Project Management 

The F-111 Disposal Project was established to manage the retirement of the F-111 weapon system (aircraft) and the closure of the Strike Reconnaissance Systems Program Office (SRSPO). Our primary role in the project was project management of the entire contracting process:

• activity reviews
• contracting strategy development
• preparation of request for tender documents
• administering approaches to market
• assisting in the evaluation of responses
• negotiating contracts and managing contracts

Specific projects in the contracting process

• Contract establishment for engineering support, repair and overhaul and supply support for the entire fleet of F-111 engines;
• Contract establishment for the destruction and disposal of the F-111 aircraft, the F-111 engines, surplus wings and related support equipment;
• Contract establishment for the digitisation of 6,000,000 pages of F-111 records; and
• Establishment of contract-like loan agreements with selected F-111 display organisations.

Other project responsibilities undertaken:

• Assessing the risks associated with the display of aircraft and engines.
• Preparing complex submissions to the USA Department of State seeking approval to change the use and management of the F-111 aircraft.
• Developing the schedule for the closure of SRSPO, coordinating and monitoring the execution of the closure activities and the F-111 disposal activities

Project Management & Systems Engineering

PROJECT MANAGEMENT & SYSTEMS ENGINEERING

Contracted by Defence’s Chief Information Officer Group to provide all Project Management and Systems Engineering functions for the Specialist Communications Modernisation Project. This project seeks to replace almost the entire deployable data network infrastructure for the Department of Defence, and as such, constituted the largest remediation activity within this area of the Defence Information Environment. The project delivers leading edge equipment, utilising the latest ICT network techniques to deliver a highly mobile, highly accessible and scalable capability able to be used in arduous operating environments. 

Provided engineering support to the High Frequency Modernisation Project by providing an Integrated Product Team Representative with the Boeing Australia Systems Architecture Team throughout the design, development, test and acceptance of the Core and Final deliveries of the Modernised High Frequency Communications System (MHFCS).

 Tasks included: 

• Review of specifications and design documentation;
• Participation in systems engineering reviews and working groups;
• Configuration management and engineering change control;
• System Architecture  including the development of security architectures for integration with satellite and other communications systems on Mobile Platforms;
• Evaluation of trade studies;
• All stages of systems engineering;
• All stages of test development, execution, witnessing and reporting;
• Operational evaluation;
• Interface management;
• Review and assessment of system defects;
• Engineering risk assessment of DWs and ECPs based on Navy Technical Regulation Requirements (ABR 6492); and
• Conduct of audits and the production of audit reports.

Review of assessment of specialty engineering reports including:

• Failure Mode Effects and Criticality Analysis (FMECA);
• Hazard analyses;
• Reliability analyses;
• Performance analyses;
• EMI/EMC analyses;
• COMSEC and Security Architectures;
• Review of System Performance Model including design, development, implementation, validation, testing and work instruction validation;

Managing and providing technical support tasks including:

• HF channel characterisation trial;
• Antenna modelling;
• HF channel simulator; and
• Development of acceptance recommendation reports.

Project Management Capability Review

Melbourne Water - Project Management Capability Review

Melbourne Water undertook several Foundation Reviews of core business capabilities. This included a review of project management capability, which Member personnel was requested to undertake.

Approach:

Identified a need to improve project management capability to meet both current and future requirements, particularly with regard to better managing risk and improving project delivery efficiency. Recommended key improvements in governance, project management competency, benefits management and supporting processes and tools. As part of this review a high-level implementation plan was also developed. Engagement was a critical element of this review and a wide range of executives, managers, project managers and other Melbourne Water staff were interviewed.

Results Achieved:

As a result the process of conducting the review generated awareness of project management as a professional discipline, as well as interest from a range of individuals in improving their skills. Some of the recommendations have also been informally incorporated into governance and review processes - at the request of the project delivery teams themselves.

Project Management Background experience

Gateway companies experience in Project Management is based on the belief the successful projects strike an effective balance between planning, people, process and control.   Gateway also understands that every program and project management role is different. Building on a core competency of project management, we provide the appropriate different skills and levels of expertise, depending on the client, environment, role and project.

Some broad examples:

Chief Information Officer Group, Department of Defence - Provided PMO services and technical advisory services to Defence for the management of the prime contractor, KBR, in the audit of all allocated and associated frequencies by platform, location and role. Use of the framework enabled this massive task to be completed on time and on budget with a very well received report and implementation plan.

We have provided services for the evaluation, selection, development, and implementation of appropriate project management methodologies (PRINCE2, PMBoK, CMMI, CoBIT, and P3M3), procedures, templates, and the associated skill transfer and training to a range of clients.  We have also provided services for the evaluation, selection and implementation of industry standard enterprise project and portfolio management software tools, including CA's Clarity, Compuware's ChangePoint, IBM's Rational and Telelogic (now HP) DOORS, and Microsoft Project Server.

We have undertaken a number of successful engagements specialising in Project/Program/Portfolio Management. A selection of these engagements is listed in Table 1 below to illustrate the breadth of experience and techniques used.

Summary of Key Project/Program/Portfolio Management Engagements

Project & Change Management

NSW Health Incident Information Management System (IIMS) statewide implementation Summary

As part of the implementation of a statewide incident management strategy NSW Health sought Communio’s technical, project and change management, patient safety and clinical informatics expertise to progress a statewide incident management system. Combined with high-level strategic and policy advice Communio delivered the first state-wide implementation of an Incident Information Management System (IIMS) to 108,000 users across 880 health facilities. IIMS is now a key plank in the platform of quality improvement in health care for NSW Health. Subsequently, Communio provided additional clinical informatics and project management services for the implementation of a newer version of the application supporting the IIMS.

 Approach

Communio's project management method was initiated, planned, executed, controlled and closed-out with extensive reviews and approval processes.

Management of this large and complex project over two years included service provider process and contract negotiations, project planning and implementation, staff training, extensive stakeholder consultations, culture change management, policy development, risk and issues management and development and the implementation of evaluation strategies.

 Outcomes

The IIMS solution was delivered to all facilities and NSW health employees, allowing them to record all healthcare incidents. This has given managers access to incidents that have occurred in their own areas and ensured recording of the results of investigations and reviews and generation of reports on all logged incidents.

Deployment of the IIMS, the associated business processes and the updated application version (with appropriate training) has assisted all clinicians, managers and other health care workers to minimise the clinical risks of health services by managing health care incidents as they occur.

The Communio team's extensive health experience meant that they understood the impact of the introduction of a new system for clinical staff and ensured that the manner of implementation supported the philosophy and clinical imperatives for the systematic reporting of incidents.