Successful companies devote part of their planning activities toward identifying those approaches, processes, and methodologies that have become common denominators among industry leaders. These are often referred to as "best practices". Information Alliance can help identify appropriate best practices for your organization, and can guide you in planning and implementing those that will add the most value. Although best practices change over time, here are some of our key focal points;
Project Management and Planning When planning capital projects, business managers must focus on those activities that will provide the greatest return on investment, offer an acceptable level of risk, and minimize disruption to ongoing business operations. Obtaining expertise in the following areas during the initial planning stages will help ensure a successful project:
* Ensuring strategic business alignment * Building end-user confidence in the new solution * Obtaining executive sponsorship * Utilizing proven methodologies * Developing an incremental roadmap * Allocating sufficient resources
Data Integration Successful data integration efforts require thorough planning, and an understanding of the necessary artifacts which need to be produced, and the order in which work should be performed. Business logic, data validation rules, transformation rules, and data mapping logic must be clearly defined in order for data transfer jobs, packages, etc. to be properly built, tested, and implemented. Information Alliance possesses a breadth and depth of experience in assisting clients with data integration projects. We offer guidance and expertise to ensure that industry best practices are incorporated into their projects. These
include subject areas such as:
* Establishing and following an integration strategy * Master Data Management * Eliminating data redundancy
* Data cleansing and standardization
* Error trapping/handling
* Implementing data validation rules
* Identifying data stewards
Quality Assurance (QA) Testing
A primary purpose of software QA testing is to ensure that software-based solutions conform to requirements and standards. This is a fundamental stipulation in the development and delivery of mission-critical, enterprise-level technology solutions. Moreover, QA testing should also focus on improving the process of software development in order to maximize the quality and value of the end product. Planning for, and implementing an efficient and effective QA process requires an under-
standing of industry best practices. Information Alliance, Inc. brings this understanding to its
engagements. Through years of dedicated practice and thousands of hours of hands-on QA work, we
are a preferred vendor in this space, and provide guidance to our clients in the following areas:
* Ensuring Broad Stakeholder Involvement * Preparing Comprehensive Documentation * Employing Automation Where Possible * Maintaining Requirements Traceability * Defining Realistic Test Scenarios * Establishing Clear Pass/Fail Criteria * Creating a Clean Test Environment
Information Delivery Accurate, timely, and relevant information is the foundation of successful decision-making. Companies that employ a consistent method of delivering this information across the enterprise will have a competitive advantage. However, building an information delivery system that possesses these qualities will require experience in the following best practice areas:
* Implementing Reporting Standards * Utilizing efficient Software Licensing Policies * Establishing zero footprint / web delivery * Understanding user demographics * Designing for end-user performance
Enterprise Content Management With the explosion of electronic content (electronic documents and images, email, video, etc.), as well as the need to reduce the burden of managing (and converting) physical content, enterprise content management initiatives are becoming a core initiative of many mid to large size companies. Successful initiatives require proper planning and execution of well-defined plans that address the following:
* Establishing an effective taxonomy approach * Centralizing content storage (eliminating redundant storage) * Electronic capture of physical documents * Striving for simplicity and ease of use * Designing with the future in mind (estensibility) * Establishing standard definitions and business processes
