Success Stories Archive - Spirit in Projects

Installation of a new LED light by the MA 33 on Dorotheergasse

Project management for luminaire replacement project of the city of Vienna (MA 33)

1. September 2019

In 2017, municipal department MA 33 of the city of Vienna (Vienna Glows) launched a project to plan for the replacement of the conventional luminaires used on catenary suspensions to light public areas with modern, energy-efficient LED luminaires. These measures serve to save energy and to provide innovative energy efficiency as part of a “smart city” approach.

The task

The Spirit in Projects team of experts supported MA 33 in overall planning of the implementation project estimated to run until 2020. This included planning of the requirements gathering and planning processes for luminaire replacement as well as their purchase and installation and finally, disposal of the old luminaires.

Our approach

Spirit in Projects drew on its expertise in project management to support the development of scheduling as well as resource and cost planning. In addition, communication and escalation plans were defined and a system of reporting established as preparations for optimal project execution. A proactive risk management system and detailed planning of stakeholder information likewise served to ensure the project would run smoothly.

Further information: www.wien.gv.at/kontakte/ma33/index.html

AWS task tracking tool – QA for requirements specification and tendering support

1. June 2019

In 2018/2019, the Austria Wirtschaftsservice (AWS), a federal development and financing bank for the promotion and financing of companies, after drafting a requirements specification for a task tracking tool wanted to subject it to a quality assurance review. In addition, tendering support was set up for the requirements specification.

The experts at Spirit in Projects analyzed the existing requirements specification with regard to structure, concepts, linguistics and readability and worked out a number of recommendations for improvement. These recommendations significantly improved quality with regard to the subsequent call for tender, and problems of scope and definition were already avoided well in advance.

The subsequent tendering process was likewise supported by Spirit in Projects.

Further information: www.aws.at

Success Story: Digitalization of administrative proceedings for the City of Vienna

Vienna provides space – digitalization of administrative proceedings

1. January 2019

The municipal department of the city of Vienna, under a project called “Vienna Provides Space” is working to digitalize public areas. The goal of the program, which runs from 2017 to 2022, is to digitize processes for so-called special uses of public areas, all the way from application through official procedures and up to approval and settlement. It not only focuses on uses such as sidewalk cafés, advertising, events and markets, but also uses as part of construction sites. In addition to extensive organizational, legal and process changes, software tools are also being developed for all procedural steps (application via the city’s website, procedures, settlement and assessments).

The task

Spirit in Projects is working for the program on behalf of municipal department MA 01 (Wien Digital, the IT department of the city of Vienna). The Spirit in Projects team is accompanying the program in the overall analysis of business processes and requirements, and works together with the organizational units taking part in the program to gather details on current processes then define target processes. The requirements of specialized service departments were finally condensed into requirements specifications for the program’s software components (application portal, specialized information system for management, fee calculator for SAP, interface to a data warehouse).

The challenge

In the end, the particular complexity of the program lay in the large number of stakeholders – six different specialized service departments of the municipality have a direct hand in procedural management, and still other units take part as expert assessors and occasionally integrated units.

Our approach

To manage this complexity, Spirit in Projects successfully chose to use a participative approach including a large number of trade-off workshops in order to achieve maximum acceptance of the requirements which were gathered. The project will be implemented at the beginning of 2019.

Further information: www.wiengibtraum.at & mein.wien.gv.at

Requirements specification and service catalog – Vienna International Airport construction cost tracking

1. January 2018

Top-notch job!
Andras Eder, Central Purchasing Director at Vienna International Airport

In 2017, the Vienna International Airport replaced its system for tracking construction costs. The experts at Spirit in Projects supported the project by preparing a requirements specification which was subsequently used, in the form of a service catalog, as the basis for an invitation to tender.

The challenge

The special challenge of the project was the inclusion of all interfaces required to execute the Vienna International Airport’s construction projects. The system also needed to model the processes in the construction manual.

Our approach

Spirit in Projects devoted special attention to a detailed analysis and classification of the relevant stakeholders. Requirements were gathered over the course of workshops and also enriched with information from other sources (documents, standards, systems). Interviews were held with especially relevant stakeholders to refine requirements even further. A participative approach coordinating feedback from a number of levels was used to draft the requirements specification from its rough structure up to the final document.

The benefits

In this way we were able to develop a sound basis for inviting tenders for the Vienna International Airport’s system to track construction costs. We’re especially pleased at the feedback we received from Andras Eder, Central Purchasing Director at Vienna International Airport: “Top-notch job!”

Further information: www.viennaairport.com

Realignment of PM processes for city of Graz IT subsidiary

1. January 2017

The city of Graz and its IT subsidiary ITG Informationstechnik Graz GmbH were faced by new challenges – numerous projects in the areas of smart city and digitalization are being planned for the future.

The task

In order to provide ideal preparation for these developments, the ITG planned in 2017 and 2018 to realign its processes for project management, requirements engineering and quality management. Their goal was not only to increase their project completion rate, but also to reduce project turnaround times and optimize their use of resources.

Our approach

Through document analyses, managerial interviews and workshops the experts at Spirit in Projects worked out a common target vision for the ITG, which took particular consideration of its business culture and the process stakeholders involved. This vision then flowed into a results report with action items for company management and executives.

The benefits

By identifying quick wins and potential areas for improvement, it became possible to create an action plan which focused directly on customer benefits.

Further information: www.graz.at/itg

Internet on board for all Austrian Federal Railways Railjets

Tendering and project management for Austria federal railways internet on board

1. June 2015

In 2015 Austria Federal Railways (ÖBB) commissioned Nomad Digital, a connectivity supplier which specializes in the transportation sector, with implementation of an IOB (Internet on board) solution in its Railjet fleet. This was only an initial step, as the ÖBB further planned to extend IOB to up to 900 trains and 2,000 buses – the largest project in the world at that time for provision of on-board connectivity for two means of transportation as part of a partnership agreement.

The challenge

The project’s challenge lay in the fact that both vehicle-related as well as land-related factors needed to be taken into consideration. So not “only” did WLAN need to be provided in trains, by the end of the project a complete entertainment package was also to be provided for passengers by means of content servers. In addition, the system had to be specified in such a way that it would be future-proof and be able to operate over the medium term and long term in terms of scalability and traffic volume.

Our service

The experts at Spirit in Projects provided support for the invitation to tender by preparing a requirements specification and service catalog. At the wish of the client Austrian Federal Railways, Spirit in Projects subsequently assumed overall program and project management for the contractor Nomad Digital and ensured the project was brought to a successful conclusion.

The benefits

The project was brought to a successful conclusion thanks to independent and methodologically sound management and a focus on customer value guided by a precise understanding of requirements.

Further information: onboard.oebb.at

New telephone system in state hospitals of Villach and Wolfsberg – Project Management

1. January 2015

The project was methodically prepared in an ideal manner and executed transparently – despite the fact that it was at first looked upon critically by the general public.
Franz-Georg Pichler, manager of KABEG’s IT Competence Center

In 2014/2015, the State Hospital Operating Association of Carinthia (KABEG) replaced the old company telephone system of the state hospitals of Villach and Wolfsberg with an IP-based telephony system, including terminal devices, from Cisco. The new system was also integrated into the KABEG group.

The task

Spirit in Projects assumed the role of project manager, managed software and hardware suppliers and also provided support for KABEG’s internal technical project manager. Spirit in Projects was also responsible for requirements engineering, a precise definition of goals and project planning as well as operative implementation.

Our approach

In addition to joint project and work package planning, we also implemented coordination meetings and a closely managed system of controlling and risk management. These measures made it possible for the project to be successfully completed within the prescribed time and budget.

The benefits

The experts at Spirit in Projects paid special attention to the specific project environments and to project marketing in order to successfully break down resistance and raise acceptance of the project by all users. That approach was highly successful, as confirmed by Franz-Georg Pichler, manager of KABEG’s IT Competence Center: “The project was methodically prepared in an ideal manner and executed transparently – despite the fact that it was at first looked upon critically by the general public.”

Further information: www.kabeg.at

Test Management for Eurotax Austria

1. January 2013

Through her commitment and in-depth technical knowledge, the consultant clearly made a positive impact on the final result of the product.
Andreas Pucher, product manager at Eurotax

In 2012/2013, EurotaxGlass’s Austria launched a major software project for the purpose of providing its customers with new services and solutions and services. Implementation was based on an agile development method, which brought challenges in testing the quality of the final software. The project period then switched over to a traditional model, though testing was still very demanding due to consolidation of the three countries participating in the project (Germany, Austria and Switzerland).

The task

Spirit in Projects subjected the existing test procedure to a review and provided support in setting up system test processes and artifacts. Setting up a centralized, professional test management system made it possible to clearly identify the quality of the products delivered.

The task

An iterative test procedure was implemented and thus provided meaningful information on functional and test coverage. This ensured quick feedback to both management and development teams.

The benefits

Decision criteria for the client were prepared on the basis of this resilient system of quality assessment and contributed to shaping the project’s success, as confirmed by Andreas Pucher, product manager at Eurotax: “Through her commitment and in-depth technical knowledge, the consultant clearly made a positive impact on the final result of the product.”

Further information: www.eurotax.at