Project Management Services

Successful and timely deployment of your MasterControl system is crucial to your company's compliance initiative and overall competitiveness in the market. For many companies, the implementation process is hindered by limited resources or tight deadlines. This can make managing a project a daunting and sometimes frustrating activity. MasterControl offers project management services to help alleviate the challenges of project management and ensure successful implementation of any MasterControl product. Through this service, MasterControl will provide the continuity and quality that you need during the deployment process. An experienced MasterControl project manager will provide management expertise, serve as a project champion, coordinate activities, and communicate critical milestones. This provides a single point of accountability and communication for the entire project.

How Project Management Services Can Help You

As projects grow in size and scope, you may need professional project management services to assist in the MasterControl implementation process. Having such an expert at the ready will:

• Ensure quality and continuity of delivery based on MasterControl Project Methodology
• Guarantee you a dedicated resource for MasterControl products and services for the duration of the project
• Navigate MasterControl processes to give you maximized results
• Provide a single point of accountability for you
• Manage your project plan and ensure the services you purchased are adding the most value to the project
• Coordinate and communicate crucial project milestones and activities with you and your team

The implementation process typically undergoes two major phases: project planning and project execution. The entire process could last anywhere from several weeks to several months, depending on the complexity of your specific needs. With MasterControl's project management services, you can take advantage of dedicated support throughout the project lifecycle.

Project Planning

This phase paves the way for smooth project execution. It includes planning, definition of goals and expectations, and documentation of the plan, all of which could be revisited and revised as necessary.

• The Kickoff Planning begins with a project kickoff. This is the implementation planning (IP) call that starts project planning. The agenda serves as an introduction to many of the planning activities and includes: a services introduction, project office introduction, training class overview, project plan review, integrated team overview, and success overview. This meeting is facilitated by the Project Manager and is the official kickoff of the project.
• Defining Customer Success The Project Manager works with your team to determine your success criteria. The customer success definition is very critical to defining scope and the business objectives to be achieved by the project.
• Identify Project Team and Stakeholders The Project Manager works with your team to define the integrated project team resourced to the project. These names are included in a project planning document.
• Document Project Assumptions The Project Manager documents any assumptions based on the sales process and ensures they are learned and communicated. At this point, you'll provide your input based on any assumptions that have been determined.
• Identify Project Risks and Mitigation The Project Manager documents any risks to the project and how the team plans to mitigate these.
• Project Plan Development The Project Manager works with the project team to complete the project schedule and determines tasks and deliverables for both MasterControl and the customer. This is based on MasterControl's implementation methodology, the products purchased, and the services purchased. This includes determining the task to be completed as well as planning the sequencing of the tasks. The plan also includes scheduling your MasterControl product training.
• Communication Plan At this stage, the Project Manager determines communication requirements for the project team. This may include status meetings, status reports, meeting minutes, and project plan updates on a specified frequency. These will be included in the project planning document. Communication requirements are done in the plan phase and can be revisited as necessary.
• Direct Project Team The Project Manager performs activities to accomplish project objectives, manages project communication channels and ensures the project team is prepared to complete task assignments and is completing task assignments as planned. This activity is conducted throughout the MasterControl project lifecycle.
• Manage Scope Based on Project Plan The Project Manager influences the factors that create scope change and control for those factors. After the scope is determined in the Plan and Discover phase, the project plan is updated. The Project Manager ensures that scope for each task is understood and documented accordingly. Any changes to the project need to be planned and resources may need to be changed, added or removed. This may be coordinated with an overall change control process when needed. This activity is conducted throughout the MasterControl project lifecycle.
• Conduct Project Status Meetings The Project Manager plans and leads all status meetings. This includes setting the agenda. This activity is conducted throughout the MasterControl project lifecycle.
• Day-to-Day Meetings and Issue Management As issues and questions arise, the Project Manager facilitates meetings and the resolution of items. This activity is conducted throughout the MasterControl project lifecycle.
• Pre-Onsite / Remote Services Readiness The Project Manager facilitates the review of homework and/or requirements and determines readiness for planned on-site service activity and project plan tasks. The Project Manager also ensures readiness for onsite validation activities. These include checklists based on project requirements. The Project Manager facilitates teleconferences in advance of site meetings with MC consultants and finalizes agendas and tasks to be accomplished. This activity is conducted throughout the MasterControl project lifecycle as needed.
• Project Close The Project Manager ensures "Go Live" readiness based on the project plan, facilitates the transition to customer support, and supports the development of any support procedures. The Project Manager facilitates a project close gate review, which is a meeting with stakeholder(s) reviewing the project and the results of the project based on customer success definition. Typically this is completed after the "Go Live" milestone during the Deploy phase of the project.

Project management services can eliminate a great deal of the confusion and delay that can accompany implementation of any software product. An ounce of project management is often worth more than a pound of hindsight!

As with all MasterControl products and services, please feel free to contact either your CRM or your RSM if you have any questions regarding our project management services.