Tangoe - Best Technical Support Strategy and Implementation
Company: Tangoe, Indianapolis, IN
Company Description: Tangoe simplifies, manages and optimizes the technology expenses and programs for the world’s largest organizations with industry-leading technology and services. Our technology, product and service delivery experts, fueled by an innovative automation framework, deliver comprehensive expense management for telecom, mobile and cloud.
Nomination Category: Information Technology Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Technical Support Strategy and Implementation
Nomination Title: Tangoe’s Implementation Strategy, Methodology and Governance Model
Tangoe has been in the business of efficiently processing technology expense information for over 20 years and our focus on automation and efficiency has been in place since the beginning.We have invested in strategies, tools and methods for implementation that simplify and automate processes for our support team and customers.
The Bottom Line With our implementation methodology and governance model, we have defined a strategy with a proven transition formula that focuses on quality and accelerated go-live for faster ROI.
We designed our processes to blend the human touch with technology to deliver consistent, high-quality, and effective service to our customers.
Through customer survey results, we have found our implementation model is a big differentiator from other vendors.
What it is An agile Implementation Methodology and Governance Model We focus on leveraging process, governance, and quick speed-to-value for our customers. Our model has been developed over the years to drive process efficiencies, improve customer satisfaction and establish a foundation for customer success.
Our implementation method incorporates interactive web-based tools to monitor and track step-by-step tasks and milestones critical to the success of the project. Realtime Dashboards provide visibility to statuses, actions and governance for all stakeholders.
How it works Our Implementation Methodology includes a five-phased, gated approach that leads to a milestone accomplished at the end of each phase.
Phase 1 Initiation
Milestone: Baseline Project Plan
• Assign Resources
• Define Roll Out Strategy
• Gather Critical Path Requirements
Phase 2 Planning and Design
Milestone: Design Approval
Define Integration Requirements
Define Software Configuration
Define Service Business Rules
Phase 3 Configuration and Validation
Milestone: User Acceptance Testing (UAT) ready
• Configure Software
• Load Data
• Conduct Quality Testing
Phase 4 Client Readiness
Milestone: Go Live
• Complete Training
• Customer User Acceptance Testing
• Communicate Rollout Strategy
Phase 5 Closure
Milestone: Project Complete
• Support Service Team
• Rollout Support Process
• Phase Out Transition Team
Our Governance Modelensures correct stakeholders have a clear identification of what’s in-scope, project checkpoints and assessments, and there is flexibility to create waves of subprojects. We conduct executive sponsor reviews to determine project health and recommend strategies to overcome obstacles.
We measure five key success factors:
Stakeholders
• Correct sponsor appropriately engaged
• Regular sponsor review meetings, decisions and actions are effective
• All stakeholder groups effectively represented and engaged
• Roles and responsibilities are clear and accepted
Work and Schedule
• Project plan is accepted and maintained
• Milestone acceptance criteria and roles are accepted
• Approach is followed, resources assigned
• Confidence in progress, reporting accuracy and estimated time to complete
Scope
• Project plan and scope implemented and accepted
• Scope exclusion/assumptions are clear
• Proposed/agreed changes follow change control process
Value
• Business Case clearly articulated
• Solution supports the desired outcome and costs
• Quality of work is appropriate
Risks
• Risks proactively sought in meetings and discussions
• Risks brought up with recommended mediation
• Mitigations are effective
Transition success strategies
The following elements ensure a successful transition:
• Communication is essential to the success of the project.
• A clear understanding of the scope of services and strategy of deployment.
• Follow the governance framework to ensure globally consistent operations and delivery
• Decentralized data is common. Spend the extra time upfront to get this information correct as this mitigates downstream delays and frustration.
• Send invoice copies to determine the account numbers and structure to ensure templates are set up correctly during deployment.
• Enforce enablement training throughout the deployment.
• Leverage Tangoe’s best-practice templates for interfaces and feeds.
Results
In 2020, time from project kick-off to go-live averaged 118 days compared to 2018 where we averaged 206 days, and 2017 where we averaged 308 days.After go-live, customers complete a survey with many elements related to their experience and result.
Success scores have risen from 8.6 to 9.3 out of 10.
Support Team Chief accomplishments from 2019-present
• Through deep research and investigation, Tangoe team discovered low customer satisfaction levels throughout the TEM industry regarding solution implementation
• Developed strategy and plan to immediately raise levels and speed to value
• Strategy included creating a five-phase gated approach to implementation of software and a governance model
• Interactive web-based system to monitor and track step-by-step tasks and milestones critical to the success of the project
• Tools created include - Interactive Plan, Interactive Reports, Dynamic Dashboards, Transition Checklists
• Four videos explaining our Implementation Methodology and Governance Model (video scripts and PowerPoint slides attached to submission; videos in development include confidential information and cannot be released externally) created to explain the process and customer responsibilities so nothing gets overlooked for 100% customer satisfaction
• Transition success strategies to ensure successful transitioning to Tangoe systems