We have all been subject to a major IT project that has gone ‘off the rails’. Lot’s of project plans, dollars and consultants fly around your operation. Unfortunately, the only ones that leave are the dollars. Ram Sundaram of X by 2 consulting had the guts to stand up and say ‘enough is enough’ regarding these IT projects that seem to go on forever.

Workers’ Comp operations are usually in line after the other, more glamorous lines (I use the term glamorous loosely…very loosely) for infrastructure upgrades. But when WC gets its spot in line, its important that we make the most of the chance to make things better.

I agree with Ram 1000%. Here are some of my favorites with my take.

1. Smaller, not larger, implementation teams – Smaller ships make tighter circles. The larger the team, the more time spent in meetings getting everyone on the same page and finger pointing. Make the team small and watch it get things done.
2. Don’t map out ‘perfect’ before moving forward – The problem with building systems is that at the point you are defining the requirements for the new system – you know the least about everything. The Agile method of development, where small teams focus on building sections of the new solution based upon conversation with-wait for it- actual users of the systems, works best in these environments. By building in these smaller loops, you know right away if you hit the spot, and your development team isn’t heavily invested in the work if it misses.
3. Show management actual progress rather than ‘Death by Powerpoint’ – Again Agile works great here. Show management actual progress, not an updated Gantt chart. This will accomplish two goals – it will get management on board with the difficulty of the task at hand and keep them interested in the progress.

Check out the rest of Ram’s story over at Insurance and Technology