Information systems master plan: current-state assessment, target architecture and projects

Situations calling for an information systems master plan

• A public institution launches its IT projects case by case, without a multi-year trajectory.
• A local authority has no up-to-date application map.
• A mid-sized company observes a gap between its applications and the needs of its business units.
• A private group seeks to choose between several target architecture scenarios.
• A state-owned company seeks to give its information systems formalised governance.

Process

1. Purchase and onboarding. The client first acquires the intake form CV-15; public bodies proceed through public procurement. ASKonsult then opens the secure exchange space.
2. Synchronous scoping. The first session, a 120-minute videoconference, defines the ambition and scope. It also sets the governance of the master plan project.
3. Asynchronous collection. The body completes the form and provides its inventories and contracts. Written questions flow in both directions, alongside targeted interviews with the business units.
4. Analysis and correction. The in-house engineering team draws up the current-state assessment, identifies business needs, and builds the target scenarios and the project portfolio. A half-day business-unit workshop, followed by a 90-minute session devoted to the choice of scenario, then punctuates this phase.
5. Synchronous delivery. The fourth session, lasting 120 minutes, is held before the steering committee. ASKonsult delivers the validated master plan there.

Deliverable

The information systems master plan opens with a current-state assessment and an application map. It then sets out business needs and the selected target architecture. The project portfolio, costed and phased over 3 to 5 years, forms its operational component. Finally, the document defines information systems governance. ASKonsult delivers it before the steering committee, at the end of a 10- to 16-week process.

Prerequisites

The package requires completion of the intake form CV-15. The body also provides its application and hardware inventories, as well as its IT budgets. Finally, the body designates an internal project manager, who acts as the firm’s counterpart throughout the process.

Frequently asked questions

How is the quote for the package established?

A qualification exchange precedes the subscription. It assesses, in particular, the number of business units, up to six, and the number of applications. The special terms then set the scope, timetable, number of sessions, expected documents and deliverable. ASKonsult then creates the order on the basis of the quote. For public bodies, the order takes the form provided for by their regulations: purchase order, public contract or agreement.

What happens beyond six business units?

The package covers bodies with up to six business units. Beyond that, the information systems master plan becomes an assignment on quotation, outside the scope of the package. The qualification exchange makes it possible to identify this situation before any subscription. The scope, timetable and number of sessions are then defined specifically.

How do the business units take part?

The business units first take part in targeted interviews during the collection phase. They then attend the half-day business-unit workshop during the analysis. These exchanges feed into the identification of business needs and the target scenarios. The 90-minute session then makes it possible to choose the scenario. Finally, the steering committee receives the validated master plan.

Does the package include specifications or the selection of a software vendor?

No. The package ends with the master plan and the project portfolio. Detailed specifications fall outside the service. Likewise, vendor selection and development are not part of it. An IT security audit falls under a separate approach. The body thus remains the sole decision-maker on the projects it undertakes.

Do the inventories and contracts provided remain confidential?

ASKonsult treats the information and documents provided as confidential, including inventories, contracts and IT budgets. They circulate only through the secure exchange space. Their use is also limited to the purposes of the package. This obligation survives the end of the relationship. Reciprocally, the body undertakes the same discretion regarding non-public tools and deliverables.

What follows the master plan?

The information systems governance defined in the deliverable frames the steering of the project portfolio. In addition, the Institutions and Territories subscription (A-04) is intended for local authorities and public institutions. It offers regular support for handling day-to-day questions and checking directions. The body thus avoids commissioning a separate service for each topic.

Out of scope

The package excludes detailed specifications, vendor selection and development. An IT security audit also falls outside the service. In addition, bodies with more than six business units fall under an assignment on quotation. Travel expenses outside Marrakech are not included in the package either. The information systems master plan thus concerns planning and governance.