Part I of this series analyzed the opportunities (as well as the related strings attached) stemming from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), a.k.a. the Economic Stimulus Plan. The inspiration came from my attendance of the Deltek Insight 2009 user conference last May, where Deltek decided to fill a market need and interest by convening a separate “track” that was entitled “Stimulus & Beyond (Navigating the Brave New World).”

Part II of this series then analyzed why Deltek believes it can help government contractors and architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) firms, as well as other public sector organizations in their endeavors to obtain ARRA funds (i.e., the opportunity part) and duly report on them (the strings part for transparency and accountability). Part III then expanded on the construction industry’s current challenges, its outlook, and market trends.

Although Deltek inspired this series and while the company caters to AEC firms, its focus and software capabilities are in the design or planning stage of an infrastructure object. But the entire infrastructure lifecycle management (ILM) encompasses the following phases that denote yet another three-letter acronym (TLA) – “PBO”:

• Plan: Manage project pipelines, site development, entitlements, etc.
• Build: Track budgets, contracts, changes, schedules, scopes, and quality
• Operate: Direct asset management, work orders, and maintenance management

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Part I of this series analyzed the opportunity as well as the related attached strings stemming from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), a.k.a. the Economic Stimulus Plan. The inspiration came from my attendance of the Deltek Insight 2009 user conference last May, where Deltek decided to fill a market need and interest by convening a separate “track” that was entitled “Stimulus & Beyond (Navigating the Brave New World).”

Part II of this series then analyzed why Deltek believes it can help government contractors, architecture, engineering & construction (AEC) firms, and other public sector organizations in their endeavors to obtain ARRA funds (i.e., the opportunity part) and duly report on them (for transparency and accountability). But what about the construction industry’s current challenges, its outlook, and the market trends? 

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Part I of this blog series tried to analyze not only the opportunity but also the many related strings attached stemming from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), a.k.a. the Economic Stimulus Plan. The inspiration came from my attendance of the Deltek Insight 2009 user conference last May, where Deltek decided to fill a market need by convening a separate “track” that was entitled “Stimulus & Beyond (Navigating the Brave New World).” 

The conclusion of the keynote session was that while public sector organizations stand a fair opportunity to receive unprecedented amounts of economic stimulus funds, the catch is that they need to provide unprecedented transparency and accountability into how those funds are spent while measuring the achievements of those programs. Indeed, many of the “lucky” recipients of funds from the ARRA must meet legal requirements to publish timely and accurate accounting, allocation, and results data for every dollar received.

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At Deltek’s Insight 2009 user conference last May, the host software vendor did a notable thing. Namely, besides merely putting on an all-too-common multi-day conference chock full of product announcements, functional breakout sessions, and industry best-practice discussions, Deltek decided to fill a market need by convening a separate “track” that was dedicated to navigating the maze of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), a.k.a. the Economic Stimulus Plan.

On paper (and as debated and discussed on TV channels ad nausuem), the goal of the Act was to stimulate the US economy and create (or save) jobs through a mix of increased federal appropriations, expanded mandatory spending, and tax cuts. Major policy objectives included in ARRA are the following:

• mitigate the effects of the economic downturn on low-income and unemployed folks (via extending unemployment benefits, food stamps, etc.)
• prevent state budget cuts in social and educational services (i.e., keep teachers, firemen, and policemen at work)
• invest in transportation and water infrastructure
• increase emphasis on renewable energy, conservation, and efficiency
• implement the widespread use of electronic medical records (EMR) and health information technology (IT) 
• expand access to broadband services

But any stimulus money that a general contractor or manufacturer receives via US federal departments (e.g., Department of Transportation [DOT]) or agencies’ (e.g., Federal Highway Administration [FHWA]) contracts and competitive grants, as well as via US state/local government agencies’ contracts and competitive grants, comes with many strings attached, especially in terms of stringent reporting requirements. In other words, the money and funds that are envisioned to go towards infrastructure, computerizing Americans’ health records, renewable energy, the largest home and commercial building weatherization program in history, the education reform and college affordability and access, etc., are subject to an unprecedented focus on oversight, accountability, and transparency. 

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How you select new enterprise resource planning (ERP) software will greatly affect your company’s future and should not be taken lightly. Therefore, in order to avoid unpleasant surprises or failure, you should start thinking about change management at the same moment that you start considering replacing your old or buying new ERP software. Do not wait until there’s no turning back. Remember: prevention is better than a cure.

This is the first of a series of four blog posts in which I intend to describe how change management can affect a company’s ERP software selection project.

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