Infrastructure Consulting Assignments

Ensure your processes, applications and resources provide a solid foundation for you to succeed

The performance capability of your infrastructure is measured during three phases, 1) engineering or acquisition, 2) deployment and 3) support (i.e. production).

Performance improvement during the initial phase occurs from a series of planned performance audits at key milestones.

During the deployment phase (i.e. introduction or roll out) an infrastructure consulting assignment is subject to an additional set of planned audits that provide real-time incremental boasts to performance.

During the support (i.e. production).phase the Infrastructure Consulting Assignment is subject to any number of unplanned performance analyses. The unplanned performance analysis activities initial arise with the project or enterprise activity that is leveraging it.

Types of infrastructure consulting assignments include acquisition, deployment and support of new software licenses, consolidation of IT systems, introduction of a new process, e.g. PRINCE2.

Planned performance audits

Planned audits establish the strengths and weaknesses of the current infrastructure’s resources, processes, applications against a series of best practices from published works and industry trends.

• INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIREMENTS ANALYSIS: Ensure a common vision of the primary requirements.
• RESOURCE MANAGEMENT: Determines the make-up and suitability of resources.
• ENGINEERING ASSESSMENT: Determines whether the project methodologies, e.g. software process, go/kill process.
• ACQUISITION STRATEGY: Validates the thoroughness of the purchasing cycle.
• CONTRACT ASSESSMENT: Measures the performance capability of any associated contracts or agreements with 3rd parties.
• PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT: Determines whether project meetings meet the objectives of participants and best practices.
• STAKEHOLDER CONCURRENCE: Measures contribution levels to establish consistency of project specifications.
• DEPLOYMENT: Rolling out the new infrastructure across the enterprise.
• TESTING STRATEGY: Evaluates the characteristics of the testing strategy against best practices.
• USER ACCEPTANCE TESTING: Assess the suitability and quality of the planned user domain testing.
• RELEASE & SUPPORT READINESS: Measures the readiness of the planned support systems, processes and resources.

All the above topics are configured based on the specific nature of the Infrastructure.

Guiding the project owners through the following predefined workflow for each topic delivers performance improvement at every key stage of the consulting assignment.

• INITIATE: Create and manage everything via your internet browser.
• ELABORATE: Notifications are circulated to all participants via email.
• CAPTURE: A series of questionnairs capture the participants input.
• ANALYSE: All participants data is analysed against best practices.
• DIAGNOSE: Root cause analysis is performed where appropriate.
• PLAN: A corrective measures database helps identifyand prioritise actions
• OPTIMISE: Maintain an an optimum level of performance by monitoring prgress of actions.
• REPEAT: Repeat the audit every 6 months to maintain an optimum level of performance

Unplanned performance audits

The ability to rapidly blend current project data with current project characteristics and historical performance results helps project owners accurately measure the best course of action.

• RESOURCES: Availability of additional skills.
• SCOPE: Opportunity to make further scope changes.
• BUDGET: Determine the influence of increased expense on opportunity.
• ACTIVITIES: Increasing the frequency of project activities, e.g. project meetings.
• TECHNOLOGIES: Benefits of introducing additional technology to support an activity.
• PROCESSES: Possibility of streamlining an existing commercial or operational process.

Workflow

• CHANGE RECORD: Capture variation impact to schedule, scope and budgets.
• ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS: on-demand tool enables rapid identification of the root cause.
• SCENARIO: Develop a number of performance improvement scenarios.
• COMPARE & CHOSE: Determine which scenario is better suited for short, medium and long term needs.
• APPROVE: Solicit managerial approval for the chosen scenario.
• CORRECTIVE MEASURES: Allocate resources to address underlying root cause.