Typical Ivanti Implementation Timeframe

This question came in through my Podcast Question/Topic Form from Andre in Frankfurt, Germany as well as Adrian from Melbourne, Australia.

Typical Ivanti Implementation Timeframe – Independent ITSM Podcast covering Ivanti Service Manager ISM HEAT Latest Solutions & Best Practices

This question came in through my Podcast Question/Topic Form from Andre in Frankfurt, Germany. What is the typical Ivanti Implementation Timeframe? Ivanti Service Manager (HEAT ISM) Implementations really vary based on business requirements.  There is no quick silver bullet or cookie-cutter Scope of Work, and Estimates can vary greatly between Ivanti Business Partners, and independent consultants. Be sure to listen to what I have to say and my unique insights thanks to 25+ years of Ivanti Service Manager (HEAT) experience. podcast.a19consulting.com

What is the typical Ivanti Implementation Timeframe?

Andre, Ivanti ITSM Project Manager, Frankfurt Germany

Ivanti Service Manager (HEAT ISM) Implementations really vary based on business requirements. There is no quick silver bullet or cookie-cutter Scope of Work, although unfortunately Ivanti and Business Partners, use templates across the board for clients with different needs and business requirements. Worse yet, I see quite a bit of overselling with no clear Implementation roadmap or plan, and far too many implementations go off track due to poor execution, delivery, or budget exhaustion on what was sold as a slam dunk and clearly isn’t.

Implementation Considerations

First and foremost you will want to do a self-assessment of which ITIL processes (Incident, Change, Service Requests, Problem) are a must-have or nice-to-have and build a time-lined roadmap. As well you want to review top obstacles and challenges, see my Ivanti Implementation Poll to see what area of focus resonate.

Once you have established a high-level roadmap you will want to work with a seasoned Ivanti Service Manager Consultant to solidify a scope of work and provide you with estimated effort.

Estimated Effort

Estimates can vary greatly between Ivanti Business Partners, and independent consultants. One factor is the overhead that Ivanti Business Partners have and the guaranteed referrals that Ivanti Business Partners get from Ivanti, and their associated price tag. Independent consultants tend to have much better rates, without the overhead, and without bureaucratic structure, you benefit from working directly with a consultant rather than a team with varying opinions and agendas.

Case and point, while working with several Ivanti Business Partners, it was not uncommon to spend 2 hours a week on status calls with the Ivanti Project Manager, Ivanti Account Manager, Ivanti Territory Manager, Ivanti Customer Service Manager, and Ivanti Business Partner Sales Person. That translated into 8 hours per month of consulting time, and worse yet, days of additional effort as managers had their own agendas and the customer instead of getting the consultative experience, ended up confused and unable to make informed decision based on expert advice.

Ivanti Implementation Packages

With my 25+ years of Ivanti HEAT ISM consulting experience, worldwide, the following Ivanti Implementation Packages have been designed to give customers a direction and starting point but come with the caveat that as mentioned above, estimated effort sizing is required based on the roadmap and deliverables. As always a free no-obligation Discovery Session is needed to tailor an Implementation package to your business requirements.

Starter Package | 19 Days

This package is designed for organizations newly implementing Ivanti Service Manager, wanting to fine-tune their system, streamline existing processes, build simple integrations, or requiring basic configurations changes for fundamental ITIL processes.

Critical Path Package | 50 Days

An extension to the starter package, for organizations wanting to take the Ivanti Service Manager Implementation to the next level with advanced configurations and processes, complex integrations, and in-depth configuration of fundamental ITIL processes.

For example one of the following: Procurement, Hardware Asset Management, Software Asset Management, Change Requests, HR Onboarding/Off Boarding.

Ultimate Success Package | 100 Days

For those organizations serious about leveraging Ivanti Service Manager to the max and taking their Ivanti Implementation to the highest level, with advanced configurations, advanced processes, complex, integrations, in-depth automations, workflows, and several complex integrations.
For example one or more of the following: Procurement, Hardware Asset Management, Software Asset Management, Change Requests, HR Onboarding/Off Boarding.

In Summary, my Ivanti Implementation Packages are designed as a guide and starting point for establishing a scope of work and roadmap to excellence.

A Discovery Session is needed to asses which package is best.

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Smart Goals

There is more to Ivanti Service Manager Consulting Projects than software & systems. You need to take a holistic approach and carefully plan your implementation, upgrades, and enhancements. It starts without the software, and requires strategy over tactics. It all starts with goals. S.M.A.R.T. Goals.

Ivanti Project Best Practice
More than just IT

• SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time–bound
• Goals should be as specific as possible, even if this means breaking them down, by including answers to the popular “W” questions: Who, What, When, Where, Which, Why
  
• If a goal is not measurable, it is not possible to know whether a team is making progress toward successful completion. If it’s an Ivanti Project that’s going to take a few months to complete, then set some milestones by considering specific tasks to accomplish.
  
  A goal needs to be achievable, but at the same time it must not be too easy.
  
• A goal that supports or is in alignment with other goals would be considered a relevant goal, focusing on something that makes sense with the broader business goal or Ivanti Project.
  
• A time-bound goal is intended to establish a sense of urgency. After all a goal that lacks realistic timing, changes are you’re not going to succeed with your Ivanti Project.

Smart Goal Example

For example, if you’re creating UAT Test Case Scripts, your Smart Goals would be:

• Specific:
  • Who: UAT Test Lead, designated UAT Team, and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) as outlined by Roles & Responsibilities Matrix
  • What: Create day to day use case scenarios for job functions for the Ivanti Asset Manager Procurement process
  • When: Over the next two weeks with a Target Date of September 19
  • Where: Go-To Meeting and the Ivanti Breakout Meeting Room
  • Which: Standard Business Operating Procedures with guidance from SMEs and Decision Maker
  • Why: The UAT Test Case Scripts will be used for User Acceptance Testing (UAT) by the broader UAT team to ensure day to day job functions for the Asset Scanning, Procurement Process, Sales Order Life Cycle, Fulfillment, and Invoice Workflow can be carried out with the newly implemented Ivanti Asset Manager system by a19 Consulting.
    
• Measurable: Milestones, at least three internal meetings, and breakout sessions for the SMEs for the below categories, with at least 6 test cases that are aligned to the Standard Operating Procedures; Regression Testing, Asset Scanning, Procurement.
  
• Achievable: Focus on day-to-day job functions as outlined by the SOPs and seek guidance from SMEs and the decision maker as needed.
  
• Relevant: Day to day job functions only as per the SOPs. Do not use the software, this would be system testing, focus is on job functions and satisfying day to day operational tasks.
  
• Time-bound: Target Date September 19, with first meeting on September 10, follow up meeting on September 15, and review September 17th.

Remember T.ogether E.veryone A.chives M.ore!