21.07.2008

Project organisation at VVB

Ready for the future

The Munich-based Vereinsbank Victoria Bauspar AG (VVB) now relies solely on the solutions provided by the Munich-based Can Do GmbH for its project management requirements. The intuitive use and support of the entire project life cycle that Can Do Project Intelligence provides is crucial for VVB. A committee consisting of management and operational staff decided to introduce a new project management solution in order to better support VVB’s internal project management. “We were looking for a system that best meets VVB’s requirements,” Martin Schuster, Project Manager and deputy head of IT/Organisation at VVB explains. The obvious choice was the multi project management solution Can Do Project Intelligence.

 

Martin Schuster is extremely satisfied with the software since its installation. Projects can now be planned and executed easily and quickly within the different departments. Prior to the introduction of Can Do, VVB executed its projects using different software tools, metaplan boards and mind maps. The planning process was high and project durations were long.

Can Do Project Intelligence has revolutionised project management at VVB and made it more efficient. Can Do already plays a part when the project idea is conceived. Planning values such as duration, workload or costs cannot always be accurately forecast in the case of projects. Can Do solves this problem by entering parameters such as “the workload for a work package lies between 50 and 80 working days” or “a specific phase starts in September”. Can Do continuously calculates the probability of all planning values and indicates critical points accurately. This form of monitoring allows the project leader to proactively take the appropriate steps to avoid jeopardising the course of the project. This allows for safe and realistic planning. Controlling and monitoring of projects is thus also made simpler. The same is true for management of resources, particularly human resources. Here it becomes apparent at what point in time which person is scheduled for and at what point overload or congestion occurs. A stand can hence be taken with regards to resource and department capacity.

“Our previous project management tools hardly allowed for such efficient planning and controlling of resources. Can Do Project Intelligence has considerably improved our daily project work,” Martin Schuster explains. Despite its extensive and varied functions the software is built simply. Innovative ergonomics allow even newcomers to attain good results in a short amount of time. This significantly increases the acceptance of the application. This acceptance is one of the fundamental pillars in the cost benefit analysis of a software solution. As opposed to other software tools, Can Do goes beyond the actual installation and is used to its full extent in the daily workflow. Users also enjoy the application. Feedback from project leaders is consistently positive. Reporting is set up in such a way that existing reports can be used in Excel or SAP. “It is particularly impressive that Can Do provides all data in real time. Every action that a user takes in Can Do is immediately processed in the database. Tedious saving of files Can Do Project Intelligence is hence not necessary, a loss of data is impossible and all reports are always up to date,” Martin Schuster explains.

 

Another advantage of Can Do is that when a phase is extended, the entire project plan is not automatically moved. In the case of other project management solutions, the project plan is completely shifted around when adjustments are made. This means that hundreds of processes are moved when only one deadline is missed. This leads to a loss of control over the project plan. Can Do solves this problem by re-calculating and visualising the risk situation when such an adjustment occurs. The project leader can thus decide on possible changes to the plan. The project leader has the advantage of always being in full control of project planning. In addition, no adverse effects, for example in the central pool of resources or in other projects, are generated.

Can Do’s rights model enables project parts or work packages to be activated specifically for further processing by others users. “We have already successfully planned and executed several major projects with Can Do. Worth mentioning are: “eXPandIT” – conversion of the operational system to XP, “WEBKuS” –introduction of a web-orientated customer service portal with CRM functionalities or “DMS” – conversion to a new document management system and its migration,” says Martin Schuster. “These projects specifically stood out due to their technical complexity and high quality requirements. Using Can Do created time for the project leaders and reported potential risks in time. We are convinced that we are now able to manage our projects more effectively and professionally. Can Do Project Intelligence’s stability and elevated level of maturity benefit us hugely,” Martin Schuster emphasised in closing.

About VVB:
VVB is the building association of HypoVereinsbank and ERGO Versicherungsgruppe (Insurance group). It specialises in construction financing and also offers attractive loan products in addition to two modern and flexible savings rates. VVB positions itself predominantly, as a partner in the modernisation and renovation of portfolio properties. Customer service is a core business value – not only in consulting and sales but also in the administration of contracts. Intelligent IT support lays the foundation for efficient processes and thus creates capacities for customer care. According to VVB, its customer base currently stands at 514,000 contracts with a savings amount of 11.6 billion Euros.