Creating and Implementing Effective IT Processes

Creating and Implementing Effective IT Processes

Tom JordanNetwork Operations Center ManagerUniversity of Wisconsin Whitewater

[email protected]

This talk will

• Describe our struggles with process improvement

• Set some context on organizational process awareness

• Describe some of the steps we took to become a more ‘process-savvy’ organization

• Provide a recipe for process improvement for you to consider

Who am I, and why am I talking to you about processes?

• Manage UW-Whitewater’s Network Operations Center– Back-end Technology Infrastructure

• Often struggle with inconsistencies in infrastructure projects

• Outcomes depend too often on personal perspectives and actions

• It’s hard to present a consistent image to the University

A little about our starting points

• Server administration, network administration, infrastructure engineering

• Systems were supported vertically– Technologists covered the full spread – OS,

Application, Middleware, etc for their system– Technologists provided a single support

interface to customer office areas– Direction was often chosen based solely on

technologist’s perspective

Problems this caused…

• Vertical administration gives little room for depth• Best practices are not identified and applied generally• Senior technologists entirely committed to support work

– can’t move new projects forward• Little management visibility into operational practices &

day to day decision making• User perspective often missing from strategic direction• Project and support work all ad-hoc, very few defined

processes

Why process matters

• Documents our collective understanding about how things should be done

• Removes the need to repeat decision-making processes over and over

• Gives us a ‘reference standard’ against which we can benchmark improvements

• Gives us the organizational perspective, rather than a collection of personal perspectives

• Processes are really how an organization becomes more than just a collection of individuals

So how do we get good processes?

• First seek to understand your situation– Few get to start from scratch– Even bad processes are still processes, and

need to be understood to be modified– You may need to turn over some rocks to

find the de-facto processes that are keeping your operation running

• Understand your organization’s readiness for process engineering

Organizational Maturityvia the Capability Maturity Model (CMM)

Level 1Initial

Level 2Repeatable

Level 3Defined

Level 4Managed

Level 5Optimizing


Level 1Initial

Level 2Repeatable

Level 3Defined

Level 4Managed

Level 5Optimizing

In a Level 1 Organization:• Ad-hoc and chaotic• Unstable environment• Successes are due to personal heroics• Organization still succeeds, but frequently

exceeds budgets & misses deadlines

Level 1 Organizations:• Tend to over commit• Abandon processes in times of crisis• Have trouble repeating past successes


Level 1Initial

Level 2Repeatable

Level 3Defined

Level 4Managed

Level 5Optimizing

In a Level 2 Organization:• Success is repeatable• Practices are retained during times of

stress• Organization uses some basic project

management to track cost and schedule• Projects are performed and managed

according to documented plans• Project status and delivery of services are

visible to management at defined points (milestones, etc)

• Process scope is usually small and project-based


Level 1Initial

Level 2Repeatable

Level 3Defined

Level 4Managed

Level 5Optimizing

In a Level 3 Organization:• Processes are well characterized and

understood • Organization’s set of standard processes

is established and improved over time• Projects establish processes based on

adaptation of organizational standard• Management establishes process

objectives based on organization’s set of processes, then measures progress towards objectives


Level 1Initial

Level 2Repeatable

Level 3Defined

Level 4Managed

Level 5Optimizing

In a Level 4 Organization:• Processes are viewed scientifically and

objectively, and are measured accordingly


Level 1Initial

Level 2Repeatable

Level 3Defined

Level 4Managed

Level 5Optimizing

In a Level 5 Organization:• Even the process of ‘process

improvement’ is treated as a measurable, improvable process

Organizational ImmaturitySchorsch, USAF

Level 0Negligent

Project management is considered superfluous

Level -1Obstructive

Counterproductive, ritualized processes abound.

Level -2Contemptuous /

Arrogant

Disregard for process improvement is institutionalized.

Level -3Undermining /

Sabotaging

Conscious discrediting of peer institutions efforts towards process improvement.

So where did we start?

5 - Optimizing

4 - Managed

3 - Defined

2 - Repeatable

1 - Initial

0 - Negligent

-1 - Obstructive

-2 - Contemptuous

-3 - Undermining

UW-W Circa 2005

What problems did we have?

• Overcommitted on a number of fronts

• Level of engagement not clear to management

• Inconsistent delivery of services to customer

• Not a lot of organizational learning happening

What did we do?

• Defined methodology for project lifecycle– Project definitions– Scope statements– Project plans

• Assigned specific technologists to develop SOP’s for their technology areas (Platform Leads)

• Created a group to oversee technical operations and ensure standardization and consistency

• Deployed business systems to track time and progress in measurable ways

Project Startup Documents

• Project Definitions– Cover the “why” of the project, overall goal and

business value anticipated

• Scope Statements– Clarify with customer what will and won’t be

delivered

• Project Plans– Define overall game plan, task and time estimates

and key milestones for measuring progress

Platform Leads

• Assigned a ‘lead technologist’ for each server OS family– Coordinate platform activities– Define standard operating procedures– Define and project best practices– Represent platform issues to other groups– Ensure consistency and economy of scale

Technology Infrastructure Group

• Group of infrastructure technologists– Platform leads– Network lead– Campus Security Officer

• Define, manage and grow common technology infrastructure facilities– Monitoring, change management, incident

command, etc

Supporting Business Systems

• Time tracking (first)– Very mixed staff reaction– Most see benefit, but also have concerns

• Project status tracking (limited)– Behavioral reinforcement very important

here

• Project portfolio management– Just getting started in this area

What was the end result?

• Projects are moving forward with fewer internal roadblocks

• Project status and issues are more visible to management

• Management now has a better grasp on organizational capability, ability to commit to new projects, etc.

• Roles and responsibilities are more clearly defined, and most staff are more accepting of them.

Where are we now?

5 - Optimizing

4 - Managed

3 - Defined

2 - Repeatable

1 - Initial

0 - Negligent

-1 - Obstructive

-2 - Contemptuous

-3 - Undermining

UW-W Circa 2006

What did we learn?

• Different parts of an organization (and different people) are at different levels– Make expectations appropriate to the level– Plan the process realistically

• It’s difficult to apply good PM practices on a project that is being run poorly– Few projects are pure IT projects. Often IT is not the PM– Scoping and defining roles is critically important– When you can’t mandate, seek to educate– If you can’t do anything else, cover it in the after-action review

and convey the learning lessons for next time

What did we learn?

• Process change is still change, and is threatening if not handled with compassion and respect– The early stages will be about changing

attitudes and building relationships– Pushing too hard for results at this stage can

be harmful

• To be successful, you must be prepared to reinvent your organization

What did we learn?

• You need to be consistent and frequent in reinforcing your process expectations– Processes are learned behaviors. If they’re not reinforced, you

might not be able to count on them– Folks that buy in and try should be rewarded. Lack of reward

for extra effort is in itself a disincentive.• You need to be realistic in your expectations

– If only half of your staff are capable of a given process, expect it to be followed only 50% of the time

• You can’t skip steps, and you can’t reinvent your organization overnight

• You need to be prepared to slow down a little bit in order to speed up later

The Productivity Dip

So what makes a process effective?

• Effective processes serve their purpose(s) in the most complete manner possible, while minimizing negative side effects.

Common PurposesSolve a problem

Increase a capacity

Communicate information

Prepare for the future

Common Side EffectsIntroduce a new problem

Move a stress point

Introduce confusion

Neglect the present

Good processes…

• Have a clearly defined purpose and set of goals

• Include metrics to allow for objective measurement

• Include checks and balances to ensure that the implementation ‘sticks’

• Are broken down into simple, trainable components

• Include mechanisms for feedback into an improvement process

Process Failure in Complex Systems

Reason, 1991

A recipe for creating and implementing effective processes

• Follow these simple steps– Assess– Define– Solve– Implement– Measure– Assess

• Remember – “mise en place”. Don’t start cooking until you’re ready. Then don’t stop until you’re done.

Assessing the situation

• Understand your organization’s readiness to support process engineering

– You may have some foundational work to do before process engineering can take place

• Clearly identify the areas that will be involved and affected


• Some infrastructure needed for process (and project) management

– Project startup and management• Charters, Scope, Deliverables• Milestones and Plans• Time and Progress Tracking

– Behavioral conditioning• Communicating the organizational vision• Training, supporting, shaping and encouraging

Defining the problem

• Apply Feynman’s problem solving algorithm:Step 1 – Write down the problemStep 2 – Think about the problemStep 3 – Write down the solution

• As in all things, step 1 is the most important. There is no value in a perfect solution to the wrong problem.

• Be sure to identify all of the problem areas that you wish to address.

Defining the problem

• Example problem:– Installing a new server

• Takes too long• Costs too much money• Is not done consistently• Doesn’t meet customer expectations

Solving the problem

• Find a solution that covers the broadest possible number of problems identified.

• Understand new problems that may result. Seek to minimize.

• Simpler is always better. People are smart, but organizations aren’t.

Solving the problem

• In your solution, set some goals & metrics.• To use our example:

– When installing a new server• Take no more than two weeks from arrival to turnover• Reduce chargeback amount to CU by 25%• Ensure consistent installation 100% of time• Reduce CU complaints to only 1 in 10 deployments

• Know how you’ll know that the problem is solved or the project is over

Implementing the Solution

• Vet the solution with those that will have to apply it.

• Ensure all steps are clear, and all have the necessary resources

– Training and feedback are very important

• Ensure feedback loops are in place to safeguard the process

– Checklists– Periodic reviews

Measuring the Result

• This is why metrics are important in the solution

• Congratulate on the successes, identify and work on the weak spots

• Remember that you cannot manage what you cannot measure.


• Growing individual processes also grows organizational awareness for process issues

• Review the process improvement activity and see what needs to be reinforced or changed for next time

In conclusion

• Process improvement and organizational development go hand-in-hand

• It will take time, effort and persistence to get through the initial stages

• Foundational steps of ‘process awareness’ set the stage for later achievements

Questions?