Scenarios

Introduction

Different kinds of projects are carried out within a core organization. Projects can vary significantly in terms of content and complexity.

HERMES provides various scenarios to satisfy the diversity of projects. A scenario is oriented towards solution development in projects with a specific characteristic, such as the development or adaptation of an IT solution.

As the figure below shows, a scenario maps the complete solution development of a project and supports the project manager in execution planning. The findings of the study are decisive for the selection of the appropriate standard scenario. The initiation and closure phases are not part of a scenario.

A standard scenario contains those method components that are usually of importance for projects with the respective characteristics. This makes HERMES quick and easy to use.

The project manager can adapt standard scenarios to the needs of the core organization and the project at hand, and create further user-defined scenarios.

Overview of scenarios

Structure of scenarios

Scenarios are based on modules with thematically related tasks and outcomes. The figure below shows how a scenario can be formed with the help of modules B and N and part of module A.

Scenarios are geared towards the development of solutions with a specific characteristic; accordingly, they use those modules that are relevant and suitable for solution development. A module can be used in several scenarios or - because a module can be more comprehensive than a scenario - used only partially in a scenario. Because the modules are composed of the corresponding tasks and outcomes, there is a coordinated solution development template for each scenario, including the necessary document templates.

A scenario describes only the solution development; the initiation and closure phases are outside the scenario.

Standard scenarios

HERMES offers five standard scenarios for projects with different characteristics:

• Service/product development
• Service/product adaptation
• IT development
• IT adaptation
• Organizational adjustment

The following table shows the modules used for each scenario according to context.

The range of standard scenarios is not exhaustive. The demand for new scenarios is reviewed periodically, and additional standard scenarios are made available as needed.

User-defined scenarios

Adjustment of scenarios

Under user-defined scenarios, HERMES online offers two functions to create your own scenarios based on the standard scenarios:

• Sizing
• Tailoring

Sizing

To ensure the completeness of the information and the method itself, the full scope of HERMES project management is designed for large projects with a high level of complexity.

Since many core organizations predominantly manage medium and small projects, the application of the method should be adapted to the size of the project using the sizing function. The use of the sizing function reduces the complexity of the procedure and the scope of the documentation to an absolute minimum while complying with HERMES governance.

The sizing function determines the actual required project size from several parameters that can be entered by the user. Based on this, the sizing function provides the project manager with a scenario tailored to the size of the project with an execution structure plan and the necessary templates.

This adaptation supported by the online tool guarantees method continuity and coherence (HERMES governance) and allows all projects to be processed in a lean manner.

The resulting user-defined scenario can then be optionally adjusted to the respective project requirements using the tailoring function.

Tailoring

Using tailoring, standard scenarios or user-defined scenarios already created through sizing are adapted to the needs of the project and further customized. This can also be done with the help of HERMES online.

There are four basic options that can be used in combination:

1. Remove modules from an existing scenario:
   Unnecessary modules are removed.
   Example:
   In a project without migration, remove the IT migration module from the IT development scenario.
2. Remove tasks and outcomes:
   The content of a module can be reduced by outcomes and associated tasks, with the exception of the minimum required documents.
3. Integrate an additional subject-specific module into the existing scenario:
   A separate module with subject-specific content - with existing or with new customized tasks and outcomes - is created and integrated into a scenario.
4. Add tasks and outcomes:
   The content of a module can be extended. New customized tasks and outcomes can be created.

With the help of these options, additional, user-defined, project- or organization-specific scenarios can be easily modeled. The figure below shows how several projects of a core organization with different scenarios can be handled simultaneously side by side.

User-defined scenarios can be shared with other HERMES users or made available to all users. Further information can be found on HERMES online.

Explanation regarding the scenario description

For each scenario, a scenario description is provided that is always structured in the same way:

• Applicability
  describes concrete project criteria for which the scenario is suitable.
• Modules
  enumerate and graphically represent all modules of the scenario along the solution development; the project foundations module and parts of other modules that are used outside solution development and accordingly do not appear in any scenario are shown shaded white.

Scenario directory

Service/product scenarios

• Service/product development
• Service/product adaptation

Information technology scenarios

• IT development
• IT adaptation

Organization scenarios

• Organizational adjustment