Clients may be pressing you to introduce online project management, but will it really prove to be a web wonder?
Q. Our clients are asking us more and more about using web-based project management, something we have limited experience of. What steps do we need to take to make this happen?

Answer 1 - John Setra
Savings are achievable
First, take a look at your own organisation's services, processes and activities. Any move in changing processes, or the tools you use for delivering your service, may not give you the results you hoped for unless planned, initiated and managed correctly. Remember, significant savings and opportunities are available to organisations that have the vision and ability to innovate and continually improve. My advice is consider the following:
1 Strategy. Understand and agree the strategic need for change and obtain commitment and buy-in across the organisation before starting
2 Current use of IT. Critically examine your use of IT. If the use of email and the internet is not common, start with this before investing in web-based project management systems
3 Culture. Check that your culture will not pose barriers to the introduction of new technology
4 Consult. Is there a common level of understanding between clients and staff? You need this in order to manage the expectations surrounding the introduction and use of web-based project management systems
5 Select. Pick the most appropriate system to suit your business activities, processes and those of your customers and partners
6 Train and support. Whichever system you choose, remember that training and support, particularly over the first six to 12 months, is essential. Attempting to save on training and integration will lead to wasted investment
7 Streamline and automate. Map your processes and see how many more can be automated. This is where the real savings lie!
8 Measure, feedback and improve. Benchmark and measure actual results against improvement targets.

John Setra is an independent expert in web-based technology in the construction and property sector. Contact him on tel: 07909 684191 email: j.setra@virgin.net

Answer 2 - Ian Hamilton
Find out who owns what
This subject is currently known by a variety of titles including, web-based document transfer, EDMS hosting and project management systems and project collaboration extranets.

A project collaboration website enables an entire project team to store copies of project documents centrally for use by team members. Usually at its heart is a document management system. The provider of the services is normally a third party organisation specialising in this type of application.

There are about 120 providers of this type of service at present, but it is likely that only a handful will survive. So, choose wisely, hope for the best, but consider worst case scenarios.

The decision to use such a system is usually taken by the client or, sometimes, the contractor. Find out what systems your clients already use. Contact the suppliers of these systems for details of costs, functionality and, most importantly, other users. Contact other users to find out about their experiences.

Examine charging structures carefully as they can be a combination of standing, storage or per user charges. Who will finally pick up the bill — your organisation, your client, or a project partner? Also, consider the business and legal issues, such as as copyright and liability, particularly if information goes to a third party without your prior knowledge.

Try to get an idea of the comparative functionality of different systems. How easy is it going to be to update drawings simultaneously? Also, what is going to happen to the data at the end of the project and what happens if litigation starts or is threatened? Will you have all the information to defend your position?