Everyone plays a part

Frank Koo
Managing Director
Oracle Singapore

IN MY view, there are two key points worth paying attention to:

Firstly, the recognition that technology is just one component of any IT implementation. Successful projects result from a combination of people, processes and technology. Commitment from all stakeholders in the project is therefore of paramount importance. So is the ability of the project team to clearly define how and what business processes will be transformed as a result of the IT implementation. Technology can then be applied to implement these transformations.

Secondly, companies must also establish a win-win partnership with their technology providers and system integrators. This will enable open communications, information sharing and flexibility to be incorporated throughout the project, resulting in a more successful outcome.

It is always the objective of IT vendors to ensure that projects are successful. The better ones have instituted systems and processes in the areas of quality assurance, project and implementation management and product support to ensure that this is the case. Companies will do well to verify with their vendors that such processes are in place.

Karl-Michael Mouantri
Managing Director
BPM Partners Asia-Pacific

WE BELIEVE that the main reasons that many IT projects do not provide the expected results and the ROI are often a result of many companies, particularly the local ones, embarking on turnkey solutions, meaning that they outsource the entire project on a fixed price basis. This often results in the following:

1. Lack of internal ownership as the project is implemented and managed by an outside consulting firm or vendor. Unfortunately this approach often affects the attitude and expectation of the client who often takes a wait-and-see attitude to what the consultants come up with, as opposed to participating proactively in the project from the beginning.

2. The 'turnkey implementors' often do not fully understand the clients' specific business and are most of the time not given the chance to learn sufficiently about the business, and hence build a system that is based on their own limited knowledge of the clients' business, hence creating an expectation gap with the client.

3. No time for reflection or brainstorming once the project is started: The consulting firm implementing the solution is often focused on meeting the deadline and completing the project in the most cost and resource-efficient way, combined with an aggressive timeline. There is often, for that reason, very little incentive for the consulting firm to discuss improvements and recommend changes as the project progresses, as it will prolong the project.

4. Lack of internal project experience: The internal person assigned to the project is often a first-timer, and more often than not has never been part of a similar project before - which means that it is often the 'blind-leading-the-blind'.

The solution, in our opinion, is to do the following:

1. Assign a qualified a full-time internal employee as project leader/sponsor.

2. Work with consultants on time and material basis (that is, charge by the day or hour) which ensures that the consultants? are? continuously focused on adding value.

3. Establish a project steering committee consisting of senior management from the client, as well as the vendors to meet regularly.

4. Don't be afraid to change the consultants or the internal project leader if they fail in their assignment.
Finally remember that you are not only buying the technology but also the right know-how, and the more you spend on the know-how, the more you get out of the system.

Joey Chang
CEO/Founder
AXS Infocomm

MANY have the misconception that IT is the magical thing that will solve all problems and give them substantial jump in their business and operations. That becomes even worse when it comes to customised systems integration projects, where more often than not, it a case of 'ducks and chickens talking'.

The issues lie with both parties, customers and solution providers.

The procurer of a system must make the effort to understand, in detail, what it is exactly they want. Too often, they lack the expertise to know. And fail to invest in people, whether from internal resources or engaging external consultants, to help overcome that.

The vendors must do their part to also understand their client's true requirements, and not be too focus on closing the deals.

To me, the key ingredient would be the project manager. I would insist on evaluating the project manager prior to closing the deal, and would prefer that this project manager stays on the job.

The role of the project manager cannot be understated. He is the glue that holds the entire project together, and would ensure the success of any implementation.

JY Pook
Vice-President and Managing Director
Fair Isaac Asia Pacific

EVERY business has a unique operating environment. Employing a single analytic development, testing and deployment process across the entire lifecycle of the project will ensure more satisfactory outcomes as complexities are reduced substantially.

Vendors can take a holistic and systematic approach to improving the way companies make decisions. This means that whichever area the company chooses to advance in, they will have a better understanding of the necessary next steps required to make their decisions pay off, leading to projects being finished on time.

Companies, on the other hand, can eliminate these complexities by adapting enterprise decision management solutions which will provide a systematic and consistent approach to managing their decisions, thus reducing error rates and producing more satisfactory outcomes.

Craig Gledhill
Managing Director, Singapore and Brunei
Cisco Systems

LARGE IT projects can be expensive and complex to manage, so it's important to plan for it well. There are many variables that could make or break a project, but in general we see four main success factors:

The first is to retain the strategy. The vendor(s) should be responsible for the day-to-day operations, but the overall strategy on how IT is used to the benefit of the business should be retained by the customer.

Secondly, do not bet the business on untried technologies or on multi-vendor platforms. Go for technology partners who are best-in-class and who provide proven technologies and who are willing to share their product roadmaps that accommodate for anticipated changes in the business environment. Related to this, price should definitely not be a main decision factor. Seemingly lower-cost solutions may end up costing more in the future.

The third success factor, vendor management, is critical. Hire IT staff with deep and broad experience working in a vendor environment - as they understand the motivations of vendors.

Fourth, the customer needs to understand the importance of investing in IT and infrastructure as a critical tool to improve organisational efficiency and employee productivity. If IT is still viewed as a cost centre at the end of the day, then the benefits will not be as apparent.