ITD #6 16 Sep 2011 | Transforming IT delivery models

8/4/2019 ITD #6 16 Sep 2011 | Transforming IT delivery models

1/12


2/12

2ITD #6 Transforming IT Delivery Models IT Decisions 16 September 2011 - All Rights Reserved

IntroductionITdeliverymethodologieshaveexistedsincethedawnof

theindustry.ThemomentITprojectsbecametoobigand

complex for a single person to deliver some kind of

planningmethodologywasalwaysgoingtobeneededtocontrolandmanageprojects.

The earliest of these formal methodologies was the

waterfallsystem,documentedinacademicpaperssince

the 1950s. In simple terms this described the software

engineeringprocessasa series of stepsthat connected

fromonetothenextcascadingdownlikeawaterfall.

Those basic steps were to gather the requirements,

design the solution, implement it, verify and test thedelivery,maintainwhathasbeendelivered.

Thats a common sense approach, but the world has

moved on. There is now a plethora of formal

methodologieshelpingCIOsandsoftwaredevelopersto

coordinate what the userwantswith the most reliable

waytodeliverthosesolutions.

The UK government designed their Information

Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) in the 1980s

based on the process control models of W. Edwards

Deming the American academic who transformed

Japanese production methods after the Second World

War. ITIL has now become something of a global

standardwiththeOpenGroupconsortiumnowheavily

promotingitsuseinBrazil.

PRojects IN Controlled Environments

(PRINCE) is another process drivenprojectmanagementmethodologyoften

demandedbyclients,buttherearenow

as many approaches to developing

software as there are methodologies.

The Capability Maturity Model (CMM)

developedbyCarnegieMellonUniversity

was probably the process methodology

that facilitated the boom in offshore

softwaredevelopment.

Clients have always demanded faster

and more reliable software deliveries

andwith the explosionof tools tohelp

facilities rapid application development

andAgiledesignmethodologies,suchas

Scrum, Lean, and RUP, have led to a

revolution in the way systems are

designedandbuilt.

This week, our CIO research explores

how these changes in software

development and project management

methodologieshaveaffected the teams

onthegroundreallydeliveringforyour

customers

theworldhasmovedon.There

isnowaplethora

offormal

methodologies


3/12


ParticipantFeedbackToexploretheissueofexecutivesusingsocialmedia,inthisweeksresearchsurveyweaskedfour

questionsthreeofwhichweremultiplechoiceandonedesignedtopromoteanopendiscussion.

Wereceivedanswersfrom23executivesfrom18industrysectors:consumerservices,healthcare,

oil & energy, chemicals, broadcasting, engineering, shipbuilding, automotive,

telecommunications,logistics,financialservices,insurance,foodandbeverages,education,paper

&forestryproducts,cosmetics,media,retail.

Question1:Doesyourdepartmentuseaformalestablisheddeliverymethodology?

Thischartshowsastrongsupportforformalmethodologiesingeneral.ClearlytheCIOcommunityknowsthatwhichevermethodisused,itisimportanttousesomethingtocontrolprojects.

Ascanbeseenfromthechart,overhalf(52.2%)ofourITleaderssaythattheyareusingaformal

establisheddeliverymethodology,withafurther34.8%sayingthattheyareusingtheirown

methods.WithsomeofthecommentssuggestingthatmanyITleaderstakeastandard

methodologyandmoldittothecompanyneedsthisisnosurprise.

Just13%ofITleadersdonotuseanyformofmethodologytocontrolhowdeliveriesareplanned

andmade.

0 2 4 6 8 10 12

Yes

No

Useourownmethod

52.2%

13%

34.8%


4/12


Question2:Doesithelpyoutodeliverbetterresultsforyourcustomersbyusingaformal

methodologyinITservices?

Attheendoftheday,theITleaderhastoreporttocustomers.Theymightbeoutsidethe

company,butusuallytheyareinternalthebusiness.Itisonlyworthadoptingformaldelivery

methodologiesifitcanbeshownthatthecustomerishappierwithwhattheITteamdelivers.

Ascanbeseenfromthischart,thereisoverwhelmingsupportthattheuseofformal

methodologiesdoeshelpwithdeliverytocustomers.78.3%ofourITleaderssupporttheuseof

formalmethodologiesasawayofimprovingdeliverytocustomersandafurther17.4%addthatit

helpsforsomeservices.

The4.3%suggestingthatcustomersdonotgetanybenefitfromtheITteamusingaformal

deliverymethodologyappearstobeaninsignificantminorityview.

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18

Yes

No

Yes,forsomeservices

78.3%

4.3%

17.4%


5/12


Question3:Hastheworldmovedtofrom"big"inflexiblemethodologiestoAgile-withrapid

deliveryandturnaroundofcustomerrequests?

Asoutlinedintheintroduction,therearemanyformalmethodologiesandoverthepastfiftyyears

theyhaveevolvedandchangedfrombeingquiterigidandformaltoflexible.ThegrowthofAgile

methodsinthepast10to15yearsinparticularhascompletelychangedhowflexibleanITteam

canbewhilestillmaintainingsomeformalityandcontroloverdeliveries.

ThequestionaskedwhethertheworldofITdevelopmenthasmovedonthebigmethodologies

oftenseenasinflexibletoanagileworld.AlmosthalfofourITleaders(47.8%)agreed,sothere

isclearlyaverystrongviewintheBrazilianITmarketthatAgilemethodsareimportant.

Itisimportanttonotethat43.5%ofourITleaderssaidthatAgileisnotalwaysapplicabletothe

deliveriesthattheyaremaking.Clearlyitwouldbeinterestingtogobacktoaskthemwhy,but

theassumptionisthatinsomecasesandindustriesaverystrongcontroloverdeliveriesis

essentialsoAgileworkswellwhereappliedtothecorrectproblems.

Just8.7%ofITleadersdisagreedwiththestatement,suggestingaverysmallminoritywiththe

beliefthatnothinghaschangedorthatAgiledoesnotwork.

0 2 4 6 8 10 12

Yes

No

Notalwaysapplicable

47.8%

8.7%

43.5%


6/12


Question4:Pleaseaddacommentonyourexperienceaboutthebestmethodologythatworksforyourteamandwhetheryouareconsideringachangeinmethodology?

LogisticsHappyITcustomerslikemethodology

Idonotseetheformalizationandrigoraslossofagility,butassomethingthatisnecessaryforthe

qualityofthedeliveryprocess.

Therefore,weadoptedmethodsthatarewelldefinedanddocumented,whichcanbeusedwith

speedandresponsibility,ensuringthatthefinalresultfortheclient(whetherinternalorexternal)

iswhathasbeenaskedandthattheclientcantakeadvantageoftheresult.

Frommyunderstanding,happycustomers(thosewhogetwhattheyaskedforwithqualityand

withinthenegotiatedtimescales)likemethodologyandconsideritsuseassomethingthatspeeds

uptheprocess.Theperceivedlackofagilityisverymuchrelatedtothedifficultyofnegotiating

deadlinesandnotthemethodologyusedfordeliveries.

FinancialservicesAgilemethodshelpsITdealwithchangingbusinessgoals

We use the PMBOKprinciples as away to target, in a formal manner, the various disciplines

involvedinthedevelopmentofaproject.

However, priorities and short-termgoalsare increasingly dynamic andmustbechangedevery

timetheserealitieschange.Thisisthecontextinwhichagilemethodsarerelevant,intermsof

identifyingthechangeandwhatshouldbedoneinordertoreturntoalignment.

InsuranceAgilemethodsandcommonsenseisthefutureofIT

Formal deliverymethods favortheexecutiongreatlywhen itcomestomeetingdeadlines.You

mayevenworkonscope,responsibilitiesandreporting,butyougetpoorresultswhenthemain

focusisontime.

Manythingsarealwaysleftforfuturereleases;satisfactionatthetimeofdeploymentisnotwhat

it should be. Theapproachofdelegating toachieve,andwherepossible, combinedwith agile

methods, minimizes these kinds of impact and generates much more of a sense of "proper

delivery." Major methodologies for major projects (if they cannot be divided) and the agile

approachesforalltheotherprojectsisthepossibleandprobablepathforIT.

Oil&EnergyMovetoglobalstandardsmeantuseofheaviermethods

Asthecompanyismovingtowardstheuseofglobaltemplates,wehavebeenusingmoreformal

andstructuredmethodologies(andalittlebulkier)forITdelivery.


7/12


ConsumerServicesThesamemethodologiesarenotalwaysapplicable

Methodologiesarenotalwaysapplicableandarenotalwaysagile.Ihavehadgoodresultswith

Scrum(Agile)andawfulresultswithCMMI(usedwithinacumbersomeprocess).However,Ihave

achievedoppositeresultsandanexcellentdelivery(intermsoftime,costandquality)withCMMI

andapoordeliverywithScrum.Havingsaidthat,itisdowntothemanagerandthecompanyto

decidewhatisthebestfitwhenitcomestobettermethodologiesfortheirdailytasks.

HealthcareFrequentcontrolofdeliverableshelpsITinmeetingexpectations

Wearecurrentlyimplementingasystemtocontroldeliverableseverytwomonths,wherewe

decideinadvancewhatshouldbedoneornot,sothatwecanalignexpectationswithour

customers.

InsuranceAgileiscrucialtodeliveratthesamespeedofthedemands

Thedeliveriesbegantoberequiredatthesamespeedandthedemandsandthatbroughtabouta

majorevolutionindevelopmentmethodologiesandprojectmanagement.

WithinthecompaniesIworkat,Ihavebeenusingagilemethodologiesandtheresultisvery

satisfactory,sincewecangreatlyreducethedissatisfactionandmeettheexpectationsofusers

andcustomerswithmoredeliverablesforeachcycle.Andthisisnotjustforthesakeoffaster

deliveries,butalsofortheabilitytosubmiteachpartoftheprojecttoacycleof"revalidation",

whichhasmadeourprocessesmorereliableandprojectsandstable.

FoodandBeveragesWeuseagileelementsinourdeliverytogeneratevalue

Althoughwehavenotusedanykindofagilemethodformally,weareapplyingpartsofthe

methodologytogetresultsfasterandcreatedeliverableswithhigheraddedvalue.

Weseektoengagethebusinessareasinthewholeprojectdevelopmentcycleandthisfacilitates

theplanninganddesignprocesseswhilealigningdeliveryprioritiesandexpectationsintermsof

expectedresults.

ConsumerServicesMethodologiesshouldnotincreasebureaucracyandcost

Themethodologyshouldseeksimplicityandobjectivity,asopposedtogeneratingalotof

bureaucracyandcost.Thedefinitionofamethodologyshouldbebasedinitsultimategoal,that

is,ensuringthequalityofdelivery,costcontrol,risksanddeadlines,andmostimportantly,

ensuringaccessibilitytodocumentationrelatedtothedeliverables.EducationWearealwaysadaptingITdeliverytotheneedsofthebusiness

Weareinaconstantmovementofobservationaroundhowtoadaptdeliveryforbettercomfort

andsatisfactionofthebusiness.Weconstantlyalignwithteamstheneedto"see"themovements

ofthebusinessnaturally,whileadaptingourprocessesandlookingforspeedandefficiency.


8/12


FinancialservicesFormalmethodsshouldnotbeseenasrulessetinstone

"Packaged"methodologiesasCMMi,PMIandITILareusefulbutshouldnotbeseenasrulessetin

stone.Eachcompanycanandshouldadaptmethodologytoitsrealityandthesizeofitsprojects.

Paper&forestryproductsDeliveryshouldbefast,evenifreworkisneededlater

Morethanthemethodologyitself,thereisamatterofchangingattitudesofITprofessionals,the

focusshouldbeongeneratingvalueforthebusinessinanagilemannerandasquicklyaspossible,

evenifitisnecessarytodosomereworkinfuture.

CosmeticsLargemethodologiesareonlyexcellentforITsuppliersTheknowledgeofvariousmethodologiesalongwiththecommonsenseofwhat/how/whereto

applythemaccordingtosizeandtypeofprojectarecrucialforgoodresults;largeandinflexible

methodologiesareonlyexcellentforITcompanies.

MediaFormalmethodsareindispensableforlarge,high-budgetprojects

Inmyopinion,PMBOKisstillthemostcomprehensiveframeworkforprojects.Ialwaysuseitfor

large,complexandcriticalprojects,especiallythoseinvolvingalotofresourcesandbigbudgets.

Ontheotherhand,agilemethodscandelivergreatresultsofeasyapplicationandacceptanceby

theITteamaswellasbusinessfunctionsandprojectsponsors.WeusedScrumformediumand

smallprojectsandtheresultshavebeenextremelysatisfactory.

RetailMethodologytoolsusedcannothamperprojectexecution

Theimportantthingistodefine,atthebeginningoftheprojects,whichwillbetheartifactsused

forbettermanagementandensurethebestqualityforresultsdependingontheirsizeand

criticality.Theartifactsselectedmustensurethesemetricsandcannothaveavolumethatcould

preventitsexecution.

TelecommunicationsWeuseITILwithchangesforincreasedagility

WeusedtheverybasisofITILtocreatebetterresults,butweneedtomakesomemodifications

tobeagileintermsofdelivery.Ourareaofactivity(telemarketingservices)isverydynamicandwecannotbeslowindeliveringsolutions!

AutomotiveInvolvingcustomersinITprocessesistheadvantageofmethodology

Thegreatadvantageofconductingdeliveriesbasedonmethodologyisensuringthattheresult

deliverediswhatthecustomerreallywants,sincethecustomerparticipatesintheprocess,from

specificationtotestingstage.

ChemicalsITneedsagility,butitsutilityaspectmustnotbeforgotten

Businessesrequireagilityinprojects,butIThasa"utility"sidewhereextremerigorandastrict

applicationofproceduresareneeded.InadditiontotheinspirationofCOBIT,COSOandITIL,we

willalignourselvestotheISOstandards.


9/12


Conclusion&ExecutiveSummaryIn the modern IT environment it goes without saying that some control is needed. Modern

projectshavemanydependencies,thatmayeveninvolveexternalactors,anditisnotpossibleto

coordinatealargeteamaroundacomplexproblemwithoutsomeformalguidelines.

Asstatedintheintroduction, ITDecisionsalwaysexpectedmuchofthedebateonthissubjectto

circulatearoundthetwopolesofformalrigidmethodologiesandmoreAgilerapiddevelopment

methods.TheoriginalAgilemanifestoisnowoveradecadeold.Itstated:

Wevalue

Individualsandinteractionsoverprocessesandtools

Workingsoftwareovercomprehensivedocumentation

Customercollaborationovercontractnegotiation

Respondingtochangeoverfollowingaplan

Allthoseattributesontherightarethemoretraditionalaspectsofdevelopingsoftware,dealing

withsuppliers,andfollowingaformalmethodology.Giventheadoptionofthevaluesontheleft

by most of the IT leaders in our survey it appears that Agile adoption is very much in the

ascendancy,butanumberofsubtleissueswereidentifiedwithintherepliesfromourITleaders.

Some industries face tight regulation, banking, insurance, and chemical production for

example. In these industries IT is seen as autility it must always be there andmust

alwayswork.Thereisnoscopeforfailurewhenachemicalplantoratradeinvolvingtens

ofmillionsof dollarsdependsonthe systemworking. Inthesecases there isnochoice

otherthanfortightformalcontrolsonprojectsAgilemethods,whichinvolveiteration

wheremistakescanbecorrected,donotworkwhenmistakescannotbetolerated.

CustomersincludinginternalonesneedtobeinvolvedintheITmethodologyforthemtounderstandwhy it isneeded. If customers are not involvedat the various stages of

design,development,andtestingthentheywillfailtounderstandtheimportanceofthe

methodologyandwilldemandunrealisticdeadlines. FormalindustrymethodologiesareessentialforITsupplierswhoaredeliveringeveryday

toclientswithcontractsinplacedeterminingwhatistobedelivered,butwithaninternal

customerthereisscopeformoreflexibility.Itremainsimportant,buttheinternalprojects

havemorechanceofpromotinginnovation than anythingbought fromasupplier.With

theseoften-recurringissuesinmind,therewereclearlyafewlearningoutcomesthatcan

betakenaway.


10/12


Everyoneusessomething.ThereisnomodernCIOwhowouldrunaprojectwithoutsomekindofformalcontrol,whetherthisisaverytightprojectmanagementmethodologyor

Agileandextremeprogrammingmethods.Thereisalwaysaneedforcontroland

measurement,whethertheprojectisinternalorbeingdeliveredbyasupplier.

Itisverycommonandacceptedtotakeanindustrystandardandtothenmodifyitforusewithintheorganization.ManyITleadersexplainedthattheyuseatoolsuchasITIL,but

theytakethecoreofthemethodologyandthentweakittoworkwithintheircompany.

TherewerejustaboutasmanyITleadersdoingthisasthosetakinganindustrystandard

andusingitwithoutchangesoitisaverycommonandacceptedpracticeperhapsnot

acknowledgedbythecompaniessellingtrainingorauditsinmethodologyuse.

ItwasgenerallyacceptedthatsmallerandlesscriticalprojectsalmostalwayswoulduseanAgiledevelopmentmethodology,butlargebudgetmajorprojectswouldneedamore

formalframework.However,thiscouldbedriveninpartbecausemanagersoutsidetheIT

departmentneedreassurancethatbigprojectsgetbiggercontrolframeworksasthereis

notechnicallimitationonthesizeofanAgileproject.

Asalways,ITleaderslovepragmatism.Ifthetoolshelpthemgetthejobdoneandthecustomers

remainhappythenthosewillbethetoolsplacedinthetoolbox.

InthetechnologypressitlooksasifAgileistakingover,butthesituationismorecomplex,with

manyITleadersforcedtoadoptamoreconservativedeliverymodel.Thereremainsaneedfora

widevarietyofdevelopmentmethodologiestoensurethatallprojectscriticalorexperimental

canbedeliveredinthebestpossibleway.


11/12


ITDecisionsResearchITDecisionsproducesareportlikethiseveryFriday,basedonwhatCIOstoldusthatsameweek.

Itisfastandrelevantknowledgefromyourpeers,itisonlyavailabletotheCIOsintheresearch

network,anditisfree.Whatisthecatch?Youpaybyparticipating.Everyweek,wewillsendyoufoursimplequestions

thatwilltakenomorethanfiveminutestoanswer.

Themoreparticipants,thebetterthequalityoftheresearch.Sopleasedoinviteyourcolleagues

tojoin!

Do you want to direct the research and define the topics alongside our board of founder

members?WealsoofferPlatinummembershipsthatallowyoutosteertheprocess,aswellas

other benefits including comprehensive reports, face-to-face focus sessions and more. Get in

[email protected].

The IT Decisions FutureSkills fund is a charitable, transparent fund focused on improving IT

educationandtraininginBrazil.

IfyourecommendaPlatinummembertothenetwork,wewilldonateR$500tothefundinyournameandPlatinummemberswillgettochoosewhichorganizationgetsthemoneyattheend

oftheyear.Pleasecontactusformoredetails.


12/12

12ITD #6 Transforming IT Delivery Models IT D i i 16 S t b 2011 All Ri ht R d

AboutITDecisionsITDecisionsisthepremiersourceofinsightintothetechnologyandhigh-techserviceindustryin

Brazil.ThecompanycreatesEnglish-languagenewsandinsight foraCIOaudiencewithregular

features and analysis that cannot be found elsewhere. We focus on decision-makers and

influencersthebuy-side.Reproducingthesalespitchoradvertsofsuppliersisnotourthing;

wefocusonthosebuyingthesystems.ITDecisionswasfoundedin2011byMarkHillaryandAngelicaMari,twoofthemostrespected

businessandtechnologywritersinEurope-withacollectionofbest-sellingbooksandindustryawardsbetweenthem.

TheITDecisionsresearchnetworkisaninvitation-onlygroupofCIOsinBrazilwhoworktogether

toproduceanewresearchreporteveryweek.

TakeamomenttoconnectwiththeITDecisionsmanagementonLinkedInandtakealookatsome

oftheirbooks,othermedia,blogs,andpublications:

MarkHillary,ChiefExecutiveOfficerhttp://j.mp/markhillary

AngelicaMari,PublishingDirector

http://j.mp/angelicamari

PhotoCredits:AndyCiorda http://www.flickr.com/photos/ciordia/54065888/AndrewStawarz http://www.flickr.com/photos/stawarz/2981086612/

Documents

ITD #6 16 Sep 2011 | Transforming IT delivery models