1. PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF CONSULTANCY SERVICES
A CASE STUDY FOR THE NATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY AUTHORITY OF ZIMBABWE
PRESENTED AT MARRAKECH
on 23 May 2006
BY Jonathan Rushwaya
Manager Information and Communication Technology Services

2. Introduction Who are we?
Zimbabwe National Social Security Authority (NSSA)
Body corporate (parastatal) formed by an Act of parliament in 1989
Tasked to administer Social Security services
Started operations in 1994
Operates two occupational schemes (NPS & WCIF)
Currently employs 700 staff
Has 2.1 million members , employers and pensions in payment
Operates from 16 Offices country wide,six of which are networked to Harare head office

3. Introduction –Contd Current environment
Four Core Social Security applications were developed and implemented on a proprietary platform over the period
These are Client registration,Billing ,Collections and Benefits Processing
Standard packages used for Finance ,Payroll and Statistics
Occupational Health Services still running manually
No integration between core systems and support systems

4. Introduction-contd Why replace existing systems?
Legacy systems (DEC) no longer supported
Current systems could no longer be enhanced to support current and future business needs (eg the new schemes planned)
Need to computerise WCIF benefit payment system which is partly manual
Integrate front and back office systems
Incorporate new technology features (eg internet,document imaging and e-business)
Adopt open standards to achieve portability

5. 2 The Project Management Process…Tasks undertaken
Setting out the Project scope and objectives
Risk profiling (Identifying Critical Success Factors)
Set up project structure and communications -

6. The Project Management Process Tasks undertaken….contd
Defining the requirements
Setting out tasks and time parameters(project plan)
Agreeing remuneration and payment terms (costs)
Defining project evaluation mechanisms (quality obligations and warranties)
All these resulted in a comprehensive Request for Proposal (RFP) and a Contract Document

7. 3.The Project Scope and Objectives
The project covers the implementation of front and back office systems.
Project has 3 phases running between

8. Project scope and objectives.. ..contd
Phase one to cover re-development of existing core Social security systems between
Phase two to introduce one major new scheme and 6 back office systems by December 2007 .
Phase three to implement 2 new schemes and value added office automation and pension network between 2008 and 2010

9. 4 Managing Project risk Critical success factors
Comprehensive user requirements
Identifying most suitable service providers
Availability of funding (Foreign currency)
Ability to complete phase one during the life span of existing infrastructure
Insisting on project security
Tie payment to accepted deliverables
Existence of contingency plan

10. 5.Defining Requirements (The RFP)
Team to identify and specify requirements set up by the management executive committee
Comprised key operatives,supervisors and managers from each of the functional divisions of the business
Requirements defined by users in user terms
Winning bidder to confirm requirements,re-engineer as necessary, and provide technical solution to requirements based on best practices

11. Defining Requirements..contd
Bidders to provide reference sites and CVs of proposed staff
Bidders to provide a comprehensive project plan
RFP clearly stated method and evaluation criteria to be used for adjudication purposes
RFP forms part of the contract

12. 6 Selection of service providers ..Attributes preferred
Must be an experienced expert with proven track record
Must provide project security and product warranties
Must be committed to open standards
Must comprise of at least a local partner committed to a long term relationship with NSSA
These attributes were used in the selection and management of consultants.

13. Attributes of service provider….. contd
Must accept payment in local currency
Must jointly work with NSSA staff in the entire development cycle
Must agree to releasing source code, development tools and materials at end of project
Must provide warranties for product and services

14. 7 Project Structure and comms
Comprises five teams
Steering Committee
Customer Team
Project Director Team
Software Developer Team
Hardware Supplier Team
Project Organisation Charts depict structure and communications

15. Project Structure

16. Project structure..Contd
Project team members are drawn from each of the parties and the team members work in joint teams
The Project director has overall project responsibilities and reports to the Steering Committee
For illustration of the composition of joint teams,all the Customer team members are absorbed into the hardware and software teams, while team members from the suppliers join the NSSA data clean up team in order to facilitate skills transfer

17. Project team structure

18. Project team structure..contd
Depicts the functional composition of each of the four teams
Team managers communicate at their levels for team management, project monitoring and control
Team managers ensure the fusion of team members from each party to facilitate skills transfer
Team members are the resources responsible for the actual performance of the project tasks

19. 9 Setting out tasks (The plan)
Individual tasks identified by task leader
Consolidated into project plan by Project Director
Each task has a start, end date and task leader
Milestones are identified and dates set for reviews
A consolidated resource plan drawn
A critical path diagram produced.
Project plan forms an appendix to contract.

20. 10 Project costs Project costs to be clearly broken down indicating:-
project management
development and customisation
DBMS and development tools
hardware and systems software
Data migration
Travel and subsistence

21. Project costs…contd Winning bidder to be paid in ZW$
Prices fixed over contract duration unless mutually agreed to alter
Changes to be costed separately
No hidden costs allowed
Payment to be made against deliverables
Schedule of costs and deliverables forms part of contract

22. 11 Project evaluation and control
Project director has overall responsibility for the project
Regular meetings to be held with project team leaders and steering committee to review achievements versus plan
Diversions to be identified through change control and immediate remedial action taken
Where teams fail to agree,steering committee to intervene,else arbitration
RFP,Bidders response and Contract form the basic quality standards

23. Project evaluation…contd
A formal quality plan to form part of the contract
Signed User acceptance per deliverable to signify acceptance of product quality
Each application to be tested individually and as part of an integrated system
Each product to carry a one year warranty at least
Adherence to the quality plan

24. 12 Managing Consultancy Services
Two main documents used for managing consultants ie RFP and Contract
Consultants terms of reference formulated and incorporated into RFP
Selection criteria for consultants were formulated and incorporated into RFP
Appointment of project manager and accountant

25. Managing Consultancy Services…contd
Agreeing the project plan and remuneration (project plan,schedule of deliverables,quality management and costs appended to the contract)
Schedule of meetings and procedures for submission of progress reports and invoices
Consultant to furnish performance bond upfront
Consultants obligations,performance measurement,communications,copyright , ownership,conflict management and skills transfer clearly spelt out in contract

26. Managing Consultancy Services…contd
Agreeing acceptance criteria for work done
Payment to be strictly tied to deliverables
Agreeing the method of dispute resolution upfront

27. 13 Current status of the project
Largely, targets have been met in confirmation of requirements data clean up and BPR
Adjustments on initial requirements due to BPR
Delays likely to happen in application development
Costs in ZW$ have balooned due inflation and exchange rate movements.
Foreign currency issues have arisen
Overall project time for phase one may be overshot by up to 2 to 3 months

28. 13 Lessons learnt… Project Management
Engage an independent and competent project manager
In a Joint Development project,roles and responsibilities of each of the parties to be clearly defined to ensure accountability
Delays in decision making will dramatically increase project costs
Anticipate diversions to the project plan and formulate mitigation plans upfront
Negotiate for a fixed price contract wherever possible
Effective communications are a key to success

29. Lessons learnt Managing Consultants
Develop a criteria for the preferred consultant
Carefully check and verify all claims made by consultants in terms of qualification and track record
Where you have several consultant teams,get an independent consultant to manage them to avoid conflict of interest
Endeavor to have all consultants work from the client site.Remote management of consultants is undesirable and may lead to project control issues

30. Lessons learnt Managing Consultants..contd
A clear procedure will have to be developed to manage changes in project plans and deliverables
Effective communication and mutual respect for teams will enhance project success
It is also important to manage cultural divide where you engage external consultants
Agree upfront on mechanisms of dispute resolution

31. END OF PRESANTATION NSSA CONTACT DETAILS WEBSITE www.nssa.org.zw
Fax ,or
Tel , direct