The Hyde Group are using Asta Teamplan to optimise resources and deliver projects more efficiently.
Neal Harper, Group ICT Operations Manager at The Hyde Group, searched for a solution to optimise resources and deliver projects more efficiently.
Within 5 months of using project portfolio and resource management software Asta Teamplan, the ICT department has been able to provide their Board with hard evidence of their heavy workload, leading to an increase in headcount and the creation of a dedicated project management team within the department. |
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The Hyde Group is one of the country’s leading RSLs (Registered Social Landlord). The main company within the Group is the Hyde Housing Association, which has been in existence since the mid sixties. From humble beginnings in South London, the Group has evolved to become one of the leading organisations of its kind in the country.
The Hyde Group provides housing and related services to over 100,000 people and owns or manages in excess of 36,000 properties. Companies in the Group are dedicated to providing affordable homes for people in housing need. Through a range of economic, social and community development programmes, The Hyde Group helps people change their environment and improve their life chances by giving them opportunities to aspire and achieve.
Hyde’s ICT department splits project work into three core categories: internal projects covering necessary maintenance; enhancement projects such as functionality and service evolution; and new business projects, for example, when a new company joins the Group and needs to be integrated into the existing ICT infrastructure and services.
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The main driver for change was the need to make better use of resources and become more efficient in delivering projects. Neal adds, “In addition, we needed to be able to prove what we were working on and how much effort is involved in delivering projects successfully. In the past, project management has been viewed as a skill that can be tacked on to any person’s job role but we wanted to show that it was a specialised role that could add real value to an organisation.” |
The main driver for change was the need to make better use of resources and become more efficient in delivering projects. Neal adds, “In addition, we needed to be able to prove what we were working on and how much effort is involved in delivering projects successfully. In the past, project management has been viewed as a skill that can be tacked on to any person’s job role but we wanted to show that it was a specialised role that could add real value to an organisation.”
Identifying the right software product
The Hyde Group made limited use of Microsoft Project, but needed an integrated web-based timesheet system which was not available in the version of Microsoft Project that they were using. After researching the marketplace, looking at a full range of software solutions, Hyde chose Asta Teamplan. Neal explains, “Asta Teamplan ticked all of our boxes. It is very configurable, it allows for timesheet input, it is familiar enough for people to easily understand the interfaces and it fell within our budget. The key deciding factor was the flexibility of the product coupled with Asta’s tailored approach to implementation.”
“The starting point with Asta Teamplan was to encourage staff to fill in timesheets, so we made this the main thrust of our initial usage. There are approximately 40 people completing timesheets on about 30 active projects at any one time. .. This does not include our ‘business as usual’ activities, which we also record and monitor in Asta Teamplan. We also record annual leave, sickness, training, etc. in order to get a full picture of how every staff member uses their time.”
“The most important tool for us is the timesheets. From this, we produce monthly profile reports against all work (both project and non-project) which we use in our external monthly management reports to the business.”
Initial Results“In the short time that we have had Asta Teamplan up and running, we have demonstrated how we are spending our time and can highlight when we are working at and beyond capacity. This, in addition to other factors, has directly led to an increase in our headcount within ICT and the creation of a dedicated project management team, utilising our existing project managers, who up to this point have worked within separate teams.” |
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Overall
“Asta Teamplan is the type of product that can evolve with a business. It can be used very simplistically to realise fairly immediate return on investment, but as your use of it develops it can continue to realise a good return without the need for migrating to more complex and expensive products.”
“In terms of Hyde’s ICT department, Asta Teamplan is fast becoming the key tool in managing our day-to-day and project workload.”
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