. Account Maintenance Account Maintenance Tasks, Data, Rules A business process Supported by IT Systems Do you know what you want? How to get requirements very very very clear? Understanding a Process: “A business process” is a group of logically related tasks that use organization’s resources to provide defined results

14. Your New Role - a Business Analyst “… Business analysts translate high-level business requirements into functional specifications for development or application evaluation. … Business analysts have a clear understanding of business needs and established business processes; can model and redesign processes, workflows and roles in support of business change; and can then translate process and workflow requirements into specifications. Business analysts are the interpreters of business processes. They must understand the business climate, be fluent in modeling business processes, and understand how and where systems and applications impede or enhance business agility — all within the context of business architecture. Notably, business analysts need a keen grasp of business language, objectives and differentiated processes.” Capitalize on the Evolving and Expanding Role of the Business Analyst , Gartner, March 2005.

15. Funnel Quote, RFP, Proposal Contract Opportunity Order Request Service Inventory Bill Account Service Order Trouble Ticket Business Processes in a Consumer Service Company Marketing and Sales Processes Sale Identify Qualify Solution / Proposal Decision / Negotiation Service Delivery Processes Account Maintenance Customer Care Billing & Collections Repair Provisioning Note a combination of automated and manual tasks in the business process.

16. Where are the Business Requirements Recorded? • Statement of Business Requirements • Requirements are the statements of expected results, dependencies upon other processes, and conformances in design or measurements • Is this requirement clear? • “Business and IT sponsors aim to transform cross enterprise system service capability to support continuing, efficient, and quality integrated products to find contextual information which is retrospective, current, and prospective.” • Is this one clearer? • “Provide product information dashboard and for better visualization.” • Requirement-gathering Artifacts: • Process models, workflow templates • Business Rules: data validation rules; if-else logic; content presentment rules, user entitlements • Use Cases and Test Scripts • System Architecture models • Work manuals, e.g. “Methods and Procedures” • Report mockups, ordering forms, etc.

17. Business Requirements WHAT must be delivered to the business Start with high-level business “as is” and “to be” scenarios Define business process flows! Define user roles and functions Work out low-level business details: Exception handling, Business rules, Manual tasks, Data in and out, Change scenarios, Etc.etc…. System Requirements HOW it needs to be done At a high-level, define system functions Define what exists in system capabilities today and what needs to be built Establish high-level approach to a system solution Convert USE CASES into TEST CASES! Etc., etc. Working Together Business Sponsors and IT Together: A “Requirement Walk-Through” Example • Where are the use cases? – IT needs to build test cases • What is the process flow? – build workflow templates & rules • Who is authorized to do what? – user identity management • Who is paying for what? – customer account management • What if a user doesn’t know what to do? –solution advisory / training /knowledge management • Will sales managers be compensated for online orders? – integration to accounts-receivable • How to charge customer’s credit card online? – integration with external bank • How will you know what’s going on in the online sales portal? – IT needs reporting specifications • What if there is a change in a third-party product versions and prices? – how to integrate the product catalog to external vendor…

18. ISMT E-200 Capstone Project Deliverables Proposal • A short statement about the proposed topic. • Deliverable: Proposal Overview. 1-2 pages. Part 1. Business Requirements • Problem statement • Required functions and features. Use cases. • Financial justification • Project success criteria: measurements and expected results • Deliverable: Statement of Business Requirements. 2-4 pages. Part 2. Technical Specification and Prototype • Architectural approach • Software solution • Integration with existing enterprise applications • Key data elements and flows • Operational considerations • Solution demonstration. Students may create a mockup (a PowerPoint presentation or a hard-coded html website) or use a vendor’s demo. Software coding is not required in this course. • Deliverable: Technical Specification. 5-10 pages. Part 3. Implementation Plan • Plan: define the timeline, deliverables, and success metrics • Operational details: stakeholders, resources, dependencies, constraints, issues • Deliverable: Implementation Plan. 2-4 pages. Final Presentation • Written paper submitted for grading. • Oral presentation to the IMS program committee • Deliverables: final paper, including proposal overview and parts 1-3, and a PowerPoint presentation.

19. Outline Educational Technology is Information Technology (IT) IT system – three viewpoints What does it take to deliver an IT project in a business setting? Do you know what you want? Getting requirements clear Framework for student IT projects Student project samples

20. Use Case Sample 1 List components of the technology solution: List actions which a user can execute:

21. Solution Prototype for Use Case 1“Show and Tell” how the site will appear to a user

22. Use Case 2Show graphically how a user does his work with technology’s help • Use Case under Proposed System for Police Traffic Stop Use Case under Current System for Police Traffic Stop