Achieving Operational Readiness for a Large-Scale Technology Transformation

Engagement Summary

In late 2019, Monticello Consulting Group partnered with the collateral unit at a leading global bank on the operational readiness portion of their OTC bilateral client migration project. The engagement aimed to address the key issues around achieving operational readiness for a global technology transformation. Monticello had multiple responsibilities on this project including: 1) provide program and project management on multiple workstreams, including creation and coordination of end-to-end testing 2) rewrite global procedures, and 3) develop and implement a new cross-region training platform.  Through sound planning, testing, and training, Monticello ensured that users across the globe were operationally ready for the transition to their new global platform.

Case Study Detail

PROJECT BACKGROUND

In early 2019, a leading bank planned to transform the technology used by their global OTC Collateral Operations unit. The plan was to migrate all core collateral functionalities that supported the OTC client population from the legacy platform onto a new proprietary system. The existing proprietary platform had become outdated and needed replacement by a solution capable of supporting growth and the ever-changing regulatory environment.

To prepare a global team across multiple regions and time zones, the client needed to set up an end-to-end testing plan that would ensure all scenarios are covered, regardless of geography. To stay compliant with internal Operational Risk and Control standards, all procedures needed to be updated to reflect the detailed workflows in the target state. Making sure that the procedures are applicable on a global level, without unique regional procedures, was a priority. To distribute the knowledge of the new system, a training program needed to be developed and rolled out globally to more than one hundred users.

ENGAGEMENT OBJECTIVES

E2E Testing:

The end-to-end testing plan validated scenarios from margin call calculation though issuance, settlement, and next day.

1. All relevant scenarios were documented, accounting for exception handling, and test scripts written

2. Testing included regression testing of legacy platform

3. Day over day testing to validate call and pledge status and that balances are accurate from EOD to SOD

Procedures Documentation:

Created procedures documentation for hundreds of new processes being completed out of the target system.

1. Reduced volume of OTC Collateral procedures and eliminated regional procedures

2. Followed firmwide procedures guidelines implemented by internal Operational Risk and Control team

3. Centralized documentation and made available to all users to be used as a resource and training supplement

Training Platform & Plan:

Developed new training process to ensure a smooth transition from legacy workflow applications to the target workflow.

1. Goal - to get users comfortable with the new system before go-live dates and to minimize the learning curve

2. Video software simulations were created to walk a user through various parts of the margin call workflow

3. Plan included live training sessions, self-guided sessions, as well as an attestation of competency

BUSINESS VALUE

Monticello Consulting Group’s Change Management team partnered with the client’s operations experts and development resources to build a well thought out plan to ensure operational readiness for an exceptionally large technology transformation. Monticello’s Change Management expertise helped all stakeholders understand and implement the complex business requirements that encompassed the entire OTC margin workflow including call issuance, pledge booking, approvals, settlements, and internal and client reporting. End-to-end testing ensured that all workflow issues were identified prior to go-live. By creating updated global procedures and a comprehensive training plan, the users across the globe were ready for the change to a new target workflow and Monticello’s client achieved operational readiness for the transition to their new global platform.

SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE (Level of Difficulty)

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Enabling Transformation & Change: Technology Change Standards and Communications

Engagement Summary

Monticello Consulting Group was engaged by a Fortune 500 banking institution to streamline the adoption of technology change standards, improve internal communications, and facilitate external reporting. Financial market participants must adhere to high quality standards when executing critical technology programs. Regulatory agencies are not only concerned with operational risk in the adoption of new technologies, but also want to ensure that critical legacy applications are changed following a strict and controlled process.

The Monticello team was tasked with the development of best-practice change standards. The standards provide change program teams with guidelines in three fundamental pillars: Adoption, Reporting and Training, as illustrated in Exhibit 1. Monticello started this engagement by establishing adoption metrics that drive high quality deliverable standards. As a next step, our team established a robust reporting framework that supported the monitoring and communication of program conditions and status. Many of the reports were automated to improve overall program efficiency. Lastly, the team assembled a knowledge base of reusable job aids and reference documentation to ensure that change teams adhere to consistent implementation standards.

Exhibit 1

Case Study Detail

PROJECT BACKGROUND

The OCC (Office of the Comptroller of the Currency) ensures banks regulated in the United States operate in a safe and sound manner. Our client, subject to a Matters Requiring Attention (MRA) notice from the OCC regarding technology processes and delivery controls, established enhanced technology change policies and standards. Monticello’s Change Management and Financial Services Advisory Team was brought in to support multiple technology teams within fixed income sales and trading. Our clients include technology leaders and executives who are working very closely with their front office business partners. Our mandate was to empower and upskill their program managers and technology team leaders to arm them with the capabilities to efficiently plan and execute while adhering to critical standards.

ENGAGEMENT OBJECTIVES

Change Standards Adoption:

• Monticello developed a change standards tracker containing over 1,500 data points spanning 10 delivery programs, and 50 sub-projects representing over $55M in technology investments. Automated tool helped eliminate delivery delays and compliance breaches.

• Internal quality assurance reviews and audits were conducted regularly.  Weekly Readiness Reports served as an early indicator of success or failure by grading over 80 controls per program.

Communications & Reporting:

• Monticello developed technology performance reports and standardized the output with intuitive metrics that allowed traders to quickly evaluate overnight processes and completion status.

• Monticello automated management reporting by using code to transform raw data into summary decks for daily and weekly executive reviews. Additional reports aimed at improving planning accuracy were semi-automated into emails directed towards technology leaders on a weekly basis to accelerate planning decision making.

• Using Tableau™ software, Monticello’s Data Visualization Team developed and released strategic and actionable reports to technology leaders and executives pertaining to code releases success rates.

Training & Skill Building:

• Paramount to our services is Monticello’s deep understanding of change standards and our ability to transfer that knowledge to program and project managers in a consumable way. We created job aids through SharePoint™, Wikis, artifacts such as templates and samples, and led weekly touchpoints to provide timely and clear guidance.

• Additionally, Monticello’s team helped prepare the organization for external audits.

BUSINESS VALUE

Monticello Consulting Group is a leader in change management and digital transformation. Our team of highly skilled consultants has extensive experience introducing change to organizations through the use of technology. By leveraging our proven methodologies, we successfully supported the adoption of enterprise technology change standards that ensure compliance, lowered operational risk, and achieved 98% on-time deliveries.

SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE (Level of Difficulty)

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The Future of Project Management: Automated Reporting

Engagement Summary

A common problem many program and project managers (PMs) face today is the constant need to update and maintain status reports for executive leadership.  Although these reports are critical, they should not consume so much of a PM’s time that it negatively impacts the timeline of the underlying program itself.  By streamlining and automating the reporting process, PMs will then be able to focus on delivery while still focusing on reporting quality and accuracy. Additionally, senior executives would have access to a centralized location where status reports are available on demand.

Monticello Consulting Group partnered with a Fortune 500 bank to lead the implementation of an in-house project management system. This complex system spanned across multiple teams with the intent of centralizing and standardizing program and project management work in a single location. The executive level status reports could then be automatically generated in real time. The adoption of this application greatly reduced the amount of time a PM would typically spend making manual updates to various reports on an on-going basis.

The Monticello team was responsible for constructing the overall implementation project plan, delivering the necessary training material, conducting live training sessions, and governing user adoption. Additionally, Monticello supported senior leadership teams and program sponsors by providing continuous project updates including any key risks or issues discussed in weekly steering committees.

Case Study Detail

Senior executives found it increasingly difficult to assess program health on a real-time consistent basis. They found themselves in a multitude of meetings with a lot of wasted time spent reviewing status reports. These status reports were in different formats and produced manually by program managers. To lessen the burden on PMs and streamline the process for senior executives, the concept of a centralized tool with automated reporting capabilities was proposed. With this concept, PMs would no longer track their progress offline, but rather, all of their reporting would be managed on a centralized online tool. The use of this tool was easily accessible by senior executives and had the ability to produce real time status reports at the click of a button. This would significantly cut back the amount of time spent producing reports as well as provide senior executives with consistent real-time reporting.

MOBILIZE TEAMS FOR SUCCESSFUL GO-LIVE

Program Management (PM):

Created and managed the overall implementation plan, scope, deliverables, and timeline. Coordinated with key stakeholders and users across business and technology to conduct live user training sessions. Addressed and escalated any relevant risks or issues while attaining necessary sign offs required for completion.

Change Management (CM):

Led the user adoption effort by conducting multiple live training sessions across the organization.  Actively collected and documented user feedback by utilizing online surveys in order to better communicate future changes for all relevant teams

Communications:

Developed a strategic communications plan to provide critical information to stakeholders.  Determined and implemented how, when, and how often communications would be received.

Training:

Designed the training curriculum as well as materials required for all users. Conducted live training sessions supplemented with on-demand recorded sessions to ensure users developed the knowledge and skills needed to use the tool.

BUSINESS VALUE

Monticello Consulting Group is a strategic partner in digital transformation and change management. Our team of highly qualified consultants has extensive experience introducing change to organizations through the use of technology. By using our proven approach to project and change management, we successfully delivered a customized solution resulting in reduced manual efforts, greater efficiencies, and cost reduction across functional areas of the client.

SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE (Level of Difficulty)

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