Allocating resources for launch

The resources required for your launch should be part of your roll-out plan, but we would be remiss if we didn't talk specifically about the resources you'll need to think about.

Make sure you carefully read the Launch Checklist. Even if you give it a quick skim, you'll see that there are lots of boxes to check.

IT Support

Your IT Support will need to play a role in your launch. They need to make sure that the software is installed and configured and ready to go for your launch. Usually, they do the server set-up well in advance (i.e. a month before your launch), so this piece is not necessarily part of your crunch time.

However, it's very important to work closely with your IT Support regarding the launch itself. If you're planning for 100 new users to just start using the software all at the same time, they should be prepared for that and for the possibility that something might go wrong. At a minimum, your IT Support should be on standby on your launch day itself.

Note that you may also need your IT Support to be involved in the creation and support of a training environment that you'll be using prior to launch.

Configuration

Usually configuration is done by just one person, to reduce confusion on who is doing which parts, and usually that person is your Subject Matter Expert, but this isn't always the case. The job could be divided up, or done by IT Support, or by your partner agencies' super users.

Regardless of who is doing it, configuration - or at least, the vast majority of it - needs to be completed prior to launch. Depending on how adept the users are who will be doing the configuration, and how complex your system is, this could take several full days. In most cases, this should be completed at least a week prior to your launch date (this is due in part to the fact that it could take longer than you planned). You'll need to make sure you're allocating resources to get this configuration piece done.

Trainers

A lot of users are going to need training (covered Term 4: Week 2), so you're going to need to have at least one person delivering the training. A lot of resources are going to need to go into training all of your staff before your launch, although depending on the training mode you opt for (more on that later), this might be in the days leading up to the launch or can be done in advance.

User Accounts

A component of configuration that we like to highlight separately is setting up and activating user accounts. HIFIS isn't super efficient when it comes to setting up user accounts. You'll either want to set them all up in advance, then spend some time on launch day activating them, or you'll want to set them all up on launch day. In any case, you need to allocate resources to make sure that user accounts are ready when staff need them.