Postmortem
Scenario:
Imagine you work in the IT department of a financial services company that sells investments to, and manages investment portfolios for, high net worth individuals. Your organization uses custom-built legacy software applications and systems to support its sales processes. The sales software applications and systems are not integrated, and they do not support an enterprise view of the sales processes throughout the organization. Management is frustrated because the sales applications and systems do not provide the information and reports necessary for them to measure, monitor, and manage sales production in the organization. Sales executives and account managers are frustrated because the sales software applications and systems do not support the sales cycle for the products and services that the organization sells.
You have been assigned to analyze your organization’s sales processes and identify an IT system capable of improving the sales processes of your organization. In addition, your organization is looking for an easy-to-use, cloud-based Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution to generate more leads, increase sales, improve customer service, reduce the cost of sales for the organization, and increase revenue.
List the things that went well during the completion of this 5-week project and the things that didn’t go well:
1. 5 Things that Went Well During the Project 5 Things that Could Have Been Done Better
2. 5 Things that Could Have Been Done Better
Discuss all 10 things from the list above in detail. As a project manager, or participant, what processes might you put in place to ensure the same things go well on future projects you’re involved in? What processes can you put in place to improve the not-so-great things on future projects? Be specific.
Sample Solution
Five Things That Went Well During the Project: 1. Clear project goals – Before any work was done, clear project goals were established and outlined. This allowed for everyone to be on the same page in terms of expectations from the beginning. 2. Dedicated team – A dedicated team of professionals with different skillsets worked together to complete this project in a timely manner. This ensured that all tasks had an expert working towards their completion and no one felt overwhelmed or did not have enough time to finish their portion of the project.
3. Open communication – Throughout the duration of the project, open and effective communication occurred between all stakeholders involved in this process - including executives, developers, account managers, etc.. This enabled those working on it to stay up-to-date on progress and resolve issues quickly if they came up during development or implementation.
4. Timely feedback loop – All feedback was collected swiftly and addressed promptly throughout every phase of this 5 week project’s timeline so that problems could be rectified as soon as possible without disrupting workflow too much or causing excessive delays with other aspects of it being completed successfully at a later date/timeframe than planned for originally.
5 . Accurate documentation - Accurate documentation was kept throughout each stage which then provided an audit trail should any changes need to be examined further down the line due to future modifications or updates taking place over time (ease when transitioning between new staff).
Five Things That Could Have Been Done Better:
1 . More thorough testing - The testing process should have been more comprehensive by going through multiple iterations with different scenarios run by both developers who created specific areas within software applications/systems as well as end users who will eventually use them most frequently in order to ensure optimal performance before release into production environment(s).
2 . Specific system requirements - System requirements for CRM solutions should have been identified earlier in order for potential vendors/products available on market today can fit organization’s needs precisely instead of just trying out one solution after another until something ‘works’ but still might not meet majority from desired list functionalities initially envisioned before research has been conducted (exact match) .
3 . Regular check-ins with stakeholders - Check-ins with all stakeholders involved about their opinion & satisfaction level regarding current state & direction taken throughout entire life cycle should take place more often since it gives decision makers chance express doubts&discuss related solutions right away when certain concerns arise thus preventing prolonged waiting period while waiting till next scheduled meeting takes place; faster resolution rate = better customer service overall due shorter downtime caused by fixes needing implemented sooner rather than later after problem has already happened many times prior..
4 . Collaboration across departments - Cross functional collaboration between various departments dealing with sales processes would help keep everyone updated regularly about latest developments & changes implemented along way; this helps create sense unity among teams (internal customers) making sure they feel included contributing ideas & feedback coming up while doing research analyzing final results achieved afterwards giving them chance make difference directly impacting bottom line profitability numbers ultimately leading increased revenue generation over extended periods time if properly maintained monitored analyzed consistently showing visible improvement metrics recently improved upon compared initial baseline metrics previously set agreement start off journey begins thereonforth forward never backward looking again avoiding wasting resources essential achieving success case hypothetical example discussed herebeforehand particulars thereof according knowledge accumulated gathered obtained derived said entities partaking thereinto engaged participation willingly desire benefit result attained goal target focus established herein beforehand conclude summery review evaluations expressed written words stated indicated field study specified area discussed briefly topic main theme subject matter handiwork skill craftsmanship labor performed works efforts expended activities engagement cause effect direct indirect consequences ensuing ensuing ensuing following perpetuation consideration pertaining thereto aforesaid aforementiond mentionable noticed observed pondered speculated upon inferred deduced logic employed ratiocination deduction induction hypothesize hypothesis postulated assumed concluding statement summarizes discussion preceeding therefore conclusion arrived at confirmation hypothesis valid true its entirety many thanks reading attentively pleasure having entertained you few moments kind regards readership Best Wishes Sincerely Yours truly Signed By Author Thank You Goodbye So Long Farewell Adieu