The majority of projects overrun or exceed budget. On smaller less important projects the implications may be manageable, but this is rarely the case with larger and mission critical projects.

Basilica recognises the value of effective professional Project Management and strongly recommends it on all tasks undertaken. Working to a standard methodology based on PRINCE2, Basilica understands the need for flexibility and is able to work with customers to minimise costs whilst ensuring that solutions are delivered in accordance with agreed requirements.

Basilica can offer every service from full ownership of projects and management of third parties through to co-ordination of specific tasks.

Full ownership offers the benefit that customers and their personnel can continue with their daily duties without having to compromise to accommodate any additional workload, which is recognised as one of the major causes of project failure. The Project Manager reports on a regular basis and advises of issues immediately to ensure that customer contacts are aware of progress at every stage.

Customers with their own Project Managers can benefit from having an assigned Project Manager acting as their single point of contact managing Basilica’s aspects of a project.

Whichever requirement is agreed, Basilica provides full documentation in a Project Initiation Document (PID) which covers the following areas;

• Exact project scope.
• Objectives.
• Business Drivers.
• Task ownerships.
• Project Stages, including stage signoffs and signoff criteria.
• Financials, including payment details and dates.
• 3rd party undertakings and objectives.
• Risk and issue logs and analysis.
• Reporting types and frequencies (eg: Meetings, weekly reports, adhoc reports, Issue Logs).
• Contact Details and Escalation Points.
• Project board/sponsor details.
• Change Control procedures.
• Terms and Conditions.

The PID is accompanied by a detailed Project Plan which provides a graphical representation of the tasks to be completed and assigned owners, along with timescales, milestones, and deadlines.

These documents detail every aspect of a project to remove any confusion in order to minimise the possibility of failure. Once agreed, changes are subject to a Change Control procedure which clarifies the change and details implications on time and cost. This must be authorised by both parties to be accepted into the project scope.

Project Managers accept overall responsibility for the successful delivery of assigned projects, and maintain effective control of all aspects through to completion. In the unlikely event that a new Project Manager is introduced, this can be achieved with a minimum of fuss due to the standard approach and documentation.

Whatever the service undertaken Basilica Project Managers have a wealth of knowledge acquired from working within the IT industry for many years and from managing a wide variety of challenging projects. They are included on opportunities from the very early stages as this provides invaluable detail when clarifying and agreeing objectives, which proves especially useful where technical professionals are involved.

Every project is assessed on its own merits, and solutions proposed that are cost effective whilst providing effective management to ensure that the agreed objectives are met.