White Paper. Accelerate ROI. Accelerate Lean Six Sigma ROI with Deployment Management

Transcription

1 White Paper Accelerate ROI Accelerate Lean Six Sigma ROI with Deployment Management

2 Table of Contents Introduction 3 Quantifying the Payback 4 How PowerSteering Helps You Achieve Results 5 Figure 1: Typical Continuous Improvement Program Deployment Processes 5 Figure 2: Common Challenges of Deployment Management 6 Project Selection 6 Figure 3: Project Pipeline Process 6 Figure 4: Project Pipeline Practices 7 Project Manager Mentoring & Project Management 7 Figure 5: Belt Mentoring & Project Management Practices 7 Leveraging Knowledge and Replicating Solutions 8 Figure 6: Knowledge Management Practices 8 Financial Reporting 8 Figure 7: Financial Reporting Practices 8 Supporting Systems 9 2 White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

3 Introduction Does your continuous improvement program rely on spreadsheets, network folders and manual processes? Welcome to a better way: Upland s PowerSteering. We have a track record of working with pioneers in continuous Visibility improvement like AT&T, Staples, Brunswick, US Department of Defense, and Johnson Controls to conceptualize and build their continuous improvement processes. These experiences have given us an incredible opportunity to incorporate the voice of the STRATEGY customer into our software development and ongoing refinement. Productivity OBJECTIVES Upland s cloud-based program and portfolio management application, PowerSteering, is designed to support and accelerate EXECUTION the process of translating strategy, through the execution of project work, to produce tangible results. PowerSteering is an RESULTS industry-leading software offering for continuous improvement initiatives. It s a flexible tool that helps solve the challenges Project & Portfolio Management confronting executives, Lean Six Sigma professionals, deployment managers, project managers, financial representatives, Master Black Belts, Black Belts and Green Belts alike. We ve categorized those challenges into three areas: Executive Visibility, Strategic Alignment, and Team Productivity. Alignment Executive Visibility Always know where you stand with real-time dashboards, reports and easy drill downs into details. Stay informed with respect to all key performance indicators, including status, overall health, current phase and percentage complete. Centralize all reporting from a single, consolidated and accurate source. Automatically schedule and reports. Strategic Alignment Align strategy from the top down. Solicit project ideas from your entire organization (including non-users). Rank ideas by strategic fit. Ensure all of your resources are focused on the highest-value priorities. Team Productivity Increase efficiency and streamline execution. Leverage best practices and replicate successful solutions. Reduce project cycle time. Streamline gate reviews and approvals. 3 White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

4 Quantifying the Payback Let s look at the return that a typical continuous improvement deployment can achieve. For example, let s assume we have a continuous improvement program with: 100 project managers (Black Belts, Green Belts, etc.) Each project manager completes 1.5 projects per year (for 150 projects total) Each project produces $150,000 in net benefit Documented benefits from two PowerSteering customers: A large carpet manufacturer and leading floor covering provider with more than $4 billion in annual sales achieved 25% reduction in average project cycle time A leading global provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions with annual revenues of $3.8 billion achieved 20% increase in average project value Applying the results achieved from the carpet manufacturer and global provider listed above to our sample continuous improvement deployment organization yields the following annual improvements: The number of projects completed annually will increase from 150 to 200 The average project value will increase from $150,000 to $180,000 The annual earned benefits will increase from $22.5M to $36M To be conservative, let s say we achieve only half the results quantified by two global firms above. Assuming 12.5% cycle time reduction and 10% increase in average project value: The number of projects completed annually will increase from 150 to 171 The average project value will increase from $150,000 to $165,000 The annual earned benefits will increase from $22.5M to $28.3M In addition to these documented hard savings, there are many other savings achieved by Upland customers. For example: Up to a 50% reduction in costs associated with gathering and reporting project status and results Project Mentors (MBBs) save up to 4 days per month with real-time access to project data Replication efforts reproduce the value of a solution across multiple locations cutting the cycle time for each replicated solution by 50% or more Up to 15% reduction in projects that are started that fail 4 White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

5 How PowerSteering Helps You Achieve Results Regardless of the size of the organization, when a continuous improvement program reaches a certain maturity, it runs the risk of losing momentum. Once the low hanging fruit has been plucked and the obvious high-reward endeavors tackled, subsequent projects typically generate less financial benefit. At the same time, administrative burden increases as the number of project managers and projects grow and the use of continuous improvement expands throughout the organization. Project managers require more time to uncover and scope projects, while aggregating and validating program data becomes more of a chore. If not addressed, this pattern can decrease program ROI, Project Management morale and ultimately leadership support for continuous improvement. One way to break free of this cycle is through Deployment Management, the discipline of applying the rigorous, data-driven approaches of continuous improvement to the operations of a continuous improvement program. It begins with a simple realization: the practice of running continuous improvement is itself made up of processes that can be analyzed, refined and optimized. While each deployment is different, Figure 1 outlines some of the best practices used to manage continuous improvement practitioners and projects. Regardless of the size of the organization, when a continuous improvement program reaches a certain maturity, it runs the risk of losing momentum. Figure 1: Typical Continuous Improvement Program Deployment Processes Belts Selection Training Mentoring Management Repatriation Projects Selection Chartering Resourcing Executing Reporting Continuous improvement methodology theorizes that to generate consistent results, a control plan is necessary for each critical activity. Unfortunately, many practitioners get so caught up in the execution of individual projects that they forget to eat their own cooking. According to the Lean Continuous Improvement Benchmark Report 1,...industry is missing out on billions of dollars in potential savings, sales, and profits each year through ineffective application of continuous improvement tools and methodologies. By institutionalizing robust deployment processes, leading organizations can capture their share of this billion dollar opportunity. There are many challenges in Deployment Management though, ranging from HR (Belt selection, training, compensation and repatriation), to finance (program budget, in-business vs. central, etc), to project execution (efficient, effective and consistent techniques). Still, the core of any continuous improvement program lies in managing project teams, and that is what we will focus on here that set of processes surrounding the projects themselves. Returning to our process inventory, Figure 2 outlines just some of the key issues confronting the leadership team, the PMO and Project Managers. 1 Aberdeen Group, The Lean Strategies Benchmark Report, June Accessed on December 1, White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

6 Figure 2: Common Challenges of Deployment Management Consistent delivery of templates and training? Who needs help? Who is doing what? Where is the latest data? Belts Selection Training Mentoring Management Repatriation Projects Selection Chartering Resourcing Executing Reporting Enterprise-wide inventory of potential projects? Repeatable prioritization process? Easily leverage completed projects? Are projects on track? Non-value added time manually creating reports? Auditable numbers to report to the street? The power of Deployment Management derives from the compounding effect of attacking all core deployment activities with continuous improvement rigor. But recognizing that each of the processes in Figure 3 presents an opportunity for optimization, we will focus on a critical few that typically offer the greatest potential for breakthrough results: Project Selection Project Manager Mentoring & Project Management Leveraging Knowledge / Replicating Solutions Financial Reporting Project Selection Reward & Recognition Flawless execution will fail to deliver the goods if Belts are not working on the right initiatives. A rigorous project selection process can impact many program metrics, from average savings per project to project cycle time. In the early phases, converting low hanging fruit into quick wins can energize a program. As a program matures, easy projects may be more difficult to find, so it s important to undertake the right mix of projects that balances the risk/return with the resources, strategic alignment and executive support required. It s helpful to think of the entire lifecycle of a project as a process, as shown in Figure 3. This project pipeline has several steps, each of which can provide a feedback loop used to tune the process over time. Leaders will utilize these valuable feedback loops, and collect the right kind of data to enable the application of continuous improvement to continuous improvement, resulting in ongoing process improvement. Figure 4 contrasts some of the techniques employed by Leaders and Laggards to manage the project pipeline. Generate Ideas Discover Opportunities + + Strategic Holes + + Consolidate + + Duplicated Collect Ideas Prioritize Ideas Figure 3: Project Pipeline Process Tune Prioritization Select Projects Execute Projects Measure Results 6 White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

7 Figure 4: Project Pipeline Practices Laggards Multiple project idea formats Idea collections events Re-create each time Keeper of spreadsheet is a bottleneck Laborious with no centralization Inconsistent prioritization Limited visibility Difficult to connect results Difficult to connect to strategies Leaders Common idea format Continuous idea collection Persistent Data Distributed Responsibility Enterprise-wide categorization Enterprise-wide prioritization Global visibility Automatically connected to results Explicitly connected to strategies Project Manager Mentoring & Project Management While conceptually these are distinct disciplines, in practice it is easier to discuss them together, since there is significant overlap in the activities involved in each. Essentially, both are about making sure Belts have the right tools and resources to successfully complete their work. Project manager mentoring and project management can have a substantial impact on program results, especially in the areas of productivity, project success rates and cycle time. New project managers often struggle with their newly-acquired skills, and need easy access to tools, templates and training materials, as well as guidance on how to use them. Even if you have sound processes in place to select the best projects, and have equipped your project managers with the tools they need to succeed, inevitably stuff happens. Project management needs to dynamically adjust with contingencies to keep projects moving forward. Timely and accurate status reporting are vital to best practice execution, so that leaders can manage by exception, and devote their scarce time and resources where help is needed. Figure 5 outlines approaches of leaders and laggards to common project manager mentoring and management practices. Figure 5: Belt Mentoring & Project Management Practices Laggards Belts don t know what to do next Laborious gate reviews Phone Calls to check status No Time to mentor Minimal visibility Data & documents locked on desktops and in Month-end reporting nightmare Reports only on request Data overload Leaders Productivity tools guide Belts Electronic gate reviews Standardized status reporting Focus on value-added mentoring instead of NVA reporting Global visibility Globally accessible data & documents all in one place Real-time reporting Automated alerts and report delivery Configurable business rules mange by exception 7 White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

8 Leveraging Knowledge / Replicating Solutions One way to improve the productivity of your Belts is to leverage knowledge. That is, use knowledge gained in the course of one project to benefit another, or better yet, several other projects. The challenge is that it can be difficult for Belts to access this knowledge, particularly across the dimensions of time and space. At a macro level, organizations can benefit greatly from replicating their most successful projects in additional business units and locations. On a smaller scale, Belt productivity can be enhanced through the reuse of best practice project, document templates and automated replication programs. Enterprises that excel at Deployment Management are adept at capturing this knowledge and making it accessible, even pushing it out to the feet on the street. Laggards often reinvent the wheel in each location where Leaders proactively replicate successful solutions. Figure 6 outlines some of the knowledge practices of leaders and laggards. Figure 6: Knowledge Management Practices Laggards Difficulty promulgating changes to project roadmap Projects and tools captured in random documents on PC s, , and network drives No meta data categorization Belts don t search due to difficulty Minimal replication of projects Leaders Project roadmap delivered automatically as a template Projects captured in fully-searchable, globally-accessible database; all data in one place Robust meta data for categorizing filtering and searching Similar projects pushed to Belts automatically Relevant projects easily replicated Financial Reporting For most corporations, all activities are undertaken to improve the bottom line, including continuous improvement. But unlike a product line, where it is relatively easy to account for costs and revenue, the financial accounting of continuous improvement programs can be quite complex, as projects are often initiated on behalf of another division or business unit. Once a program has scaled beyond a few projects, gathering this financial data can become both time-consuming and error-prone. And as much of the aggregation falls to a project manager, it directly affects his or her ability to complete the very projects that create value for the company. Improving the processes of data gathering, validation, and reporting can directly reduce program overhead while improving project success. Figure 7 lists some of the reporting practices of leaders and laggards. Figure 7: Financial Reporting Practices Laggards Inconsistent formats Errors in calculation Month-end consolidation headache Uncontrolled data changes Loose access control Limited access / visibility Leaders Common format Calculations centrally controlled Instant, real-time roll-ups Audit trail and locking Tightly permissioned Global access / visibility 8 White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

9 Supporting Systems Even a cursory glance at the best practices we ve examined reveals some common themes: automating routine activities wherever possible, creating a central repository for project data and documents and enabling real-time access to information all contribute to demonstrated savings. To again cite the Lean Continuous Improvement Benchmark Report: By implementing project management tools that support collaborative efforts and provide workflow automation, continuous improvement practitioners are able to focus on analytical aspects of the methodology to drive to true results. Clearly, some kind of underlying information system is required to support a Deployment Management approach. But what is right for your organization? It s not unusual for companies starting out on the continuous improvement journey to begin by using spreadsheets for program monitoring and control. Initially, spreadsheets may meet most program needs as they are ubiquitous, most users are comfortable with them, and they can be quickly configured to track basic data such as who is working on which project. As more continuous improvement users come on board, the spreadsheets are often shared via or posted on a network drive, where they might continue to serve the needs of a small deployment. Spreadsheet limitations become apparent when a program scales and project manager involvement begins to span functions, divisions and locations. Many of these shortcomings stem from the fact that a spreadsheet is designed to be a singleuser tool not an enterprise-wide solution. Problems arise when project managers need to aggregate data across multiple sources or across an extended time horizon. Larger continuous improvement programs that continue to rely on spreadsheets to address some of the key questions of Deployment Management (such as Where is the latest data? ) will find themselves forced to admit we don t know. If you can deliver more projects, and higher value projects by simply leveraging a quick to implement, cloud-based system, why wouldn t you? Mature programs that require collaboration among dispersed teams, access to real-time program information and automation of project management tasks will be well served by a Deployment Management system like PowerSteering. The Return on Investment for a PowerSteering Deployment Management system is very strong. If you can deliver more projects, and higher value projects by simply leveraging a quick to implement, cloud-based system, why wouldn t you? 9 White Paper: Accelerate ROI uplandsoftware.com

10 About PowerSteering Upland s PowerSteering enables powerful, scalable and uniquely flexible top-down program and portfolio management without requiring granular task and resource tracking, making it a great fit for IT, product development, and business or enterprise PMOs. It is a cloud-based application that combines the robust PPM functionality demanded by global organizations with the cost and speed benefits of the cloud, and provides class-leading analytic and financial tracking capabilities. But, it doesn t end there. The PowerSteering team is personally involved in an organization s success and provides ideas to continuously improve a deployment return. Black Belt Productivity: Increase Belt efficiency with timesaving capabilities to make team members jobs easier. Reduce project cycle time with automated reporting, online alerts and project replication tools. Create a searchable library of best practices and share knowledge across your organization. Multi-Initiative Flexibility and Configurability: Extend PowerSteering to any project-intensive area such as IT, PMO or New Product Development. Configurable templates, reports, dashboards, workflow and methodologies are easily modified to accommodate any business area or function without requiring IT involvement. Enterprise Capability, On-Demand: Leverage the power and flexibility of enterprise class software with the accessibility and affordability of an on-demand delivery model. Benefit from software that is quick to implement, delivers a better ROI, lowers the TCO and grows as an organization matures. Thought Leadership, Vision and Expertise: With more than 15 years of successful implementation experience spanning nearly every industry, PowerSteering offers proven expertise managing the full range of Lean Six Sigma and Project Portfolio Management challenges for lea ding global organizations. The Upland Product Family Upland s family of cloud-based enterprise work management software helps every team in your organization do their best work. See what you can do with Upland. Contact us at or info@uplandsoftware.com.