Your next project has a 72% chance of failure. Here is how to avoid it.

According to the leading industry analysts, approximately 72% of projects failed in 2010 due to mis-understood requirements and objectives. This number has increased from prior years due the ever-growing complexity of software applications. Even with a plethora of tools to choose from, our industry still hasn’t figured out a way to define and deliver projects successfully – every time. At OneSpring, we believe it’s more about the talent of our people and the approach we take than the tools we employ. As one of my colleagues aptly put it, “just because you have a paint brush in your hands doesn’t make you Monet”. So, what if you could ensure every feature and function of your next software project would be a hit with your end-customer and project stakeholders? This is possible, and it is completely within reach to you and your team – today.

Eliminate failed projects by first rapidly visualizing your project to gain clarity and acceptance before committing time, money and IT resources to building the wrong project. Whether your company is creating a new project from scratch, redesigning an existing project or even adding new features in an enhancement project, ambiguity is the number-one threat to your project failing. While there are a number of software development methodologies and techniques in use today, they still fall short in being able to effectively communicate the requirements of a project clearly. For example, common techniques such as Use-Cases, Sequence Diagrams, UML and even Wireframes that are used today by corporations across every industry still lack the ability for you and your stakeholders to truly interact with and see your requirements in action. In short, your project requirements cannot be fully understood unless they can be experienced. A fully interactive simulation of your requirements gives you, your team and your customer the ability to experience your future state application before it is built. Traditionally, creating a prototype of the product has been an optimal solution for testing, feedback and requirements validation purposes. However, it is typically cost-prohibitive to engage large teams of Information Technology (IT) staff to create code-based prototypes for every project. Previsualization is a modern method for prototyping that typically takes one-third of the time and budget previously spent on prototyping to accomplish with the same beneficial results. In some instances, the savings are even greater.

Previsualization was originally created in the motion picture industry as a means for film makers to quickly and cost-effectively plan each shot of their movie. Using a lower resolution version of the picture, the film’s director and other key players could easily envision each scene and make changes until they had refined it to a perfect scene. Then, once perfectly planned, the crew would produce the high-resolution version for use in the final film. This method proved to be so successful at saving time and production costs that previsualization is required on virtually all films made today. Even those working on the “small screen” of television have begun to use previsualization as a way to cut costs and improve end products.

OneSpring has brought the technique of previsualization to the software industry. Piggy-backing off lessons learned in the entertainment world, OneSpring has developed a unique process that combines low-resolution interactive models with feature-level requirements and traceability into a “movie” that everyone on your team can easily view and understand. Equally important, if changes are needed, then the previsualization of your application can be rapidly updated until the desired results are achieved. This approach provides a highly efficient and effective means of working through multiple iterations until all stakeholders understand, validate and ultimately approve the application’s requirements.

With cost savings typically over 50%, OneSpring has allowed companies to elicit, capture, manage and deliver their application requirements faster and more efficiently, allowing them to better determine customer acceptance of their software application projects before committing to costly development. Previsualization now provides a competitive advantage that can help your company best address your customers’ needs and the goals of your business and ensure success.

Visualization Adoption Change Management

Ah, good ol’ change management. Fun, isn’t it? I came upon this blog post and found that it fits very nicely with the topic of moving from a traditional, text-based requirements process to one that incorporates visualization. It talks about how people are the key to successful change management.

In over 5 years of specializing in using visualization as a means to elicit, manage and deliver software application requirements, we’ve seen many companies want to, but ultimately fail in adopting visualization across the enterprise.

Most if not all fall into what I’ll call the “Tool Trap”. This is not unique to visualization of course. Some tool vendor promises to solve whatever problem a company is having. What the vendor mostly fail to convey, and what businesses never seem to truly learn, is that the tool is just one (very small) part of the solution. Sure, the tool will solve the problem, but only if the company implements the right processes, and more importantly, puts together the right team.

Change Your Process
So you’ve seen how visualization can help you revolutionize your requirements definition and delivery process. You have purchased a tool – iRise, Axure, Blueprint, Balsamiq, Flairbuilder, or even a stack of napkins and a gross of pencils. Now what?

Simply put, visualization cannot be crowbarred into your existing software development lifecycle (SDLC). It doesn’t matter if you use waterfall, Agile, RUP or a homegrown combination. You have to take a step back and look at how visualization can enhance the SDLC. You need to involve not just your stakeholders and business analysts, but the entire development team – QA testers, developers, etc.

People Are The Key To Success
Here is where most change management fails. It’s the people! You need to bring together the entire team involved in bringing software applications to life. But the message that needs to be communicated is not just that your software projects will come in 30% faster and 80% less rework. According to ClarityRules.org, you need to sell the team in five key areas

• Impact on society (like building the community, stewarding resources etc…)
• Impact on the customer (providing superior customer service, for instance)
• Impact on the company and its shareholders
• Impact on the local working team (for example creating a caring environment)
• Impact on ‘me’ (development, paycheque, bonus, hours, type of work etc…)

Visualization’s Impact on Society
We strongly believe software has a huge impact on society. We’ve been fortunate to have worked with some incredible organizations like March of Dimes, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and the Department of Homeland Security on software projects. And I assure you these organizations have a huge impact on society. Using visualization significantly improves the positive impact of the software they use. Of course not every software application helps save babies or keeps our country safe. But I assure you, your software has an impact on society in some way. Find out what that is and communicate how it will be even better with the use of visualization.

Visualization’s Impact on the Customer
This one is easy. Visualization helps you be more innovative. It helps you ensure a quality experience for your customer, whether they be consumers buying your widgets or your colleagues using your intranet. Visualization gives you more time to focus on the customer because you’re spending less time spinning your wheels elsewhere.

Visualization’s Impact on the Company
Projects come in 30% faster, there is 80% less rework, increased innovation, superior customer experiences. More of what you wanted the first time around. This pays dividends in spades to your company’s bottom line, reputation, customer satisfaction and more.

Visualization’s Impact on the Local Working Team
Visualization fosters greater collaboration with the entire team from stakeholders to developers to QA testers. Stakeholders are happier because their vision is actually brought to life. Developers are happier because there is less frustrating rework. QA Testers are happier because there are less defects to log and track. It’s a win-win-win-win situation.

Visualization’s Impact on ‘Me’
The bottom line? Visualization makes software definition fun and interesting again. Instead of dealing with all the frustrating aspects of eliciting and managing requirements, you can work on being creative and innovative. You can focus on making your customers happy. You’re also learning new skills and ones that are essential for the future of software requirements.

Final Thoughts
Implementing visualization at your company is not a minor undertaking. It takes careful consideration of your existing processes and team. Buying the visualization software is not enough.