Cognizant 20-20 Insights

Accelerating Grassroots Adoption

of IT Quality Transformation
By embracing our proven six-step model, IT organizations can
transcend their centralized, audit-driven and reactive qualitychecking approaches and deliver sustainable business impact by
adopting a philosophy that makes quality a way of life.
Executive Summary
Is your organization experiencing low customer
satisfaction levels due to missed milestones? Are
production issues keeping decision-makers up
at night? Are you spending more on keeping the
lights on?
If you answered yes to any of the above, your
organization would likely benefit from a quality
improvement initiative. Because of their inherent
complexity, however, many of these programs
quickly lose momentum without any sustainable
gains. It takes planning, perseverance and collaboration to overcome the inherent challenges
of quality management initiatives, which include
incremental phases, multiple focus areas and the
involvement of numerous stakeholder groups.
This white paper highlights the critical success
factors, solution options and strategies for sustaining business impact through a quality transformation initiative. We present a path for accelerating the
organization-wide grassroots adoption of a quality
initiative though a proven six-step approach: evaluate, communicate, mobilize, pilot, adopt and sustain.
This six-step framework has enabled IT leaders
at numerous banking and financial services com-

cognizant 20-20 insights | december 2015

panies with global operations to successfully

navigate the quality transformation journey while
meeting critical business and compliance needs.

The Need for Quality Transformation

CIOs across industries face numerous quality
issues, including a high number of production
incidents, delays in meeting crucial client commitments and exceptionally high expenditures
on business-as-usual activities. Many technology
organizations make use of waterfall-type software
development lifecycle (SDLC) approaches that rely
on documentation and audits. However, because of
factors such as inconsistent and unrepeatable processes, weak project management, a lack of tools
and irrelevant metrics, actual implementations
vary widely and lead to poor business outcomes.
In our experience, the missing ingredient is the
integration of quality into the day-in-the-life of
practitioners. For a quality improvement initiative
to be successful, it is necessary to:

Involve all teams or business units of the IT

organization.

Engage

the IT associates who perform the

day-to-day activities.

Six-Step Recipe for a Successful

Quality Transformation Initiative
Our six-step methodology can help IT organizations navigate the quality transformation journey.
This methodology is premised on sustained partnerships with all related stakeholders from the

get-go rather than as a management mandate.

Figure 1 defines and explain the six steps of
quality transformation.

Building Blocks for Quality Transformation

1
EVALUATE
Assess current
state of IT process
and compare this
with best-in-class
industry standards.

2
COMMUNICATE
Create awareness and
urgency, set targets
and engage
stakeholders.

3
MOBILIZE
Build team of thought
leaders, influencers,
decision-makers,
change agents,
practitioners.

4
PILOT
Roll out pilots and
incentivize early
adopters to ensure
quick wins to build
momentum.

Figure 1

Organizations should begin their quality transformation initiative by evaluating the performance of current systems and conducting a due
COMMUNICATE
diligence exercise to determine existing vulneraCreate
Awareness
and Urgency;
y;
bilities. This
exercise
can help identify
and assess
Set
Targets
and
Engage
Stakehold
olders
gaps that exist between the current state and the
achievement of organizational goals and industry
standards.

6
SUSTAIN
Integrate quality into
the day-in-the-life of
practitioners and measure
improvements.

a self-assessment rather than

an external audit. By allowing grassroots
teams to assess themselves, organizations can
encourage these stakeholders to feel a sense of
ownership for the initiative and its outcomes.
A self-assessment-based approach is often
broader-based than an external audit and can
help spread awareness about the program.

Assessing across the organization. An orga-

nization-wide assessment helps identify hidden

best practices that are used by different pockets
of the enterprise, as well as key areas of concern.
In-house best practices can potentially fuel the
first wave of quality standardization.

Key considerations for assessing the current

state include:
MOBILIZE

a maturity
Rather
Build
the Rightassessment.
Team
Conducting
than engaging in an overall process maturity
audit, it is more effective to conduct a custom

PILOT

Roll out Proofs

of Concept;
cognizant 20-20 insights
Incentivize Early Adoption

Enable broad-based
adoption by
simplifying and
automating
processes.

Choosing

ADOPT

assessment, leveraging various industry standards for specific process areas (see Figure 2,
next page).

EVALUATE

Determine Current State,

Shape and Fitness

Custom Assessments Leveraging Industry Standards

CAPABILITY MATURITY MODEL

INTEGRATION (CMMI)

Project monitoring and control

Project planning
Requirements management
Supplier agreement management
Measurement and analysis
Product & process quality assurance
Configuration management
CMMI is a collection of capability maturity
models from Software Engineering Institute
and Carnegie Mellon University that are
used as an approach to improve business
processes within an organization.

(CMMI is a registered trademark of

Carnegie Mellon University.)

CONTROL OBJECTIVES FOR INFORMATION

AND RELATED TECHNOLOGY (COBIT)

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
INFRASTRUCTURE LIBRARY (ITIL)

Planning and organization

Delivery and support
Monitoring and evaluation

Service desk
Incident management
Problem management
Configuration management
Change management
Release management

The COBIT framework from ISACA provides a

set of generally accepted measures,
indicators, processes and best practices, to
assist in maximizing the benefits derived
through the use of information technology,
and developing appropriate IT governance
and control in a company.

(COBIT is a registered trademark of ISACA.)

Organizational
Architecture and Talent

EVALUATE

Vendor Management
Determine
Current State,
and Fitness
Program Shape
and Projects

ITIL is a group of methods that are focused on

managing and handling different aspects of
information technology, such as operations,
infrastructure, and development.

(ITIL is a registered trademark of Axelos

Ltd., which licenses the use of ITIL intellectual property and manages updates to
the framework.)

Build and Deployment

Requirements &
Scope Management

Service Delivery
Testing

Information Management

Code Quality

Figure 2

COMMUNICATE

Create Awareness and Urgency;

y;
Set Targets and Engage Stakehold
olders

Organizations need to set the right targets,

communicate these goals and convey a sense
of urgency for the need to transform. Targets
should be easy to
communicate, relevant and
MOBILIZE
time-bound.Build
Examples
the include:
Right Team

Awareness and communication are required

not just at the start of an initiative, but also at
every step of the way. Figure 3 illustrates ways
to ensure a closed feedback loop and stakeholder engagement throughout the transformation
journey.

Collaboration Techniques
Lunch-and-learn
sessions

15% to 20% reduction in testing effort

through early detection of defects in the development phase over the next 24 months.

50% to 60% reduction in the impact of

PILOT
outages on customers through improved
Roll
out
Proofs
of Concept;
regression testing, release risk impact analysis
Incentivize
Early
Adoption
and proactive monitoring over the next 12
months.

Monthly
newsletter

COLLABORATION

70% to 80% increase in on-time delivery

through standardized estimation, toll gates and
project management
over the next six months.
ADOPT

Social collaboration
portals with blogs,
polls

Enable
Adoption
b they
by
These targets
areBroad-Based
highly functional
because
Simplifying
andimprove
Automating
Proces
cesses
help spark
motivation,
alignment
between
ongoing and upcoming initiatives across the organization, provide a filter to evaluate how the organization is doing, and create a rationale for the
changes the organization will have to navigate.

SUSTAIN

Integrate Quality into

cognizant 20-20 insights
the Day-in-the-Life
of Practitioner
ers
and Demonstrate Executivee
Sponsorship to Sustain Cha
hange

Progress review
sessions

Figure 3

Build the Right Team

Set Targets and Engage Stakehold

olders

MOBILIZE

Build the Right Team

It is critical to establish a team with clearly defined

roles and responsibilities, as well as support from
senior leadership. A successful quality transPILOT
formation
initiative
requires
a sponsor that will
Roll
out Proofs
of Concept;
not only drive and own the initiative but will also
Incentivize Early Adoption
develop a guiding team of senior executives, key
line managers, human resources and strategic
planning. Sponsors must align with transformation objectives, overcome obstacles and serve
as advocates who communicate the reasons for
ADOPT
the urgency and change. Management teams
Enable Broad-Based Adoption by
b
must partner with supporters and change agents
Simplifying and Automating Proces
cesses
across the organization and groom them to be
ambassadors of the quality transformation.

PILOT

Roll out Proofs of Concept;

Incentivize Early Adoption

By selecting the right pilot project, organizations

can lay the foundation for successful implementation of the initiative. Identifying pilot candidates
ADOPT
entails the following:

Enable Broad-Based Adoption by

b

Simplifying
and
Automatingbased
Proces
cesses
quick-win
opportunities
on self Select
assessment results.

Identify

opportunities that will highlight

major benefits of the program. Such successes
can be used as aSUSTAIN
trigger for the adoption of
best practices.

Integrate Quality into

teams that follow

best practices
Leverage
the Day-in-the-Life
of Practitioner
ers

to define
and
standardize processes
and
Demonstrate
Executiveefor pilot
focus Sponsorship
areas. Havingtointernal
Sustainreferences
Cha
hange for
success lowers resistance to change. Organizations may also need to consider infusing the
team with experts to leverage industry best
practices and standards.

When organizations face issues such as bandwidth

constraints, availability of skills and access to
best-in-class industrySUSTAIN
standards, they can engage
Quality
intothe required
subject matterIntegrate
experts who
possess
the Day-in-the-Life
Practitioner
ers and
experience
to introduce of
best
practices
and Demonstrate
Executive
e
broaden awareness
during the
initial phases
of
to Figure
Sustain
hange
planningSponsorship
and rollout (see
4).Cha

Sample Transformation Team

Roles

Organizational Roles

Responsibilities

Sponsors

Chief information officer, chief quality officer

and IT senior management team.

Set quantifiable quality goals for the

organization and incorporate them as part
of performance management. Espouse the
need for quality transformation. Incentivize
adoption of best practices. Monitor and
control progress.

Thought Leaders
and Champions

Highly motivated employees who understand

the need for a quality initiative and are willing to
pioneer quality as a way of life.

Publicize and advocate best practices. Lead

by example. Deliver quick wins and early
successes.

Influencers

Teams that have successfully adopted best

practices and demonstrated strong results.

Highlight the benefits of successfully

adopting standard processes.

Practitioners

Members from ground-level teams

(project managers, team leads).

Ensure best practices are followed by all

day-to-day projects.

Catalysts

HR, communications, external

consultants.

Assist in developing marketing materials.

Conduct workshops to socialize the
initiative/ best practices.

Figure 4

cognizant 20-20 insights

Incentivize
Adoption
ShapeEarly
and Fitness

ADOPT
COMMUNICATE

52

Enable
Adoption
by;
by
CreateBroad-Based
Awareness and
Urgency;
Simplifying
Proces
cesses
Set Targetsand
andAutomating
Engage Stakehold
olders

Quick Take
Structure for Success

To ensure widespread adoption, organizations

need to educate teams on the benefits of the new
processes including simplification and automation and develop SUSTAIN
effective incentives. Guiding
MOBILIZE
principles to ensure
successful
adoption
Integrate
Quality
into include:

A major global bank kicked off an organizationwide quality transformation initiative with the
direct participation of its senior leadership
team and 100-plus influencers across the globe.

6
3

Build the RightofTeam

the Day-in-the-Life
Practitioner
ers

drive early adopters by making

Incentivize
and and
Demonstrate
Executivee

Primary sponsor: Group CIO

Program owner: Chief quality officer
Steering committee: Executive team made

quality improvement a part of annual KPIs.

Sponsorship to Sustain Cha

hange

Establish

milestones along the way and

celebrate with rewards and recognition.

PILOT a metrics program.

adoption through
Track
4 Roll
out Proofs of Concept;

up of CIO direct reports with ownership

of individual workstreams, such as
requirements management and release
management, covering end-to-end software
development and service delivery.

Adoption should be voluntary and driven

Incentivize
Early Adoption
through
healthy competition.

Realign roles to improve the focus on quality.

Senior developers and solution architects

should be assigned to validate the correct use
of design patternsADOPT
and reusable components,
and test
managers
and production
Enable Broad-Based
Adoptionsupport
b
by
leads should participate in requirements
Simplifying and Automating Proces
cesses
reviews. To avoid hand-off gaps, teams should
conduct 360-degree reviews of deliverables.

Workstream leads: Self-motivated line

managers with growth potential and
leadership capabilities.

Workgroup members: Peer groups of

developers, testers, project managers and

business analysts, spread across geographies and application areas.

Quality champions: One to two practitio-

SUSTAIN

ners per geography or application area,

responsible for socializing best practices
and standards across all workstreams.

Integrate Quality into

the Day-in-the-Life of Practitioner
ers
and Demonstrate Executivee
Sponsorship to Sustain Cha
hange

This structure resulted in a matrix that

engaged the entire organization, with multiple
stakeholders taking ownership of various parts
of the initiative.

The final stage in every initiative is making sure

that the defined processes are sustainable and
to integrate them into the organization. Ways to
facilitate successful integration include:

Emphasize the benefits of the initiative. Ease

of adoption and value gained drive sustainability.

Utilize

periodic tracking of strategic and

operational metrics to show alignment with
organization goals and incremental change in
performance and process maturity.

Deploy support groups to advance adoption

and sustainability of the processes.

Engage lagging business units by conducting

knowledge-sharing sessions and promoting

the adoption of tools and best practices.

Socialize

Celebrate

Include key result areas aligned with quality

initiatives in the performance reviews of decision-makers.

Once quality becomes an integral part of the

culture, the organization can begin to transition
responsibility for sustaining change from the
focused work groups to the rest of the enterprise.

the progress and outcomes with

the teams through posters, luncheon sessions,
newsletters, e-mail communications, etc.

cognizant 20-20 insights

wins with the team. Rewards and

recognition are as critical as the overall initiative.

Quick Take
Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance
Our work on quality improvement initiatives
has yielded the following examples of simplified
processes and associated benefits.

making code changes by eliminating the need

to reinvent the wheel.

Use of automated tools for standard status

reporting. Doing so reduces the time required

for preparing status reports for senior
management.

Static

code analysis and unit testing for

code reviews. These tools significantly reduce
the time and effort required for manual code
review processes without any compromise to
quality.

Engagement

of business stakeholders on
requirements quality and demonstrating
traceability with the delivered code. The
impact of requirements quality on functionality can be demonstrated by testing the requirements on wireframes or simulations.

Project

lifecycle workflow systems. These

systems reduce the need for manual auditing.

Incident

management and escalation

workflows. The use of process management
tools for standardizing the tracking and fixing
of incidents provides an analytics ability for
root-cause analysis.

Building of automation platforms. A standard

automated build platform across the organization reduces the time and effort spent on

Looking Ahead
To deliver a sustainable business impact from
quality transformation initiatives, IT organizations need to generate awareness and set
specific actionable goals across all levels of the
enterprise, not just for their quality assurance
teams. Quality goals must be championed by peer
groups of IT practitioners and enabled with tools
and automation that improve productivity and
consistency.

cognizant 20-20 insights

Taking the first step is half the battle. By following

through with the six steps of this proven
framework, organizations can ensure a successful
quality management initiative.

About the Authors

Saptarshi (Rishi) Mukherjee is an Assistant Vice-President of Consulting within Cognizant Business
Consultings Strategic Services Practice. Rishi is engaged in business development and execution of
multiple consulting engagements across the banking/financial services and insurance industries. He is
also responsible for creating consulting frameworks and publishing articles in Cognizant forums. He can
be reached at Saptarshi.Mukherjee@cognizant.com.
Vinit Sharma is a Senior Manager of Consulting within Cognizant Business Consulting. He has nine-plus
years of experience successfully leading and managing large IT performance and process improvement
initiatives, program management and change management for various clients. Vinit holds an M.B.A.
from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi, and a bachelors degree from BMSCE Bangalore.
He can be reached at Vinit.Sharma2@cognizant.com.
Kajal Aggarwal is an Engagement Manager within Cognizant Business Consultings Strategic Services
Practice. He has 12-plus years of consulting experience in IT and business process improvement,
strategic and operations metrics, cost optimization and portfolio rationalization. He holds an M.B.A.
from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi, and a bachelors degree from the National Institute
of Technology Karnataka, India. He can be reached at Kajal.Aggarwal@cognizant.com.

Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Akila Rajasekaran for her contributions to this white paper.

About Cognizant
Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) is a leading provider of information technology, consulting, and business
process outsourcing services, dedicated to helping the worlds leading companies build stronger businesses. Headquartered inTeaneck, New Jersey(U.S.), Cognizant combines a passion for client satisfaction, technology innovation, deep industry and business process expertise, and a global, collaborative
workforce that embodies the future of work. With over 100 development and delivery centers worldwide
and approximately 219,300 employees as ofSeptember 30, 2015, Cognizant is a member of the NASDAQ100, the S&P 500, the Forbes Global 2000, and the Fortune 500 and is ranked among the top performing
and fastest growing companies in the world. Visit us online at www.cognizant.com or follow us on Twitter:
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