By Saurabh Sardesai October 2014

Objectives  Establish a Delivery governance structure within the organization and ensure stakeholder participation  Project delivery must be treated as a core business function that adds value to the overall business  Access relevant knowledge and skills from a central place facilitating optimal utilization of resources  Assist decision makers, senior stakeholders and project members to plan for and assess delivery effectiveness and its impact on internal and external stakeholders  Position the COE as a important component of strategy to increase operational efficiency and project success rate as well as increase customer satisfaction

Stakeholders  Board of Directors and C level executives  Internal customers  External customers  Project members  Delivery managers  Program managers  Project managers  Other company business units  PMO office and staff

Plan of action  Initiate consultations with relevant stakeholders to get their opinion & feedback  Establish a governance structure for the functioning of the Delivery COE  Define stakeholders roles, authority and decision making hierarchy  Define key performance indicators for the COE  Identify and mitigate associated risks  Establish mechanisms to track delivery schedule, progress and execution from the COE perspective  Engage relevant stakeholders continuously to improve the customer delivery experience.

Benefits of recommended model  Standardized approach to project delivery  Increases the long term potential of the program and individual projects  Provide project visibility to the leadership team  Track and report deliverables in a planned manner and avoid any overruns  Standardized templates and reporting  Alignment with business strategy  Faster issue and risk resolution  Assist PMs in attaining project goals

Measuring COE success  Delivering the project to the client on time and within the dates specified in the agreement, taking into account any amendments or approved change requests  Achieving the financial objectives set forth for the project, taking into account any amendments or change controls  Meeting all expectations related to quality and fulfilment of delivery requirements  Adhering to an established delivery methodology measured by a joint governance board  Achieving overall client satisfaction and repeat business  Known within the organization as a reliable component of project/program execution having earned its trust and confidence

Delivery governance structure  A compelling business case, stating the objects of the COE and specifying the in-scope and out-of-scope aspectsbusiness case  Define a clear communications and reporting protocol for all external and internal delivery communications  Centralized delivery execution and metrics reporting  Effective functions for management and senior stakeholder oversight and control  Define and develop periodic reports for KPI analysis  Manage and mitigate any risks or issues related to delivery or project management  Define and manage the budget for the Delivery COE

Centralized Delivery Mechanism  Key delivery tasks  Key project delivery milestones  Execution of multiple projects at the same time  Dependencies related to the delivery  Assigned responsibilities in delivery plans  Key deliverables of the project & schedule  Delivery tracking and control mechanism  Actual v/s Expected delivery metrics  Measurement and analysis of any deviations

Delivery Risk Management Plan  The risk management plan is used to define the tolerance for risk throughout the delivery life cycle  Define the methods for identifying, recording and addressing risk throughout the program.  Suggest solutions to common delivery problems like time and cost over run etc  Maintain a risk plan, risk log and history of steps taken to resolve or mitigate the risks

Business Strategy Objectives  Throughout delivery planning and execution, managers must ensure that the program sustains a connection to the business strategy.  Clear communication about goals and objectives must be made to all relevant stakeholders  Proper oversight should be provided by senior management to the delivery process

COE – Strategic Review  Delivery excellence metrics  IT goals and strategy  Financial goals and expectations  Delivery resource planning  Consulting partner review  A business strategy review  Project goals alignment

Delivery execution reviews  As the program proceeds, the program plan and schedule should provide for periodic strategy reviews by the program sponsor(s) and / or steering committee for meeting the delivery related targets  A annual or bi-annual analysis must be done for all deliveries done for that period and issues and risks identified should be recorded and resolved satisfactorily  Throughout any program, risks are bound to become issues needing resolution in accordance with the strategy defined in the risk management plan.

COE monitoring & control  Event log (includes identified risks, issues, changes, decisions and action items)  Governance and execution procedures and policies that everyone needs to adhere to  Standard reports and metrics management and dissemination to stakeholders  Delivery lessons learnt sessions  Surveys and feedback sessions with relevant stakeholders to improve the delivery process

Conclusion  Establishing a Delivery (COE) is a significant activity requiring participation from all the relevant stakeholders  It should be treated as a critical component of your project execution and operations  It must liaise with other business units such as the board, senior mgmt, HR, PMO etc  It should be a central place from which all deliveries are managed

Thank you