MCPc Blog

Technology Integration Project Management Process: Define & Design

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My last post spoke to the attributes and actions that guarantee a successful technology project, namely, the importance of project planning.  I suggested slowing down to clearly identify the project's goals and objectives — not just the activities — and cautioned against the urge to start building immediately out of the gate.

What happens now that the project is planned? In any major technology integration project, it's important to continue on with your plan in an organized and strategic manner.  At MCPc, we follow a specific project management methodology for all customer engagements in order to keep things organized and moving along at the proper pace.  In this methodology, we move on to the Define and Design phases after the Plan is complete.

Project Definition and Design

The Define phase determines the user, functional, and system requirements for the solution being implemented. After several requirement gathering sessions, we work with the customer to craft a comprehensive, functional specification along with project-specific work documents.  These documents can be line drawings, wiring diagrams or configuration worksheets that offer a visual of the implementation.

Together with the functional specification, these documents become the input for the Design phase and create traceability to the final design and test cases.  Depending on the size and complexity of your project, you should expect the following documents to be created and delivered to you:

• Functional specification (Performance and Regulatory Requirements, Interfaces, Conversions, Extensions, and Reports)
• Project work documents (wiring diagrams, line drawings, etc)
• Product procurement plan
• Updated integrated project plan, complete with major milestones and timelines

The output of the Define phase and approval of the functional specification launch the Design phase.  At this time, we lay out the blueprint of the system — specifically, how it will be designed, configured and tested.  We'll use the project work documents from the Define phase to build the solution design. This final system blueprint is the critical output from the Design Phase.

With these documents in hand, your project manager should elaborate the project structure and schedule and begin to define a comprehensive test plan and corresponding test cases.  A test case defines the conditions against which the solution is tested — a detailed procedure that fully tests all features of the solution.  The test plan describes what to test.

Benefits of a Complete Project Management Process

Much like the Plan phase, it is imperative to diligently gather all solution requirements and create comprehensive design documents in the Define and Design phases.  Following these recommendations will ensure these critical outcomes:

• Your project will have a better chance at coming in on time and on budget.
• The Design documents that outline the technology integration specifications will ultimately become the building block for all test cases.
• Should you wish to implement additional solutions or upgrades down the road, your Design or blueprint will outline exactly what was done and when. 
• The project work documents will offer rationale behind the build.

When embarking upon major technology integration, encourage your team and any external partners to create clear deliverables before the Build phase.  Ask your solutions provider or project manager for their methodology up front, so that you can ensure that these critical components are present in the project management process methodology.

Your thoughts:

• What steps or processes do you insist on completing during the Define and Design phases of your projects?
• What are the key deliverables of your Define and Design phases?

Ira Grossman, VP, Personal Systems Group, has more than 15 years of technology project management experience and is an expert in lifecycle management and mobile device management for the enterprise, including the iPad. Connect with Ira on LinkedIn.