POST-IMPLEMENTATION PHASE
The systems manager should conduct a review of the system once it has been running for a few months or a year, in order to check that it is helping to achieve the goals and solve the problems that it was built for. An assessment of how the project was managed and what could have been improved is necessary too. Retrospective analysis will help the organisation to learn from the process and take better decisions in the future (Hawryszkiewycz, 1998, p. 130; Bocij et al., 2008, p. 476). The result also shows if the systems managers accomplished their mission.
Apart from that, all that is left until the system needs to be replaced or updated is the maintenance phase. This should be the longest phase (Yeates et al., 1994, …show more content…
298-318), although there is still much focus on the technology and best practice, there is also recognition of the importance of involving and understanding users as well as managing their expectations.
In the particular case of the BOC Group (pp. 308-310), they involved staff from several departments in the design of a device that replaced the old system and evaluated the result of their participation as a “success”. When the device was ready to be used, they scheduled a six hour training for staff with a walkthrough on how to use it on ideal conditions and how to tackle problems that could arise.
The Dow Corning case (pp. 314-316), is a clear example of how change management affects the success of a project. They involved early in the process staff members trusted by their peers and adapted their approach to management often through the project to ensure staff kept a positive attitude towards a major change in the system.
To summarize what was learned from these case studies, technology and technical aspects have a lot of weight in the processes systems managers deal with. But without user involvement and support, especially at certain parts of the process, the success of the systems and the achievement of the business goals could be
The systems manager should conduct a review of the system once it has been running for a few months or a year, in order to check that it is helping to achieve the goals and solve the problems that it was built for. An assessment of how the project was managed and what could have been improved is necessary too. Retrospective analysis will help the organisation to learn from the process and take better decisions in the future (Hawryszkiewycz, 1998, p. 130; Bocij et al., 2008, p. 476). The result also shows if the systems managers accomplished their mission.
Apart from that, all that is left until the system needs to be replaced or updated is the maintenance phase. This should be the longest phase (Yeates et al., 1994, …show more content…
298-318), although there is still much focus on the technology and best practice, there is also recognition of the importance of involving and understanding users as well as managing their expectations.
In the particular case of the BOC Group (pp. 308-310), they involved staff from several departments in the design of a device that replaced the old system and evaluated the result of their participation as a “success”. When the device was ready to be used, they scheduled a six hour training for staff with a walkthrough on how to use it on ideal conditions and how to tackle problems that could arise.
The Dow Corning case (pp. 314-316), is a clear example of how change management affects the success of a project. They involved early in the process staff members trusted by their peers and adapted their approach to management often through the project to ensure staff kept a positive attitude towards a major change in the system.
To summarize what was learned from these case studies, technology and technical aspects have a lot of weight in the processes systems managers deal with. But without user involvement and support, especially at certain parts of the process, the success of the systems and the achievement of the business goals could be