Activity 3.4: Formulate the Integrated Plan and Roadmap
This activity is the culmination of the analysis to create the integrated plan. The activity begins with the identification of transition options for the recommendations generated in previous activities. The business, data, enabling application, and infrastructure environment changes are considered in terms of transition options and timing. Each transition option must be assessed to determine the cost, value, and risk of each alternative. Planners complete this analysis and then author the integrated plan and roadmap.The integrated plan consists of the full plan to include the architecture, recommendations for changes to environments, financial business case and budget requirements, performance expectations, and transition milestones. Unlike in many organizations where this information would be presented as separate and often times disjointed plans, the purpose of the Collaborative Planning Methodology is to produce an integrated plan to enable better decision making.
Once the plan is developed it must be presented for approval. The integrated plan must be formally presented for approval to the sponsor, relevant stakeholders, and the collaborative planning team. An approved integrated plan is ready for overall integration into enterprise transition planning, as well as to move forward into the implementation lifecycle.
The following visual illustrates the tasks within this activity.
Tasks:
Identify alternatives for transition and perform cost / value / risk analysis to compare transition alternatives
In this task planners formalize the transition options for the sponsor and stakeholders to consider and make final decisions as to how the adjustments will be implemented. Transition options may be modular (i.e., stand-alone), in that they may be implemented independent of other transition options. Transition options may also share dependencies with each other. Such dependencies are likely to be identified as a consequence of the overall planning analysis performed in previous activities. In practice, it is a good idea to attempt to consolidate and de-couple transition options as much as possible in order to reduce the complexity of the cost / value / risk analysis.
It is important for planners to align and consider the transition options according to the strategic, business, data, application, and infrastructure adjustments defined in the previous activity. This provides line-of-sight of the recommendations and presents the transition options in a more actionable context for decision makers to evaluate and prioritize.
Note that throughout this activity, transition options that share dependencies with each other must be grouped into a higher-level transition option. This may especially be the case where there are dependencies between transition options that are derived based on different findings. In such cases, the opportunity to generalize the findings to encompass both sets of transition options may need to be considered.
Transition options are grouped and summarized as a set derived from the business, data, enabling application, or infrastructure findings. Typically, this will take form such as the following:
Strategic Improvement Opportunity
- Finding 1
- Transition Option 1.1
- Transition Option 1.2
- Finding 2
- Transition Option 2.1
- Transition Option 2.2
For each transition option, planners must assess the relative value being produced in relation to the strategic improvement opportunities and desired performance outcomes. This may require additional input from key stakeholders.
Additionally, an aggregate cost estimate must be prepared that includes the appropriate level of detail for weighing cost differences between transition options. Some more significant transition options may require more detailed system lifecycle cost estimates/total cost of ownership estimates prior to review and approval. Costs may also include decommissioning costs associated with transition options that eliminate a service or that result in system retirements.
In addition to cost and value, planners also need to consider the risks associated with the transition options. Planners need to perform an analysis to determine the top risks in terms of overall impact, per transition option. This involves assessing the likelihood of the occurrence of the risk, along with assessing the impact on both the cost and value of the transition option. Risks must then be rolled up to obtain an overall likelihood and cost / value impact.
Cost, value and risk estimates for each transition option must be analyzed using a quantitative approach such as the Value Measuring Methodology (VMM). Results of the analysis must be used to inform the selection of the most attractive transition option for implementation.
Results of the cost / value / risk analysis must be reviewed with the key stakeholders to gain buy-in to the proposed implementation recommendations. This review must include the value-to-cost comparison, an updated view of the transition sequencing details, and when appropriate a draft systems migration depiction. This is a critical task to ensure buy-in to the implementation recommendation proposals that are to be formalized in the integrated plan and roadmap.
Develop and Gain Approval of the Integrated Plan and Roadmap
The adjustments to the strategy, business, data, enabling application, and infrastructure environment and the related implementation transition options provide the basis for producing the detailed integrated plan and roadmap. The integrated plan summarizes the results of the planning analysis and provides an overview of the adjustments recommended to be made to the strategy, business, data, enabling applications, and infrastructure environment.
Using the adjustments to the strategy, business, data, enabling application, and infrastructure environment and the related implementation transition options, a draft sequencing work breakdown structure (WBS) must be developed. For each adjustment, a full representation of the deliverables that are required for implementation must be developed and described in the WBS. The WBS must incorporate deliverables associated with all aspects of the implementation, including technology, process, system, data, etc., along with any associated workforce development, communication and change management activities.
Based on the completed WBS, both a high-level implementation sequencing plan and an application migration / sequencing overview must be developed to summarize the sequencing plan for the integrated plan and roadmap. The implementation sequencing plan contains information regarding the timing and dependencies between those items identified in the WBS, including the technology, process, application, data, associated workforce development, communication, and change management activities. When applicable, the application migration / sequencing overview is developed to focus on the actual sequencing and transition of applications and infrastructure to achieve the target state.
Once the high-level sequencing is developed, a more detailed sequencing plan is developed in the form of a project schedule that includes all tasks associated with the overall implementation of adjustments to the environment. This sequencing plan details the sequenced tasks necessary to develop the elements of the WBS. Internal and external dependencies must also be included as either milestones or predecessor tasks.
Planners are now in a position to write the actual integrated plan based on the totality of analysis, recommendations, transition options, and sequencing plans developed. The integrated plan must be developed to describe findings, recommendations, and the overall transition plan. This document must be generated according to the outline provided in the following:
Integrated Plan
Sample Outline
Executive Overview: This brief (1-2 pages) overview describes the motivation behind the integrated plan. It is focused on providing clear, concise answers to key questions, such as:
- Where are we today? (Baseline)
- Why do we need to modernize? (Strategic Improvement Opportunities)
- What is our vision for modernization? (Vision, Goals and Objectives)
- How should we execute modernization? (Business, Data, Enabling Application, and Infrastructure Target Environments and Transition Options)
- When should we modernize and what are the relationships to other initiatives? (Sequencing Plan / Implementation Plan)
- Who needs to participate for this initiative to be successful? (Resource Plan)
Overview of Strategic Improvement Opportunities and Business Case: Provides a discussion of the scope, drivers, prioritized needs, and opportunities for improvement. Furthermore, the capital planning business case information should be in this section. This section further elaborates upon the following key questions:
- Where are we today? (Baseline)
- Why do we need to modernize? (Strategic Improvement Opportunities)
Recommendations for the Target State: Describes the existing environments and issues from a variety of perspectives that address the strategic improvement opportunities. The findings and recommendations are described in the context of the specific business services where improvements are recommended due to the drivers, prioritized needs, and desired target vision. All findings are associated to specific recommendations on how to proceed. Expected strategic improvement opportunities associated with the recommendations are also identified. Furthermore, the security, records, performance management, and human capital information should be in this section. This section further elaborates upon the following key question:
- What is our vision for modernization? (Vision, Goals and Objectives)
Target Business, Data, Enabling Application, and Infrastructure Environment: This should include a brief description of the business functions that are provided and the strategic objectives that are to be achieved by the transformation. It also describes the target state for the enabling application and infrastructure environment required to support the recommendations as well as the applications migration plan, and target data model. This section further elaborates upon the following key question:
- How should we execute modernization? (Business, Data, Enabling Application, and Infrastructure Target Environments and Transition Options)
Sequencing Plan: Describes the as-is state, target state, and the integrated steps required to transition from the as-is to the target environment based on the identified recommendations. Within the sequencing plan, performance improvements are also associated with transition milestones. The sequencing plan should also be tied to the business cases or investment proposals. This section further elaborates upon the following key questions:
- When should we modernize and what are the relationships to other initiatives? (Sequencing Plan / Implementation Plan)
- Who needs to participate for this initiative to be successful? (Resource Plan)
The integrated plan and roadmap must be distributed for review to the collaborative planning team, stakeholders, and the sponsor. Accompanying this distribution must be a cover letter that describes the highlights of the integrated plan. A separate executive summary document may also be necessary to facilitate review. During the review process, a document review form must be used to collect comments and change requests.
During the review process, all feedback must be recorded and cataloged. Follow-up actions must be documented and tracked through to completion. As feedback actions are documented and closed, comments and changes must be incorporated into the integrated plan and roadmap. This may also result in updates to other work products such as the sequencing WBS and project plan.
Once the final integrated plan is assembled based on feedback from the reviews, a formal approval meeting must be scheduled and conducted to obtain formal approval of the integrated plan by the collaborative planning team, stakeholders, and sponsor. A record of decision must be created to document the approval.
Publish the Integrated Plan and Roadmap and recommend changes to associated plans and roadmaps
Once the integrated plan and roadmap is approved, planners must publish the documents based on the communication strategy. In some instances, a variety of mechanisms must be used to communicate the plan contents and its impacts on the stakeholder community.
Furthermore, planners must work to identify other associated plans and roadmaps that have been previously published, and perhaps need to be updated based on the contents of this most recently published integrated plan and roadmap. Maintaining these collections of plans and roadmaps and ensuring that the changes find their way to the implementation teams and decision makers is critical to maintain a well-coordinated environment.
Issue relevant policy, procedures, and guidance
Planners must determine if there are policies, procedures, and/or guidance that are required based on the approval and publishing of the integrated plan and roadmap. In many instances, policies, procedures, and/or guidance are required in order to put the plan into action.
Behaviors that need to be changed based on the plan must be grounded in new policy, procedures, and/or guidance when needed.
Activity Outputs:
| Output | Core | FEA Layers |
|---|---|---|
| Transition Recommendation Profile | N | n/a |
| Transition Recommendation Sequencing Diagram | N | n/a |
| Recommendation Sequencing Milestones | N | n/a |
| Proposed Implementation Recommendations | N | n/a |
| Analysis of Cost, Value, and Risk for Transition Options | Y | n/a |
| Recommendation Implementation Sequencing Plan | N | n/a |
| Transition Plan Milestones | Y | n/a |
| Application Migration / Sequencing Overview | Y | n/a |
| Document Review Log | N | n/a |
| Feedback Tracking Document and Action Report | N | n/a |
| Integrated Plan Document | Y | S,B,D,A,I,SP |
| Executive Summary Presentation | N | n/a |
| Record of Decision | Y | n/a |
| Policy, Procedures, and Guidance | N | n/a |
Key to FEA Layers: S = Strategy, B = Business, D = Data, A = Application, I = Infrastructure, SP = Security