Some of Our Recent Projects

New System Implementation

Problem: An insurance company was considering purchasing a new system to replace their core business system which had been in place for 10 years. The costs were significant, and they wanted help reviewing the proposal and getting ready for the installation.

Solution: We performed an IT Assessment and concluded that they were not ready -- the IT infrastructure was outdated and the costs associated with the necessary upgrades was not well understood.

Results: As a result of our findings, the executive staff decided to focus on upgrading the IT department so that a future implementation could be successful.

Project Turnaround

Problem: A computer manufacturing company had been working on a system upgrade (using a well-known, high-end finance and manufacturing package) for six months with little progress. Over $1.2MM had been spent with little to show for it.

Solution: We assessed the situation, instituted regular project management meetings, and gained support from management. After identifying committed Team Leaders, a detailed schedule was built, deliverables produced, and milestone sign-off achieved.

Results: The project went in on schedule and delivered the expected results.

Software Development Restructuring

Problem: A software development firm had been working for two years, missed three major deadlines, spent $30,000,000, and was still negotiating feature sets with their user community. The staff of 110+ developers were frustrated and ready to quit.

Solution: We assessed the current state of affairs and advised management of their options.

Results: Working with client-managed teams we implemented: the first ever detailed project plan, presented project management workshops, mentored project managers and team leaders, developed and presented a technology assessment methodology, provided sound estimates (based partially on function point analysis and backfiring), implemented and supported a project management office, and revitalized the development staff

Business Process Redesign

Problem: A financial institution provided great personal service to their customers, but the manual work involved was killing them. Their annual renewal process spanned a five-month period, and required significant overtime from their support staff. Skilled underwriters were folding, stapling, and stuffing customer materials. Even more importantly, the institution's customers were saddled with filling out complicated forms with information that should already have been available.

Solution: Working with executive management, the business staff, and IT, we facilitated a a project to review the current situation and determine a better way to handle this crucial part of the business. Based on research done by the company, the team was able to stratify customers into three different risk categories. We identified that the existing manual process was necessary for only 10% of the customers -- coupled with a small but key modification to the IT systems, the other 90% could be handled in a much more streamlined, manner.

Results: The company's customers loved the results, and the reduction in work allowed our client to undertake a new business initiative that would not otherwise have been possible.

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