Program Recovery and Change Management on a Public Sector SAP SuccessFactors Implementation

The Challenge

Resulting was approached via G-cloud to support the client on an SAP SuccessFactors implementation with a significant focus on LMS. When Resulting was approached, the program was already in flight with a major Systems Integrator, but it was not going to plan.

Resulting was invited to provide an independent review of the program’s progress and performance. 

The review showed that the program was falling behind schedule with insufficient attention being paid to planning, training and change management.

This created a risk that the new system would not be adopted by the wider business. 

Alongside the review, Resulting provided a list of focus areas for improvement should the client wish to recover the program. 

The review and recommendations were so well received Resulting was invited to join the program to recover the SuccessFactors implementation. 

Once Resulting joined the program we discovered the SI couldn’t provide basic information and the situation was more dire than our initial review suggested.

At this point it was decided that the program would be halted until a solution to recover the implementation could be agreed upon.

Resulting Solution

Once Resulting was on onboard we identified three main challenges facing the programme. 

1. The work the SI had done so far wasn’t to a high enough standard
2. The client wanted a high level of customization, but had no clear business case for this extra investment
3. Because of the program delays there wasn’t enough time for change management, particularly around the LMS which needed to be piloted prior to a bigger rollout

We solved these issues through the following steps. 

Solution Quality and Customization

To restore governance to the program Resulting installed a Programme Manager and a Functional Lead who was a subject matter expert in SAP SuccessFactors. 

We instructed the SI to complete the design and build as quickly as possible so we could start piloting the LMS with the business. 

At the same time, we advised the client which areas of the SIs work should be fixed, and what could be lived with for now. 

We challenged the client’s expectations around customisation, advising where customization should be used to drive value, and where an out-of-the-box approach was preferred.

This prevented the program from being cancelled altogether and got the software in front of the pilot group much sooner than forecast at the programme review. 

This was supported by a move away from waterfall towards smaller releases in order to get value into the hands of the business as quickly as possible. 

Training, change management and adoption

One goal of the program was to move to SuccessFactors as the primary LMS within the business. The client had an entrenched culture and there was resistance towards the change. This meant getting change management right was vital to program success. 

The client had rightly identified that getting the LMS in the hands of the business as quickly as possible was important, but program delays meant there was no longer enough time for the change management approach they had planned. 

First, we instructed the SI and the client to get the LMS live as quickly as possible with a small amount of content. This allowed the superuser community we had identified to get their hands on the product, learn it, and advocate for it to the rest of the business.

This superuser community was able to accelerate the programme as well as win buy-in by learning to add content to the LMS, being involved in testing, and training the wider team. 

Alongside getting the LMS live, we designed a streamlined curriculum based on SAP materials that was quick, effective and allowed us to train the trainer. This recovered time without spending a lot of money. 

We implemented an alternative approach to classroom training, using self-training and workshops.

We also chose Assima as our training platform which allowed us to get members of the business using a hyper realistic simulation of the system very early on in the program. 

These steps reduced time and costs and created a sense of ownership which increased business buy-in and adoption by the business.

Benefits Delivered

When Resulting joined the client’s SuccessFactors program, the program was so delayed and the quality so low that it was likely the program would be stopped altogether.

Through Resulting’s intervention, the program was recovered and delivered only 3 months later than had been initially planned.

We transformed sentiment toward the program and significantly increased buy-in by creating a strong superuser community and self-led change management approach.

We introduced the right people to the new software as early as possible and gave the business a sense of ownership over the program. 

The client was so happy with the outcome that we were invited to return to fill a similar role on their upcoming Concur program, and to stay on in a supporting role creating training content for both their SuccessFactors and Concur systems.