In a previous article, we described our client that was attempting to implement SAP; today we will start to describe some of the problems we were able to solve for them. They are a large client that sells a variety of consumption-based media advertising products which can be delivered multiple times, under a variety of circumstances, and through different advertising delivery systems. The business is further complicated by a complex hierarchy of business partners. As a result, a single invoice could include over a million billable items. Previously, the client used their delivery system for billing and invoicing. However, this … Read More
M&S Consulting Achieves ISO 9001:2015 Certification
MORGANTOWN, WV – M&S Consulting is proud to announce our achievement of ISO 9001:2015 certification. ISO 9001:2015 was selected specifically to validate our ability to exceed the quality expectations and requirements of our customers. ISO 9001:2015 is a globally recognized quality management standard developed and published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The certification provides a model for companies of all types and sizes to use in building an effective quality management system. The standard is based on several quality management principles, including having a strong customer focus, involvement of high-level company management, a process-based approach, and ongoing improvement. … Read More
Proper Project Management Helps Rescue SAP Implementation
Sometimes a project needs rescuing to avoid added delays and unnecessary costs. This happened to one of our larger clients when trying to implement SAP. Multiple teams outside of M&S had tried and failed to implement the solution our client needed. Because we had several successful medium- and large-sized projects with them across various technologies, we were called upon to step in and take on the challenge. The initial focus of our Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) team was to evaluate the SAP project’s current state and identify any significant gaps. However, very quickly, we realized that no requirements … Read More
M&S Consulting has achieved Silver Solution and Verified Government Partner status with Atlassian
MORGANTOWN, WV – M&S Consulting, an enterprise shared services and cloud systems integrator has achieved the Silver Solution and Verified Government Partner status with Atlassian, a leading provider of collaboration, development, and issue tracking software for teams. Since 2002, M&S has been delivering premier enterprise consulting solutions in commercial, government, and higher education. Now, they bring their proven expertise in DevOps, Agile, and ITSM, to continue advancing the power of collaboration through leading products including Jira, Jira Service Management, Confluence, Bitbucket, and more. We also bring critically important experience and expertise from building productive, effective, happy project teams for many … Read More
Improving the Process and Technology of License Management
A large government agency was struggling to effectively track the acquisition and renewal of software licensing. Due to employee turnover and the infrequency of licensing review, there was not a consistent record for licenses purchased across the various organizations. The de facto process, unfortunately, consisted of emails and shared spreadsheets spread out among various stakeholders, with no consistency in price verification, expiration dates, or a common approach to vendor management. This process resulted in wasted effort, frequent requests for license extensions, and, in the worst cases, schedule and cost impacts due to production software deactivation when licenses expired. Our team … Read More
Responsibility Assignment Matrix
What is a Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM) or a RACI MatriX? A responsibility assignment matrix (RAM), also known as RACI matrix, describes the participation by various roles in completing tasks or deliverables for a project or business process. How is RAM / RACI useful? RAM / RACI is especially useful in clarifying the roles and responsibilities in cross-functional/departmental projects and processes. What does RACI stand for? RACI is derived from the four key responsibilities: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed. The RACI model is a straightforward tool used for identifying roles and responsibilities and avoiding confusion over the roles and responsibilities during … Read More
The Role of a Project Sponsor
More often than not, a project sponsor is thought of somebody whose responsibility is to secure project funds and participate in the victory lap after project completion. But an “engaged” project sponsor with vested business interests and involvement in the project from the project kickoff to the project closure can mean the difference between a project success or a project failure. One of the reasons why projects fall short is the lack of executive sponsorship and executive management buy-in. Some key responsibilities of a sponsor include: Defining the project; Securing an executive buy-in on the project Providing a clear direction for the project … Read More
Relationships Among Portfolios, Programs, Projects
Portfolios A portfolio refers to a collection of projects, programs, and sub-portfolios managed as a group to achieve organizational, strategic, and business objectives. Programs Programs are a group of related projects managed in a co-ordinated way to obtain the benefits and control not available from managing them individually. Programs are grouped within a portfolio and are comprised of: Sub-Programs Projects Other operational work Projects A project is a temporary endeavor with a definitive beginning and an end. A project is undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result. Fig. illustrates relationships between Portfolios, Programs and Projects [message_box title=”” … Read More