pulse_process

PROCESS

Reference Model
Assessment Profile
Assessment Method
Assessment Tools
User Assessment Trials
Training Curriculum
Certification Scheme
Methodology Licensing Scheme

The prime contractor for the PULSE project was Alec Dorling of IVF, who also leads the worldwide ISO SPICE initiative (refer to Relevance to Standardization).

Reference Model

A general Reference Model for IT procurement was defined by the Project Partners to accommodate different procurement styles and techniques for both commercial and public procurement. Input was taken from:

The Project Partners’ own experience

The Project Users’ experience

Existing procurement methods

Best practice guides

The Reference Model expanded the ISO SPICE Reference Model by adding the definition and use of process performance indicators to measure the maturity of procurement activities.

The procurement activities were divided into processes, with common definitions, for example:

User input process
Technical requirements process
Project management process
Contracts process

The model has two dimensions:

Process Categories: process purposes are the essential measurable objectives of a process
Capability Levels: a series of Process Attributes applicable to any process, which are the measurable characteristics for managing a process

The Process Categories were defined according to their activity type, as follows:

Acquisition
Support
Management
Organization

The Capability Levels and their Process Attributes were defined as follows:

Level 5	Optimizing Process	5.2	Efficiency and effectiveness
		5.1	Technical infrastructure
Level 4	Established Process	4.2	Skills, competencies, and training
		4.1	Stability
Level 3	Defined Process	3.2	Quality achievement
		3.1	Process definition
Level 2	Managed Process	2.2	Document, configuration, and change control
		2.1	Planned and tracked
Level 1	Performed Process	1.1	Performed
Level 0	Incomplete Process

The rating scale for measuring the Process Attributes was defined as follows:

Not Achieved
Partially Achieved
Largely Achieved
Fully Achieved

Assessment Profile

An Assessment Profile was developed for each organization. The use of a profile allowed for the following:

Not all processes need be present in every procurement organization

Organizations have very different procurement profiles depending on factors such as their industry, how they use IT, their specific business goals, etc.

The profile provided an assessment of current processes and identified those attributes that were important in meeting each organization’s business objectives.

Assessment Method

An Assessment Method was defined, using the Assessment Model, to assess procurement activities, as follows:

Assessment Input (including purpose and scope)

Assessment, including:

Assessment Preparation (appointment of team, scheduling, confidentiality arrangements, etc.)
Data collection, validation, and rating (round-table discussion and negotiation)
Ratings and capability profiles (feedback of summary findings)
Strengths and weaknesses analysis (impact and risks)
Improvement opportunities analysis (prioritization)

Assessment Output, in the form of an Assessment Report (including all data and analysis, and specific recommendations)

All Assessments were conducted by competent assessors and took two/three days each.

The aim was to arrive at a set of process performance indicators and a set of process capability indicators.

Assessment Tools

A PC-based assessment tool was developed in the form of a questionnaire, to provide a general assessment environment including data entry, analysis and scoring, graphical representations of results, etc.

Presentations, report templates, and improvement templates were also developed, based on similar materials available with other assessment methods.

User Assessment Trials

Three Project Users participated in a series of trials to validate and refine the PULSE assessment methodology and tools to ensure that the project objectives were achieved. They were also involved in reviewing the methodology development work to ensure that it met their needs.

The Project Partners facilitated the trials. The Project Users were:

Caisse des Depots et Consignations (CDC)
A commercial organization with 12,000 employees (25,000 including subsidiaries) offering banking, assurance, and pension services.
Informatique CDC
A commercial software development company with 1,200 employees.
SBI
A federal micro-computer department with 52 employees.

Each organization already had some experience in performing assessments.

Each trial took approximately one week of on-site work with the Project User, which included an introductory presentation, followed by interviews with the purchasing, IT development, and planning and strategy personnel (at both project and management level) in order to identify the contrasting perceptions and understanding of the procurement process.

The data was analyzed and an Assessment Report and recommended actions were developed, which were presented to the Project User within one/two weeks of the trials.

Each Project User prepared an Evaluation Report (based on a template) to provide feedback on the PULSE methodology.

Training Curriculum

A Training Curriculum was developed for a three-day assessor training course, to ensure that:

Assessment results are consistent and comparable

Assessors adhere to the methodology

Assessors understand how to interpret assessment results

Certification Scheme

A Certification Scheme was developed to enable assessors to be certified to conduct procurement process assessments using the PULSE methodology.

Methodology Licensing Scheme

A licensing scheme was developed so that the complete PULSE methodology with all supporting materials could be licensed by both user organizations and consultants wanting to provide assessment services.

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