Develop and Present a Transition Strategy

Speedware’s Koppe outlines selling transition’s costs to management

By John Burke

On November 14, 2001, the IT world changed dramatically and irreversibly for everyone using the HP 3000 and MPE. Whether it wants to or not, each organization with at least one HP 3000 is embarking on a transition, a transition that will make or break careers, and a transition that if handled poorly could bring down the organization. Instead of continuing to make what, in retrospect, now seem like simple decisions such as which enhancements to add or when to upgrade, each organization must now make the business-critical IT decision whether to build, buy, migrate or stay.

Speedware is one of four Platinum Partners designated by Hewlett-Packard to help guide HP 3000 customers as they transition (HP’s word) to a world where the HP 3000 is no longer sold or supported by HP. The Platinum Partners have naturally concentrated on migration (or porting) since that is where the perceived dollars are.

One of the first barriers the Platinum Partners faced was how to justify the considerable cost of a migration (as opposed to the perceived minimal cost of staying put), and how to sell this cost to a skeptical management. To address this Christopher Koppe, Director of Marketing for Speedware, created a presentation focused on migration titled “Selling Your Migration Strategy to Your Executive.”

Over the past year everyone has come to realize that there is no “one size fits all” answer to what an organization should do. Koppe’s presentation has changed to reflect this new realization. It is now titled “Selling Your Transition Strategy to Your Executives.” However, the change in title still does not do the current presentation justice, because it is much more than that. It is in fact a blueprint for studying, evaluating, choosing and, ultimately, presenting recommendations for your organization’s transition strategy. I heard Koppe give the latest version of his presentation at the recent HP 3000 Solutions Symposium in San Jose. Some highlights follow.

Research content, alternatives

You have four choices to consider for a transition strategy: to build, to buy (replace), to migrate (port) or to stay (homestead). Everyone understands that building, buying and porting are major decisions, major projects and will cost significant dollars, but there is a tendency to dismiss staying as the do nothing, no (or low) cost approach. Take that approach at your peril. Evaluate in detail all four options. This is not something you can or should try to dash off in a few days. It will likely be a defining moment in your career. Treat it as such.

For each alternative, consider or develop an

• Impact Analysis

• Risk Assessment

• Return On Investment (ROI)

• Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

• Project Plan

• Budget

• Spending Schedule

For example, in your impact analysis and risk assessment, consider the risks in staying put. These include support, how to handle a huge increase in business, third-party software vendor viability and how all are affected by time. In the “buy” case, consider the risks when studies show only 10 percent of ERP implementations actually finish on time and on budget and 35 percent are cancelled outright. In the case of migrations, consider the risks associated with how customized your migration will be and the costs of the tools and consultants required. In all cases, consider how to best mitigate the risks.

ROI is very difficult to measure in a transition project. Consider such things as future stability and growth potential of the IT infrastructure and the value that brings to the organization. Consider also the value of being able to do new things easier and cheaper. Try structuring your ROI presentation as a comparison of alternatives. Figure Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) over time, not just in the first year or two.

The project plan is critical and must identify and itemize all aspects of the transition plan including hardware, software, tools, databases, resources, etc. Identify measurable project milestones (goals and dates), critical paths and potential danger areas. Pay particular attention to the availability of resources and possible contention with other activities such as fiscal year end closes or busy seasons.

In your budget include both current annual costs and fully burdened transition project costs, including software, hardware, support, tools, contractors, personnel, training, etc. Create a multi-year budget and be sure to include parallel costs if your plan includes maintaining two environments for any period of time. Be prepared to compare budgets for all the alternatives. Your spending schedule must be closely linked to the project plan with the expenditures reflecting the project milestones.

Make your decision, prepare for presentation

You may very well have a personal agenda. Each of us has at one time or another spun the facts to better fit the desired outcome. However, be open to the possibility that the facts you develop might point strongly away from your preferred solution. If you value your career and your integrity, you have to go where the facts lead.

Once a decision is made, the Project Plan, Budget and Spending Schedule developed above need to be fleshed out in considerable detail for the chosen alternative.

You’ve done your research and made your decision, so now it is time to prepare your presentation. Things to consider include:

• It’s not what you’ve chosen, but what you’ve disqualified that matters most

• Analysis of alternatives

• Factors driving the selection process

• Preparedness

• Stacking the deck in your favor

For example, be prepared to defend the selection process, particularly why some alternatives were rejected. Be prepared to discuss at length the level of research that was undertaken for each alternative. Lay out any assumptions that were made. Be prepared. Be prepared. Be prepared. Koppe did not use it, but I like to quote Hall of Fame coach John Wooden: “Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.”

Stack the deck in your favor. Work with your CFO during your study to make sure you have all the financial ducks lined up. Make sure the CFO is in your corner. Among the worst things that could happen to your presentation would be for the CFO to challenge your numbers. Prime the meetings by talking with attendees ahead of time about various pieces. Make them feel confident you have researched your presentation thoroughly. Make sure you have interviewed other departments during your study to get buy-in to your proposal. User departments that are antagonistic to your plan can sink your project (and your career) in a heartbeat.

Making your pitch

You should consider what a C-level executive seeks from a successful presentation. Industry literature is replete with examples of disconnects between IT management and senior company executives.

C-level executives are not interested in bits and bytes explanations. C-level executives are interested in seeing a clear business case and the analysis behind it. They want a project description with impact analysis, a high-level project plan with backup detail, a budget with funding requirements, spending schedule and a total cost of ownership analysis including ROI and “net.”

For the analysis, be prepared to give an accounting of how the research was done, who was consulted, what options were disqualified and why and the rationale behind the final recommendation. Focus on risk assessment and how you intend to mitigate risk.

Set up your presentation using PowerPoint or something similar, but keep it simple. Avoid a lot of distracting graphic effects. Have handouts of the slides, budget, spending schedule and a summarized project plan with milestones, but do not pass out the budget and spending schedule until you are ready to discuss them. One option is to have an external expert available for questions and to add weight to your presentation. You should probably plan on having a follow-up meeting; schedule this next meeting at the end of your presentation.

Be sure to wear a suit, even if the corporate culture is casual, and use correct business terminology. Stay away from technical details, keeping explanations short and to the point and using graphs and numbers wherever possible.

Conclusion

I have been able to give only a brief overview of all the topics Koppe covered in his one-hour presentation. The presentation is geared specifically toward HP 3000 transition (and still in many cases, migration) strategies; however, in a more general sense it is an MBA 101 course in researching, formulating and presenting a business strategy. If you get a chance to hear Koppe give this talk, take it. And take good notes — because I guarantee you will use the information at some point in your career.

John Burke is the founder of Burke Consulting and Technology Solutions (www.burke-consulting.com), which specializes in system management, consulting and outsourcing. He has over 25 years experience in systems, operations and development, is co-chair of SIGMPE, and has been writing regularly about HP e3000 issues for over 10 years. You can reach him at john@burke-consulting.com