1. Client interviews: First we're looking to understand your goals and drivers for assessing and improving your program and project management capabilities, trying to gain insight into your root challenges and business dynamics. This is where we define what we are collectively attempting to accomplish
   
2. Define resources: Once we fully understand your aims and goals, we'll specifically map our instructor capabilities to the wants and needs of the organization. We have a wide variety of capabilities and tailor our response to your goals. No predetermined outcomes here, but a tailored plan that maps our strengths to each engagement.

1. Evaluation proposal - Next we carefully construct a proposal that targets your goals and properly leverages the capabilities and strengths of ASPE Technology. He we concentrate on the " vital few " recommendations and activities that identify and address the root causes of your challenges -thus creating the biggest impact.
   
2. Evaluation Kick-off - The ASPE team will sit down with you to pull the evaluation game plan together. It is here we will establish:
   
   
   1. The combined evaluation team - all the key players
      
   2. Process artifacts to be included in the evaluation review.
      
   3. Scope of the evaluation
      
   4. Goals of the evaluation
      
   5. Desired outcome from the evaluation
   
   
3. Evaluation & recommendations - The evaluation phase includes a customer defined point-of-contact or Engagement Manager who will meet daily with the evaluation team - operating as a joint project manager for the effort. The outcomes of the evaluation include
   
   
   1. Creation of a detailed evaluation report outlining the current baseline and recommended actions. This report will also include a detailed phased plan for implementing the recommendations in the correct order
      
   2. A high level Executive Debriefing delivered to client staff providing an executive summary of findings, recommendations and potential next step phased deliverables.

1. Evaluation Review & follow-up:
   Once the evaluation is delivered, we will follow-up with you to review your evaluation experience.
   
   
   1. What was most valuable from the evaluation?
      
   2. What would you like to see more of in future evaluations?
      
   3. Do you need help with any of the recommendations? Etc. We want to continually improve on our process and want to continue as your partner, so look for a proper wrap-up and an ongoing relationship.

1. The Action Plan:Should the client decide to move forward after the completion of the evaluation, the Action Plan for implementation will be jointly created with the client stakeholders and the ASPE Technology team. This plan will outline:
   1. Specific deliverables as elaborated in the PPT aspect of the evaluation
      
   2. Timeline for delivery
      
   3. Verification of the effectiveness of the implementation
      
   4. Iteration plan for continuing incremental improvement

COACHING PRACTICE

The coaching practice is a unique mix of training and team development that focuses on the goals or targets of your organization to get your teams and resources where they to be.
We also help in adjusting and enhancing your self-stated goals based on the organization's growth and changes in the competitive landscape of the business. The function of the ASPE Technology Consultant in this instance is as a guide, facilitator and/or coach to help further the growth and capability of the resources within your organization.

Initial Coaching Engagement

The coaching engagement begins with a free, 2-hour face-to-face evaluation. In this process our focus is to understand the drivers and needs of the organization in retaining a coach. In this evaluation we will review:

• Goals and deliverables from coaching.
  
• Business and/or customer drivers for implementing a coaching program
  
• Learning style of the organizational resources
  
• Matching the right instructor to the coaching needs of the organization based on coaching style, personality and required skill set of the coach

The Coaching Plan

The coaching plan is a collaborative effort that outlines how the coaching process will be implemented for your organization and will document the general rules of engagement including:

• Focus areas for the coaching effort
  
• Key goals we want to achieve and interim milestones for each, and overall targets
  
• Format of the coaching - in person, email, conference calls, or some combination
  
• Establish the overall time frame for the coaching (how often and for how long)
  
• Cost structure and agreement

What Kind of Coaching is Right for Me...?

Many times we are called in to help an organization because the PM or the team has been trained or certified in Project Management but is having difficulty putting the theoretical knowledge into practical use. There are many aspects of project management and team leadership that are not found in books or white papers - these " hard won skills " come from extensive experience beyond the theory and are the result of years of learning from successes, mistakes, unforeseen events, discovery, and the unexpected. Not only are we pleased to share our experiences but welcome the opportunity to help others over some of the same rugged territory we have traversed successfully. To quote Eleanor Roosevelt: "Learn from the mistakes of others - you won't live long enough to make them all yourself. "

Below are a few of the areas in which ASPE Technology can offer coaching for your organization :

For more information, click here to set up a free consultation conference call with our VP of Services and the Practice Director

• Learn-by-doing: applying PM theory coupled with practical hands-on approaches immediately to actual programs and projects within your organization to derive immediate benefit
  
• Negotiation and conflict resolution
  
• Managing high risk projects or programs
  
• " Lean " project management - Agile and CCPM approaches
  
• Vendor and contract management
  
• Measurement and Metrics tools - managing the program dashboard
  
• Product development and innovation

PRACTICE DIRECTOR

• David Cacamo has three decades of experience in the engineering, economics, and project management fields. With an undergraduate degree from the United States Naval Academy and a Masters of Economics (Engineering Minor) from North Carolina State University, Dave has developed an impressive set of skills in the areas of business management, information technology, and strategic planning and implementation. Dave has substantial industry and academic experience. He started his career as a nuclear-trained Submarine officer, and then, after the Navy, worked as an acquisition project manager with a Washington, DC-based consulting firm. He and his family moved to North Caroline in order for Dave to complete his post-graduate work, and while a graduate student, he served as the Reactor Engineer for the NC State research reactor. After graduation, he put all of these skills to good use as he served as the Vice President of Finance for a startup technical consulting firm. After the sale of that company, Dave returned to academia as an Assistant Professor of Business and Economics at a small private college in the Raleigh area. Dave taught introductory economics and accounting courses to undergraduates. As part of the college's transition to baccalaureate status, he developed the school's Business administration major and served as a committee chair for the college's accreditation self-study. He also served in the collateral roles of Director of Academic Computing and subsequently, Director of Information Technology. During the same period, Dave was also an adjunct professor of business for a local University, where he taught advanced economics, finance, and quantitative methods courses. Dave has demonstrated time and again his ability to make complex business and engineering concepts understandable to executives, managers, and technicians through his fundamental modeling of subject matter. Most recently, Dave has served as a business and training consultant in the areas of IT, Project Management, Management and Leadership, and Business Communications. He was a Course Director and Instructor for a major training firm, in which capacities he developed business and IT training courses, serving as author and/or editor for a number of textbooks. Dave has also led the management team for the startup of two private schools.
  
  

• Bob Galen is a founder and Principal Consultant of RGCG, L.L.C., based in Cary, North Carolina. Bob is a seasoned technology leader who has held director, manager and contributor level positions in both software development and quality assurance organizations. He has nearly 25 years of experience working in a wide variety of domains at companies including Bayer, Bell & Howell Mail Processing, EMC, Lucent, Unisys and Thomson. Bob regularly speaks at international conferences and professional groups and teaches on topics related to software development, project management, software testing and team leadership. He is an XP Coach, a certified Scrum Master, and a member of the Agile Alliance. In 2005 he published the book Software Endgames - Eliminating Defects, Controlling Change and the Countdown to On-Time Delivery with Dorset House. The books' focus is how to successfully finish your software projects.
  
  
• Alan Koch is a speaker and writer on effective Project Management methods. He is a certified Project Management Professional and President of ASK Process, Inc., a training and consulting company that helps companies improve the return on their software investment by focusing on the quality of both their software products and the processes they use to develop them. Mr. Koch's 27 years in software development includes: 14 years designing, developing and maintaining software; 5+ years in Quality Assurance including establishing & managing a QA department; and 7 years in Software Process Improvement. Mr. Koch was with the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) for 13 years where he became familiar with the Capability Maturity Model (CMM), earned the authorization to teach the Personal Software Process (PSP) and worked with Watts Humphrey in pilot testing the Team Software Process (TSP). In addition, Mr. Koch:
  

  • Consulted with a variety of software organizations in their process improvement programs

  • Contributed to the accomplishment of several successful CMM-Based SPI efforts

  • Presented at numerous recent software quality and process conferences

  • Taught as an adjunct professor of Computer Science

  • Is an SEI-authorized PSP instructor and TSP Coach candidate

  • Is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP)

  
  
  
• Richard Perrin is an IT professional, programmer/analyst, system architect, Director of Development, Project and Program Manager, Richard Perrin has been a consultant in the finance/brokerage, healthcare, energy, telecommunications industries and Federal government for over 15 years. As a Director of Development for a telco upstart managing an international group of developers, his company garnered the IEC Infovision Award for most innovative AIN product in 1998.
  
  Working primarily for Fortune 100 and Global 10 companies as a Program/Project Manager, he has managed multi-million dollar, international deployments of software and hardware, consulted in the creation of PMOs, functioned as proposal manager, created IT practices, implemented business process quality practices and has served as a mentor and trainer, delivering formal instruction in CMM/CMMI, Information System Auditing, the Rational Unified Process, Software QA and Testing, Configuration Management, Requirements Creation, Project Risk Management and Project Management Tools & Techniques.
  
  Richard is certified as a PMP, in the CMM for the CBA_IPI process and as a Boston University Training Track trainer.
  
  
• Richard Vail is an independent contractual trainer. Richard is the founder and owner of Vail Training Associates. For the past fifteen years Vail Training Associates has specialized in Project Management, Finance & Accounting, and Supervision training for corporate America, government, and non-profit organizations. Prior to founding Vail Training Associates, Richard worked for 21 years in corporate America involved primarily with IT project management and training. Richard takes pride in being a high quality, low maintenance contract trainer. The following is a brief overview of Richard's qualifications and experience.
  
  • Over 1,400 contract training days delivered in the past 15 years 65% of training days have been public programs 35% have been "in house " programs for specific clients.
    
  • Provides continuing education programs for Certified Public Accountants
    
  • Provided programs in 47 of the United States and eight foreign countries
    
  • PMP® (Project Management Professional) Certification (2001)
    
  • Served as Vice President of Certification (2002 to 2005) for the Central Ohio Chapter of PMI®
    Responsibilities included:
    Responsibilities included:
    
    • Coordinating fellow instructors for three, 35 hour (ten week) instruction courses per year focused on PMP® Certification.
      
    • Teaching in those classes
      
    • Developing new content and revising exiting content for the course To include all weekly tests, text book & workbook selection, 40+ slide Power Point presentation for each week's class, and feedback for participants and instructors.
      
    • Tracking participants - progress toward PMP® Certification
      
    • Mentoring participants - to pass the PMP® test.
    
    
  • Ad hoc faculty member of Boston University, American University & Rockhurst College.
    
  • Partner work with The Computer Workshop
    
  • Multiple-day Project Management Programs include
  
  
  • Project Management Fundamentals (2 day program)
    
  • Identifying and Documenting Project Requirements (3 day program)
    
  • Principals of Project Management (4 day program)
    
  • Project Quality Management (3 day program)
    
  • PMP® Certification Examination Prep Course (both 5 day workshop and 10 week long classes.)
    
  • Managing Multiple Projects (3 day program)
    
  • Managing Projects via Project Management software (MS Project) (1, 2, & 5 day programs)
  
  
• PMI® (Project Management Institute) Member since 1995

This consultant core represents 80+ years of combined testing experience. All are recognized experts in the field and within their areas of concentration. They’ve virtually seen it all before and can effectively tailor solutions to your contexts and pace of change.

Differentiation

The NHL hockey great Wayne Gretzky was once asked what made him one of the greatest hockey players of all time. His response was: "Most players skate to where the puck is - I skate to where the puck is going to be." By the same token, the consultants/instructors at ASPE Technology will take you where your organization needs to be tomorrow in order to:

• Capitalize on the most robust Program and Project Management practices
  
• Successfully adjust organizational project tactics to a constantly changing business environment
  
• Make operational excellence a competitive advantage for your organization
  
• Help your Program and Project team successfully manage " at the edge of chaos ".