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A World-Class Team and a Proven Approach to Implementation Services for Elite Clients
Thomson Elite appreciates the investment in time and resources that clients
dedicate when purchasing Elite solutions. Along with this investment comes the
expectation that Elite products will streamline their operations and run their
businesses more efficiently. To assimilate new clients into the Elite family, our
implementation services team establishes a strong partnership with clients and
delivers project management and technical expertise that ensures solutions are
successfully implemented within an agreed upon time schedule.
Elite’s Implementation Services team of highly qualified consultants is dedicated to
delivering Elite solutions that are implemented to meet or exceed client expectations. Clients benefit from the knowledge and expertise Elite’s consultants have gained from over 200 combined years of experience working in the professional services industry. As a result, Elite’s implementation team provides a blend of domain knowledge and market-sector expertise that is second to none.
Elite Implementation Services Team Highlights
Elite consultants make the following key contributions to the success of an implementation project:
- Proven track record - successful implementation of more than 800 systems.
- International expertise - with implementations in more than 35 different
countries.
- Extensive professional services market expertise - members of the team include
legal experts, CPAs, MBAs, PMPs and other professional services specialists.
- Unmatched Elite product expertise and access to Elite technical resources.
A Framework for Successful Implementations
Elite implementations follow our Project Quality Model (PQM), a world-class
approach based upon the internationally accepted, ANSI-standard principles from
the Project Management Institute. Elite PQM serves as a roadmap for the entire implementation lifecycle and features a series of distinct but interrelated processes:
Vision Statement
Each implementation commences by ensuring that the vision expressed during the
sales cycle is carried out by the implementation team. During this process, client
and Elite project stakeholders agree upon corporate objectives, key business
drivers, solution expectations and the scope parameters that will govern the
implementation effort. The contract details are reviewed; constraints and
assumptions are documented; and technical and resource requirements are
confirmed to ensure that all parties are in agreement as to the commitment
required to complete the project. Subsequently, clients attend a management
overview session. This session is designed to provide sufficient information about
Elite’s system enabling the client to make informed decisions about product
configuration. At the completion of this process, the key deliverables include:
- A draft client profile document highlighting all critical intellectual property that
needs to follow the project.
- A draft project charter and scope statement outlining the project purpose,
project scope, preliminary resource allocations, project constraints, project
assumptions and deliverables.
- A management overview training session.
Strategic Planning
The strategy process is of vital importance to the success of the implementation
and can sometimes be the most time-consuming of the processes. It is here that
the steps for accomplishing the client’s vision are defined.
- Defining the operational structure - Initially, the organizational structure of the
project team, as well as key contacts, are identified and steps for issue escalation
are defined. A communications plan, which specifies the needs of project
stakeholders, is also constructed.
- Managing change and cost - Change control formalizes the process by which
changes to project scope are identified, evaluated, approved and incorporated
into the overall plan. This is supplemented by a cost-control plan which
addresses the frequency of status meetings and actual-to-budget reporting, as
well as any client-specific cost-control issues.
- Ensuring quality and mitigating risk - Quality, performance and acceptance test
criteria are defined, documented and approved. Project risks such as
customizations and enhancements, aggressive timeframes, competing projects
and resource constraints are identified, acknowledged and addressed via
contingency plans and reserve funds.
- Engineering the environment - The technical infrastructure and software
deployment approach are detailed in a plan that covers training, testing and
production environments, migration and upgrade strategies, and the
management of the support and help desks.
- Optimizing processes - Business areas, which would most benefit from process
improvement afforded by the new system, are identified for further analysis.
- Converting critical information - Data from the legacy system is mapped to its
appropriate place in Elite, and the volume of data, extract plan and any unique
logic associated with the data conversion are all clearly defined and documented.
- Training client personnel - A training plan addressing end-user needs is
developed and custom training agendas to support the plan are prepared.
- Architecting client solutions - Analysis of Elite product options that allow
solutions to be tailored to meet client-specific needs must be conducted. Billing
formats, third-party integration requirements, G/L account masking, security and
end-user access are examples of the key areas addressed. In addition, planning
for the client’s information distribution strategy, including reports, inquiries, and
web-accessible data, must be considered. Finally, if workflow, custom reports or
enhancements are being deployed, specifications need to be developed and
approved.
- Creating the schedule - The results of the strategic planning effort must then be
carefully documented in a project schedule inclusive of dates, timing and resources.
The strategy process will deliver a clearly defined team structure, the project
framework and a detailed project implementation schedule. The process also yields
comprehensive strategies to manage:
- Quality, including quality assessment and assurance.
- Project risks with proposed responses and contingency reserves identified for
each risk.
- Project performance and acceptance.
- Schedule and cost control.
- Communications among all involved parties.
- Client-specific project solutions.
Solution Execution and Deployment
Execution is where the plans, specifications and strategies developed in the
aforementioned processes bear fruit. During this process, client-specific Elite
solutions are designed, assembled, configured and implemented. Here, our
partnership with our clients becomes even closer as we strive to ensure that they
are successfully embracing their new tools and processes and becoming
increasingly self-sufficient. Some of the key activities taking place during the
execution process include:
- Technical Infrastructure Deployment - all appropriate hardware, as well as any
contract and third-party software, will be tested, installed, configured and
integrated within clients’ technical environment. Backup and recovery
procedures are defined, and help desk and support environments are activated.
- Data Conversion - Client data is extracted, validated, converted and migrated to
the new system environment. Conversion tests yielding validation reports, data
integrity confirmations and documented run times, are performed to ensure a
smooth transition to the new solution during cutover.
- User Training - Elite trainers, along with client resources employing train-thetrainer
techniques, instruct end users on how to utilize the Elite solution to its
full potential.
- Client Solutions - Any client-specific enhancements that need to be integrated
into the Elite system, such as billing formats, custom reports, security and access
specifications, and workflow solutions are constructed and tested.
At the conclusion of the execution process, clients can expect the following results:
- An Elite solution tailored to their business needs and objectives that successfully
meets or exceeds the defined critical success factors, solution expectations and
quality assurance measures within schedule and cost parameters.
- Data from existing systems will have been fully validated and converted to the
new system.
- System users will be educated and trained so that clients will be able to
experience immediate value from the Elite solution.
Closure and Transition
As the implementation effort comes to closure, the Elite solution is fully deployed
and ready for use. At this time, upcoming client requirements for additional
product implementations, enhancements, optimizations or upgrades are
considered. Ownership of the solution is transferred to the client, product
maintenance becomes the responsibility of the Elite Support Team, and Elite
Consulting Services provides ongoing assistance as the client’s business
environment evolves and matures. Deliverables from the closure and transition
efforts include:
- A completed client satisfaction survey.
- An updated knowledge transfer document.
- Plans for continuous improvement efforts.
- Key client documents are archived.
Administering the Project
Active throughout the implementation lifecycle and fundamental to Elite’s Project
Quality Model is a monitoring and measurement process that consists of numerous
cost and scope control, testing, quality assurance and acceptance activities. These
ongoing activities are supplemented by critical control points that function as
"gates" to ensure that the project cannot advance to the next phase until the
required activities and acceptance factors are successfully met. The monitoring
and measurement process employed by Elite ensures that projects are properly
stewarded to both a time and cost budget. This critical process transcends across
the entire project implementation process to help ensure on-time project
completion within estimated cost parameters along with properly managed and
approved schedule and scope changes. Some of the key items that result from the
monitoring and measurement process are:
- Actual-to-budget reports.
- Status meetings and associated recap documents.
- Client signoff and acceptance letters.
- Service addendums.
- Project plan change requests.
Implementation Services that Ensure Long Term Value
To provide long-term value, a financial and practice management solution must be
able to fulfill the ever - changing needs of a professional services firm. To accomplish this objective, Elite offers clients a comprehensive suite of implementation service
offerings. With the development and utilization of the Project Quality Model, Elite’s
consultants are equipped with a process that maximizes the time spent with clients
and further ensures the successful delivery of Elite solutions to our clients.
Your Partner for Financial and Practice Management Solutions
Thomson Elite is a worldwide leader in enterprise software for the professional
services industry with solutions for organizations in the accounting, IT and
management consulting, legal, marketing services, technology, corporate, and
government sectors. More than half of the AmLaw 100, more than a third of the top
1,000 U.S. law firms, and over a third of the top 100 UK law firms use Elite financial
and practice management solutions. Contact Thomson Elite to learn more about
Elite’s financial and practice management solutions that deliver firms a unique
combination of comprehensive functionality along with world-class service and
support.
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