Financial Services - Health check of a business critical systems project.

“Pelicam have helped Kiln to successfully deliver a £ multi-million programme replacing all our business systems.  Their impartial approach and the granularity of the health check findings helped us to make informed decisions and set us up for success for future delivery.” –  Ray Faires, Chief Information Officer.

Our Client

A large Lloyds insurance organisation embarked on an ambitious, strategic, multi-million £, multi-year programme to replace all existing business systems. The suite of new solutions will be built around a Service Orientated Architecture (SOA) and web based technology improving efficiency, reducing reporting time-frames and empowering front-line staff.

The programme faced a number of difficulties in achieving delivery success. However, there were  some crucial strengths namely: committed executive stakeholder support, consistent governance and importantly good communications with the business sponsor who had an individual desire to contribute value to the programme.

Our Objectives

• Work with the programme and project teams to ensure the projects were focusing on what is critical to project success.

• To undertake this in a pragmatic, expert and positive style building value with the client.

What We Did

• Our initial assignment commenced in April 2009 with a further health check on another project commencing April 2010. We produced two detailed reports highlighting a number of key recommendations which were presented in terms programme sponsors could understand.
• The review teams used the Pelicam project assurance method and the Pelicam health check to review the programme and organisation. Each area of focus (there are 46 focus areas covered by a Pelicam health check) was scored against best practice benchmarks. Pelicam’s project intelligence methods were utilized to recognise the issues that exist and determine whether they caused a serious threat to the success of the programme.
• To support the first review Pelicam interviewed over 40 programme stakeholders over 10 days. In the second, due to a less challenging risk profile, 17 interviews were undertaken.
• The client requested that Pelicam also carry out a technical review to assist management in making complex decisions.

Benefits Achieved

• Pelicam’s impartiality allowed difficult and challenging questions to be asked of the organisation, and its people, which enabled the true cause of the issues faced to be understood by everyone involved in the programme.-
• The findings enabled the client to make informed decisions as to how to proceed with the programme and which of the recommendations to act upon to ensure success.  
• Before launch over 90% of the acceptance criteria were met. The project enjoyed a 95% pass rate on user acceptance testing and system testing.
• All stakeholders accepted the need for change and supported the process.
• Almost all of the risks and issues identified in the first health check had been addressed by the second health check.