Transitioning a project to the support team post implementation can sometimes be a project in itself! Lack of clarity around the roles and responsibilities, lack of accountability, some kind of skepticism in the mind of everyone to take up something "new" are the primary reasons why projects take as much time to transition over (sometimes more) as they took to get implemented.
In my opinion, Project Transition becomes difficult, primarily due to the following:
1) Lack of clarity around roles and responsibilities: Every new project introduces a new system in the pool. Once implemented, this system has to be "Owned" by the support team. Ownership of a new application always creates problems, especially if roles, responsibilities and alignments are not laid out earlier on.
2) Lack of knowledge around the application: Would you take up something you had little idea about? Why expect the support teams to behave otherwise?
3) Lack of expertise: Support teams usually are a constant in the organisation, while projects are many and varied. It may happen that the support team has limited expertise in the area and technology of the project.
Here's my 4 pointer on how to make Transition a (hopefully) simpler job:
1) Involve them early: Involve the Support team pretty early in the project. As early as the kick off meeting itself
2) Decide the support model early: This is the heart of the transition strategy. This is where it should be amply and crisply clear who does what. Lay down the RACI matrix clearly. Lay down the plan clearly. If the issue is technical, who resolves it? If there is a DB issue, who handles it? When the end user has a query, who clarifies it?
3) Decide the infrastructure requirements and work out the costs: Based on the support model, infrastrucure gets decided. Does the support team require any additional machines, specific software? Is there a requirement for DB? How will trainings be carried? Any costs for carrying out things remotely?
4) Plan and implement the transition process: Install the required infrastructure, create the crednetials, involve the support team through the phases of the project, plan for the training, and hand the project over.
Support transition can indeed be difficult, but just like the project itself, if this activity is well planned, support transition can be managed with comparatively less diffficulty.
In my opinion, Project Transition becomes difficult, primarily due to the following:
1) Lack of clarity around roles and responsibilities: Every new project introduces a new system in the pool. Once implemented, this system has to be "Owned" by the support team. Ownership of a new application always creates problems, especially if roles, responsibilities and alignments are not laid out earlier on.
2) Lack of knowledge around the application: Would you take up something you had little idea about? Why expect the support teams to behave otherwise?
3) Lack of expertise: Support teams usually are a constant in the organisation, while projects are many and varied. It may happen that the support team has limited expertise in the area and technology of the project.
Here's my 4 pointer on how to make Transition a (hopefully) simpler job:
1) Involve them early: Involve the Support team pretty early in the project. As early as the kick off meeting itself
2) Decide the support model early: This is the heart of the transition strategy. This is where it should be amply and crisply clear who does what. Lay down the RACI matrix clearly. Lay down the plan clearly. If the issue is technical, who resolves it? If there is a DB issue, who handles it? When the end user has a query, who clarifies it?
3) Decide the infrastructure requirements and work out the costs: Based on the support model, infrastrucure gets decided. Does the support team require any additional machines, specific software? Is there a requirement for DB? How will trainings be carried? Any costs for carrying out things remotely?
4) Plan and implement the transition process: Install the required infrastructure, create the crednetials, involve the support team through the phases of the project, plan for the training, and hand the project over.
Support transition can indeed be difficult, but just like the project itself, if this activity is well planned, support transition can be managed with comparatively less diffficulty.
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