FOCUS CAFM
PEOPLE POWER
According to the Project Management Institute,
47 per cent of unsuccessful projects fail to
meet goals due to poor management of project
requirements. Implementing a new computeraided
facilities management (CAFM) system is no
exception – solid requirements gathering is the
foundation of success.
A CAFM system brings about major changes
in the way a facilities team functions, and in the
way FM is perceived within the business. Its most
obvious benefits are improving asset performance,
automating maintenance workflows and reducing
maintenance costs. But the early stages of such
projects are o en overlooked, which can lead
to problems further down the line. Managing
the technology is the easy part; it is your people
management skills that will be put to the test.
Requirements gathering should take place at an
early stage, helping to shape your brief. Regardless
of project size, the most fruitful way to begin
is with workshops involving relevant
stakeholders from procurement,
IT, HR, legal, finance, marketing
and operations. This will
enable you to develop
engagement with all
parties at an early stage,
steer their input and
overcome any potential
blockages before they
become an issue. They
give you an opportunity
to meet face to face and
get a true sense of people’s
feelings and stories, as well
as uncovering and addressing
underlying tensions, concerns and
misconceptions about what the project is trying to
achieve.
Depending on the size and type of your business,
you may want to set up a project management
team that draws from the di erent areas of your
organisation. Some of your stakeholders are likely to
be ideal candidates for a governance board, brought
together to help steer your project and maintain
focus. Typically consisting of four to seven people,
a governance board is also a good way to ensure
information is retained and passed on in the event
32 OCTOBER 2019
of employee changes. At the very least, your project
should have a board-level or C-suite sponsor right
from the start.
COMMON MISTAKES AND PITFALLS
Not engaging the right people at the start is a
common problem with CAFM projects. You need to
identify all your stakeholders across the business,
and system users will inevitably play a big part in
conversations. Operations and procurement teams
need to know and agree on what you are trying to
achieve, and why, in order to avoid scope creep.
You should also make sure you outline or
share the objectives and agenda for the CAFM
requirements gathering process. Failing to do so can
cause misunderstandings that hinder productive
collaboration. If people have not been through this
process before, they may have misconceptions about
what it involves, so it is important to communicate
e ectively with the entire stakeholder group at
every stage.
Requirements need to be
revisited throughout the
lifecycle of a CAFM project
to avoid damaging
expectations. For
example, if a key
stakeholder leaves
the business part way
through a project,
it can appear that
requirements have
changed. If a project is
started by one party and
delivered to another, this
disconnect can sometimes mean
the new team believes that the system
does not meet the objectives. To ensure successful
project delivery, the requirements specified at the
outset should be constantly monitored.
Every business has its own priorities, but in all
cases, understanding the ‘why’ and the value to your
business of each requirement (or omission) is key.
Ultimately, many decisions come down to the
cost-benefit ratio. If a particular feature or function
is going to cost more, is it worth it? Are there any
legal implications and will there be a knock-on e ect
from not doing it? What is the opportunity cost of
not doing it? Make sure that you consider managing
for today as well as planning for tomorrow. Both are
equally important to the overall project, but will be
given di erent emphasis by di erent stakeholders.
So build the capacity for both into your plan.
Ask lots of questions, and keep asking them. Only
when you have your answers can you set the agenda
around the scope of work – don’t try to do things
the other way around. Define what good looks like.
This should be your point of focus throughout.
Is it set reporting? Reduction in costs? E iciency
improvements? What is your main driver? Without
identifying your key objectives, you can’t prioritise,
or make decisions on what is essential, what is
important, and what would simply be nice to have.
Once you have created your prioritised list of
requirements, make sure that you have addressed
any conflicting requests and investigated anything
that you suspect may be based on an assumption
rather than fact. Inevitably, you are likely to end
up with some ‘wish list’ items that won’t make the
priority list.
This is the point at which you need to play your
findings back to the stakeholders and check your
understanding. It’s important to emphasise that this
is not a statement of work (SoW), but that the priority
requirements will go forward to form the scope of the
project.
In the face of internal politics and competing
agendas, requirements gathering demands careful
management. Establishing a common purpose is
important, as is reaching consensus on what the
system should achieve. But if configured properly,
a new facilities management platform will drive
collaboration and help colleagues operate more
e ectively, bringing benefits to both those involved
in the project and the business as a whole.
Taking a planned and collaborative approach to the
project is essential to the success of your system’s
implementation. More than that, an engaging and
relevant process for gathering your requirements can
change perceptions of the FM role, creating greater
visibility at board level while demonstrating your
ability to deliver meaningful change and achieve
strategic goals. Well before any implementation
begins, this process o ers you a vital opportunity to
solidify your position as a leader, project manager
and strategic thinker.
Specifying new CAFM software can be a complicated affair. Paul
Djuric, Head of Techniche EMEA, explains how to gather your
requirements and avoid common mistakes
Not engaging the right
people at the start is a
common problem with CAFM
projects. You need to identify all
your stakeholders across the
business, and system users will
inevitably play a big part
in conversations.”