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Tag: Change Management

Business Process Changes During a Pandemic

Written by Richard Larson on . Posted in Articles. 6 Comments on Business Process Changes During a Pandemic

What a difference a couple of months can make! I visited a doctor’s office in early March to treat a broken finger before the covid-19 shutdowns had begun across America.

Like any other clinic, no one wore masks. There were no social distancing measures in place. My doctor extended his hand to shake mine (I gave him an elbow bump in return). There was hand sanitizer available, but that had been the practice over several years of flu outbreaks.

Fast forward two months and consider a follow-up appointment of mine in mid-May. Walking into the clinic was comforting because all the staff and other patients had masks on (but also a little disconcerting). Extensive signage told us the rules, such as waiting in line 6 feet apart. Several chairs in the waiting area were blocked off to enforce social distancing. There were boxes for sanitized and for “used” pens to reduce the spread of germs.

Another change from March was the presence of a “scribe” to assist the doctor with recording notes and observations. This procedure is still relatively new to medicine and may or may not have been precipitated by the pandemic. Still, it was a noticeable change from March, and given my love of process, I even mentioned it to the two of them. My non-expert view is it may reduce the spread of germs since the doctor does not need to handle a computer during a visit.

By now you may be wondering what this has to do with process change. Consider the following five categories for any business which must interact in person with its customers, whether or not they may be ill.

1. Increased risk and liability. When governmental shutdowns and sheltering in place began, medical facilities closed too. My original follow-up appointment in April was cancelled because of the shutdown. Running a business during a pandemic increases the risk that customers and employees may infect others or may become infected themselves. Visiting or working at a business during a pandemic, whether a clinic or grocery store or gas station, involves some risk.

But what about a medical clinic or emergency room in which a visit is not exactly optional? If an establishment is lax in their procedures or can be shown to be negligent in protecting patients, then a lawsuit may be the result. In short, heightened risks during a pandemic are strong incentives for strengthening business processes to avoid liability. 

2. Procedure complications. The clinic I attended in May had some visible procedure changes and I am sure there were many I could not observe. The physical space was altered with extensive signage and floor markings to encourage social distancing. Simple procedures to provide “clean” and “used” pens for patient safety were small but thoughtful (and appreciated) steps added to the clinic’s daily routine. When I had an x-ray in March for my finger, they simply plopped my hand down on the machine. Two months later a staff person was there to sanitize the surface for my x-ray and undoubtedly before the next patient. Those were just some of the noticeable changes. I am sure the clinic, like airlines, drug stores, or post offices to name a few, must perform additional cleaning and sanitizing not needed pre-pandemic.

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3. Increased communications. Before my visit I received numerous texts and emails explaining what to expect and what was required during my visit. Most of the messaging pertained to wearing masks and distancing which was not done two months ago. It was comforting to me as the customer to get this communication during the pandemic.

My wife and I recently had some electrical work done at our house. The electrician’s company also sent out several texts and emails about their procedures for protecting us and our house from possible germs. We appreciated that and called to clarify one point.

Setting up the communications for the clinic and the electrician may have been a one-time event, but I am sure it still took many hours to perform. As conditions change, so will the communications need to be altered. Having developed and overseen a great deal of customer communication in my career, I know it is a regular part of business. However, having an external trigger like a pandemic represents opportunity costs and delays other kinds of productive work.

4. Added expense. The additional processes and procedures mentioned earlier will increase the expense of the business who must perform them. Unless an organization has excess capacity in its workforce, they either need to pay overtime or hire additional employees or contract laborers to do the cleaning and sanitizing. Adding scribes in a clinic to help control germs is an added expense.

The supplies needed to operate in a pandemic also increase expenses. Our local grocery store has added plastic barriers in addition to supplying employees with protective masks and sanitizing supplies. They spray and disinfect the check-out lanes between each customer, adding to their expense.

5. Reduced revenue and profits. With an increase in cost and potentially a decrease in revenue, profits are bound to decrease. Some examples include:

  • Reduced number of patient appointments in a medical clinic to maintain distancing.
  • A national warehouse store we shop at limits the number of customers in their store at any one time to minimize spreading of infections. They still have a steady stream of people waiting to get in, having waited in line with scores of others 45 minutes to access the store recently.
  • Training companies like ours will need to limit attendees to in-person classes to allow proper distancing or will be forced to conduct virtual-only classes.

Any business that limits the number of customers for safety reasons will expect a decrease in revenue. That can be mitigated by online sales for retailers or training companies, but some organizations like chiropractors, beauty parlors, or barbershops cannot replicate what they do in an online fashion. Along with an increase in expenses, profits will decrease which in turn will cause other detrimental effects such as layoffs or closures.

A pandemic is a pressing and urgent stimulus for many process changes. Some of the changes will likely disappear in time, such as mask wearing and social distancing. Other changes like increased sanitizing and safety-related communications may be permanent. Organizations hope, of course, that reduced income and profits are temporary and will need to adjust their operations accordingly. You might say there is never a dull moment in process work, but then again, I am a process nerd!

From the Sponsor’s Desk – Beware the Tip of the Iceberg Syndrome

Written by Drew Davison on . Posted in Articles. 3 Comments on From the Sponsor’s Desk – Beware the Tip of the Iceberg Syndrome

“Knowledge is the tip of the iceberg whereas wisdom is the entire iceberg.” ― Steven Magee, engineer and author

Have you ever taken on a job, at work or at home, that looked like a quick fix only to find yourself deep in the mire hours, days, weeks, even months later? I call that the Tip of the Iceberg Syndrome. It’s manifested by decisions based only on what can be seen, when we are blind to what lies below the surface. As a result, we have a limited understanding of who and what else may be affected and we have minimal awareness of what skills, capabilities, practices and technologies may be needed to remedy the situation.

The iceberg metaphor is appropriate. Up to 90% of an iceberg is below the surface. As the tragic example of the Titanic revealed, it’s the size of the whole that matters most. That was the challenge with the following project. It looked, on the surface, like a simple, easy, short term undertaking. Fortunately the assigned leader didn’t fall for the trap.  

The Situation

Ahmad Darman was a Scrum Master at a large multi-national financial services firm. He had handled his share of large, complex projects over the years. So when Ahmad’s boss approached him and asked him to take on a small project that was being proposed by the Operations manager, he said sure. He thought he could wrap it up in a couple of months and get on to something more challenging.

Ahmad’s new project was to automate a manual procedure rotated among three staff that was completed daily in the early morning hours. The existing process shipped stock trades made by his company’s clients to the involved fund companies through a clearing house. Sounds like a walk in the park? What Ahmad didn’t realize at the start: beware the tip of the iceberg syndrome.

The Goal

Automate the transfer of stock trades recorded in the company’s administrative systems to the involved fund companies through a third party clearing house. The change would eliminate the early morning work and the costs and risks of the current manual procedures.

The Project

As Ahmad began to make plans and put his team together, his first stop was a chat with the project’s sponsor, the manager of Operations. That discussion revealed a larger, more complex project then Ahmad had originally suspected:

  • That little manual procedure done by one person over three to four hours in the wee hours of the morning actually transferred hundreds of millions of dollars of trading information. Daily! It was a critical cog in the company’s operations.
  • The clearing house handled trillions of dollars of securities on a daily basis. They would demand rigor throughout the project.
  • The procedure involved confirmation checks between the company and the clearing house and between the clearing house and the fund companies.
  • Any automated process would have to encompass the actual preparation and transfer of the data from the feeding administrative systems, confirmation that the transfers were successful at all points and the mechanisms around security, continuity, backup and recovery.
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That small, simple project now necessitated the participation of seven organizations/entities: Operations staff, systems development staff who supported the company’s administrative systems, the clearing house, the fund companies, an offshore testing organization that handled all the testing for the administrative systems and the company’s IT Operations and Security organizations.

Ahmad proceeded to contact the key stakeholders and secure their input, support and commitment. The Operations manager assigned three staff to the project, one as the primary participant and two as backup. Fortunately the three were the ones responsible for the current manual procedure and so were intimately familiar with the details. Ahmad’s team quickly grew to seven full time resources plus the assigned clearing house, fund company contacts and QA organization contacts and part time IT operations and security staff.

The team used a hybrid agile approach, applying user stories to elicit the requirements and leveraging Rally from CA Technologies to manage content and progress. 15 minute daily stand-up meetings were the primary team communication vehicle. Ahmad held regular weekly meetings with the project sponsor and clearing house contacts and on demand discussions with other key stakeholders as needed. There was no steering committee. Because of the nature of the infrastructure, only one release was planned over four months including concurrent build activity between Ahmad’s team and the clearing house.

One of the key deliverables early on was robust documentation of the new operating processes and procedures including what ifs, contact information (emails, phone #s, etc.) and information on escalation levels. The work was guided by a Business Analyst on Ahmad’s team and was reviewed and tested by all the players plus call center representatives.

Testing of the end-to-end solution was a challenge. Ahmad’s team used a production box with dry runs for modified data sets. The business was given control to nullify the results once the runs were completed. Security also had to work some magic to arrange suitable testing user ID’s and passwords for the duration. And so the project continued.

The Results

The project was delivered successfully on schedule in line with the four month plan. The implementation included a two week parallel operation of the old manual process with daily confirmation checks. All the key stakeholders were thrilled with the project and the results, including the three business staff who no longer had to be in the office in the wee hours of the morning. And the sponsor paid for the celebration lunch!

How a Great Leader Delivered

Change is difficult. The more organizations and people involved, the more complex things can become. Fortunately, Ahmad didn’t get sucked in by the tip of the iceberg syndrome. He did his due diligence and recognized the breadth of the challenge early on by following the following practices.

  • Understand the sponsor’s needs – The initial meeting with the sponsor set the proper scope for the project and provided Ahmad with the frame of reference he needed to get the project off to a great start and deliver successfully. The regular weekly meetings helped provide the continuous course confirmation and occasional correction to keep the project progressing on the right path.
  • Engage with the key stakeholders – The project’s success was a testament to Ahmad’s stakeholder collaboration. He brought each of the involved individuals and entities to the table at the project’s inception and continued that active engagement throughout, expertly dealing with disparate needs and remote players according to their requirements.
  • Use tools and techniques that have delivered results – Ahmad and his team adapted the practices and tools used within the organization to the unique needs of his project. There was only one release because of the vagaries of the infrastructure involved but a multitude of sprints yielded the functionality and capability required.
  • Foster the dialogue – There was a very diverse group of stakeholders to deal with, including the offshore QA group, the clearing house, the fund companies and the internal organizations and staff. Ahmad worked tirelessly to ensure each group’s needs were understood and well articulated and that all understood the collective needs and shared the common goals. He used face-to-face, phone, email, video, reports, simulations, ad hoc gatherings, whatever was required to move the group forward together.
  • Celebrate success – Every time a sprint finished there was a celebration to mark its completion. The sponsor was always among those acknowledging the success and all parties were involved. It helped all participants share in the feelings of accomplishment and take pride in the progress being made.

So, if you’re involved in a project that looks like a piece of cake, consider the approach Ahmad and his team took to avoid the tip of the iceberg syndrome. Also remember, use Project Pre-Check’s three building blocks covering the key stakeholder group, the decision management process and the Decision Framework right up front so you don’t overlook these key success factors. 

Finally, thanks to everyone who has willingly shared their experiences for presentation in this blog. Everyone benefits. First time contributors get a copy of one of my books. Readers get insights they can apply to their own unique circumstances. So, if you have a project experience, a favorite best practice, or an interesting insight that can make a PM or change manager’s life easier, send me the details and we’ll chat. I’ll write it up and, when you’re happy with the results, Project Times will post it so others can learn from your insights.

Cost Management Critical aspect of Managing Large Scale EPC Projects

Written by Amit Kulshrestha on . Posted in Articles. 5 Comments on Cost Management Critical aspect of Managing Large Scale EPC Projects

Managing Cost on mega EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) Projects have been a challenge in the industry since the beginning.

Several factors impact cost management like engineering design, fluctuating commodities and currency, procure and timely deliveries while depending on your key vendors along with risk involved in freight and finally constructing the project out in the field. Risks related to these steps are tremendous.

As we dive in the details of the article I will highlight how to approach cost management on EPC projects, the key from the beginning is to define Scope and Budget from the beginning and tracking cost and changes to enable Project Management Teams to make informed decisions when the time comes.

Cost Management What is it?

For Several years reality of not being able to deliver EPC projects underestimated cost have haunted the EPC contractors. If the projects are cost reimbursable the loss is recoverable from the customers in some cases but do cost the reputation loss for not being able to deliver on time and/or under cost. but on lumpsum contracts it is hard to recover not only financial loss but have caused major EPC contractors to go bankrupt.

Cost Management have several branches or areas when combined defines the spine of Project Management

  • Cost Estimation
  • Target Budget Definition
  • Cost Monitoring and tracking
  • Change Management
  • Backcharge/Claim Management
  • Cost Forecast

All these branches together define the core of Cost Management and when executed properly results in incredible outcome.

Before we move into overview of these branches, I find it necessary to mention cost management is not limited to tracking numbers, maintaining ledgers and reporting to Management where we are. Cost management requires in depth understanding of scope than only a Cost Engineer can do effective analysis of cost optimization.

Cost Estimation

Cost Estimation is the first step to evaluate the cost of building a Project in EPC industry outcome of Pre-FEED (Pre – Front End Engineering Design) followed by FEED (Front End Engineering Design) determines the Estimate. Establishing a high-quality Cost Estimate is very essential not just for EPC contractor but for customers as well because they have to secure funding to build the project.

Quality of Cost Estimate depends on the several factors

  • EPC Contractor’s experience in building similar projects.
  • EPC Contractor’s understanding of commodities/resources required to build the plant.
  • Understanding of Labor market where the project is built, along with the resource availability knowledge of labor productivity in the region is critical.
  • Clear path forward on how the material will be delivered on site and from which part of the world, a failure in handling logistics can cost millions of dollars.
  • Clear definition of Escalation and contingency as these projects lasts several years.
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Target Budget Definition

This is the phase when an EPC Project enters in Execution and without any doubt the first step is define project budget targets for seamless execution.

“An idol project will be the one which is built with highest safety standards, is durable and works as it supposed to be with most optimized cost expenditure.”  

To achieve this a comprehensive exercise to define target budgets for Engineering, Procurement and Construction is required. This is where team will define potential cost optimization efforts, some examples are listed below

  • Value Engineering: Design optimization
  • Procurement strategies
  • Logistics optimization
  • Defining Construction Direct and indirect costs by setting achievable productivity targets.

This step is integral part of project Setup as the work breakdown structure in which the cost and schedule information will be collected is defined here for the lifecycle of the job. This step can sometime make or break the project if we have to deal with claims in future.

Cost Monitoring and Tracking

Target Budget definition set the framework for tracking and monitoring the cost, it is important that the actual cost follow the same work breakdown structure in which budget is broken out otherwise the reports produced will not be meaningful.

Two key aspects of Cost tracking are progress and performance. Progress and performance reporting for Engineering, Procurement and Construction need to be published biweekly for management to take effective actions before things go south.

I will discuss in detail about Cost Monitoring and Tracking in my upcoming publications.

Change Management

Change Management program help us track the changes in scope of the project and its impact on cost. On a lumpsum project changes can be of two type

  • Scope Change: Changes driven by the customer; in simple words these will be paid for by the client.
  • Non-Scope Changes: These are internal changes which are required to achieve the existing scope of the project.

Both scope and Non-Scope changes can be either positive or negative based on addition or deletion of scope.

Backcharge/Claim Management

For the financial success of any project it is important to have a backcharge or claim procedures in place otherwise project is at risk of losing money and eroding cost performance.

  • Backcharge: These are the expenses made by project to rectify any issues which were part of vendors or subcontractors’ scope of work. These charges need to be collected in very organized manner as per the work breakdown structure to be recovered from Vendors or subcontractors.
  • Claim: Claims can be of multiple type, they can be weather related, schedule related, quality and standard related. Key while handling claims is the ability to dissect the cost and schedule for the subject of claim.

Cost Forecast

Cost Forecast provide a health check of the project it tells if the target budgets are holding or not it allows us to close any open-ended items on which enough information was not available while creating the target budgets.

There are two critical points where a forecast is most meaningful in EPC life cycle one after 90% completion of Engineering because at this time the quantities on the project are completely designed and at 50% construction completion where we have a very good idea of how our labor rates and productivity are shaping up.

Conclusion

We looked at the critical aspects of Cost Management, understanding the importance of Target Budget definition to tracking and monitoring the cost. Small negligence can cause millions of losses on these mega EPC projects, understanding the stakes and excelling our industry in cost management is how we can make a strong EPC industry globally. I my op coming articles we will discuss more about my research on Innovation in cost tracking and monitoring and will dive deeper in details of areas we discussed in this article.

Innovation in the Age of Pandemics

Written by Elizabeth Larson on . Posted in Articles. 2 Comments on Innovation in the Age of Pandemics

Pandemics are devastating. There are losses of loved ones. There are economic and societal losses.

Pandemics disrupt most aspects of our lives. But throughout the ages, pandemics have also ushered in new technology and ways of doing things. From the Plague in Athens (429 BC) to the current Covid-19 coronavirus, innovation has followed.[i] Below are examples of innovations that stemmed from two pandemics–the Black Death and the 1918 Influenza.

Black Death

The 14th century plague pandemic, known as the Black Death, was actually a combination of 3 pandemics and lasted for over 100 years. It eventually wiped out about 50% of the population in Europe[ii][iii]. As devastating as this pandemic was, it also contributed to many innovations, just a couple of which are listed here.

Clocks and other time pieces. Because so much of the population was killed, manual labor became scarce and those who survived worked more. It became critical for both workers and their bosses to track the longer hours worked. As a result of this need, mechanical clocks and hourglasses, which helped workers and bosses keep better track of time, were invented.

Eyeglasses. Until the invention of eyeglasses in the 14th century (perhaps earlier on a very limited basis), much of the potential workforce could not see well, either because they were near- or far-sighted or because as they approached midlife, their eyesight worsened.[iv] With much of the population reduced by the pandemic, there was an increased need for productivity not just for those performing manual labor and the burgeoning middle classes, but also church-related workers like priests and scholars. Eyeglasses, then, significantly increased productivity by allowing more people to work longer.

1918 Influenza Pandemic

An ad for dixie cups reads: “This is the sanitary age — the age of dixie cups… touched only by you.”[v] We might think that this ad appeared recently, reflecting our concern about the spread of Covid-19. But dixie cups were introduced in 1907, and these words were from an ad shortly thereafter. At that time, the use of paper cups was limited mainly to railway stations and trains. By the end of the next decade, however, single-use cups were ubiquitous–in theaters, hotels, retail stores, and casual restaurants. What triggered the change? There were many factors, but the 1918 flu pandemic was instrumental. Here’s why. Before paper cups, most people drank water from public water pumps or reusable community cups  that were passed from person to person, along with any germs which were also spread. The 1918 pandemic raised the concern about the spread of germs and that in turn, made the need for single-use cups more attractive.

Paper cups weren’t the only innovation accelerated by the pandemic. The 1918 influenza brought many changes particularly in the field of medicine. Blood transfusions were one example. It also introduced innovations related to vaccines, such as the identification of viruses, (“very small agents).” New vaccine tools that were created at this time led to the development of vaccines from fertile chicken eggs, which according to the CDC are used today. [vi]

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Masks

A discussion of pandemics would be incomplete without discussing the controversy surrounding wearing masks. Take an article, for example, which read: “A draft resolution led to a heated city council debate, with one official declaring the measure ‘autocratic and unconstitutional,’ adding that ‘under no circumstances will I be muzzled like a hydrophobic dog.’ It was voted down.” As with the paper cups, we might think that this quote was recent. Actually, it’s a quote about the “mask slackers” during the 1918 pandemic.[vii] There were, of course, arguments on both sides. On the one side were proponents. There was a massive campaign to convince citizens (mostly men and boys) to wear masks to avoid spreading the flu germs. “Coughs and sneezes spread diseases.” “Wear a mask. Stamp out the Spanish Influenza.” “Wear a mask and save your life.” But as noted above, not everyone was convinced. Some viewed masks as “feminine” or intrusive as this poster read: “The new symbol of tyranny—muzzle.” And then there’s this headline: “Three shot in struggle with mask slacker.” Regardless of the root causes of dissention, convincing populations of the importance of following a new direction has never been easy.

Lessons for business analysts and project managers.

Influencing. It’s always difficult to effectively persuade people who feel strongly about an issue to change their mind, their feelings, or their actions. But as project professionals, we are called upon to do just that. It’s never easy to get resistant stakeholders and project team members on board. Influencing, though, is part of our project life. As BAs and PMs, we need to be able to influence people over whom we have no authority. What we can learn from the mask example is that trying to use rational persuasion, that is, the use of facts, figures, data, and science alone to influence is rarely effective unless we add an emotional component as well.

Innovation. Pandemics, as devastating as they are, can be a time of great innovation. This current corona virus pandemic is a time for reexamining how to best work remotely, how to lead and interact with virtual teams, how to teach and learn effectively and safely, not just in our schools, but also in classes ad at conferences. And now’s a good time to reexamine our work, including our processes, our technology and new ways to influence and build trust.

Conclusion

We are living in “interesting” times, filled with disruption and uncertainty. It is this type of environment, however, that is fertile ground for change. New ideas and processes that will surface as a result of the current pandemic are sure to move us in a new direction. These changes will be more than uncomfortable for most of us. However, as business analysts and project managers we need to lead our stakeholders and project teams through these challenges. That has always been part of our job. And our organizations will look to us to help them take advantage of innovations

 

[i] https://www.forbes.com/sites/kmehta/2020/03/09/why-coronavirus-will-stimulate-innovation/#6826fc7f2283

[ii] https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexberezow/2014/05/12/black-death-the-upside-to-the-plague-killing-half-of-europe/#35e267fb70d3. The current pandemic has already changed vaccine development, for example.

[iii] https://www.science20.com/science_20/how_bubonic_plague_made_europe_great-29378, Different articles put the number between 25 and 75% and the length of these pandemics from 4 and 120 years. I think the difference is due to the definition of the Black Death. For example, if we include just the bubonic plague, the number of years is much shorter.

[iv] https://benooirj.wixsite.com/thevisionaries/impact-of-eyeglasses

[v] https://sites.lafayette.edu/dixieexhibit/

[vi] https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/medical-innovations-1918-flu

[vii] https://theconversation.com/mask-resistance-during-a-pandemic-isnt-new-in-1918-many-americans-were-slackers-141687

From the Sponsor’s Desk – The Power of Perseverance

Written by Drew Davison on . Posted in Articles. 3 Comments on From the Sponsor’s Desk – The Power of Perseverance

“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer”– Albert Einstein

Most of us live busy lives, even during this nasty pandemic. Coping with the demands of the job, family and friends and keeping up with the latest dictates of our governments and public health officials can be exhausting. That can make it difficult to keep one’s focus on priorities, on what matters most.

Yet, that’s exactly what’s needed, especially in these trying times. Sustained focus allows us to move forward, to make progress on the things that matter most, to achieve our personal and professional goals. That theme is the basis for the following story, demonstrating the power of perseverance.

The Situation

Jason Harder started his career as a Registered Respiratory Therapist. Today he is the Chief Executive Officer of PFM Scheduling Services, an already profitable recent start-up. That journey demonstrates the enormous power of perseverance.

Jason prospered in the health care setting, taking on ever more senior positions and expanding his knowledge and skills along the way, including Certified Professional in Health Care Quality and Certified Pulmonary Function Technologist. When he was asked to participate in a project, he sought to improve his project management knowledge and earned his PMP designation in the process. When he became involved in a corporate reorganization, he researched the applicable practices and earned his Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and Change Management certification along the way.

In 2008, Jason joined the Alberta Innovates Centre for Machine Learning (AICML) as a project manager with a focus on the health care sector. AICML was a research lab in the Computer Science Department at the University of Alberta and is now known as the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii). In 2009, the AICML shifted its focus to perform world class research and also to transition its inventions to deliver commercial outcomes.

During one of his engagements, the COO of the Alberta Health Services (AHS) expressed the need for an automated solution to schedule its many staff and facilities in accordance with labour contract provisions, corporate policies and budgets and government regulations. When the COO asked Jason if there was anything on the market to solve his problem, Jason replied no. When the COO asked Jason if he could build a solution, an opportunity was born.

The Goal

To develop a powerful, easy to learn and use automated scheduling solution that could support hundreds of rules from employment contracts, organizational requirements and government regulations and provide compliance analysis and metrics for the client. The solution was to be delivered in stages and to be completed in two years.

The Project

The Scheduling project started out in January 2014 as an AICML initiative with funding provided by Alberta Innovation Technology Futures (AITF). The initial team included two principal investigators, (Computer Science professors from the University of Alberta), five PhD Students with Jason as Project Lead as well as founder, inventor, designer and QA. In addition, he created the technical specifications for each module right from the start. AHS was also actively involved from the beginning. The team’s mandate: to conceptualize and experiment to see if a solution was possible.

After six months of work, the team concluded that a viable solution was achievable and the team composition changed to one principal investigator, two PhD students, two commercial programmers with Jason still as Project Lead and jack-of-all-trades.  The design developed during this initial stage included four dimensions: number of Positions, Position shift assignments, FTE assignments for each position and staffing levels per shift per day. Within this construct, algorithms and algorithmic matrices were designed to contend with rule, budget, and best practice data stream sets. Four product suite modules were envisioned: solver, checker (compliance), optimizer, and analytics including a customizable array of metrics for the clients.

From that effort, work proceeded on developing the graphical user interface (GUI), a key success factor for the project. An external contractor with extensive experience in GUI development was hired and provided with specific requirements for the user interface. Unfortunately, the worked lagged. The contractor was not meeting targets and when it did produce deliverables, they did not meet the specifications. After six months the contract was terminated.

Jason then partnered with another technology provider that had a key piece of GUI that was needed and hired a senior programmer to work with the provider to develop that component. As the PhD students were moving on, two Master’s students in Computing Science and a PhD in Computing Science were added to round out the team and provide the skill sets needed to continue with development.

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Jason specified GUI requirements by first defining the product layers that were necessary (i.e. administration layer, business layer, analytics layer). He then spent hours with a group of schedule builders at AHS to understand the process flow to ensure that the approach was intuitive for the user. Once he understood the voice of the customer, he designed the GUI layout to mimic what he heard. The team also partnered with several schedule builders to confirm customer needs and ensure that the user experience was intuitive and friendly. As the GUI was developed, incremental testing and feedback was provided by key members of the scheduling builder group. After eighteen months, a GUI was in place and ready to go.

Concurrent to the GUI development, work progressed on building the core of the Software as a Service (SaaS) solution and the necessary administrative functions. The stack leveraged Angular, part of the JavaScript ecosystem, for building the applications, along with Java Script, Mongo Db, Ruby on Rails and C#. The team used Couch DB to structure the database and developed proprietary algorithms and algorithmic matrices to contend with the hundreds of rules and various best practices. The development approach was purposeful ensure a flexible architecture that could meet the unique requirements of individual clients and translate well into other industry verticals.

But it wasn’t all a bed of roses. During this period, the project lost its development partner and funding was becoming scarce. Jason went months without a paycheck. But the team continued with the work on the product roadmap. They also collaborated with various domain experts Jason had encountered on the journey including a health system in Texas. He also drew on his international experience as a workforce management consultant and leveraged those learnings to give continuous direction to the development of the product. And, during the course of this effort, Jason also earned a certification in Agile Software Development. 

Finally, with all the parts in place, the application was able to produce a schedule that met the set completion criteria, producing a critiqued plan over 24 weeks for 100 positions. That was in March, 2017. I expect you probably heard the noise from that celebration wherever you were.

The Results

PFM Scheduling Services was incorporated in 2016. The company featured the PFM Scheduler product suite and complimentary processes and services. They earned a five year contract with AHS to Schedule /Compliance check 65,000 employees. They also signed a five year contract with the United Nurses of Alberta (UNA). UNA uses PFM only to check rotations for compliance to collective agreement rules and  have checked hundreds of schedules to date. The fact that AHS and UNA use the same tool that yields a consistent interpretation of the rules helps with communication between the union and employer

On top of the tool’s success, Jason was nominated for E & Y’s Entrepreneur of the Year award for 2019. And what, you might ask, does PFM stand for? Personnel and Fiscal Management of course. What a wonderful example of the power of perseverance!

How Great Leaders Delivered

This project was a road trip to remember. Some sections were tortuous and winding, some fast downhill straights. There were any number of hidden intersections and dead end cul-de-sacs. Changes in team members and team makeup, funding challenges, the involvement of many partners, some difficult some enlightening, and the pursuit of the elusive scheduling goal were all dealt with effectively in the end. How did Jason and his team do it? Here are some of the primary contributors:

  • Share the vision – Jason started out with a vision sparked by the AHS COO’s question. As that vision evolved and expanded, it became the force multiplier that kept the team on course through highs and lows, thick and thin.
  • Build a high performance team – When I asked Jason to list the lessons learned over the course of the project, four of the eight items he provided dealt with his team: leverage top talent, celebrating as a team, giving specific credit to team members when engaging with clients and mentoring and developing the team. His approach yielded amazing results.
  • Know you clients – From his relationship with the AHS COO to the work with the hospital’s and union’s scheduling teams, Jason ensured that his clients felt they were significant and valuable members of the PFM team. The knowledge they contributed made success possible.
  • Share with your partners – Jason’s outreach to his partners, for funding, for GUI expertise, for design insight and execution, for technological support, etc. provided an expanded frame of reference and a huge return in terms of product quality and capability.
  • Prove the concept – You’ll notice that there was no rush to market as soon as the need was identified. There was a proof of concept stage followed by GUI prototyping and development concurrent with core function work. The initial release included the Solver component only. The approach was deliberate. The focus was on priority, quality and client need.
  • Be creative with funding – Finding parties to bankroll an endeavor like the PFM Scheduling Suite can be a challenge. Jason was able to leverage government, commercial and private equity investors over the course of the project to keep the ball rolling. I expect he would only recommend going without a pay cheque as an option of last resort.
  • Use technology as an enabler – One might look at the PFM Scheduling Suite of products as primarily a technology solution. And that could not be further from the truth. This project was first and foremost a business project, involving changes in business processes, functions and rules. In fact, the company, PFM Scheduling Services, offers a six step consulting service to help its clients maximize the tool’s value. The technology that was selected to develop and operate the SaaS solution was chosen because it enhanced business value.
  • See obstacles as opportunities – There were numerous bumps in the road on this project journey. Any one of them could have been reason enough for Jason to throw up his hands and concede defeat. Instead, every obstacle became an opportunity to learn more, consider other options and do things differently. To stay with it.
  • Learn – Jason’s penchant for picking up certifications along the way imbued the team with a learning mindset as well. It became a problem solving learning machine.

So, if you’re involved in a challenging project with an uncertain future, consider what Jason and his team did to achieve a successful outcome. It worked for them. It can work for you and your team as well. And remember the power of perseverance. Also, make sure you use Project Pre-Check’s three building blocks covering the key stakeholder group, the decision management process and the Decision Framework right up front so you don’t overlook these key success factors.

Finally, thanks to everyone who has willingly shared their experiences for presentation in this blog. Everyone benefits. First time contributors get a copy of one of my books. Readers get insights they can apply to their own unique circumstances. So, if you have a project experience, a favorite best practice, or an interesting insight that can make a PM or change manager’s life easier, send me the details and we’ll chat. I’ll write it up and, when you’re happy with the results, Project Times will post it so others can learn from your insights.