Establishing P3M and Project Controls for Wessex Water

We delivered a sustainable organic capability, which strives for continuous improvement and increases team productivity.
BRINGING A LASTING LEGACY
Wessex Water was left with a professional project management discipline that identified best practice, shared internal knowledge, and developed a consistent approach for managing shareholders. This delivered a sustainable organic capability, which strives for continuous improvement and increases team productivity.
THE CLIENT'S CHALLENGE
Wessex Water serves more than 2.8 million customers across the South West.
Their water and sewerage business depends heavily upon tightly controlled project management. What were the best project management solutions for Wessex Water’s information systems?
THE CHALLENGE CONTINUES
Following an initial Project, Programme and Portfolio Management (P3M) maturity assessment from the VIMA team in 2018
Our consultants returned in 2019 to re-assess, re-evaluate and recommend the next steps.
HOW WE HELPED
  • Overview

    A team of VIMA consultants carried out extensive interviews with a cross-section of the Wessex Water IS function and delivery teams to gather information that would help us understand the baseline.

  • Investigating the root cause

    By diving deeper during the discovery phase, we got to the root cause of the systemic problems, rather than simply highlighting challenges on the surface.

  • Analysing extensive data sets

    In addition to the interviews, we established a consolidated data set by reviewing over 100 artefacts to identify common themes, improvements and rationale for recommendations (both inside and outside the project scope).

  • Taking a long-term view

    By continuing to work closely with the client team to cross-examine the impact of our transformation recommendations, we were able to form a long-term strategy.

  • Continued learning & development

    We rolled out a series of accredited project management learning and development initiatives to build awareness and engagement across the business.

People need to be at the heart of change. It’s not always easy to embrace change, and it’s natural to fear the unknown.

“VIMA Group has helped us with our PPM maturity. Using their maturity assessment model, the consultants honed into the material opportunities for improvement and provided recommendations.  Following the audit, we shaped a transformational programme which has already delivered a step-change in our capability and informed our PMO’s ongoing roadmap of change.“ 
Richard Trevithick, IT PMO Manager, Wessex Water 
SUCCESSFUL OUTCOMES
We achieved the following outcomes
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Effective business transformation
Wessex Water’s new IT programmes enable effective business transformation by defining, planning and delivering IT projects. These help the business to constantly evolve.
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Delivering successful change programmes and projects
We worked side-by-side with the crucial IT business unit to help them successfully deliver their portfolios of change programmes and projects.
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Upgrading the operating systems
We supported enhancements from upgrading the operating systems across the business to developing a distribution risk assessment system for network interventions.
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Effective step-change in capability
By reviewing the PMO, the transformation programme provided a step-change in capability. Through recommending process changes and delivering agile learning and development, we achieved a successful skills transfer.
If you are embarking on project management or system re-evaluation, speak to Chris
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