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After reading this chapter, you will be able to: 1. Understand the importance of initiating projects that add value to an organization 2. Discuss the background of ResNet at Northwest Airlines 3. Distinguish among the three major projects involved in ResNet 4. Appreciate the importance of top management support on ResNet 5. Discuss key decisions made early in the project by the project manager 6. Relate some of the early events in ResNet to concepts described in previous chapters 7. Discuss some of the major events early in the project that helped set the stage for project success y Beauchine became Vice President of Reservations at Northwest Airlines (NWA) in 1992. One area that had continually lost money for the company was the reservations call center. Fay developed a new vision and philosophy for the reservations call center that was instrumental in turning this area around. She persuaded people to understand that they needed to focus on sales and not just service. Instead of monitoring the number of calls and length of calls, it was much more important to focus on the number of sales made through the call centers.
If potential customers were calling NWA directly, booking the sale at that time was in the best interest of both the customer and the airline. Additionally, a direct sale with the customer saved NWA 13 percent on the commission fees paid to travel agents and another 18 percent for related overhead costs. Objectives F Fay knew that developing a new information system was critical to implementing a vision that focused on sales rather than service, and she wanted to sponsor this new information system.
Although the Information Services (IS) Department had worked to improve the technology for call centers, past projects never went anywhere. The new reservation system project, ResNet, would be managed by business area leaders and not Information Services managers—a first in NWA’s history and a major culture change for the company. Fay made Peeter Kivestu, a marketing director, the project manager for the ResNet Beta project in 1993. NWA was going through tremendous business changes at that time, and the airline almost went bankrupt in 1993.
How could Fay and Peeter pull off the project? WHAT IS INVOLVED IN PROJECT INITIATION? In project management, initiating is the process of recognizing and starting a new project or project phase. This process seems simple enough, but a lot of thought should go into it to ensure that the right kinds of projects are being initiated for the right reasons. It is better to have moderate or even a small amount of success on an important project than huge success on an unimportant one. The selection of projects for initiation, therefore, is crucial, as is the selection of project managers.
Recall from Chapter 4, Project Scope Management, that strategic planning serves as the foundation for deciding which of several projects to pursue. The organization’s strategic plan expresses the vision, mission, goals, objectives, and strategies of the organization. It also provides the basis for information technology project planning. Information technology is usually a support function in an organization, so it is critical that the people initiating information technology projects understand how those projects relate to current and future needs of the organization.
For example, Northwest Airlines’ main business is providing air transportation, not developing information systems. Information systems, therefore, must support the airline’s major business goals, such as providing air transportation more effectively and efficiently. Information technology projects are initiated for several reasons, but the most important one is to support explicit business objectives. As mentioned in the opening case, Northwest Airlines was having financial difficulties in the early 1990s, so reducing costs was a key business objective.
Providing an information system to stop the financial drain caused by the reservation call centers was the primary objective of the ResNet project. 362 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 Table 12-1 lists the knowledge areas, processes, and outputs that are typically part of project initiation. Tasks often involved in the project initiation process include the completion of a stakeholder analysis and preparation of a feasibility study and an initial requirements document. The outputs or outcomes of project initiation generally include a project charter of some sort, selection of a project manager, and documentation of key project constraints and assumptions.
This chapter provides background information on Northwest Airlines and ResNet and then describes the initiation tasks involved in this large information technology project. You will find in this chapter, and the following process group chapters, that real projects often do not follow all of the guidelines found in this or other texts. For example, the initiating project management process group generally only includes the process of initiation, part of project scope management, and the outputs listed in Table 12-1.
The first ResNet project, the ResNet Beta or Prototype project, included some but not all of these outputs plus several others as part of initiating and preproject planning. Many projects include groundwork that is done before they are considered to be official projects. Every project is unique, as is every organization, every project manager, and every project team. These variations are part of what makes project management such a diverse and challenging field. BACKGROUND ON NORTHWEST AIRLINES Northwest Airlines is the world’s fourth largest airline and America’s oldest carrier.
Northwest began on October 1, 1926, flying mail between Minneapolis/St. Paul and Chicago. Passenger service began the following year. On July 15, 1947, Northwest pioneered the “Great Circle” route to Asia, with service to Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai, and Manila. Today, Northwest Airlines, with its global travel partners, serves more than 750 destinations in 120 countries on six continents. In 2001, it had more than 53,000 employees worldwide. The U. S. system spans 49 states and the District of Columbia. Northwest has more than 2,600 daily flights and operates more Table 12-1: Initiating Processes and Outputs
KNOWLEDGE AREA PROCESS OUTPUTS Scope Initiation Project Charter Project Manager Identified/Assigned Constraints Assumptions I N I T I AT I N G _ 363 than 200 nonstop flights between the United States and Asia each week. Hub cities include Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Tokyo. In the early 1990s, Northwest Airlines’ sales agents accessed a reservation system by using approximately 3,000 dumb terminals—display monitors, with no processing capabilities, connected to a mainframe computer. As the airline business became more complicated and competitive, so did the reservation process.
Calls were taking longer to complete and few direct sales were being made. Therefore, the airline was losing money by providing this necessary function of the business. It was Fay Beauchine’s intent to turn this situation around by initiating the ResNet project. BACKGROUND ON RESNET Arvid Lee had worked in the IS Department at Northwest Airlines since 1971. One of the project ideas he and his colleagues had kicked around for several years was improving the system interface for the sales agents in the call centers.
Changes in the business were making the call center jobs more complicated, and sales agents were complaining about the old Passenger Airline Reservation System (PARS). The government had just deregulated the airline industry, and new marketing initiatives such as frequent flier programs complicated matters. The average length of calls in the call centers was increasing due to the complexity of the job and the inflexibility of the information system being used. The IS Department did some research on improving the interface of the reservation system, but no improvements were ever implemented.
Figure 12-1 shows a sample screen from the PARS reservation system used at Northwest Airlines in the early 1990s. Notice the unfriendly, character-based interface. There was only one window with no help or menus to assist sales agents in the reservation process. Sales agents attended special training classes to learn all of the codes and procedures for using the PARS reservation system. At times, the call center job would get very demanding as more and more people called to obtain flight information, and the PARS information system provided little flexibility in helping sales agents meet potential customers’ needs.
In 1992, Fay Beauchine became the Vice President of Reservations at Northwest Airlines. She knew the call centers were losing money, and she knew their focus on improving service was not working. Fay realized that a major change was needed in the information systems used by the sales agents. They needed a system that would help them quickly give potential customers complete and accurate information and allow them to book flights directly with NWA. Fay also knew that several competing airlines had successfully implemented new reservation systems. 64 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 Figure 12-1. Sample Reservation Screen Before ResNet Peeter Kivestu was a marketing director at NWA in 1993. He knew the company was having financial problems, and he had heard about Fay’s vision of turning around the call centers. Peeter met with Fay to exchange ideas, and they both decided that Peeter could meet the challenges of being the ResNet project director. (NWA did not have a job title of project manager in 1993, so Peeter was named the project director, their title for a project manager.
He will be referred to as the project manager in this book. ) To succeed, Peeter knew that he needed strong support from the IS Department. Peeter had discussed the project with the director of Information Services, and she agreed to have her department support the project. In May 1993, Peeter met with Arvid Lee, a technical specialist and senior member of the IS Department. Arvid had a great reputation in the company, and Peeter wanted to solicit his ideas and support for developing the new reservation system. Arvid’s first meeting with Peeter was quite an experience.
Peeter exuded energy as he explained his overall strategy. He wanted to have a beta version of the new reservation system (ResNet) done in less than fifteen months—by early August, 1994. A rough estimate for creating a beta version of the system was about $500,000. Peeter asked Arvid to take the lead on developing a project plan for the beta system, and he wanted the plan done in one week. Arvid would be in charge of all of the Information Services people supporting the ResNet Beta project, focusing primarily on the hardware, networking, and software integration efforts.
His title would be the ResNet IS project manager. Arvid would also work with Kathy (Krammer) Christenson, a former marketing analyst and the new ResNet application development manager, to customize the ResNet software to meet the sales agents’ needs. ResNet would use off-the-shelf I N I T I AT I N G _ 365 software as much as possible, but NWA staff would have to do some customization, system software development, and new application development to have the new system work within their company’s business environment.
After completing a prototype system that would prove the potential benefits of ResNet, Peeter would have to convince upper management to invest over $30 million in a new system involving over 3,000 personal computers. To get initial and continued funding, Peeter knew they needed to prepare convincing documentation for the project, especially since the airline was not in good financial health. Creating a way to measure the benefits of ResNet was a key part of his strategy from the start.
Although the budget plans for all 1993 projects were due in September, Peeter knew he could not sit around and wait for formal approval before he got people working on ResNet. By the time any official funds were approved in December of 1993, Peeter had about twenty people working on the project in various capacities. Several Information Services staff were redirected from other, lower-priority projects, to help support ResNet. Other NWA staff in the call centers and other departments supported the project part-time while maintaining their normal duties.
These people worked on developing the plan for the beta test, researching various software and hardware options, documenting the work flow of the current reservation process, recruiting people to work on the project, and so on. After funds were approved and the ResNet Beta project was formally recognized in December of 1993, several people were officially assigned to the project. Recall that every project is unique and has a definite beginning and a definite end. Many large information technology projects are also broken down into smaller projects. ResNet was really a series of three distinct rojects. Table 12-2 provides an overview of the three distinct projects undertaken in creating ResNet—the ResNet Beta or Prototype project, ResNet 1995, and ResNet 1996. Each project had specific scope, time, and cost goals. Peeter Kivestu was the project manager for all three ResNet projects, with Arvid Lee and Kathy Christenson as team leaders. The ResNet Beta project or prototype started in May of 1993 and ended in August of 1994. The Beta project involved customizing and testing new reservation software and hardware using sixteen personal computers.
The project also involved developing a method for measuring the true benefits of ResNet before making major financial investments in new reservations systems. This project cost about $500,000. The ResNet Phase I project, also called ResNet 1995, was approved by NWA’s finance committee in November of 1994. This project involved installing personal computers in the call centers in Baltimore and Tampa and the international portion of the Minneapolis/St. Paul reservations offices. It also involved developing ResNet software for Reservations Sales and Support, the new Iron Range Reservations Center, and the Sales Action Center.
The price of this 1995 project was about $8. 3 million in capital costs: computer equipment, facilities, and purchased software. The total cost estimate for the ResNet 1995 project was about $13 million. 366 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 The ResNet Phase II project, also called ResNet 1996, completed the installation of the new reservations system at six other call centers and provided additional software development. This project cost another $10. 7 million in capital and $20 million total. The total cost of all three ResNet projects was approximately $33. 5 million. More detailed information on project costs is provided in Chapter 13, Planning.
Table 12-2: Three Main ResNet Projects RESNET BETA OR PROTOTYPE RESNET 1995 RESNET 1996 Scope Writing and testing new Installing PCs, software, Completing the reservations system software, and networks in installation of PCs, installing system on 16 PCs, Baltimore, Tampa, software, and developing measurement and international networks at other approach portion of Minneapolis/ six reservations St. Paul reservations offices, developing offices; developing more software more software Time May 1993 – August 1994 September 1994 – August 1995 – December 1995 May 1997 Cost About $500,000 About $13 million About $20 million
I N I T I AT I N G _ 367 What Went Wrong? After finishing the ResNet Beta project, Peeter and his team saw the rest of ResNet as one large project to implement the new reservation system in all of the call centers. Senior management, however, broke the rest of ResNet into two separate projects, ResNet 1995 and ResNet 1996. Their goals were to avoid a huge investment commitment and to provide further incentives for the ResNet team to produce successful results. If the ResNet 1995 project was not successful, senior management would decide not to fund the 1996 project.
Although this strategy reduced financial risk, Peeter and his team did not like the decision. If ResNet 1996 were not approved for some reason, they would be stuck with two totally different reservations systems in different sales offices. This situation would cause huge management, technical, and support problems. The ResNet 1995 team was under a lot of pressure to do a good job or the ResNet 1996 project would not be funded. SELECTING THE PROJECT MANAGER An important part of project initiation is selecting a project manager. Fay Beauchine asked Peeter to be the project manager for several reasons. Peeter knew the airline business and had over thirteen years experience in the industry. He joined Northwest Airlines in 1991 after holding several positions at Canadian Airlines International and American Airlines. Peeter had a bachelor’s degree in engineering and a master’s in aeronautics and finance. _ He understood the technology. Peeter was Vice President of Advanced Productivity Programs at Canadian Airlines International in the late 1980s. He was very successful at leading business and technical professionals in developing and applying new technologies. He knew that technologies could improve business productivity. Peeter was working in NWA’s marketing and scheduling area and had some discussions with Fay about new reservation technologies. He made a case to Fay that big technology projects can be successful if managed properly. He convinced her that he was the right person for the job. His passion for the project was obvious to Fay, and Peeter used this passion to convince others how important ResNet was for Northwest Airlines. PREPARING BUSINESS JUSTIFICATION FOR THE PROJECTS Most projects require some form of justification to secure resources and funding.
Whereas the ResNet projects addressed a broad organizational need to cut costs, they also required significant investments before any cost reductions would be realized. Peeter used different approaches for justifying each of the ResNet projects: the Beta project, ResNet 1995, and ResNet 1996. ResNet Beta Project Fay, Peeter, and Arvid took specific actions to convince senior management at Northwest Airlines to fund the ResNet Beta project. All three people understood the company’s strategic plan and knew that it was important to cut costs, minimize risks, and remain competitive in handling reservations.
Fay convinced senior managers at numerous meetings that her vision of focusing on sales would turn around the poor financial performance of the reservation centers. She did an excellent job of analyzing the stakeholders and addressing their unique interests and concerns. She emphasized the fact that the company had to continue making some investments to improve its financial performance. The $500,000 they were asking for was a reasonable investment given the huge potential benefits of the project. 368 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 Peeter had a successful track record in implementing information systems to eet business goals, and he focused on using proven technology to reduce potential risk. Peeter collected facts showing that their competitors were increasing productivity by investing in new reservations systems. Peeter’s experience and charismatic personality convinced people that ResNet was the project to work on and that failure was not an option. Having a strong project manager helps to justify investing in new projects and reduces project risk. Arvid was very familiar with what competing airlines were doing in their call centers, so he knew what NWA had to do to remain competitive.
Arvid’s expertise was instrumental in planning the details of the beta project and making recommendations on hardware, software, networks, and staffing. The plans he helped create convinced senior management that the ResNet team knew what they were doing. ResNet 1995 and ResNet 1996 After successfully completing the ResNet Beta version of the new reservation system on time and on budget, Peeter and his team had to convince upper management to make a major investment in the operational ResNet system. They developed a project plan in October 1994, for the 1995 and 1996 ResNet projects.
I N I T I AT I N G _ 369 What Went Right? Peeter and the ResNet team prepared outstanding business justification for all of the ResNet projects. Using his strong technical and business skills, Peeter wrote persuasive documents justifying ResNet, and he made a good case in his presentations. Peeter’s justification strategy for the 1995 and 1996 ResNet projects included very strong financial analysis, which greatly impressed the finance committee. Peeter knew that the decision makers wanted to see the bottom-line numbers, and he provided those numbers with detailed rationale for how he got them.
He prepared a five-year cash flow analysis of all costs and benefits, clearly defined major assumptions, and described the basis for all of his projections. It was obvious to the finance committee that Peeter knew what he was doing. They also appreciated the fact that someone leading a major information technology project was driven by business needs instead of technology needs. Because of the company’s poor financial condition in 1994, Peeter knew he had to have an extremely compelling argument to convince senior management to make any large investments in information technology.
When communicating with upper management, Peeter focused on the key business objectives of the project, highlighted the impressive results from the beta project, and focused on the opportunity to make money with the new system. Peeter provided detailed financial estimates in the ResNet 1995-1996 project plan. (Peeter viewed ResNet 1995 and 1996 as one large project in his initial project plans and business justifications. ) Table 12-3 shows the financial summary from the October 1994 ResNet project plan. Peeter and his team estimated a net present value of $37. 7 million for the project, based on a five-year system life and an 11. percent discount rate. Peeter also estimated the discounted payback period for ResNet to be 30 months or 2. 48 years, and the internal rate of return as 45. 2 percent. All of these financial projections provided strong support for investing in ResNet for 1995 and 1996. The majority of estimated benefits came from increasing the sales conversion, the percentage of calls that resulted in direct sales. This benefit is also called improving the call-to-booking ratio. Peeter prepared a detailed financial analysis of the estimated benefits of improving the call-to-booking ratio.
Inputs for this calculation included the annual number of calls, the booking percentage with and without ResNet, the assumed percent of bookings flown, the average number of passengers per booking, the airfare, the savings due to direct sales from not paying the 13 percent commission fees to travel agents, and an additional 18 percent for overhead cost savings. Another major category of projected benefits was a reduction in headcount (sales agents) due to reduced call-handling times. Peeter also explained the capabilities of the new reservation system in business terms.
In the project plan to management he wrote: “The objective of the ResNet PC user presentation software is to convert agents from reservationists to salespeople through the use of intuitive software, which anticipates the information an agent will need, incorporates context-appropriate sales messages, highlights marketing programs and promotions, and ensures accuracy and consistency in call handling. “1 Figure 12-2 shows a sample of the ResNet screen. Notice that much more information is available on the new reservation system screen than was available on the old screen (see Figure 12-1).
A critical part of the software develop- Table 12-3: ResNet 1995-96 Financial Summary FINANCIAL CATEGORY EXPENSE (MILLIONS OF DOLLARS) Net Present Value over 5 years @ 11. 5% 37. 7 Commitment (over 5 years) – One-time capital 21. 5 – Chisholm equipment credit (2. 4) – One-time operating expenses 2. 6 – Recurring operating expenses 11. 9 370 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 1 Kivestu, Peeter, PR2 submitted to Robert E. Weil and Anne C. Carter, October 25, 1994. ment for ResNet involved integrating information from different areas and putting that information all on one screen.
The added context-appropriate sales messages also helped sales agents provide customers with information that would help close a sale. As Bill Hawkins, one of the ResNet Beta test sales agents, put it, “What ResNet is to PARS is like what AT&T is to two sticks and a hollow log. It’s a world of difference. ” Figure 12-2. Sample ResNet Screen Figure 12-3 shows the executive summary used in the project plan Peeter and his team created to justify investing in ResNet. Notice that Peeter focused on business issues throughout the executive summary.
Northwest’s competitors were taking advantage of new technologies to improve their reservations systems and realizing significant cost savings and revenue enhancements. The detailed plan included a table listing major competitors and how much their productivity and sales had increased after upgrading their reservation systems. For example, Peeter showed that Qantas and Canadian Airlines had increased their sales conversion by 11 percent after installing a new reservation system, and American Airlines decreased their sales agents’ training time by 22 percent with their new system. Peeter also presented the isk involved in the project as minimal, primarily due to the success of the ResNet Beta project and the fact that most of the money would be spent on off-the-shelf hardware and facilities I N I T I AT I N G _ 371 versus software development. Senior management knew the risks involved in large software development projects, and Peeter’s approach was to wait until the vendor’s software they planned to use was successfully implemented at two other clients’ sites before adopting it for ResNet. All of these items convinced senior management that ResNet was an important project for NWA.
Figure 12-3. Executive Summary for Justifying ResNet Project Northwest Reservations offices currently operate with the PARS reservations system using 30 year-old technology. As a result, reservations agents must remember cryptic commands to access vast amounts of quickly changing marketing information. Because of the inflexibility of the current system, the time, and consequently the cost of taking a reservation is difficult to manage, agents are not able to consistently follow procedures, and training costs are high.
Most of Northwest’s competitors, and now also travel agencies, have been aggressively addressing reservations inefficiencies by installing intelligent reservations terminals. These airlines and agencies have realized significant operating improvement through cost savings and revenue enhancements. Marketing requests approval to install intelligent sales terminals – to be called ResNet – in the eight domestic Reservations Sales offices, in the new Chisholm WorldPerks office, and in the Sales Action Center. The 5 year NPV of the project is $37. M. There is limited downside risk to the project as it has been proven in a National Sales beta test at NW and similar versions of the product are in service with many domestic and international competitors. As the extensions of the application are built for other parts of Reservations, they will be built to the same standards as the current application. Of the total one-time costs to implement ResNet, the majority (65%) is hardware or facility related. Furthermore, there are substantial upside benefits possible.
The software is a small part of the total cost of the system, but can be modified without change to the hardware to accommodate a wide variety of revenue enhancing and cost reducing add-ons to the base software. Because of the software chosen for this application and the ability of the reservations users to complete many of their own enhancements, rapid deployment of new functionality throughout the project term will be encouraged. Written by Peeter Kivestu, NWA, October 25, 1994 372 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 DEVELOPING THE PROJECT CHARTER Northwest Airlines did not use official project charters in the early 1990s.
Receiving formal budget approval seemed to be the main means for chartering projects. They did have internal communications, however, recognizing the need for and existence of the ResNet project. The October 1994 project plan mentioned earlier provided detailed information on the ResNet project. This document was called a Purchase Request 2 (PR2) and was based on the dollar amount involved. Peeter prepared it by following the guidelines of NWA’s Information Services Application Development Methodology. NWA developed this internal methodology for planning and developing their information systems projects.
These guidelines include information on creating the following documents (more information related to these planning documents is provided in Chapter 13, Planning): _ Project Approach _ Technical Approach _ Development Approach _ Applications Approach _ Operations Approach _ Change Management Approach The PR2 included a summary of the next steps involved in the ResNet project after completing the Beta ResNet project. Table 12-4 provides information from the PR2 describing an overall approach for the ResNet 1995-1996 implementation process. Notice that the focus was on installing the new eservation system in the various business areas involved in the reservation process. The PR2 was prepared as part of the funding process. When NWA’s Finance Committee approved funding for the ResNet 1995 project in November of 1994, that project was officially recognized and funded, and the PR2 served as the initial project charter and plan. Likewise, after the ResNet 1996 project was Table 12-4: Next Steps After ResNet Beta Project STEP AFTER RESNET BETA PROJECT DATE First facility ready for information systems installation 2/95 First agent training for live calls 3/95
First office completed 5/95 National/International Sales offices completed 2/96 Chisholm WorldPerks office completed 3/96 Specialty Sales/Support Desks completed 12/96 I N I T I AT I N G _ 373 funded in November of 1995, it was officially recognized. By the late 1990s, NWA had developed project charter forms to formally recognize projects and provide overall guidance for them. ACTIONS OF THE PROJECT MANAGER AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT IN PROJECT INITIATION As mentioned throughout this text, strong leadership is an essential part of good project management.
Project managers must provide leadership to their project team members, develop good relationships with key project stakeholders, understand the business needs of the project, and prepare realistic project plans. Senior management must participate in the project by providing overall support and direction. Following are some of the actions Peeter and other senior managers took to get the ResNet projects off to a good start: Quickly assembling a strong project team. As mentioned earlier, Peeter had twenty people working on ResNet before there was even an official budget for the Beta ResNet.
There was a lot of work to do, and Peeter saw no need to wait for the annual budget approval before getting started. He assembled a project team for the Beta ResNet system in July and August of 1993, with Fay and other senior managers’ support. Peeter convinced Arvid Lee, a crucial asset to the project, that ResNet was a critical project for the company and for the IS Department. After he was convinced of the project’s importance and Peeter’s ability to successfully lead the project, Arvid helped recruit other Information Services staff and users. Peeter and Arvid’s passion for the project drew people to ResNet.
This strong start for the project created a momentum that contributed to its success. Getting key stakeholders involved in the project early. Peeter included stakeholders from all of the areas involved in ResNet, especially top management, marketing, the user community, and the IS Department. He knew from past experience how important it was to have users involved in projects and to have senior management support. Peeter held regular meetings with people in marketing, and Fay was instrumental in getting their support as well as support from the executive management team.
Peeter also brought in several people from the reservation call centers. They would be the primary users of ResNet, and they understood the business of dealing with potential customers to sell airline tickets. Peeter had an experienced facilitator lead several focus groups with the sales agents to understand what the call center issues were. Peeter also held several meetings with Information Services people to have them start evaluating different technologies that could be used to improve the reservation system. 374 _ C H A P T E R 1 2
Preparing detailed analysis of the business problem and developing project measurement techniques. Peeter knew that senior management would constantly question the value of ResNet, so even before the ResNet Beta project officially started, Peeter developed plans to prove that the system would save the company money. Peeter recognized the need to bring in industrial engineering experts to help document the reservation process at NWA and recommend how to close more sales. These experts found that sales agents had to handle over thirty different types of calls.
NWA developed a call strategy based on the detailed analysis done by these engineers. The ResNet system would have to support this call strategy and allow agents to handle any type of call without additional steps. The engineers also developed techniques for measuring the effects of various aspects of the new system on increasing sales and reducing call time. Peeter knew this project would be scrutinized, so he made sure they had evidence that the new technology was indeed increasing productivity. Using a phased approach.
Senior management at NWA decided to divide ResNet into several phases or distinct projects. First they would fund a beta project to prove the concept of the new reservation system. The beta phase would demonstrate that the new technology would work and that the system would be profitable. Originally, Peeter wanted the second project to involve installing ResNet in all of the reservation call centers. Instead, senior management at NWA insisted on continuing a phased approach. They agreed to fund ResNet 1995 after the successful ResNet Beta and made ResNet 1996 contingent on the success of the previous project.
This approach would break the work into smaller, more manageable projects, provide motivation for success, and minimize the financial risk for the company. If the first phase did not work, the project could be canceled; the same went for the second phase. As mentioned in Chapter 2, The Project Management Context and Processes, this is a very wise approach. Preparing useful, realistic plans for the project. Having realistic plans is another important factor for project success. Arvid Lee had worked on several information technology projects at NWA and understood what was involved in all phases of ResNet.
He was also an experienced planner. Before they did detailed planning, Arvid decided to let implementation dates drive the rest of the plans, and he and Peeter ensured that they never missed any of the critical implementation dates during project execution. Deciding to focus on implementation dates during the initiating process on ResNet helped guide the process groups in later phases of the project. Project initiation is a critical activity in organizations. Companies must spend their time and money wisely by selecting important projects to work on and by getting them off to a good start.
NWA did an excellent job of project initiation with ResNet. They focused on key business objectives, provided top management support, assembled a strong project team, involved key stakeholders, performed detailed analysis, developed measurement techniques for the project, used a phased approach, and prepared an approach for developing useful, realistic project plans. I N I T I AT I N G _ 375 CASE-WRAP UP Fay and Peeter were very pleased when Northwest Airlines’ Finance Committee agreed to fund the Beta ResNet project and continue to fund ResNet 1995 and ResNet 1996.
Their vision and leadership inspired all ResNet stakeholders to ensure project success. Fay understood the business needs of NWA and provided strong user sponsorship. Peeter formed a dynamic project team to successfully initiate ResNet and to later deliver even more than everyone had expected. They proved that a large information technology project could be accomplished successfully by focusing on business needs and using good project management. C H A P T E R S U M M A R Y Initiation is the process of recognizing and starting a new project or project phase. Supporting key business objectives is a key reason for funding projects.
NWA initiated ResNet to reduce costs from its reservation call centers and implement a new vision of focusing on closing sales, which would increase profits. As with many information technology projects, the concept of ResNet was discussed in the IS Department for a few years. However, a strong project sponsor outside information technology was needed to provide the vision for the project and convince senior management of its value. ResNet involved three distinct projects: a ResNet Beta project, ResNet 1995, and ResNet 1996. This phased approach helped break the work into more manageable pieces and minimized financial risks.
Selecting the project manager and forming the core project team were important parts of ResNet’s project initiation. Developing strong business justification for the project was also crucial. Actions in the project initiation phase and during preproject planning helped set the stage for the success of ResNet. These actions included quickly assembling a strong project team, involving key stakeholders early and often in the project, preparing a detailed analysis of the business problem, developing measurement techniques, using a phased approach, and developing n approach for preparing useful, realistic project plans. 376 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. What was Fay’s role in initiating ResNet? Why did she succeed when other NWA employees in the IS Department, who had similar ideas years earlier, did not? 2. What role did senior managers, Peeter, and Arvid have in initiating ResNet? Did they make good decisions? Explain your answer. 3. What were some of Peeter’s strengths as a project manager? How do these strengths relate to concepts discussed in earlier chapters? 4. Review the executive summary Peeter prepared to help justify investing in ResNet.
What points were made to convince the finance committee to support the project? 5. Discuss the major differences between the three ResNet projects. What was the emphasis for each project? How might each be managed differently? 6. Describe a project you have seen initiated. Compare how it was handled to the ResNet project. What were the similarities and differences? EXERCISES 1. Review the actions taken by Peeter and other senior managers that helped get ResNet off to a good start. How do these actions compare to what earlier chapters presented as good project management practice?
List each action and find specific statements in earlier chapters of this book that support (or do not support) each. 2. Research information about how air travel and the airline reservation system process has changed over the past ten years. How many people currently book flights directly through the airlines? How many people book flights through travel agents? How many people use Web-based systems to book flights? What are the main differences between each approach? Do you see any trends developing? Do you think new services are better for customers?
What are the potential disadvantages of increased Web-based bookings? 3. Research at least three different airline reservation systems available on the World Wide Web (nwa. com, other airlines’ Web sites, expedia. com, travelocity. com, sidestep. com, and so on). List the basic features of each, then compare them based on the following criteria: ease of use, availability of flights to various locations, costs for specific flights, convenience in travel times, related services such as car rental, hotel information, and payment process. Add additional criteria, if you wish.
Which system do you prefer and why? 4. Ask five people who have flown in the past year how they booked their flights. Be sure to talk to people of different ages and backgrounds (for example, your roommate, your parents, your grandparents, your boss, and your teachers). Compare the methods they used and why. What is your personal preference for booking flights? I N I T I AT I N G _ 377 MINICASE None of the ResNet projects had a project charter as described in Chapter 4, Project Scope Management. Part 1: Using Table 4-2 as a guide, write a project charter for each of the three ResNet projects.
Part 2: Review ads for project managers on Web sites such as www. monster. com. Then write an ad to advertise for the position of project manager for the ResNet projects. Also develop a list of questions you would ask when interviewing people for the position. SUGGESTED READINGS 1. Microsoft’s Travel Web site, www. expedia. com. Microsoft and several other companies have Web sites to help people book flights, reserve rental cars, find lodging, and so on. 2. Northwest Airlines Web site, www. nwa. com. A good way to learn more about a company is to visit its Web site.
Review important information about Northwest Airlines from their Web site. 3. Sackman, Ralph B. Achieving the Promise of Information Technology. Newton Square, PA: Project Management Institute, 1998. Sackman’s text offers a framework to help companies use the power of information technology to transform their mainstream operations and services. Based on the nature of systems work itself, this book describes initiatives to achieve growth, productivity, cost control, asset utilization, and customer satisfaction objectives. 4. Weiss, Joseph W. and Robert K. Wysocki. 5-Phase Project Management.
New York: Harper-Collins, 1992. This book provides practical, step-by-step information on each phase of a complex project, starting with project initiation. 5. WORLDSPAN’s Web site, www. worldspan. WORLDSPAN is a computer reservation system used by Northwest Airlines and many other airlines and travel agents. Their Web site provides information on the history of WORLDSPAN and more recent products and services. 378 _ C H A P T E R 1 2 13Planning After reading this chapter, you will be able to: 1. Discuss the project management planning processes and outputs and describe how they were used on ResNet . Describe how Northwest Airlines organized the scope of work on ResNet using work breakdown structures 3. Discuss how Microsoft Project was used to aid in project planning on ResNet 4. Review and discuss real-world examples of work breakdown structures, cost estimates, staffing plans, and a project organizational chart for a large information technology project 5. Discuss key decisions the project manager and team made in the planning process 6. Relate some of the planning events in ResNet to concepts described in previous chapters 7.
Understand the contribution that good planning makes to project success eeter Kivestu and Arvid Lee took the lead in creating project plans for all the ResNet projects. Peeter had a strong finance background and understood the airline business well. His work in writing the PR2 was instrumental in getting funding for the ResNet 1995 and 1996 projects. Arvid had the most experience working on information systems projects at NWA, and he was good at getting input from the people who would be involved in executing the plans. However, Arvid was having a difficult time deciding what level of detail to use in planning the project scope and schedule.
A friend of his had spent a lot of time planning a large information technology project for his organization, and he had nothing but horror stories to tell. He couldn’t keep track of the details, the changes, and what actually occurred on the project versus what was in the plan, even Objectives P with the aid of project management software. How should Arvid and the ResNet team plan the work that needed to be completed so they could actually focus on getting the job finished? How should they communicate the plan and keep it updated? WHAT IS INVOLVED IN PROJECT PLANNING?
Planning is often the most difficult and most unappreciated process in project management. Many people have negative views of planning because the plans created are not used to facilitate action. The main purpose of project plans, however, is to guide project execution. To guide execution, plans must be realistic and useful. To create realistic and useful plans, a fair amount of time and effort must go into the planning process, and people knowledgeable in doing the work need to plan the work. Unlike initiating, which generally involves only one knowledge area, planning concerns activities in every knowledge area: Project integration requires developing the overall project plan. _ Project scope management includes scope planning and scope definition. _ Project time management includes activity definition, sequencing, duration estimating, and project schedule development. _ Project cost management includes resource planning, cost estimating, and cost budgeting. _ Project quality management includes quality planning. _ Project human resource management includes organizational planning and staff acquisition. _ Project communications management includes communications planning. Project risk management includes risk management planning, risk identification, qualitative risk analysis, quantitative risk analysis, and risk response planning. _ Project procurement management includes procurement planning and solicitation planning. Table 13-1 lists the project management knowledge areas, processes, and outputs of project planning. You can see there are many outputs from the planning process group. ResNet documents produced during the planning process, and discussed in this chapter, include a project plan, work breakdown structure, project schedule, cost estimates, and an organizational chart. 80 _ C H A P T E R 1 3 Table 13-1: Planning Processes and Outputs KNOWLEDGE AREA PROCESS OUTPUTS Integration Project Plan Development Project Plan Supporting Detail Scope Scope Planning Scope Statement Supporting Detail Scope Management Plan Scope Definition WBS Scope Statement Updates Time Activity Definition Activity List Supporting Detail WBS Updates Activity Sequencing Project Network Diagram Activity List Updates Activity Duration Activity Duration Estimates Estimating Basis of Estimates Activity List Updates Schedule Development Project Schedule
Supporting Detail Schedule Management Plan Resource Requirement Updates Cost Resource Planning Resource Requirements Cost Estimating Cost Estimates Supporting Detail Cost Management Plan Cost Budgeting Cost Baseline Quality Quality Planning Quality Management Plan Operational Definitions Checklists Inputs to Other Processes PLANNING _ 381 Table 13-1: Planning Processes and Outputs (continued) KNOWLEDGE AREA PROCESS OUTPUTS Human Resource Organizational Planning Role and Responsibility Assignments Staffing Management Plan Organizational Chart Supporting Detail
Staff Acquisition Project Staff Assigned Project Team Directory Communications Communications Planning Communications Management Plan Risk Risk Management Planning Risk Management Plan Risk Identification Risks Triggers Inputs to Other Processes Qualitative Risk Analysis Overall Risk Ranking for the Project List of Prioritized Risks List of Risks for Additional Analysis and Management Trends in Qualitative Risk Analysis Results Quantitative Risk Analysis Prioritized List of Quantified Risks Probabilistic Analysis of the Project Probability of Achieving the Cost and
Time Objectives Trends in Quantitative Risk Analysis Results Risk Response Planning Risk Response Plan Residual risks Secondary risks Contractual Agreements Contingency Reserve Amounts Needed Inputs to Other Processes Inputs to a Revised Project Plant 382 _ C H A P T E R 1 3 DEVELOPING THE PROJECT PLANS Recall that ResNet actually involved three related projects: the ResNet Beta project, ResNet 1995, and ResNet 1996. Planning for the first two projects will be discussed briefly, then the emphasis of this and subsequent chapters will be on the ResNet 1996 project.
Descriptions of the ResNet 1996 project plans are provided by knowledge area. ResNet Beta Project Planning In May of 1993, Peeter asked Arvid Lee to lead development of a project plan for the ResNet Beta project. Recall that Peeter wanted the plan completed in one week. The main purpose of the ResNet Beta project was to prove the concept and business value of moving to a PC-based reservation system. The tasks involved were purchasing new reservations software, developing new software, installing the system on a small group of new PCs, testing the system, and documenting the potential benefits.
Peeter insisted that the ResNet Beta project be completed by August of 1994 so they could use the results to justify obtaining funds for a follow-on ResNet project in the next budget cycle. Arvid was familiar with planning and implementing hardware, software, and networking technologies for NWA and had experience working with the users and vendors involved. He was familiar with PCs and performing beta projects. He also knew whom to contact for help in quickly preparing a good plan. Arvid recruited people from various areas to help him craft and later implement a plan for the ResNet Beta project.
He was careful to create a plan that focused on everyone doing his or her part to be successful. A few important decisions that were made in planning the ResNet Beta project included: _ Planning at a fairly high level: Learning from a friend’s experience, Arvid was careful not to get carried away by planning in too much detail. He trusted his colleagues to perform their jobs well, so he focused on Table 13-1: Planning Processes and Outputs (continued) KNOWLEDGE AREA PROCESS OUTPUTS Procurement Procurement Planning Procurement Management Plan Statement(s) of Work
Solicitation Planning Procurement Documents Evaluation Criteria Statement of Work Updates PLANNING _ 383 deliverables and results and not the details of how the work would be accomplished. Since performing any beta project involves a high degree of creativity, Arvid felt it was important to let everyone work together creatively to produce those deliverables and results. _ Getting strong user involvement: Kathy Christenson, an analyst from the marketing and sales division of NWA, had firsthand experience working with sales agents and led the ResNet application development area.
Kathy and her team of agents were a critical part of defining the requirements for the software and actually did most of the software customization (see Chapter 14, Executing). Arvid was open to this innovative approach to ensuring strong user involvement in the project and worked well with non-IS staff. _ Developing a solid measurement tool: Following Peeter’s advice, Arvid had several industrial engineers assigned to the project. They planned to do detailed studies of the current reservation system to find areas for improvement (a procedure known as process reengineering) and then measure the impact of the new reservation system.
They asked questions such as “Did the new system increase the sales conversion percentage? Did the new system decrease call handle time? ” Arvid included plans for developing this measurement tool for ResNet in the project plan for the beta test. ResNet 1995 Planning After successfully completing the ResNet Beta project, the ResNet team had to create a plan for installing PCs in various sales offices. The ResNet 1995 plan was to install PCs and software in Baltimore (339 PCs), Tampa (289 PCs), and the international portion of the Minneapolis/St. Paul (82 PCs) reservations offices.
The plan also involved developing customized applications for specialty and support desks, two business areas related to the reservations process. Arvid consulted with key stakeholders to develop these plans. The IS Department had experience installing PCs and networks, so he used that knowledge base to plan the installations. He also had a good idea of the amount of work and time involved in doing more software development and used that knowledge to create plans for customized application development. Arvid consulted with other experts inside the company and outside the company to develop realistic timelines for the work involved.
ResNet 1996 Planning Because of the ResNet Beta project and the 1995 project, Peeter, Arvid, and their team had a wealth of information available when they prepared the plan for the ResNet 1996 project. Their successful experiences with the ResNet Beta and 1995 projects helped them define scope, time, cost, and other dimensions 384 _ C H A P T E R 1 3 of the 1996 project. In August of 1995, Peeter prepared another Purchase Request 2 (PR2) for NWA’s finance committee to review and then decide on continued funding for ResNet. The PR2 included the following information: _ Executive summary Brief justification _ Background _ Need _ Opportunity _ Justification _ Risk _ Other benefits _ Next steps _ Post implementation audit _ NPV schedule _ Attachments The justification section included information on increased revenue, enhanced quality processes, reduced operating costs, and new revenue generation based on the ResNet 1995 project. The risk section included information about software, change management, and implementation. The attachments included one-time and ongoing expenses, an application development timeline, and a summary of ResNet performance.
The summary of ResNet performance included the implementation schedule performance in 1995, the budget versus actual spending performance for the ResNet 1995 project, measurement objectives, performance results in the Baltimore call center, and a qualitative feedback summary of the project. The PR2—for all intents and purposes a project plan—provided a great foundation for convincing the finance committee to fund the ResNet 1996 project. It also provided a great foundation for enabling the project team to execute the project. PLANNING _ 385 What Went Right?
The PR2 for the ResNet 1996 project included performance results from implementing ResNet in Baltimore in 1995. Because the project team developed measurement tools and used them on the ResNet 1995 project, they had a strong business case for justifying further investments in the ResNet 1996 project. The actual results of the call handle time in Baltimore showed a 6. 7 percent improvement after implementing ResNet. The percentage of direct ticket sales increased from 3. 2 percent to 7. 5 percent. This increase in direct sales translated to over $15 million in profits that ResNet generated in 1995 alone.
DETERMINING PROJECT SCOPE AND SCHEDULES The two primary goals of ResNet 1996 were further software development and seven office implementations. These two efforts were interdependent because application development drove the timing of office implementation. Table 13-2 shows the planned software development and office implementation milestones as presented in the PR2 project plan dated August 29, 1995. Northwest Airlines used Microsoft Project (one of the first versions available) to aid in planning the scope and schedule for ResNet. They created two separate files for the software development and office implementation efforts.
Figure 13-1 shows the actual Gantt chart used to plan ResNet 1996 software application development. The project team also had more detailed schedules based on this Gantt chart; however, they did not link tasks using the software. Instead, they manually entered the dates for each task. The ResNet staff only created Gantt charts to aid them in initial planning. They did not plan to enter actual information or use critical path analysis, so they did not link the tasks in Microsoft Project. They were very careful in setting the milestone dates, and they missed none of them.
Table 13-2: Planned Software Development and Office Implementation Milestones SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT DATE OFFICE IMPLEMENTATION DATE MILESTONE MILESTONE International sales in 10/95 Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP) 10/95 production international desk completed WorldPerks in 3/96 New York City (NYC) and 12/95 production Detroit (DTT) facilities ready Specialty and support 8/96-12/96 WorldPerks office rollout 3/96-12/96 desk production rollout Sales Action Center 12/96 National/International sales 11/96 in production offices completed Specialty sales/support 12/96 desks completed 386 _ C H A P T E R 1 3
PLANNING _ 387 Figure 13-1. ResNet 1996 Application Development Gantt Chart NWA developed a much more detailed Microsoft Project file for the ResNet 1996 office installations than for the software application development effort. Figure 13-2 shows part of the WBS for the office installations, which NWA staff created using a combination of the phase-oriented and product-oriented approaches for developing a WBS (see Chapter 4, Project Scope Management). For example, each office was a separate Level 1 WBS item. Figure 13-2 also shows a WBS Level 2 view of the office implementation plan for Office 1, New
York City. Each of the seven offices followed the same phase-oriented approach. There were phases for each office for pre-implementation preparation, infrastructure implementation, change management, agent conversion, and achieving office goals. Figure 13-2. ResNet 1996 Level 2 WBS for Office Implementations The development and implementation of facsimile (FAX) capabilities, the ResDoc customer documentation system, and the Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) system, which could be viewed as major products of the project, were also Level 1 WBS items.
The Level 1 WBS item called FAX included the development and implementation of facsimile capability from the ResNet PCs. The ResDoc WBS item refers to the letter-writing system that generates correspondence for members of NWA’s frequent flier program called WorldPerks. The CTI WBS item represents the Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) part of the ResNet 1996 project. CTI is a system that connects the telephone system to the ResNet computers. For example, when customers call NWA, they can respond to telephone prompts.
Depending on what telephone buttons they press, the ResNet system will direct the call to a particular type of ResNet agent—domestic versus international, for example—and that agent’s computer screen will pull up information on the customer’s needs, according to the telephone prompt responses. 1. 1 Phase 1: Pre-Implementation Preparation 1. 2 Phase 2: Infrastructure Implementation 1. 3 Phase 3: Change Management 1. 4 Phase 4: Agent Conversion 1. 5 Phase 5: Achieve Office Goals 1. 0 Office 1 New York City (NYC) 3. 0 Office 3 Detroit (DTT) 4. 0 Office 4 Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP) 2. 0 Office 2
Iron Range Reservations Center (IRRC) 6. 0 Office 6 Honolulu (HNL) 7. 0 Office 7 Los Angeles (LAX) 5. 0 Office 5 Seattle (SEA) 8. 1 FAX Testing/ Certification 8. 2 Developer Implementation 8. 0 FAX 8. 3 Pre-Installation Task 8. 4 Word Processing Implementation (Word/FAX) 8. 5 Specialty Desk Implementation 9. 1 Finalize Requirement 9. 2 Functional Analysis 9. 0 ResDoc 9. 3 Customer Correspondence Replacement Design 9. 4 ResNet Application Design 9. 5 User Procedures and Training 9. 6 Programming and Unit Testing 9. 7 System Test 9. 8 Implementation 9. 9 Post Implementation Audit 10. 1 Beta Test – MSP 0. 2 Alpha Test Hibbing (HIB) 10. 0 Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) 10. 3 Production System in Hibbing ResNet 1996 Note: 1. 1-1. 5 above repeat for all 7 offices. 388 _ C H A P T E R 1 3 What Went Wrong? There was a lot of political pressure related to the Iron Range Reservations Center (IRRC) in Chisholm, Minnesota. The state of Minnesota funded a large portion of this office, which was the central point for handling the WorldPerks system. The WorldPerks implementation date of March 31, 1996, was firm. The ResNet team was a little overconfident in their planning, and several problems developed.
WorldPerks involved a new communications protocol, and the ResNet team did not plan enough time up-front to analyze all of the system requirements. They expedited testing, and there were several quality problems that were difficult to resolve because of a lack of precision in planning. Figure 13-3 shows part of the actual Microsoft Project Gantt chart used for ResNet 1996 office installations. Notice that the WBS follows the structure shown in Figure 13-2. Although the Level 2 WBS items for each office were the same, the Level 3 items beneath them (not shown in this figure) varied to meet the particular needs of each office.
There were a total of 821 tasks in the Microsoft Project file for the 1996 office installations. The ResNet project team focused on meeting key milestone dates, so they worked to finish tasks on time. They missed none of these completion dates even though there were definite challenges in doing so. Figure 13-3. ResNet 1996 Office Implementation Gantt Chart The ResNet 1996 project team broke down the scope of the office installations to WBS Level 3, as follows: 1. 1 Phase 1: Pre-Implementation Preparation 1. 1. 1 Modify Facilities for the Floor PLANNING _ 389 1. 1. 2 Modify Facilities for Communications Room . 1. 3 Conduct Pre-Implementation Site Visit 1. 1. 4 Prepare for Network Pre-Installation 1. 1. 5 Order all ResNet Equipment Components 1. 1. 6 Request Communication lines 1. 1. 7 Develop Training Schedule 1. 1. 8 Develop Phased Implementation Plan 1. 1. 9 Order Physical Security Devices for PCs 1. 1. 10 Conduct On-Site Planning Session 1. 1. 11 Conduct Change Management Site Visit 1. 1. 12 Conduct Awareness Programs 1. 1. 13 Validate PC Image 1. 1. 14 Define Electronic Distribution Manager (EDM) services for office 1. 2 Phase 2: Infrastructure Implementation 1. 2. Install all components in Communications Room 1. 2. 2 All native WORLDSPAN (WSP) training terminated 1. 2. 3 Install PCs in Training Room 1. 2. 4 Test and Stabilize IS Components 1. 2. 5 IS Certification Completed 1. 3 Phase 3: Change Management 1. 3. 1 Train Supervisor Agent Coordinators in MSP 1. 3. 2 Provide 2 Temporary Awareness PCs 1. 3. 3 Install Buffer Area PCs and Demo PCs 1. 3. 4 Train the Trainer (TTT) 1. 3. 5 Install PCs: Trainers/Early Trained Agents 1. 3. 6 Train Supervisors in ResNet 1. 3. 7 Train Managers in ResNet 1. 3. 8 Install PCs for Managers, Supervisors, Podium 1. 3. Conduct Manager Measurement Strategy Meeting 1. 3. 10 Develop Continuous Improvement Plan 1. 3. 11 Train Floor Support Agents 1. 3. 12 Install PCs for Floor Support Agents 1. 3. 13 Conduct Manager/Supervisor Strategy Meeting 1. 3. 14 Train Office Administration and Staff in Windows Applications 1. 3. 15 Install PCs for Office Administrative Staff 1. 3. 16 Conduct Office Kickoff 1. 4 Phase 4: Agent Conversion 1. 4. 1 Conduct Agent Conversion Training (ACT) [phased] 1. 4. 2 Install PCs for Conversion Agents [phased] 1. 4. 3 Office Conversion Completed 1. 4. 4 ResNet Agent Measurement Completed 90 _ C H A P T E R 1 3 1. 5 Phase 5: Achieve Office Goals 1. 5. 1 Implement Continuous Improvement Plan 1. 5. 2 Analyze Airline Control Protocol (ALC) Line Utilization 1. 5. 3 Conduct Recurrent Training 1. 5. 4 Complete Test and Balance of Facility 1. 5. 5 Conduct Focus Groups 1. 5. 6 Conduct Post Implementation Review The ResNet 1996 project plans were not broken down any further than WBS Level 3 for the offices, but they were broken down to Level 4 for the Fax and CTI areas. For example, samples of Level 4 items for the FAX part of the ResNet 1996 project were: 8 FAX 8. FAX Testing / Certification 8. 1. 1 Install Fax Server for Evaluation 8. 1. 1. 1 Order equipment/software 8. 1. 1. 2 Set up the PBX 8. 1. 1. 3 Install T1 8. 1. 1. 4 Install Fax Server 8. 1. 1. 5 Install FAX client software RESNET COST ESTIMATES Peeter, Arvid, and other members of the ResNet team prepared detailed cost estimates, especially for the ResNet 1