DWP Change Lifecycle – notice of improvements to usability

The purpose of this note is to provide suppliers with details of changes to the DWP Change Lifecycle, currently planned for implementation on 27 September 2010.

Suppliers should note that these changes make the Change Lifecycle more straightforward to use, without changing the underlying product definitions (with the exception of a small number of testing and implementation planning products that have been removed to eliminate duplication). These changes will therefore not require additional work from DWP's suppliers that are involved with project delivery.

Background

The DWP Change Lifecycle is the single central repository of information to support change delivery in DWP.  It provides projects and programmes in DWP with a common method for delivery with links to the relevant governance arrangements required for managing change.

The Change Lifecycle currently includes 4 project routemaps which are generic high-level plans for a specific type of DWP project.  A routemap is designed to be tailored to become a high-level plan for a specific project. The four project routemaps are:

• Bespoke
• COTS Configuration
• COTS Selection and Configuration
• Business Change

Increasingly over time it has become apparent that DWP projects do not automatically follow a single IT routemap, but often require elements from multiple routemaps.

New IT routemap

From September there will be only two project routemaps, one for IT and one for Business Change. A single IT routemap will be available that will replace the current Bespoke and COTS routemaps. This will provide a leaner, project tool for projects to use and tailor to meet their requirements.

New Routemap Tailoring Notes

Routemap Tailoring Notes provide guidance about how the Change Lifecycle can be tailored for specific types of project.  New Routemap Tailoring Notes will be available for DWP projects that need to evaluate and select a COTS package followed by configuring the COTS package to suit DWP requirements and integrating it with other DWP systems. These Tailoring Notes will be referenced from appropriate points on the Change Lifecycle. 

Supplier alignment with DWP Change Lifecycle

DWP has a standard approach to planning and managing change, the DWP CL. However DWP accepts that suppliers often have their own standard working practices or methods and often they will be more effective if they use their own methods.  However DWP expect suppliers to map their generic method to the CL to   show which supplier products correspond to which CL products.

Mapping can therefore be complex and DWP projects will need to validate that the overall purpose of CL products is fulfilled at the right time in the project lifecycle.  DWP have developed Lifecycle Mapping criteria to support the validation process. These are based on a set of criteria that are sufficient to ensure that all required information is available for each gated review.

Further information

If you require further information or have any questions regarding these improvements please contact Janet Wilkinson on 0113 2327941 or e-mail janet.e.wilkinson@dwp.gsi.gov.uk.