Marin County Grand Jury • 2012-2013

Marin's Software Saga Continues - But Is There Merit In Atom?[pdf]

Published: June 05, 2013 31 pages

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⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

Findings 8 findings

The Board of Supervisors and other key players made decisions that contributed directly or indirectly to the MERIT project failure.

The ATOM project has been designed and managed in ways that show the BOS has learned lessons from MERIT. However, the current governance structure for ATOM is unclear and does not fully assign responsibilities or give “ownership” of the project to any specific entity or person.

The PM role for ATOM has not been given the authority and responsibility warranted for a project of this size.

ATOM has no comprehensive project plan or change management plan in accordance with Project Management Institute (PMI) standards.

There is a heavy reliance on outside consultants to guide and drive the ATOM project, with no clear plan to acquire the needed expertise to avoid a similar reliance in the future.

The BOS does not have a well-defined oversight role established over ATOM that ensures frequent briefings and comprehensive progress summaries (dashboards). The Marin County Board of Supervisors’ Response, “Advantages of Creating an Independent Office of Budget and Legislative Analysis,” September 11, 2012, marincounty.org 37 Mary Beard, The Roman Triumph, June 2009, p85, Harvard University Press.

The BOS did not use an objective advisory resource (OAR) for evaluating major decisions pertaining to MERIT or ATOM.

The BOS does not have a standard procedure for using an OAR when considering or overseeing large projects.

Recommendations 8

R1

The BOS reconfigure the ATOM governance to appoint the CAO and the IST Director as Project Directors with full authority to manage the project, and equal responsibility for its successful completion.
R2

The BOS elevate the current Project Manager role to senior, full-time Project Manager status reporting to the Project Directors and having responsibility for all project operations.
R3

The BOS advise the CA, IST Director, and PM to develop a comprehensive project plan and change management plan for ATOM in accordance with PMI standards.
R4

The BOS establish a schedule of regular briefings at which the ATOM Project Directors and the Project Manager present a progress summary (dashboard) for all major facets of the project.
R5

The BOS reduce Marin’s reliance on outside consultants and hire outside consultants only when the requesting department can fully demonstrate the lack of that expertise within the department.
R6

The BOS require departments requesting outside consultants to use the contract with the consultant to acquire the missing expertise, unless the scope of the consulting is unique and limited.
R7

The BOS identify or develop an objective advisory resource (OAR) who is a subject matter expert in IST Project Management, to review the design and governance of ATOM, and to brief the BOS on any potential problems or recommended changes.
R8

The BOS identify or develop an OAR entity and formally insert that resource into its decision-making process for all major projects.