ABSTRACT
This section, as the conclusion of the book, seeks to provide the essence of the considerations, principles, practices, and examples discussed herein to single out inadequate/lack of Operational Readiness (OR) as detrimental to system deployment. Many organisations have lost billions on capital projects (e.g., ICT and/or Infrastructure) that were satisfactorily delivered, but still failed “to deliver value” in their operational phases.
Two remarkable projects (discussed in Chapters 1, 2, and 4) are mentioned here to make a point: while both projects were satisfactorily completed and hailed as a feat of engineering and Project Management, Heathrow Terminal 5 failed to operate effectively after inauguration due to failings in the “system” itself (i.e., Transition Requirements not met). The colossal New South China Mall failed and was “abandoned” after opening due to the “environment” not being ready (or willing) to utilise it; these “systems” were satisfactorily completed, but benefits were jeopardised (Terminal 5), or not realised (New China Mall). Well, again, something was not “ready” in their operational environment.
Furthermore, the extent Operational Readiness is applied in projects correlates with delivery maturity. The Portfolio, Programme and Project Management Maturity Model (P3M3®) aptly reflects OR as a key requirement of project delivery at various maturity levels.
