Requirements management

[suityou01]

Here's one example:

You assume that since the contract says the client will provide people to attend all workshops / provide development environments on time, and they didn't fulfil this obligation, that therefore the consultancy will be happy to deliver something late that doesn't meet the client's true requirements, and fight them on the commercials to ensure that they still get paid.

No. The fight on the commercials happened today regarding the dev environment. The consultancy won. They (ClientCo) are providing the dev environment as per contract. A change request has been agreed for the idle time the dev team are currently booking.

I have suggested we bring the UAT document portion of the plan forward, to document business scenarios to "test" the requirements, and switched the project to a fully agile development phase. I spent today planning the sprints, playback sessions and identifying the at risk areas of the requirements. Hopefully this will

a) leverage the end client's understanding to where it should be had they not dicked us around over the workshops
b) get them to help out with some of the UAT document (at a high level at least)
c) make them feel like they are being listened to.

If the consultancy wants repeat business out of this client (or any other client that this client's execs happen to talk to, ever), they will make reasonable endeavours to work around these issues. If, in the meantime you are arguing commercials with the end client, and the consultancy and their client are making other arrangements to smooth things over, you might not come out of it well.

Why would I argue someone elses commercials? I can only escalate the problems to the consultancy.

So when I say that the contract may not matter, that's what I mean. Contracts are pieces of paper, they do matter, but nowhere near as much as relationships between individuals and organisations, and the true underlying incentives that exist on either side. This is especially true in the IT world, as arguing contractuals in a court / getting into a liquidated damaged situation, has been shown time and time again not to help anybody.

In normal circumstances I would agree. In this circumstance, and you must accept that I am at the coal face here so know the situation best, there seems to be no genuine desire to get a new system. Even the project sponsor is seemingly trying to kill the project. In any relationship you need a shred of interest from the opposite party, the meerest smidge of a flicker of some desire. In this case, nothing. Dead behind the eyes. Very difficult to cultivate a relationship with that going on, especially when you inherited a badly sold project that was from the very outset doomed to fail as described by the previous BA who could not clamber out of the exit hatch quick enough.

[suityou01]

So could you

Re-org since mate. Now only one department. The previous departments I spoke of are "disciplines" within the same department.

[eek]

Re-org since mate. Now only one department. The previous departments I spoke of are "disciplines" within the same department.

Blooming heck some boring drivel you didn't bother to mention to us. What have we done right.

Either that or your talking bulltulip.

[suityou01]

Blooming heck some boring drivel you didn't bother to mention to us. What have we done right.

Either that or your talking bulltulip.

Put it this way, it's easy to poke blame, criticise and generally gob off at someone who is in the tulipe through no fault of their own and who is doing their utmost to get things back on track with minimal, nay non existent, support.

It's the easiest thing in the world to do. It may make you feel better, but it sure as hell does nothing for the poor encumbent taking all the flak.

115 posts in this thread all making out it is my fault. That's how easy it is, everyone is at it. No one, not one has had the decency to point out that sticking at this is hard work, soul destroying, spirit crushing, stressful.

I'm fairly certain no one has even given a moments thought to how this my be affecting me, or my family.

And why would you? It's an anonymous web forum.

I do think that people that just constantly pick holes in others don't make good team players. Is this the norm for the contracting fraternity? Is everyone just a good team of one?

Just saying like.

[eek]

Put it this way, it's easy to poke blame, criticise and generally gob off at someone who is in the tulipe through no fault of their own and who is doing their utmost to get things back on track with minimal, nay non existent, support.

It's the easiest thing in the world to do. It may make you feel better, but it sure as hell does nothing for the poor encumbent taking all the flak.

115 posts in this thread all making out it is my fault. That's how easy it is, everyone is at it. No one, not one has had the decency to point out that sticking at this is hard work, soul destroying, spirit crushing, stressful.

I'm fairly certain no one has even given a moments thought to how this my be affecting me, or my family.

And why would you? It's an anonymous web forum.

I do think that people that just constantly pick holes in others don't make good team players. Is this the norm for the contracting fraternity? Is everyone just a good team of one?

Just saying like.

This is general. Post in Business or Accounting and people will usually give proper advice*. Post in here and everyone will pick fault and take the mickey. I believe that is and always has been the purpose of general.

* I will admit that someone recently posted in Business and both myself and NLUK ate popcorn but the poster and topicdeserved it.

[Freamon]

No. The fight on the commercials happened today regarding the dev environment. The consultancy won. They (ClientCo) are providing the dev environment as per contract. A change request has been agreed for the idle time the dev team are currently booking.

I have suggested we bring the UAT document portion of the plan forward, to document business scenarios to "test" the requirements, and switched the project to a fully agile development phase. I spent today planning the sprints, playback sessions and identifying the at risk areas of the requirements. Hopefully this will

a) leverage the end client's understanding to where it should be had they not dicked us around over the workshops
b) get them to help out with some of the UAT document (at a high level at least)
c) make them feel like they are being listened to.



Why would I argue someone elses commercials? I can only escalate the problems to the consultancy.



In normal circumstances I would agree. In this circumstance, and you must accept that I am at the coal face here so know the situation best, there seems to be no genuine desire to get a new system. Even the project sponsor is seemingly trying to kill the project. In any relationship you need a shred of interest from the opposite party, the meerest smidge of a flicker of some desire. In this case, nothing. Dead behind the eyes. Very difficult to cultivate a relationship with that going on, especially when you inherited a badly sold project that was from the very outset doomed to fail as described by the previous BA who could not clamber out of the exit hatch quick enough.

They are paying the consultancy some more money to keep them quiet on the fact that the Dev environment wasn't delivered on time.

This tells me that someone influential in the organisation wants this project to get done. They may or may not care how happy the immediate users of the project are. If you can find out what said person is seeking to achieve then you're onto a winner. If you make assumptions about what they are seeking to achieve then you are running a risk. JMO.

[suityou01]

This is general. Post in Business or Accounting and people will usually give proper advice*. Post in here and everyone will pick fault and take the mickey. I believe that is and always has been the purpose of general.

* I will admit that someone recently posted in Business and both myself and NLUK ate popcorn but the poster and topicdeserved it.

Join Date Jun 2010

Jog on pal. I only dwell in general. Sometimes the odd post in technical, but I usually hurry back to the warmth of the bear pit.

And to be fair the first 2 pages of posts in this thread were ok and I had forgotten that.

I may need to borrow a mop.

[suityou01]

They are paying the consultancy some more money to keep them quiet on the fact that the Dev environment wasn't delivered on time.

This tells me that someone influential in the organisation wants this project to get done. They may or may not care how happy the immediate users of the project are. If you can find out what said person is seeking to achieve then you're onto a winner. If you make assumptions about what they are seeking to achieve then you are running a risk. JMO.

Read and re-read this as it sounds like good advice. It just doesn't fit the situation I'm afraid.

ClientCo delivered the dev environment, except that it had no tools installed. They adamantly stated it was the consultancy's responsibility. It was only when the consultancy tapped up the contract they backed down, but not without some serious wriggling and game playing.

All change requests up to now have really stirred up the hornets nest, so for them to roll over today was a surprise.
Was it that someone influential stepped in, or they realised they were in the wrong, irretrievably so and just accepted that?

[MarillionFan]

Is anyone actually reading any of this guff?

[TheFaQQer]

Another fktard. And what if the system is only for one department?

But this one isn't only for one department, is it?

The generic process designed by him is a high level overview and each department has their own variations on a theme.