Steaming Kettle Consulting

Title: Customer Requirements -- Why Do We Get It Wrong?

Client: Product Development and Management Association, Oregon Chapter

Date: January 26, 2012, 5:30-8:00 P.M.

Contributors: Christopher Dennis, Albrecht Enders, & Leo Frishberg

While the need to understand the customer’s requirements is widely acknowledged, too many development efforts suffer from problems with requirements. Many product failures can be attributed to not having a full understanding of what creates value for the customer.

Steaming Kettle contributed to a panel of requirements experts, focusing its commentary on the dynamics of product development projects and how requirements are used (or misused or ignored) after they've been gathered. Participants were encouraged to:

• Accurately assess the strengths and weaknesses of their product development teams
• Recognize the warning signs of narcissism during product development projects
• Stay engaged after requirements gathering, when tradeoffs can endanger critical outcomes
• Keep the customer's needs fresh in the development team's vision

Title: Facilitation and Training for HRIS Medical Assistant Superusers

Client: Tuality Healthcare

Date: September 23, 2011; October 28, 2011; November 18, 2011; December 16, 2011, 7:00 A.M. - 8:00 A.M.

Facilitator: Christopher Dennis

To optimize its Cerner HRIS system implementation and to improve its Federally-monitored meaningful use metrics, Tuality constituted a group of its front-line medical assistants (MAs) to identify software and process improvement opportunities. The MA superusers also provided a conduit for training and managing change during implementation.

Steaming Kettle facilitated a group of medical assistants, trainers, and technical staff. In a series of before-the-workday meetings, Tuality Healthcare was able to:

• Surface and prioritize dozens of HRIS improvement opportunities
• Significantly improve its performance in meaningful use metrics closely associated with MAs
• Identify processes improvements and standardizations to increase efficiency
• Preview system enhancements prior to rollout
• Improve the facilitation skills of its staff
• Give employees a voice in the evolution of their workplace

Title: Facilitation for Efficiency Opportunities and Process Requirements

Client: Focus the Nation

Date: December 13, 2011, 8:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M.

Facilitator: Christopher Dennis

To implement the next phase of its integrated data model and custom web application, Focus the Nation needed to identify efficiency opportunities and envision a better way of doing business.

Steaming Kettle facilitated a group of board members, staff, and technological service providers. In a day, Focus the Nation was able to:

• Integrate new employees into the an ongoing discovery and visioning process
• Critique its Phase 1 web application
• Clarify and detail strategic and operational business processes
• Differentiate high-value process improvement targets from low-value targets
• Specify functions needed to eliminate a legacy business system
• Define a new customer-focused business process expected to create greater satisfaction for customers and greater efficiency for internal stakeholders

Title: Practical Project Management For Leaders

Event: Mercy Corps, Entrepreneurial Leadership Training

Date: October 16-19, 2011, 8:30 A.M. - 4:30 P.M. (Kathmandu, Nepal)

Speaker: Christopher Dennis

Need a group of international leadership candidates on the same page about project management? Want the relief and development efforts to turn out better? Need methods to get the work done more effectively?

This seminar helps relief and development leaders kick off a new project while learning valuable project management skills.

As project managers we learn a proactive approach, trying to prevent trouble in favor of reacting to it.

Yet the unexpected plays a significant role in disaster relief and development projects, so we will also learn techniques for recovering from the inevitable bumps in the road.