Construct Optimus processes include Costing,
Procurement,
Stores Management,
Performance Management,
Contracting,
Tendering, and
Earned Value Management at the first level;
Knowledge Management,
Communication Management,
Document Management,
Variance Analysis,
Client Management,
Resource Management,
Issue Management,
Change Management,
Management By Projects,
ROI, and
Labor Management at the next level. The
framework for all these processes are provided
by Organization
Structure, Calendars,
Business Rules, Policies and Application Security
Processes. Our unique process of Smart Responders is a
combination of intelligent responder and auto
responder.
Costing
Construct Optimus provides Activity Based
Costing. Costs are traced from resources to
activities, and mapped from activities to
products (deliverables), based on products demand for
these activities during the production process. Activity based costing process includes both direct
and indirect costs.
Quality Control
Quality Control monitors
specific project results to determine if they comply
with relevant quality standards and identifies ways to
eliminate causes of un-satisfactory results. Quality Control is performed throughout the project, which delivers results in terms of product results such as deliverables and management results - cost and schedule performance. Construct Optimus makes sure that not only Quality Control department but also Project Management Team has working knowledge of statistical Quality Control especially sampling & probability and assists in evaluating Quality Control outputs.
Tendering
Construct Optimus facilitates the precise estimation
of Tenders by providing access to up-to-date resource
rates from the database of past and current projects online. Provision to consider preliminaries, indirect costs and user-defined factors is given during the estimation. Construct Optimus provides the ability to generate a set
of assumptions for pricing items and creating multiple scenarios for resource rates and indirect costs, enabling the estimators to put together various pricing possibilities and options for the tender. The following Processes are available in Tendering.
- Tender Repository that facilitates storage of Customer Profiles, Bidding capacity for the Tenders, Clauses, Requirements & Estimation
- Tender Costing
- RFQs
- Tender Compliance to pre-qualification factors
- Quotation Comparison
- Contracts
Contracting
Task Contracting in Construct Optimus facilitates – identification and evaluation of a suitable subcontractor – this could include meetings, site visits, studying processes of the subcontractor, second party audits, etc. In addition sub-contract Management Plan includes aspects like
- Skill levels of persons who will perform the task
- The manner in which communications will be handled between the organization subcontracting the work and the subcontractor
- Mode for sharing information, data and software artifacts and hardware/ software compatibility, etc.,
- Status reporting
- Mid-process joint reviews
- Acceptance criteria
- Configuration management plan
Earned Value
Management
Earned Value Analysis is performed at Resource
level that contributes to the Earned value for the
activity & thus the Project. The Productivity can
thus be computed at every stage of Project execution
& not just at the end of the execution, so that
necessary actions can be taken to improve the
productivity & Performance of Human Resource for
that matter any other Resource (Contractor, Labor,
Machinery, Budget, & Material) allocated on the
task.
This becomes a crucial input for Performance
Analysis of the Human Resource.
Earned Value Analysis is a methodology that allows
the project manager to compare expected work with actual work completed by the resource.
Stores Management
Construct Optimus provides inbuilt Stores Management that is integrated to the Project & Procurement Management Processes. The Objective of the Stores Management system is
- To facilitate the transaction of stock available in stores.
- To facilitate issuing gate passes and Goods Inward Note (GIN).
- Facilitate viewing, processing and storing past records online.
Performance Management
In order to manage projects efficiently, accurate information is needed to diagnose performance. Performance is reflected by measurements upon which corrective action is suggested and taken. Initially performance measurement Framework is given and then performance is measured against categories like cost, deliverables, process, milestones etc… Performance management is a key project management responsibility during project execution that involves measuring and reporting project performance on a scheduled basis is.
The goal here is to lift the success rate of projects, judged both against their input and planned output achievement (in terms of cost, physical specifications and timing) and against predetermined development objectives/goals, both immediate and longer term.
Performance management allows the stakeholders in a project to:
- Be assured, before project approval to proceed, what the project’s measurable results (immediate and longer term) are expected to be
- Appreciate how those results contribute to organizational goals
- Know that the project’s outputs, immediate purpose and longer term goals can be reported upon progressively, using obtainable indicators
- Ultimately, facilitates to manage projects properly
- Provides Actual as well as trending value scores.
Procurement Management
Procurement Management includes the processes required to acquire goods and services from outside the performing organization. Construct Optimus facilitates the following processes in Procurement Management:
- Procurement Planning
- Solicitation Planning
- Solicitation
- Source Selection
- Contract Administration &
- Contract Closeout
Each process may involve effort from one or more individuals or groups
of individuals based on the needs of the project. Process interactions are an integral part of the contracting and procurement process. Project procurement management is discussed from the perspective of the buyer in the buyer-seller relationship.
Document Management
Document Management is a powerful approach for
communicating & Controlling Process execution.
From this perspective, documents are transmission
channels through which most processes in Organizations
and Project Management are managed. From the creation
to approval, release and use, documents form the major
Workflow systems. To control time, quality & Cost,
document Management promises productivity and
performance improvement.
Construct Optimus integrates Management by
Projects with Document Management. Document Management
system of Construct Optimus provides:
-
Improved communication
-
Re-engineering product development
processes
-
Leveraging Organizational memory
Communication Management
Includes processes required to ensure timely and appropriate generation, collection, storage and dissemination of the appropriate project information.
Communication planning:
Determines who needs what information, when and how will it be given to them. This process generates communication management plan using the details like communication requirements, assumptions and constraints considering the stakeholder analysis.
Information Distribution: Making the required information available to the stakeholders in a timely manner. This process produces a project record that contains information regarding
Variance Analysis
Construct Optimus serves as a decision support & an analytical tool that helps Enterprise have an insight on the discrepancies in Time, Work, Budget, Resource Utilization etc… for a
Project. It provides real-time on-line Analytical reports that produce Variance in Price, Quantity, Cost & Time , at the same time a forecast on what the situation of the Project would be at the current pace.
Change Management
Change Management is a disciplined approach to
planning, coordinating, and reporting changes that
have the potential to negatively impact the project
plan and/or the project deliverables. The objective of
the change management process is to ensure that
changes are implemented with minimum or acceptable
levels of risk and that the project is not jeopardized
by planned change.
Labor Management
Construction Industry is labor intensive. Efficient Labor Management is the key in successful implementation of a construction project. Construct Optimus, in addition to, providing detailed feedback about progress relative to the percent completion, project time, and labor expenses would be helpful. Real time instant cost and production feedback is facilitated is Construct Optimus.
Risk Management
Risk Management process deals with
the risks regarding various projects. Initially, a baseline risk assessment is
conducted to identify the potential risks to the
project across the spectrum of development phases. Each of the identified risks is analyzed to determine
the likelihood of the risk occurrence
and its impact. The risks are
then prioritized.
A continuous process of Risk Management activities
is then executed to reassess the status of identified
risks, identify new risks, monitor the effectiveness
of implemented risk reduction techniques, track the
risks, and flag when contingency plans should be
implemented.
Resource Management
Construct Optimus manages Manpower, Material
& Machinery of an Enterprise. Resources form
an important ingredient for any Organization. Resource
Management Process assists in recruiting the
right people, allocating the right Resource at the
right place and right time to get the right work done
within time.
It not only analyses the Cost factor
involved in engaging Resources across Activities
but also the Performance of the Resources. In addition, it helps manage Human Resource related
attributes like Leave, Travel and Training
Programs.
Management by Projects - What
is measured, is what gets done!
In today's competitive corporate environment
where margins are tight, executives need to
organize their activities in a most
efficient and effective way. Standard instruments for
corporate management are strategy, structure and
culture, which are supported with a set of
sub-strategies.
Management By Project concept treats business management
and project management not as separate, because projects are its
business. Management of multiple Projects
simultaneously is fraught with the difficulties of
conflicting demands of same resources and the pit
falls in decisions of prioritization of the projects. This warrants the Portfolio Management by the Project
Managers.
Project Structure: Projects are arranged in
conjunction with the corporate objectives.
Resourcing Structure: Resources are
assigned to a Resource Pool. Each pool houses the
resources with common skills, qualifications and
experience (e.g. design, accounting, marketing). Resource pools exist for Manpower,
Machinery and Material whether owned
or contracted.
Resource Utilization: Construct Optimus allows each resource to be described in a variety of attributes. In practical terms
this means that managers can search an enterprise wide
talent pool for resources that meet the “multiple
criteria” needed for a specific project. (Ex:
experience with specific platform, environment,
education, training, seniority, location, hourly rate
etc).
Centralized Planning: With all of an organizations’
resources located in a central repository, managers
can assess the effect of a
particular decision on
other engagements. Managers can populate
engagements on a trial basis and understand the
implications of the upcoming opportunities. Another
valuable feature is the ability to merge an internal
corporate database with the database of an external
client for integrated resource management with ability
to control access.
Client Management
Business today requires comprehensive customer
information management, but it is often impossible to
find this information when it is needed most. Staff
may record details of contacts, telephone calls,
upcoming tasks or potential orders, on post-it notes
or in a personal database.
Client Process of Construct Optimus helps
you to store, view and analyze this
information centrally using desktop PCs - giving everybody
in your organization access to updated, synchronized,
client information. Almost all organizations have some
non-standard data requirements. With CIS tailored to
your company's needs you can store and manipulate any
relevant data. Custom features are tightly integrated
into the standard modules, leaving a complete,
customized client database.
These features help to preserve data consistency
across your entire database: Client Process
provides automated features to help you work with
Contacts. It uses templates that make it
easy to create standard letters, or customize the
appearance of documents to suit the look of your
company. Client process provides a comprehensive
functionality of Customer Relationship
Management(CRM).
Issue Management
Issue Management process addresses the flow and
communication process for customer and employee
problem resolution, flexible enough to track and
manage projects and tasks for other areas of the
organization, and have the ability to extend data from
the help desk system to other areas of the
organization. It also makes it easy to share
information, facilitating quick collaboration for all
parties - located anywhere worldwide. It tracks Issues
from inception to resolution. The functions include
assignment and auto-routing, prioritizing,
notification, powerful searching and reporting
capabilities, issue aging and communication.
ROI
Construct Optimus helps an Organization
prioritize projects by measuring ROI and other Critical
Trade-off factors like Time, Resource availability & Cost. The quantitative and qualitative benefits of Projects need to
be evaluated before the project is undertaken. Calculating ROI on a Project is one means of measuring benefits of the organization. However, even more critical to success of a project than the calculated costs, benefits, and ROI, is the extent of “buy-in” for project from executive leadership and organizations business operations. Having support for the Project from senior management as well as user involvement in configuring the application(s) is essential to its success.
Workflow Management
The interest in automated business-to-business transactions involving Internet is increasing rapidly. Need for companies to expand automated enactment of their business processes beyond the boundaries of their own organization is driven by the resulting savings in transmission time (automated exchange of process data over the internet, automated processing of work items upon receipt), gains in data quality (exchange of
predefined documents, elimination of media breaks) and improved monitoring capabilities (up-to-date information about process status at the site of business partners). Construct Optimus provides customizable Workflow Management Process that adheres to the WFMC Standards. Workflow exists for every Process in an Enterprise and every Enterprise has a set of standard procedures/policies that support communication across its Processes.
Knowledge Management
Enterprises are realizing how important
it is to "know what they know" and be able to make maximum use of the knowledge. This knowledge resides in many different places such as: databases, knowledge bases, filing cabinets and human resources, which are distributed right across
the enterprise. Often one part of an enterprise repeats work of another part simply because it is impossible to keep track of, and make use of, knowledge in other parts. Enterprises need to know:
- What their knowledge assets are
- How to manage and make use of these assets to get maximum return.
Construct Optimus has in-built Knowledge Management system that captures Enterprise as well as Process Knowledge and helps the Stakeholders benefit through their own experience.
Construct Optimus also facilitates Assessments and Reviews that provide evaluation of the continuing ability of the project to meet its technical and programmatic commitments. They also
provide value-added assistance to the project manager as needed. The evaluation is applied throughout the life cycle of the project and consists of planning and conducting reviews and assessments during the project planning, execution, and closure.
Organization Breakdown Structure
Organization Chart defines the Organization
Breakdown Structure for an Enterprise/Functional Unit. Construct Optimus provides user with the facility of configuring Organization Chart. A
Functional Unit for e.g. can be a branch, division,
department or a team. User can categorize a Functional
Unit, either as Independent or Dependent. An
independent Functional Unit can exist on its own i.e.
define its Designation hierarchy, Groups, Roles and
Responsibilities and Skill breakdown structure. A
Dependent node is an entity that depends on its parent
i.e. it operates as a part of the parent and doesn’t
have its own existence, so by default inherits
settings of the Parent excluding Skill breakdown
Structure. To build an Organization Chart user can
copy the settings of another Functional Unit or a user
defined Business Category.
Security
Construct Optimus being a Web Based Product, in
addition to Security on the Web, it provides
Application level Security. Application-level
security guards the proprietary information of
the Enterprise from being viewed by unauthorized
users. It provides module, feature, screen &
record level protection to the application. Security
starts with definition of User Groups and the
Users for that user group. This grouping can be configured based on hierarchy or work groups in the Enterprise.
Calendars
Construct Optimus provides Calendars at three levels: Organization, Project and Resource, that contribute to efficient Planning & Scheduling. Calendar function synchronizes geographically dispersed Functioning units. Organization Calendar of Construct Optimus supports working and non-working days. Project Calendars not only inherits properties of the Organization Calendars but also support customization.
Resource Calendars gives details of a resource availability/unavailability in terms of resource travel and resource vacation.
Policies and Business Rules
The dynamics of today’s business is a function of speed, scalability & response. In order to effectively perform in these fluid markets, accurate and timely Management decisions and judgments assume paramount importance. Construct Optimus with its customization capabilities simplifies whole environment by empowering the business user to set business rules and policies. This facility cuts time required to respond to the customer and market demands.
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