Information Technologies Page 1 Information Technologies Page 1 Information Technologies Page 1 Information Technologies Page 1Information Technologies Page 1 Opportunity Assessment Overview April 2008
Information Technologies Page 2 Information Technologies Page 2 Information Technologies Page 2 Information Technologies Page 2Information Technologies Page 2 Conceptualization Phase(s) IT Definition and Delivery Methodology Life Cycle Overview Initial Screening Gate Project Delivery Phase Solution Concept Phase Project Approval Gate Business Approval Gate Business Concept Phase Initial Operations & Support Operate, Support and Maintain IT Services Transition to Production Solution Definition/ Development Solution Assurance/ Testing Implement Solution Build Operate Design Define and Deliver IT Project Initiatives Review Requirements Definition Deliver Project Completion Gate Plan Strategic/Tactical Plans & Priorities Initial Assessment Phase Continuous Service & Process Improvement & Sustainment Requests for New Services & Features From Units & Faculties 2
Information Technologies Page 3 Information Technologies Page 3 Information Technologies Page 3 Information Technologies Page 3Information Technologies Page 3 May be combined for certain initiatives IT Definition and Delivery Methodology Different Words Design it Is the idea worth pursuing? Project Delivery Phase Determine solution to the problem Approval for project to proceed? Confirm value of proceeding? Determine business value of solving problem Support It for Initial period Support The Solution Transition to Production Implement it Build it/Test it Build Operate Design Review Detailed Requirements Deliver Plan Is the Project Done, what Did we Learn? Initial Opportunity Problem ID and Solution Idea Continuous Service & Process Improvement & Sustainment Requests for New Services & Features From Units & Faculties Strategic/Tactical Plans & Priorities Define and Deliver IT Project Initiatives 3
Information Technologies Page 4 Information Technologies Page 4 Information Technologies Page 4 Information Technologies Page 4Information Technologies Opportunity Assessments Identifying Opportunities Requests for new products, services or features can originate from the changing needs of a department or faculty Requests for improvements may be identified through; –Ongoing reviews or usage of service delivery results (improving or changing an existing system), –Learnings from ongoing operations and support (problems identified based on re-occurring issues logged via HD tickets), –Changing expectations for capacity, performance and availability, and sustainment of infrastructure Page 4 4
Information Technologies Page 5 Information Technologies Page 5 Information Technologies Page 5 Information Technologies Page 5Information Technologies Opportunity Assessments What is an Opportunity Assessment? The creation of an OA is a step in formalizing a request to apply resources and the associated amount of funding to the development of the specified item An OA is created to define an issue/opportunity and includes a high level assessment of the value of solving the business issue, and an initial sense of the type and complexity of the solution Who can initiate an OA? Any staff, faculty or contactor on the UofC campus that requires IT resources for the development of a product or service Page 5 5
Information Technologies Page 6 Information Technologies Page 6 Information Technologies Page 6 Information Technologies Page 6Information Technologies Opportunity Assessments Submitting OAs for Assessment Departments and faculties that are part of BASE partner with IT primes to create and present Opportunity Assessments for review Department and faculties that are NOT part of BASE should contact the Project Office via the mailbox to help – determine whether or not an OA is required for their request (i.e. small fixes may not require an OA) –understand how the request will progress through the first stages of the methodology Page 6 6
Information Technologies Page 7 Information Technologies Page 7 Information Technologies Page 7 Information Technologies Page 7Information Technologies Opportunity Assessments Documenting Opportunities The are two ways to capture OA information 1.Manually populate the OA template, using the current version of the template from the IT Project Office website 2.Create a record in the IT Portfolio list stored in the IT Portfolio Management Sharepoint site and generate the document from fields populated in that list *Note: This option is currently available to departments that are part of BASE only *Both options require a record to be created in the IT Portfolio list to enable reporting on all IT requests Page 7 7
Information Technologies Page 8 Information Technologies Page 8 Information Technologies Page 8 Information Technologies Page 8Information Technologies Opportunity Assessment Template Page 8 OA InformationDescription IT Contact The name of the IT person that can be contacted for this initiative Open Date The date the initiative was first formally identified to IT, or the date the OA document is created Project ID ID number assigned by the department that received the request. Can be from the ITPM list, PM2 or other Sponsor / Key Stakeholder Person that will fund the initiative, if known, or the person that is currently responsible for the request. It can be the same or different from the Client Contact Client Contact The name of the client contact Project Name What the initiative is currently known as Request Type TBD – Request Type is unknown at this time Enhance – Enhancement to something that already exists Fix –Fix for something that is broken or not working the way it should be Maintain/Operate – This could include an upgrade where the functionality does not change New Functionality – New functionality for an existing product/service Renew – Replacing something with the same functionality (deploying new laptops) Priority The priority rating applied to the initiative by the sponsor or key stakeholder – this is a subjective rating that is relative to the initiators needs Description A description of the initiative, which should include details on the issue that needs to be addressed, the current application/system/process that needs to be replaced or enhanced 8
Information Technologies Page 9 Information Technologies Page 9 Information Technologies Page 9 Information Technologies Page 9Information Technologies Opportunity Assessment Template Page 9 OA InformationDescription Requested By Date A date specified by the sponsor or key stakeholder on when the request must be addressed by. This date could be driven from critical business dates, or regulatory requirements. Reason for Requested Date Include details on why the date is required. This information will be used to determine when the initiative should be actioned. Expected Benefits Details on benefits expected to be realized when the initiative is completed: Tangible: Possible to be treated as fact; real or concrete, possible to understand or realize - Example: Reduced number of data entry screens Intangible: Perceived benefits - Example: Easier to use, improved customer satisfaction *Include details on the potential for re-use of the solution Impact of No Action What is the impact of this request not being actioned? Detailed information may provided a stronger case for moving this request forward. Business Plan Drivers & Driver Focus Area The IT Project Office can provide the current values for these fields, however, these two fields and the BASE Risk fields are currently being reviewed and may be updated or combined in the near future. Due to this pending change, it is OK to leave these two fields blank at this time. Budget Approval Required This should include the budget required to complete the scope included in the OA. For some initiatives this might be the budget required for the next phase only Duration The length of time it will take to complete the activities included in the OA, in days or months. 9
Information Technologies Page 10 Information Technologies Page 10 Information Technologies Page 10 Information Technologies Page 10Information Technologies Opportunity Assessment Template Page 10 OA InformationDescription In Scope The activities and deliverables that are in scope for this request., as known that the time of the OA. Scope will be clearly defined at the OA phase for small request that will not need additional scope analysis prior to approval to move to the project delivery phase. For larger initiatives, scope will be defined more clearly as the initiative progresses through the ITDDM process to the chartering stage. Out of Scope Similar to the above, but includes the items that are not in scope of the initiative. Expected Solution Approach Is this expected to be solutioned by doing custom development, a manual solution, implementing a purchase packaged solution, or other. Dependencies / Impacts Other projects or activities that this request is dependent on or impacts. The information known and documented about dependencies and impacts could influence the timing of the initiative. Assumptions / Constraints Key assumptions and constraints that are known at the time of the OA. Similar to the scope sections, more detail may be uncovered for this section as it progresses through the ITDDM process. Risks Risk that are known at the time of the OA. Similar to the scope and assumptions / constraints sections, more detail may be uncovered for this section as it progresses through the ITDDM process. 10