I am a huge fan of the Conference Room Pilot (AKA “CRP”). What is a CRP? An exercise to simulate the operation of a system, the processes the system supports, and the users who will interact with the system. This is done, preferably a couple times prior to “go live” implementations. The CRP helps project teams identify…
- Identify the scope (breadth and depth) of the solution and it’s impact to the organization’s people, process, and technology;
- Business process issues that may need to be changed;
- User impacts which will require sponsorship, communications, and training;
- Gain practical insight of what the software really does (well and not-so-well);
- Help develop design (if CRP is conducted early on) and scope development work efforts.
There are many more benefits of conducting a CRP. I recommend conducting a CRP-like session during three stages of the project:
- Early in the project, soon after the vendor has been selected. This is often a paper-based simulation that allows the project team to understand the project’s scope.
- Following the “As Is” and “To Be” business process visioning. It is a great way to validate the future-state;
- Once the functional specifications are defined to make sure the team has not “missed” anything.
Some of the benefits of doing so include:
- Less expensive than running a full simulation, a pilot implementation, or full implementation;
- Minimize the risk of evaluating and testing the complete solution;
- User-oriented and more realistic than system testing.
Give us a holler if we can help you think through your CRP planning!
