SEER for Information Technology
Plan, Analyse and Manage IT Projects
"CIOs who implement standardized and repeatable
planning processes and best-in-class project solutions can reduce the
variance between estimates and actual performance by 50% within two years"
- Dan Galorath, CEO Galorth Inc
SEER for Information Technology (SEER-IT) for estimating IT projects is the
latest in a family of estimation tools and models developed by Galorath
Incorporated. Designed for senior IT professionals, SEER-IT project
estimation enables CIOs to significantly improve their success rates on
complex IT projects based on the science of parametric modelling.
IT Project Estimating Software - Supports
planning efforts throughout the project development lifecycle from concept
through design, development, test, implementation, and ongoing support.
IT Project Planning Software - Provides detailed
insight into the risks, uncertainty and cost drivers associated with IT
project development and management.
CHARISMATEK Software
Metrics are experts in the application of SEER-IT and are the Australian
agents for the full range of SEER products for estimating IT and software
projects.
Contact
CHARISMATEK to find out more about SEER for Information Technology.
Parametric Modelling
Current expectations for IT extend well beyond simply
managing routers, disks, and servers. Today's IT organizations are expected
to optimize and orchestrate complex IT disciplines into a well behaved
business-delivery machine, reconfiguring IT systems, as needed and
on-the-fly to address specific corporate and line-of-business objectives.
Spurred by new compliance regulations, the rise of
outsourcing options, flattened budgets, and calls by senior management to
"run IT more like a business", CIOs are under increasing pressure to impose
more formal processes on IT project activities. And yet, while a number of
tools and standards have emerged to manage IT infrastructure and processes,
the very act of implementing efficiency measures often proves problematic.
Recent studies have determined that over 50% of IT projects significantly
overrun budgets and schedules or are completely abandoned before they are
fully deployed.
Parametric/predictive modelling was developed to
accurately assess what is known about a project and to model or simulate
what is unknown, based on meaningful comparative data. SEER parametric
modelling solutions improve success rates on IT projects. Based on
sophisticated modelling technology, SEER for IT helps organizations
objectively assess up-front project feasibility, optimize project costs and
schedules, assess risks and probabilities, monitor project progress, and
develop detailed project plans.
SEER-IT Software
SEER-IT is built on the same design principles used in
all SEER products, incorporating the following application elements:
Interface
An intuitive interface for defining and describing
projects. Users can generate a new project from an existing project
"template" or by adding and defining individual work elements. A series of
pop-up windows and annotations guide users through the process of defining
project scope, complexity, and technologies.
Simulation / Modelling Engine
Sophisticated sector-specific mathematical models
derived from extensive project histories, behavioural models, and metrics,
providing a consistent framework for IT project estimation the costs, effort
and resources required for IT projects.
Knowledge Bases
SEER Knowledge Bases serve as a virtual "in-house
expert," providing default project definitions, values, ranges, and
calibrations based on comparable project histories. Knowledge Bases enable
users to develop first-look IT project estimates when very little
information is known, and to refine those estimates as details become
available.
Outputs
A variety of charts, graphs, and reports are available
for quickly summarizing and presenting project outcomes and alternatives as
well as work-in-progress.
Integration
Open architecture and APIs ensure that SEER
applications can be easily integrated with departmental productivity
solutions and enterprise applications.
Developing an IT Project Estimate Using SEER-IT
Estimation Elements
SEER-IT has a collection of estimation elements, or
process models, which can be used to build a work breakdown structure. Each
element has a set of inputs, calculations, rates and factors (used to
compute costs) and a set of outputs. Elements/process models provide logical
groupings for IT activities and can be used to fully define a project.
Rollup: A summary element representing the sum
of the elements beneath it.
Purchased Hardware: Estimate procurement and
support costs for purchased or leased hardware items.
Purchased Software: Used for bringing in
procurement and support costs for purchased or leased software items.
Application Development: Development effort can
be entered as a summary number of hours, hours by phase, or hours by labour
category. Software development inputs can be derived from
SEER for Software.
Software/Database Services: Effort associated
with deploying and supporting enterprise applications and databases, as well
as middleware and software services.
End-User Services: Estimate the effort
associated with setup, deployment and support of end-user systems such as
PCs, notebooks, and mobile devices.
Infrastructure Services: Effort for setup,
deployment, test, checkout, and ongoing support of infrastructure IT systems
such as servers, storage systems and networks.
Facilities: The cost of installing and
maintaining network cables and facility build-out, including utilities,
telecom services, and supplies.
Training: Used to estimate the effort for
developing or purchasing training programs and courseware as well as the
delivery of training.
Service Desk: The operation of a service desk
function including end-user system and application support.
User Documentation: The effort to develop and
publish user documentation for IT applications and IT systems.
Additional Items: This element is used to
capture any additional costs or effort not covered by other SEER for IT
elements that may be specific to your environment.
Using and Documenting Results
A variety of charts, graphs, and reports are available
for quickly summarizing and communicating project outcomes, alternatives,
and work-in-progress. Results can be documented using SEER's rich reporting
capabilities, saved to a variety of other formats including Excel, RTF,
text, and PDF, or can be exported to 3rd-party applications such as
Microsoft Project.
Quick Estimate: Provides a quick summary of the
overall estimate. Set a baseline estimate to perform extensive what-if
analyses.
Phased Activity: Shows schedule months, labour
hours, labour cost and material cost for all phases including ongoing
support.
Labour Detail: The labour detail shows hours and
costs for each of the labour categories included in your estimate.
Economic Factors: Specify what percentage is
done in-house to determine total labour for both in-house and contracted
efforts.
Project Risk Analysis: Cost and hours as a
function of the probability of completion within budget, broken out into
labor hours, labour cost, material cost and total cost. Users may also have
the system perform a Monte Carlo simulation to compute risk at all project
levels.
Cost by Fiscal Year: Allocates in-house,
contractor, material and total costs into fiscal years. View costs by fiscal
year as well as month-to-month.
Monthly Details: Cost or labour hours grouped by
labor category, phase or in-house vs. contractor, reported in monthly
increments.
Customisation and Calibration
SEER-IT comes with a set of sample Knowledge Bases
pre-calibrated for a variety of IT activities. Users can also create custom
Knowledge Bases and perform analyses with metrics derived from company
project histories and task labour standards.
 SEER for IT fills a missing link between project design
and project execution, enabling organizations to rapidly establish
repeatable and integrated IT project planning process: Developing a concept;
testing its feasibility; designing and optimizing project capabilities,
costs, schedules, and risks; and developing reliable project plans.
CHARISMATEK Software Metrics are experts in
the application of SEER-IT and are the Australian agents for the full range
of SEER products for estimating IT and software projects.
Contact CHARISMATEK to find out more about
SEER for Information Technology.
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