Org Impact Assessment Reading

Introduction

After you uncover the root cause of the problem and propose a solution you must then conduct an Organizational Impact Analysis to quickly discern if your proposed solution is feasible for the organization to manage at a strategic, managerial, and operational level.  By exploring this context, you add value by calling attention to the broader impact of the proposed change.

Description

Once the symptoms of the problem are exposed, a root-cause is identified, and a solution is proposed, the organizational impact analysis begins by asking 3 questions.

  • Strategically: How will the proposed system or system enhancement help the organization improve its competitive advantage or ability to fulfill its overall mission?  
  • Managerial: How will the proposed system or system enhancement help managers make better decisions?
  • Operationally: How will the proposed system or system enhancement improve process operations and non-management's performance?

By answering these questions the strategic, management, and operational context are revealed. This leads to either an acceptance of the proposed solution or a resetting of priorities because the project scope, schedule, resources or ROI are not aligning with the strategic, managerial, or operational expectations of the organization. 

Purpose

Reluctance to accept the changes brought on by a project is a major risk to all projects.  Conducting an organizational impact analysis produces additional value by pointing out the adverse and even positive changes the project is causing and allow you to proactive manage those changes. Knowing these conditions could also enable you to proactively reset priorities thereby changing the scope and impacting the schedule and resources before it's too far along in the project.

Creating an Organizational Impact Analysis

To conduct an organizational impact analysis start with the Organizational Impact template found below.  For example, see the Organizational Analysis in Figure 1 for the Woom Bikes project.   Answer the leading question for each section by filling in the requirements that will answer the question. Replace each question with the context for strategy, management, and operations specific to the project.  Then fill in the corresponding priority levels using MSCW.  Add more rows for additional requirements as necessary.  PRO TIP: Like the non-functional requirements, it's important to not confuse Org Impact requirements with functional requirements.  Instead, think of them more as expectations you all have based on the anticipated changes or ask yourself one of the following questions to drive good requirements:

  • What are the points of contingency to address because of this change? 
  • What are the expectations of this group based on this change? 
  • What is an action we must take to help the client manage this change?

If the scope, schedule, and resources align with the firm’s strategy, management, and operations you are set to begin the systems development process.  If they don’t align, return to each requirement and the priority table to find the misalignment.  Then, working with the client, reset the priority level accordingly to change the scope and positively impact the schedule and resources.

Benefits

The root cause analysis is necessary for identifying the real root cause. But, if you just concentrate on the narrow root cause, you might miss what’s more important, such as what might increase the ROI.  Often clients will focus on a narrow problem, like an operational hassle such as a time-consuming process to create reports. You add value by calling attention to the broader possibilities of the proposed solution and noting what will add value for managers or a competitive advantage that might not have occurred to your client.

Reviewing the requirements to meet project goals at all three organizational levels will help you improve your Functional and Non-Functional Requirements Summaries.  (Similarly working on those will trigger ideas for improving your Organizational Impact Analysis.  Remember, this is an iterative process.)  Your goal is to think broadly to maximize the value of your delivery for your clients.

Figure 1. Organizational Impact Analysis for Woom Bikes project

REMINDER: Examples are not perfect and didn't receive a 100 in grading so that means you need to discern where the examples are lacking and use them merely for context.  Make your final Org Impact assessments better and avoid blindly copy/pasting from examples.

Organizational Impact Analysis for the onTrax app of Woom Bikes:

Strategic, Management, Operations

Org Impact Example

Tips for Completeness

  • Think creatively about what may add value for all three organization levels. Interviewing external users, as well as internal users in different areas of the organization will help you and broaden the views of your main client-contact. Use your Stakeholders Table as a checklist regarding interviewees and assign team members to conduct the interviews and report back for a brain-storming session to complete your Organizational Impact Analysis.
  • Review your data flow diagrams to see what additional processes can be improved, as well as those that obviously need to be improved or added.

FAQs

Q1. Do we have to include requirements at all levels? Our client is a non-profit, so there aren’t any competitive requirements. Answer: Yes, you have to include requirements for every level. “Non-profits” are not “non-revenue.”  Competition for donations is huge in the non-profit world; a strategic level view is often critical to survival.

Q2.  Our client didn’t tell us they wanted any management reports.  Do we have to make them up? Answer: Yes.  With web-based systems, there are some easy traffic reports that might help your client tremendously, but they didn’t realize this was a free service. Any operational functionality, such as, customer registrations that save staff time is also the basis for an easy added value of a report on total customers, total sales, total new registrations per month, etc. Use your creativity and business education to help your client make the most of the technology your team delivers. 

High-Quality Delivery Tips

  • Be sure you have clearly outlined Strategic, Management, and Operations goals.
  • Be sure that the context issues for each of the three sections are consistent with the information in the case or appropriate for your client.

Template and Examples

Examples: