Customer Reviews

PSA: Professional Services Automation: Optimizing Project and Service Oriented Organizations

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

"The primary focus of traditional Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems is the blue-collar world of factory automation and the world of accounting systems, where the raw data tends to be rolled up and summarized into the organizational structures that were built to conform to the accounting view of the enterprise. These accounting views are useful in the production of general ledgers and other high-level accounting snapshots of the enterprise, but they usually bear little relationship to the dynamic way project-focused organizations are structured and continually restructured around new projects...Regardless of the acronym used, whether it is PSA (Professional Service Automation), SPO (Service Process Optimization), SRM (Service Relationship Management), or any other variation, they all refer to the same thing. Their ultimate goal is also the same: Maximize the performance of white collar project-and-service oriented organizations (PSORGs) ant their staff...These solutions automate and integrate core business processes with the intent of increasing the efficieny of how projects are planned, budgeted, created, staffed, scheduled, implemented, and billed in the real world...Very few PSORGs efficiently deliver their projects or services. Due to increased industry complexities and inefficiient corporate processes, service workers are not focusing on their key responsibilities. Instead, they are being bombarded with increasing numbers of administrative tasks, technology issues, unmanageable workloads, and either a lack of useful information or an inundation of useless detail (or both). There is a great need and an increasing demand for software applications to make PSORGs more productive and more profitable. PSA applications, or the many other similar acronyms, descriibe a set of software solutions that have been designed to achieve such a goal" (from the Preface).

In this context, Rudolf Melik et. al. define this invaluable book's goal is to assist the reader in identifying the key concepts of PSA solutions, their principle features, criteria for selecting them, and their implementation requirements. According to them, PSA functionality can be divided into following multiple core components and extended components:

I. Core Components:

* Performance analysis: Executive reporting, OLAP-based multidimensional data analysis, ROI, and decision support. Quick and customizable home, portal, and dashboard views and peer reviews.

* Operations: Organization breakdown structure (OBS) management, site management, scoping, business rules, component-based security profiles, access rights, audit trails, general ledgers, and terminology settings.

* Resource management: Skills and expertise assessment and matching. Resource allocation, search, scheduling, leveling, forecasting, and availability.

* Project management: Work breakdown structure (WBS) and engagement tracking. Multiple levels for budgeting amounts, duration, schemes, thresholds, and estimate to complete (ETC). Project scheduling, quality control, and R&D claim management. Seamless integration with major project management applications.

* Revenue & cost accounting: Cost and billing rate engine, support for dependencies, history, custom rules, fixed, hourly, daily, custom, WBS, and split billing settings. Multicurrency support, tax category and jurisdictions, Invoicing and payroll wizards and payment processing.

* Timesheet management: Timesheet submission, validation, and approval, compliance reporting, supervisory controls, automatic approval, notes, document attachments, and work assignment. Regional holiday, overtime, and administrative task processing, constraints, validations, and usage rules. Adjustment, status indicators, and mass update. Compliance to regulations for govermental and regional guidelines.

* Expense reporting: Expense submission, validation, and approval, compliance reporting, markups, business rules, document/receipt attachment thresholds, foreign currency conversions, supervisory controls, automatic approval, and work assignment. Offline expense reports and multiple expense report views from which to choose.

* Knowledge management: Hierarchical view of the entire organization, knowledge repositories, document management, full text searches, best practice templates, keyword searches, advanced queries, company policies, coorporate handbooks, and collaboration.

* Strategic sourcing: Requisitions, purchase orders, suppliers, customizable workflow engine, document attachments, staff purchasing, and receipts.

* Request and issue tracking: Call tracking and escalation, change and process management, help desk, classification, notes, document attachments, and a customizable workflow engine.

II. Extended Components:

* Customer and partner relationship management (CRM and PRM): Some PSA solutions include CRM and PRM functionality. CRM includes customer self-services, contact management, marketing campaigns, and a more sophisticated demand management system. PRM automates the workflows and processes of finding, training, and managing partners.

* Human resource management (HR): HR systems process the staff requisition, purchasing, and recruitment process.

* Complete enterprise accounting: Invoices, accounts payable/receivable, revenue recognition, and other such information generated by a PSA solution is exchanged with the organization's accounting system.

Finally, they write that "PSA is the first class of software that provides a comprehensive end-to-end solution that uniquely addresses the needs and problems of PSORGs. This class of software solutions is rapidly evolving into the ERP for white collar project- or service-driven organizations...Every PSA solution has its unique set of strengths and limitations. Determining which areas are important to your business is the key to selecting the most effective solution. PSA is no longer a way to have software or a means to gain competitive advantage; PSA is rapidly becoming a must-have tool for project and service oriented organizations" (pp.339-341).

Highly recommended.

I have just completed this book. Since I have worked within the IT service industry for several years now, I have found that the "buzz" around PSA solutions is growing faster and faster. The application that is called PSA is as wide a concepts as what we call ERP. However this book does a good job of detailing the modules within a PSA solution, their overall benefits and the points to cover in an implementation of such a system. PSA solutions need to be evaluated more carefully by IT departments and service firms for the true ROI they bring. The systems that we have ALL been using upto now are not adequate to meet the robust requirements most have in PSA specific functionality. Reading this book should be viewed as a minimum requirement during your quest at choosing an effective PSA solution.

"As the Vice President of Finance for a project-oriented organization in the manufacturing industry, I found this book to be both valuable and informative. Unlike some web sites or white papers on the subject, which touch on just one or two narrowly defined topics on PSA, this book offers a comprehensive set of crucial information, informative charts and figures, best-practice workflows and illustrative examples to help clarify the term Professional Services Automation. As I begin the process of evaluating the different vendor offerings in PSA, I am using this reference as a guide to help me make the best decision for my organization. This is an excellent addition to my bookshelf as an IT reference tool. Not only am I pleased with the return I have received so far on my investment in reading, but am certain that it will play a significant role in helping me achieve the highest and most rapid ROI possible on the PSA solution that I choose to implement. I look forward to the reduction in paperwork, accurate data and mechanized interfacing to accounting systems now that I know what Professional Services Automation can accomplish!"

I was not sure exactly what a PSA does, how one can justify the investment, what are the key factors to consider and when can I expect a return.

This book breaks down PSA into its core and extended components, explains every component and provides diagrams and hard numbers to justify the phased role out of every module. I really liked the chapter on business intelligence. It is amazing to see how the information can be used to create real time and live charts, this will definitely help me as a director.; I had not seen business intelligence be used in the content of workflows.

PSA: Optimizing Project and Service Oriented Organizations is an excellent book, which provides today's executives with the kind of knowledge they need to really set themselves ahead of the game.
Very well written and easy to understand, the book is full of graphics, diagrams, figures and charts that explain basic concepts common to all PSA systems. I particularly like the PSA cycle diagram that demonstrates the various aspects of a powerful PSA solution...

Working in the services industry I can truly appreciate this type of reference book, mainly since it provides an overview of all of the important aspects to consider when evaluating PSA products. As well, it describes methods of avoiding difficulties that will come in the way of a successful PSA implementation. Another impressive and very useful part of the book is their professional services automation request for proposal template that addresses key questions in order to properly implement such a solution.

The authors share their six years expertise in the field by providing their view of PSA through real life experiences of veteran project managers, IT experts and business executives. I think this is the best book ever written about PSA, and from my understanding, the only book on this subject.

A must for everybody who is involved in the service industry.

This is, to the best of my knowledge, the only book that covers professional services from a technical workforce and consulting perspective. In the past I gleaned information and techniques from books about managing professional services from the perspective of law firms and other industries - good information to be sure, but fell short of the realities of technical services.

What I like about this book is the complete look at professional service management, with an emphasis on both personnel and cost management. I especially like the way the authors show how to go beyond mere cost management to optimize revenue and profit. The information and strategies they provide reflect extensive experience and a strong focus on the business aspects of professional services. I also like the ties to customer relationship management and various types of services, and the PSA components. This first decomposes the components of professional services management (manual or automated) into the critical success factors, then reconnects them into a coherent whole.

Although this book is about automating professional services management, most of the information, especially part 2, can be used effectively without automation. Therein lies the main value of this book and the reason why I think it's simply the singlemost important book a professional services manager can have. In order to get the information collected between the covers of this book you'd have to purchase a pile of related books from other industries, and spend a significant amount of time reading articles and surfing the net. If you are a professional services manager you already know that you don't have time for that. If you're being placed in a professional services management position you *need* this book.

Melik and his associates have written a book in which, as Ted Kempf explains in the Foreword, they introduce and then explain "a new suite of software applications designed specifically for organizations whose work is project-based and human resource intensive, to make their operations more efficient and their resources more productive." This software focuses on servicing the needs of project/service organizations (PSORGs) "and is evolving," the authors explain, "to become the optimized and specialized enterprise resource planning system (ERP) for such organizations. The material is carefully organized as follows:

Part 1 "What are PSA, SPO, ESM, SRM, ESA, and BPA?"

After defining and discussing these acronyms, the authors suggest strategies and tactics to manage the service supply chain more efficiently, and, to streamline business processes.

Part 2 Section A: PSA Components and Section B: Extended Components

For me, this was the most interesting and most valuable section of the book. The authors provide an in-depth analysis of everything which is directly or indirectly involved with PSA. They even include a chapter on "Complete Enterprise Accounting."

Part 3 Selection and Implementation

My guess (only a guess) is that this is the phase during which most PSA initiatives either end or deteriorate. I strongly recommend that Bossidy and Charan's Execution: the Discipline of Getting Things Done be required reading for everyone involved in the selection and implementation phase.

Part 4 The Future of Professional Services Automation (six appendices)

Peter Drucker has frequently asserted that the greatest single challenge for senior-level executives is to manage a future which has already occurred. I was reminded of that as I read this section. (My own crystal ball imploded years ago.) With understandable caution, the authors encourage their reader to sustain the learning process by exploring all possible sources of information; to sustain, also, contingency planning (mindful of the Hebrew aphorism that man plans and then God laughs); also to be alert to emerging standards and technologies; and finally, to evaluate with utmost care all "pure" software acquisition purchasing options, most of which the authors identify and discuss (pages 390-394). The six appendices, alone, are well-worth the cost of this book and their value is exponentially increased when studied within the context of the material which precedes them.

NOTE: Especially for larger organizations, it is imperative that there be effective internal and external communications. The authors stress this important point throughout their book. I presume to suggest that O'Dell and Grayson's' If We Only Knew What We Know: The Transfer of Internal Knowledge and Best Practice be required reading for anyone involved with PSA.

Here in a single volume is about all most decision-makers in project and service oriented organizations need to know about PSA inorder to design, implement, and then maintain (expand, reduce, upgrade, modify, etc.) a system by which to optimize efficiency, productivity, and profitability. It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of system maintenance. Teams must be defined, assembled and charged; management resources must be allocated; benefits and ROI must be monitored and measured; finally, the efforts of ES experts must be coordinated, indeed integrated with initiatives to increase functionality, automate more processes, and further improve existing operations. The authors suggest that an ES project "should never be perceived as completed, but rather as a long-term project with multiple phases and milestones and a consistent reevaluation of its benefits and ROI for years to come." Amen.

Much of what this book speaks to is common knowledge and simply provides elongated definitions.

Thorough, informative and practical - this book is a great read. The authors have done a commendable job in addressing the topic of PSA solutions. The book provides the reader with a clear-cut roadmap for keeping your projects and services on track- from the initiation phase through completion.

What I liked most about the book was the fact that the concepts were presented in a way that could easily be understood. The most prominent factor that made this book so good and useful is that it offered an exceptional tutorial on successful project and service management through a PSA implementation.

To be honest, I was worried that this book might put me, and a large proportion of the consultancy profession, out of a job. With things as they are, it wouldn't have taken much!

I needn't have been concerned. The book is so long at over 400 pages that most potential clients probably won't be bothered to read it all, and those that do will realise that it's a sufficiently complex subject that calling up the cavalry is likely to be the most effective approach, at least first time round.

Unsurprisingly, in view of the authors representing a large proportion of the senior management of Tenrox, this would make an extremely good text book for ERP or CRM salesmen who have identified a brand new seam to be mined. The content will effectively allow them to short circuit the process of developing convincing arguments for investment. This actually shouldn't be too difficult, although perhaps I'm biased about the potential benefits that holistic PSA systems could bring to service sector organisations. Even those in other sectors with significant internal service departments (well, those organisations that haven't discovered the mixed blessings of outsourcing) would benefit enormously.

So what is actually in the book? Well, to start with there's a Foreword from Ted Kempf of Gartner Dataquest (still smarting at Aberdeen's David Hofferberth pre-empting the invention of the definitive TLA for the market) who has only apparently managed to identify 28 PSA vendors, when it's actually nearer a hundred - and still counting.

If you want to sound knowledgable without spending too much time reading, then the Preface and Part 1 effectively explain and summarise what PSA (or SPO, or ESM, or whatever your preferred analyst chooses to call it) actually is.

The bulk of the book is to be found in Part 2, which lists and explains the relevant characteristics of all the components of a PSA system. This is not rocket science by any means, but the explanations put the software into a business context. Add this to a good book on running a professional firm (anything by Maister!) and you have the essential elements to begin to re-engineer your service organisation for the twenty-first century.

First time through you could probably afford to skip Part 3, which is a worthy but unremarkable exposition of how the selection and implementation process should be approached, as well as Part 4 which is a surprisingly brief look into the future of PSA. Perhaps that's because it doesn't mention Microsoft!

Among the Appendices is to be found a template Request for Proposal. This is mainly what gave me concerns regarding my redundancy, but while it actually represents a good guide for the production of a real-life RfP, a lot more work would actually need to be done to tailor it to the needs of a specific service organisation. Whew . . .

Overall I have to congratulate the authors on taking on a big challenge. It used to be that IBM would educate a market before selling into it. In their absence the guys from Tenrox have made an extremely brave attempt, which I am sure will prove of benefit to all participants in the PSA sector.