Introduction

Description

This guide is provided for Apex IT consultants and for Apex IT's customers to help in moving along the implementation lifecycle at a rapid, but steady pace. It provides the process along with descriptions for the process, templates for each deliverable, and access to samples for each deliverable. This allows Apex IT's consultants to provide consistent and quality work to their customers, and do it at a rapid pace.

Apex IT recommends an implementation that consists of the following phases:

Assessment: Details the steps to assess a businesses needs and reengineer their business processes.
Package Selection: Describes the steps needed to help a business select a vendor and implementation partner.
Planning: Outlines the planning phase coordination meeting, the details of an implementation plan and implementation workbook, and help when providing application, methodology, and test script training to the project participants.
Analysis & Design: Describes how to perform a GAP analysis, gather integration, data conversion, and reporting specifications.
Prototype & Build: Details the steps of rapid application development, application tuning, integration and data conversion, and reports development.
Test: Outlines the testing stages of system testing, user acceptance testing, load testing, and metrics review.
Deploy: Has tasks of rollout, documentation, end-user training, and knowledge transfer.
Post-Deploy: Consists of project wrap-up steps and post-deployment support for the customer.

Apex IT also recommends a phased release of application functionality. As functional requirements are documented, it is important to differentiate among high, medium, and low priority requirements. High priority items are then addressed in the first release of the application, with lower priority items appearing in later releases. It is also recommended that release schedules be date driven, rather than feature driven. This approach allows implementation team members to focus on what can be accomplished by a stated delivery date, and it encourages quick resolution of issues. It also helps to guarantee that new functionality to meet business requirements are delivered on a regular basis.

NOTE: Most of the documents are in the format of a winzip file.

To download the latest version of WinZip, go to: www.winzip.com.

For a directory structure that follows the AIM phases and stages, download: Empty Implementation Directory Structure.zip

For a presentation form of A.I.M., download the attachment: AIM - Apex IT Methodology.zip

For the diagrams used to build the presentation of A.I.M.: AIM - Apex IT MethodologyWIP.zip