Today, we all want to know how to get out of the current lockdown situation. It is the question of the hour and I believe, the shutdown of the lockdown in Switzerland has many similarities with the planning and managing of a cut-over for an IT and/or Business Transformation program. (Though clearly, an exit strategy for a country lockdown has more unknown factors as it has never been done before.)
Still, after 20 years in IT program management, I have a keen interest in complex projects, and I would like to take a minute to look at the similarities of both ventures:
- Both are highly complex and require careful planning and execution as well as proper governance taking the right decisions at the right points.
- Internal and external communication must be prepared and carefully executed to ensure all stakeholders are informed at the right time and via the correct channels.
- If too little energy is invested in good planning, it can result in a great loss of time and much lost money (in the lockdown case also lives).
So what do you do at an IT cut-over?
- In the beginning, you need to define the cut-over strategy. The approach can be either a big bang (with all systems transferred and going live at the same time) or as a phased approach (“In packages”, to limit the volume and complexity by initiating different functionalities at different times) or with parallel operations (where both operations are live for a selective amount of time, the results are compared and just after full assurance that the results are the same the switch is taking place.)
In our lockdown situation, I assume the phased approach would be the preferred scenario, as a big bang would be too risky and the parallel operations are not practical.
- For the phased approach a scope list must be created including all activities that need to perform. Afterward, these activities must be prioritized, and a logical order must be created. With a phased approach, the cut-over might take 3-9 months from the moment the first new functionality is released until the release of the last item. The master plan gives an overview of all release timings. After the release of each item, a stabilization phase must be planned to fix everything that might not be working yet at this stage and to ensure fast reaction time in case of surprises.
- For the execution clear governance must be defined, to ensure a fast escalation and decision-making process is in place. Additionally, detailed storybooks need to be prepared. The storybooks list who must do what when and in which order. Logistics and communications must be planned to ensure everybody knows what is expected from him or her at any time. Tools must be selected to help manage the execution of the storybook as well as a central reporting with a dashboard assessing the status. Additionally, a command center should be set up to orchestrate the execution centrally plus support teams that help fix issues. The cut-over should be trained several times by either executing the overall scope or by selecting a small scope which can be executed independently from the rest.
In the case of our lockdown cut-over, a geographical split could make sense. The execution of the cut-over could be tested within a small representative unit. Afterward, lessons learned could be defined and the plan for the rest of the country could be adjusted accordingly.
- For the start of the cut-over procedures, a readiness assessment must be conducted to ensure all required KPIs are met. With the start of the execution, control and decision points will be conducted to assess the progress, review issues and if necessary, adjust the plan accordingly. Throughout the overall execution, risk management must be performed to review possible scenarios and defining mitigation actions. Just in case, “Roll-Back” plans need to be prepared to ensure a way back in case the new situation is getting out of control.
In summary, it will be a huge piece of work to deliver a proper cut-over from the current lockdown situation to normal “life as we know it” …. As we can exclude the big-bang, I assume we all need to prepare for a cut-over with a phased approach of approximately 6 months and as key KPI to start the Cut-Over I would assume we use the “doubling time of infections” reaching more than 30 days. The cut-over could start with allowing 1-1 shops of the daily life to open again (for example hairdressers) and end with allowing events with over 1000 participants….
