The following parable explains what happens when projects do not have buy-in from key participants. Can you relate it to any projects you have been involved in?

I live very happily in Reading
My boss tells me to go to Newbury.
I do not want to go to Newbury.
I see the bus to Newbury approaching.
I shoot the tyres of the bus.
I get on the bus and insist the driver goes via John O’Groats.
I need to use the lavatory.
I refuse to use the conveniences on-board.
Why does the bus smell?
I refuse to travel under these outrageous conditions.
Somehow we arrive in Newbury.
How did that happen?
The trip was very uncomfortable…why did they insist I went the long route with no tyres?
Oh look…it’s 4 o’clock…time to go home

Some commonsence rules to ensure meetings are productive.

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Lessons learnt again…

…read this before starting a project…

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A new report from Kable says the public sector will make increasing demands on ICT suppliers to prove their environmental credentials.

It says the requirements will go beyond more energy efficient equipment, and that vendors providing a range of green benefits are best placed to win future business.

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Organisations often embark on outsourcing with the aim of improving service performance and driving innovation. During the sales phase, service providers will often boast of their “transformational” outsourcing services, and will describe how they can deliver improvements and facilitate innovation, resulting in better service levels.

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In a Forrester paper, Measuring the Business Value of IT, Craig Symons identifies four ways of pinning this value down. “The key is to adopt one method and begin using it,” he says.

1. Business Value Index
2. TEI for IT
3. Val IT
4. Applied Information Economics.

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A report by the Public Accounts committe states that Central Government spends £2bn a year on consultants, of which £500m is wasted.

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Highlights

1. Only half of the recommendations in the Committee’s 2002 Report, Better value for money from professional services, have been properly implemented

2. Departments and OGC do not routinely know how much money is spent on consultants.

3. Consultants are often used when in-house staff have the necessary skills and are less expensive.

4. Departments do not routinely assess the value of the work they receive from consultants.

5. The capability of departments to be intelligent customers is weakened by insufficient sharing of information on consultants’ performance.

6. 40% of clients consider they have used consultants when it was not necessary.

7. For the last three years the most frequently purchased consultancy was IT and project management skills, accounting for 54% of government’s total expenditure on consultants.

8. Departments do not regularly plan for, or achieve, the transfer of skills from consultants to their staff to build internal capabilities.

9. Some consultant charges lack transparency, making it difficult to verify that all costs are justified

10. Only 1% of consulting projects use incentivised contracts and much work is still paid for on a time and materials basis.

11. Departments are appointing some consultants through single tender, which puts value for money at risk.

12. Central government spends over £100 million with each of its top four suppliers, yet does not take full advantage of that spending power.

In any negotiation, both parties must never agree to the first price as the buyer will feel he could have asked for a lower price and the seller thinks he could asked for more. Tips for success:

1. Investing in a new or upgraded IT system is expensive, so get the procurement dept involved at the outset
2. Ensure there is a Business Case
3. Ensure KPIs exist to measure performance
4. Do not have a shortlist of 2. If one drops out, there can only be one choice
5. No concession without something in return

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