Testing and Go-Live Best Practices for a Successful Dashboard Rollout

1. Testing and Go-Live Best Practices for a Successful Dashboard Rollout Dr. Bjarne Berg COMERIT

2. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

3. Go-Live Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards (Formerly Xcelsius) Initiative • During the planning phase, you should also start planning your go-live strategy • This includes answering the following questions: • Where are my users located? • What is the network capacity? • Do I need support people for extended time periods — Different time zones? • Do I need multi-currency support on my dashboards? • Do I need multi-language support? • What type of users do I have in each region? Create a user map as part of your project planning. This will help you understand your user base.

4. User Training Options • There are four core options for the training strategy • Classroom training • Best when users are similar and centrally located • Online training • Best when users are dispersed, dashboards are simple, or go-live is over a long time period • Train the trainer • Best when users reside in many locations, multiple languages are involved, and when there is a very high number of users • One-on-one training • Best for executives and senior management • Should be done at each user’s office Source: Dashboard Insights, 2009 Communicate and schedule training early in the project so that everyone will be available

5. User Training for Complex Dashboards • If users need training, then you have often failed to create good dashboards • However, there are times when training is needed; this includes: • Interactive dashboards and dashboards with complex graphing In this dashboard, users can budget for travel categories for each month, and also save scenarios Therefore, some training is required and should be planned early

6. Plan for an Online Help System for Your Dashboards Go-Live • Online help should be created for each dashboard • The online help system should explain: • How numbers are calculated • How to read graphs • What functionality is embedded

7. How to Create Online Help Systems • Some ways to create a low-cost online help system include: • Flash files • Create a simple help dashboard and embed this into the overall dashboard • Word • Create a word document with screenshots • Save it as HTML and store the Web pages on a Web server • You can then link the URL on your dashboard • Custom Application • Use a tool-like front page or any Web authoring tool and create a complex online help system with menus, search functionality, movies that show demonstrations, etc. Online help centers can include contact information and training schedules. They can also be used to communicate information on future projects.

8. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

9. The JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP Methodologies • There are several options for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards project • Joint Application Design (JAD) • Rapid Application Development (RAD) • Agile or Extreme Programming (XP) • Accelerated SAP Methodology/System Development Lifecycle (SDLC) • Many of the methodologies are not appropriate for the dashboard development effort Pick your SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards methodology carefully. Do not use ASAP unless your project is part of a budgeting, consolidation, or planning effort.

10. The “Waterfall Methodologies” Are Not Good for Dashboards • The System Development Lifecycle (SDLC) methodologies, such as ASAP, are known collectively as “waterfall methodologies” • They give a false sense of clear-cut stages, and do not address substantial functionality changes during development • It is hard to fix missing functionality during integration testing The waterfall Source: SAP The challenge with ASAP is that users don’t know what they want until they see it …

11. The ASAP Methodology Overview

12. Joint Application Design (JAD) — Who Participates? • Facilitator — Facilitates discussions, enforces rules • End Users — Three to five, attend all sessions • Developers — Two or three, question for clarity • Tie Breaker — Senior manager; breaks end-user ties, doesn’t attend • Observers — Two or three, do not speak • SMEs — A few subject matter experts (SMEs) for understanding business and technology • Keep it very focused and explore the interfaces. How do the users want to see the screen layouts and functionality? A study of 60 development projects found that,without JAD, 35% of the functionality was missed (Source: Caper Jones, Software Quality, Reliability, and Error Prediction )

13. Rapid Application Development (RAD) • RAD has an abbreviated blueprinting phase where meetings are executed in short succession to get the requirements • Most of the blueprinting and realizationphases of the project are combined • The first meeting: A one or two-day work session with uninterrupted time • Who: Power users, casual users, people who today interact with the current system, and managers who have a stake in the outcome of the dashboards • How many: A rapid pace is kept in these meetings, and the number of attendees is kept to no more than seven people • The coordinators should focus on shared information needs and conduct multiple sessions (typically once a week) Why RAD? Increase involvement, less business disruption, less opinions, more consensus, information sharing, and an education event

14. Agile and Extreme Programming (XP) for SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards • XP was started by programmers who decided that the traditional requirements gathering sessions took too much time and often just verified what they already knew • The argument for XP is that other methodologies were developed to build software for low levels of change and reasonably predictable outcomes • But the business world is no longer very predictable, and software requirements change at extremely high rates • Development can be completed faster with collaborative efforts of paired programmers with small “sprint” timelines and many go-lives The core premise of XP is that you can only pick three out of these four dimensions: cost, quality, scope, and time

15. Framework for Picking Your Dashboard Methodology Source: Dr. Berg, DM Review, 2006.

16. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

17. The SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards Business Requirements • Business requirements can be collected in a variety of ways based on the methodology that the company employs • It is a complex process and involves the periods: • Discovery and education • Formal communication • Prototypes and reviews • Final approvals A dashboard implementation does not simply involve a series of black-and-white technical decisions; just because something is technically feasible does not mean it is wise or desirable from a business perspective Source: Gooy_GUI, 2007

18. Where Do You Start? — First Alternative You can start with a blank template and fill in the capabilities Focus on graphs, layout, measures, and navigation One method is to write storyboards from a user perspective and add needed functionality to support this

19. Where Do You Start? — Second Alternative Get a group of five to seven people for a brainstorming session Draw the solution, knowing that it may look somewhat different once developed Focus on the use of space, graphs, navigation, available data, and the purpose of the dashboards Do not design fixed-format “reports”

20. Building a Mockup in Excel • If you can make a “mockup” in Excel, users can see what it may look like very quickly • You do not need to have any SAP BusinessObjects tools installed This can be done in 30-60 minutes

21. Prototyping the Dashboard Requirements • Once the first day of brainstorming is completed, you can create data in Excel and prototype the solution in SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards • Focus on layout, space management, colors, and basic formatting Plan for multiple weekly prototypes before you get the solution that everyone can agree on

22. Flexible Options to Meet Many Requirements • There are often disagreements on how to present numbers and graphs Make your dashboard flexible and present data in many interactive ways Amount vs. Percentages Different graphs Users can select what they want graphed

23. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

24. Tool Upgrades and Deployment of New SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards Functionality • When you upgrade your SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards, consider a multi-step approach • Conduct a developer training or workshop session to learn the new functionality and agree on the upgrade timeline • Do a technical upgrade over the weekend • Copy all of the dashboards • Implement new functionality on the copied dashboards • Have a formal feedback session with user involvement to see how they like the changes • Implement the new changes two to six weeks after the technical upgrade Stability is the key to success in all end-user systems. Even if the new functionality is better, users do not like a system that changes look and feel frequently.

25. Tool Migration Strategy • If you are migrating users from a legacy reporting tool to your new dashboards, you need a formal migration strategy. This could include: • Maintaining two systems (not recommended) • Running two systems in parallel for a short time to reconcile results • Removing a legacy reporting tool as part of go-live (recommended) • When Vikings settled new lands, they always burned the boats so that the settlers were 100% committed to the new situation • While it caused some anxiety, this is a great migration strategy that can be used for system migration efforts, as well A “burn-the-boats” reporting migration strategy assures high commitment to the new solution and possibly a high number of new requirements after go-live. Be prepared to support this.

26. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

27. The Dashboards Test Methodology • Dashboards testing should follow a formal methodology Test Strategy • The test strategy is written at the beginning of the project and should include: • What will be tested? • Who will test it and approveit? • Where will the test occur? • When will the test be scheduled? Test Plan Test Execution Problem Resolution The test plan is more detailed and should be written once the first prototype is built

28. The SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards User Acceptance Testing (UAT) Form • By requiring each of the five to seven UAT members to complete a form for each dashboard, you get solid feedback that you can use in the next RAD development cycle • During each UAT test cycle, you should solicit detailed feedback on layout, graphs, theme, tables, and navigation

29. The SAP BusinessObjects Load Testing Form • The load testing is intended to show any performance issues prior to the go-live • While all areas cannot be tested, this will give you an idea on bottlenecks • For large scale go-lives, you should consider having test PCs in multiple locations

30. The SAP BusinessObjects Stress Testing Form • Stress testing is very similar to load testing • The difference is that the number of concurrent users is expected to be doubled • Not all companies will use a stress test, nor pass it • This is due to the unrealistic concurrent load and the high hardware costs of meeting them • However, it provides very useful information

31. SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards Test Planning Key Activities The business analysts are responsible for planning, coordinating, and executing the testing of dashboards

32. Large-Scale SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards Test Scheduling — Example • Each UAT team could have dedicated time in the test room • Provide food and snacks • At least two testers (preferably more) should be assigned to test each functionality All test results should be logged, so that fixes do not impact other dashboards and consistency is maintained

33. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

34. Big-Bang vs. Gradual Go-Lives • There are many ways to do a gradual rollout of the dashboards • The simplest way is: • Bring all content into the production box • Set up the roles in the production environment • Gradually release roles to the end users • The benefit of doing this is that you can see how the system performs • And you can solicit feedback from an increasingly large user group before you release the dashboards to many users • A gradual go-live can reduce the potentially negative impact on the organization Unless the dashboards are for a single department, or very few users, you should always plan for a gradual go-live

35. Gradual Go-Lives by Region • A gradual go-live by region makes sense if: • Training is needed • Multi-language support is required • A high number of users are expected • Dashboards are tailored to local needs • When you use a regional go-live strategy, you can also roll out the dashboards to power users first (i.e., one month before go-live) to see how the system works in a real production setting Global dashboards require serious attention to language support, user support, 24/7 availability, and to non-native English speakers

36. SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards Go-Live by Organization Units • A gradual go-live by Organization Units makes sense if: • Organization is very large • Departments have very different needs • Dashboards are tailored to department needs • Data must be secured between organizations • When you use an organizational go-live strategy, you need to focus on the branding of each dashboard (e.g., logos of subsidiaries) and on integration of support functions in their organizations (e.g., help desk) Departmental dashboards should have first-level support in their respective business units

37. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

38. BI Support Organization — Big Picture • You need to separate the operations of BI systems from the project work • If there is no support organization, the BI system quickly becomes an orphan when the project ends Without a support org, there is a risk that future BI projects will be delayed, since the project team has to support previous projects

39. An Example of a Large BI Support Team This large team can support complex applications, cockpits, BI portals, and broadcasting, while providing training and help desk support, as well as on-going data warehousing production support Note: Job areas are meant for illustration and will vary depending on the BI applications supported Support leader Full-time Data loads & fixes Full-time Dashboards (i.e., SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards) Full-time SAP BI Basis Full-time Help desk,user support Full-time BI Query (i.e., Web Intelligence, BEx) Full-time Data loads & fixes Full-time Training,user support Full-time Data quality & data resource mgmt. Full-time Portal, collaboration, KM, security Full-time

40. What to Include in a BI Dashboard Service-Level Agreement (SLA) • When must data stores be loaded by (time)? • What will happened if a persistent problem occurs (“SWAT” teams)? • Who is responsible for fixing process chains, and who pays? • Do you get a discount for each data store that is not loaded in time? • How should Service Packs and Fix Packs be applied? • When will SP, FP, and SAP Notes be applied? • Who pays for it? • Who is responsible for testing them? • When will the SAP BusinessObjects system be upgraded? • When will upgrades occur, how is the pricing determined? • Who pays for it, and who is responsible for testing? • How long can the system be offline? • Minimum uptime and target uptime • What is uptime defined as (data store loaded vs. queries available vs. security fixes applied vs. portal uptime vs. third-party reporting tool uptime vs. network uptime vs. SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards issues, etc.)? • What are the penalties (money) for missing the dashboard uptime requirements?

41. What to Include in a BI Dashboard Service-Level Agreement (SLA) (cont.) • Issues log • What issues must be logged? • Who owns the log? Do you have access? • Can entries be updated, or must an audit trail be preserved? • Backup and disaster recovery • What is included in the backup and when is it taken? • When will restore abilities be tested? • How fast must restore occur, and what data stores and users will first have access (priority list)? • Who owns the data? • If you switch vendors, who owns the data? • How will you get access to the data? Do you get full insight to all? • Who, of the vendor’s employees, gets access to your data? Can they share it with your competitor? • Service tickets • When will service tickets be monitored? • What are the categories and who will resolve them? • What are the resolution processes and timelines? • How iscustomer and support satisfaction measured?

42. What to Include in a BI Dashboard Service-Level Agreement (SLA) (cont.) • Escalation process • What will happened if an issue cannot be resolved by the internal IT department/vendor and your business SLA manager? • What are the steps needed to terminate the SLA contract, and are there any payments/fault payments or a budget recourse (i.e., move money from cost centers)? The more details you put into the dashboards SLA upfront, the easier it will be to measure, and the more likely you are to have a successful relationship

43. Selecting Objective Measures for the SLA • Measures drive behavior, so be careful when selecting them. They should be: • Simple to understand and easy to calculate • Meaningful, and drive the behavior you want to encourage • Controllable and immune to manipulations • Instruments that collect measures must be consistent over time and as automated as possible Sites, such as the free online KPI Library, have over 6,000 standard measure definitions based on the SEC, API, ISO, FASB, GAAP, IEEE, and other organizations

44. Standardized SLA Performance Measures • Standard measures exist for SLAs. These include: • First-Level Call Resolution (FLCR) • Average Call Answer Time (ACAT) • Percentage Calls Re-Opened Within Two Weeks (PCRT) • Percentage of Training Type Calls (PTTC) • Number of Tickets Escalated to Level-2 Support (NTE2) • Percent of Tickets Escalated to Level-2 Support (PTE2) • Number of Tickets per Service Employees (NTSE) • Number of Service Employees per User (NSEU) • Average Service Employees Training Level (ASET) • Percent Service Employees Certified (PSEC) • Turnover Rate of Service Employees (TRSE) • End-User Satisfaction Score (EUSS) • Number of System Failures (NOSF) • Number of Critical System Failures (NOCF)

45. Standardized SLA Performance Measures — More to Consider • Additional measures • Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) • Mean Time Between Critical Failures (MTCF) • Mean Time to Provision (MTTP) • Mean Time to Repair (MTTR) • Percent Up-Time Per System (PUPS) • Percent Down-Time Per System (PDPS) • Percent Call-Back to Customers (PCBC) • Cost per Service Ticket (CPST) • Cost per Service Employee (CPSE) • Cost per Serviced System (CPSS) • SLA Operating Efficiency (SLAOE) • SLA Operating Effectiveness (SLAOF) • Employee Turnover Rate (EMTR) Consultants can drive the measures and create balanced scorecards by assigning weights BEST PRACTICE: Pick 10-12 initially, and add more as the relationship matures

46. Reasonable SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards SLA Performance • Examples of reasonable performance targets • 90% of all dashboards run under 20 seconds • System is available 98% of the time • Data loads are available at 8 am — 99% of the time • User support tickets are answered within 30 minutes (first response) • User support tickets are closed within 48 hours — 95% of the time • System is never unavailable for more than 72 hours — including upgrades, fix packs, service packs, and disaster recovery • Delta backups are done each 24-hour cycle, and system backups are done every weekend

47. What We’ll Cover … • Planning for the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards initiative • Understanding the JAD, RAD, Agile (XP), or ASAP methodology • Getting the right dashboard requirements • Upgrading and migrating tools • Defining the SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards testing approach • Rolling out dashboards: Big-bang vs. gradual go-lives • Designing the BI support organization • Wrap-up

48. Where to Find More Information • Harold Kerzner, Project Management Metrics, KPIs, and Dashboards: A Guide to Measuring and Monitoring Project Performance (Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2011). • Leopoldo Simini, “Agile Project Dashboards – Bringing Value to Stakeholders and Top Management (What Can You Do for Your PO Today?)” (July 2011). • David Parmenter, Key Performance Indicators: Developing, Implementing, and Using Winning KPIs (Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2007).

49. 7 Key Points to Take Home • Use a RAD, JAD, or XP approach for your dashboards • Have multiple meetings with the user groups • Build interactive prototypes and expect requirements changes • Plan for a formal load testing of the dashboards • Have a roll-out plan and a long-term vision of how to get there • Requirements gathering is interactive, and users are discovering what they want • Spend serious time planning for support and on-going enhancements of your dashboards or they will become useless in a very short time …

50. Your Turn! How to contact me: Dr. Bjarne Berg bberg@comerit.com Continue the conversation! Post your questions in the BI-BW Forum on Insider Learning Network* *bit.ly/BI-BWForum