Complex IT Project Management: 16 Steps to Success

11.3 Understanding the Model

So there you have it, a very complex support culture and process you need to finagle your project into, taking care not to be too disruptive while doing so. Once you understand this, you can appreciate that the only valid approach is to be somewhat educated as to the particulars of your environment's operation and support culture before you attempt to negotiate your handoffs. Do not wait for operations to "belly up" to the bar. At least in my 20-year-plus IT career, of the hundreds of operations managers I have known, with few exceptions they are definitely not the proactive sorts. Further, I believe it is up to you to understand what challenges your project presents to them. I recommend that you:

• Understand what postimplementation support will be required by your project.

• Discover which organization(s) will provide that support.

• Analyze to what degree that organization is capable of meeting those support requirements and what "customization" may be required.

• Work with operations to close any gaps between your requirements and their capabilities.

• Be prepared for a response from operations that includes funding requests for training, equipment, and head count expansion or backfill.