Project Services

Our Methodology

The diagram below shows how the phases and documents relate to each other.

Centric Networks has developed a practical methodology for managing projects, which separates the work into three distinct phases:-

• Initiation
• Control
• Closure

 

Inititiation
All projects start with an idea for a product, service, new capability or other desired outcome, at Centric Networks this is usually in the form of a Proposal, Consultancy Report or a defined client requirement.

 

Control
The control phase is about tracking and managing the project. To do this a project plan is developed. The Project Plan is most commonly in the form of a Gantt chart, it identifies the stages and tasks, who will carry them out and an associated timeline. A good plan will include regular milestones that act as a measure of progress and keep the project team focussed on short-term goals. Project plans may also include information about costs, human resources and dependent projects.

 

Once the project has been planned, it is important to assess any factors that could have an impact upon it. This is done using an issues log and a risk log. An Issues Log is used to record issues and assign an owner with a plan to resolve them. A Risk Log is used to record and grade risks with an associated action plan to minimise them.

 

Key to good project management and a successful project is effective communication. The Progress Report is used to communicate progress on a regular basis to the customer.

 

The control phase ends once the project has achieved its goals and objectives as detailed in the Project Definition Report.

 

Closure
Project closure is an important aspect of project management that is often overlooked. A project that is not closed will continue to consume resources, albeit slowly.

 

To receive acknowledgment from the customer that the project has ended the Customer Acceptance Form is used. Once signed off the project team is disbanded and no more work carried out.

 

At this point, it is important to know whether the project has achieved its objectives. This is done using the Project Closure Report. This document communicates how well the project has performed against its original business case, project plan, costs, duration and tolerances.

 

Finally, rather than leave valuable project experiences locked in people’s heads, we complete and publish a Lessons Learnt Report. This document is used to pass on any lessons that can be usefully applied to future projects.

 

Typical Projects
Since any project comprises technical staff under the direction of an experienced Project Manager, we are only limited by the skills we have in the team. Here are some examples of topical projects that we are able to undertake:-

• Firewall installations and Upgrades (Checkpoint, Cisco, Fortinet, Watchguard)
• Windows 2000/ 2003 Migrations (including Active Directory)
• Broadband/ VPN Rollouts (Cisco, Checkpoint, Netgear, Watchguard)
• Server Consolidation/ Centralisation (including Storage Area Networks from Dell and HP)
• Wide Area Network design, implementation and support (primarily Cisco)
• Thin Client projects (Citrix, Terminal Services)
• E-commerce infrastructure design and installation (Web servers, Database Servers, Load Balancing)
• IT Security projects (firewalls, DMZ, virus scanning, spam filtering)
• Wireless Network implementations and rollouts
• Remote User/ Broadband/ SOHO to main office connectivity projects
• Web and Application Hosting (ASP/ISP)

In addition our Managed Services are designed to provide customers with after-sales support.