Key takeaways

  • Start with the priority: what the business wants to improve, who owns it and how progress will be assessed.
  • Run training and implementation together where the priority needs both, not because both are available.
  • Test outputs, exceptions and review steps with the people who do the work before anything goes into normal use.
  • Review what has changed at day 90 without turning it into an invented revenue figure.
  • Keep the wider priorities in view, without starting every idea at once.

Establish the priority and who owns it

Start with what the business wants to improve and why it matters. That could be a reporting process, tender preparation, the team's use of existing tools or a decision about where to invest.

Agree what the first piece of work should achieve, who will be involved and how progress will be assessed. For training, that means practical changes in what people can do. For implementation, it means a defined result, the relevant information and the checks needed before the system is used.

Where important questions remain, identify which can be resolved within the work and which need separate investigation. A study should answer a decision, not become a default step for every company.

Bring training and implementation together where needed

Training does not have to wait until a build is finished. The team may need help using approved tools now, while more substantial work is being designed and tested.

Equally, training alone will not fix every systems problem. Repeated handling between software, missing information or unclear responsibilities may require changes to the process or an integration.

The sequence should make sense for the priority. Do not run disconnected training and development activity simply because both are available.

Test against the work that actually happens

A useful demonstration is not the same as a system ready for normal use. Test the outputs, exceptions and review requirements with the people who understand the work.

Make clear where professional judgement remains, what happens when information is incomplete and who decides whether the result is acceptable. The move into use should follow those checks, not an arbitrary date.

Review progress and decide what comes next

Look at what has been delivered, whether the team is using it and what has changed. Time released is one measure, but the commercial benefit depends on what that allows the business to do.

A reporting improvement may give a commercial manager better information earlier. Training may improve the consistency of work prepared across a team. Neither should be turned into an invented revenue figure to make the programme look successful.

The position at day 90 depends on the agreed scope. Some improvements may be in use while more complex work remains in development or testing. Leadership should be able to see the progress, the remaining dependencies and the decisions needed next.

Keep the wider priorities in view

A defined first engagement can sit within a longer-term strategy. It does not mean starting every idea at once, or requiring the business to buy a wider programme before useful work can begin.

The aim is to make progress on the right priorities, develop the team's ability to use the work and use the evidence to decide what follows.