Case Studies

Visa USA, Inc.

Business Challenge:
The Visa Implementations group, with offices and employees in several states, needed a system to manage projects, including resources, workflow, documentation, and collaborative efforts, that accommodated the company’s business model and requirements, and that integrated with existing processes and infrastructure. None of the previously evaluated software packages provided a complete solution for a company with multiple offices needing collaboration.

Background:
A system was in place that was used as a data repository by the different departments within Visa that needed to collaborate on Implementation projects. Each department had its own method of storing and retrieving information gathered during projects, and each department had its own processes and workflow models. The ability to find and share information among departments, and collaborate as projects progressed through stages of completion, was hindered by the fragmented nature of the current system.

Turpin Solution:
Turpin selected a combination of Microsoft’s SharePoint technology, Microsoft’s SQL Server database and a custom designed application to deliver a resource/project management system. The system is used daily by Implementation managers, directors and VPs throughout the company for input of time spent on projects, tracking milestone project dates, forecasting resource availability, assigning resources, tracking resource and project performance, and reporting of critical data to senior and executive VP’s. The development effort involved evaluating data within the existing system and building a database that could be accessed by multiple existing systems. This new resource/project management system allowed the sun setting of several legacy systems.

ROI Statement:
Turpin delivered a system that allowed implementation managers to complete project related tasks much more efficiently. Processes and workflows were streamlined - the ability to collaborate on project information in real time eliminated redundancy and wasted effort, and created a platform where multiple departments could work in parallel on the same project. Project timelines and resource availability could now be accurately forecasted, and that information was readily available within a robust reporting system.
SharePoint provided a dashboard to access applications, documentation and other information stored within the SQL Server database, and also provided a modular platform that not only allowed, but encouraged future scaling of the system, including the incorporation of a backup and recovery scheme.