TMNG Global Saves A Client From A Misguided Replacement Of Its Legacy Systems

Challenge

A large wireless messaging company was in the process of replacing most of its legacy back office systems with a new vendor application, with the objective of gaining additional functionality and flexibility. All of its current processes had to be assessed for potential redesign in order to realize the promised benefits of the new system.As the new solution was well into the development stage, the assessment had to be completed quickly in order to meet the system conversion date.  The company called on TMNG Global for assistance. 

TMNG Global Solution

TMNG Global assigned a team representing each operational discipline to work with key client stakeholders to complete the initial operations assessment. The processes included in the scope were: sales and marketing, order management and provisioning, billing, credit and collections, inventory management, and customer care.  The results of this assessment were then used to scope the assessment results that would be provided to the client. The initial assessment determined that a majority of the client's existing processes would need to be modified, at least to some degree, to support the new business model.

Process teams were then formed, led by TMNG Global and staffed with a combination of TMNG and client subject matter experts. The teams first documented the “as is” process so that there was a clear understanding of the current operation end-to-end. The “future state” process was then created, incorporating the new functionality gained by the new application. 

Detailed project plans were then created for each functional area and weekly meetings with the sponsors were conducted to assess progress toward the plans and to remove any roadblocks. The client CIO and the TMNG Global Principal managed the overall initiative. They met monthly with the Steering Committee, composed of the CFO and CSO.

The client chose to have its employees work alongside TMNG Global experts so that knowledge transfer could take place. Once the initial work was completed, client staff would be able to maintain and change the processes as needed.

Project deliverables included both the current and future state process flows, as well as detailed processes and procedures incorporating the new system features.  These documents were created with the training of users of the new system in mind.

Once these deliverables were submitted, the client asked us to manage and staff the system integration testing effort  A test team was created, led by  TMNG Global and composed of both client and TMNG staff.  We designed the test plan, created several hundred test cases, and then executed the tests. The findings were dramatic; the system did not pass even the simplest test cases.  The applications vendor was required to rework many parts of the application in an effort to meet the test requirements. Ultimately, the vendor was unable to get the application to perform as promised. The client canceled the agreement to purchase the software.

Benefits to the Client

The client did not have the internal expertise to analyze the existing processes and rework them to incorporate the new functionality that was expected to be a benefit of the new system.  By engaging the experts of TMNG Global to plan and staff the analysis and testing effort, the client learned that the application could not deliver what the vendor had promised. The client was able to cancel the contract, saving millions of dollars.  Further, attempting to implement a system that could not deliver would have crippled the client’s business operational efficiency for a considerable period of time, and jeopardizing employee and customer satisfaction.