Trinity’s Management Plan
Trinity’s Program Management Office (PMO) allows for control of each process by a process owner who is motivated to ensure that Trinity performs industry best practices within that process area. The PMO also enables the development of process descriptions and artifacts for each functional group and distribution across all projects. We have a well-defined and institutionalized process for application maintenance management, which allows effective capture, resolution, deployment, and reporting. This long-term commitment is based on the industry proven practices and recommendations of CMMI, Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK), and ISO. We use the rigor of PMBOK in Planning & Initiation, Management and Control, Human Resources Management, QA, Risk, and Procurement to enhance the specific goals of CMMI processes. We employ Rational Tools to enable application maintenance framework and enhance our software engineering best practices.
Our Management Approach:
• Is metrics driven and performance-based
• Utilizes Earned Value Management to track performance
• Is supported by trained and PMP certified Managers
• Is based on defined, institutionalized processes
• Leverages common skill sets through matrixed staffing – the right skills at the right time for the right duration
Technology leadership is a key element of our management philosophy. Our technical philosophy has the following primary components:
• Incorporate new technologies to stay ahead
• Combine the best of the product and custom worlds. By partnering with technology leaders, we provide customers with a best-of-breed solution
• Leverage software prototyping to meet customer needs.
Resource Management Approach
Trinity’s resource management policy, elaborated in the sections below, assures the client that we shall be able to provide personnel possessing the appropriate qualifications, skill sets, and experience to succeed. Trinity’s approach to staffing, workload execution, and manpower reshaping ensures we deliver the right service, at the right time, with the right resources. Our approach addresses the need for meeting transitional and current “steady state” operations, with a focus on consistent customer service as Trinity assumes responsibility for operations. The following sections detail Trinity’s approach to staffing, our policies relating to staff acquisition, retention, professional development, and performance mitigation.
Recruitment Process
Trinity’s well-defined recruitment process aims to attract the best talent available at competitive rates so that we are able to provide highly qualified personnel on time, in budget - for our clients. Through experience, Trinity has in place a detailed and proven process to select and manage employees / consultants and ensure the selection of the best resources with proven experience and a history of customer satisfaction.
Resource Development and Retention Policy
Training and Professional Development of Resources
- Trinity offers a strong value proposition to our customers based on the synergies and power accrued by the optimal combination of competent People, proven Processes, and sound Technology. Our employees are our greatest asset and that makes it our primary objective to ensure that all employees maintain current skills and prepare for the ever evolving and dynamic technology environment. We emphasize on continuing education based on the defined practices and its growth; acquisition of new skills is essential for our employee and organizational growth.
Trinity has several programs to provide a training plan to ensure the highest level of technical competency for our employees.
- Technology Certifications: Trinity practices are based around the leading technologies in the Industry. We emphasize on each practice member/ employee to obtain training and certifications on the relevant technology.
- Technical Skill Enhancement:Trinity is committed to providing its employees with professional training opportunities and access to the latest developments in technology. Every employee is provided with a skill enhancement guideline based on the employee’s stream of experience. The guide identifies:
• Conferences to attend
• On-line course to undertake
• Certification courses to undertake
• Time-Table for offered In-house trainings
• Customized plan based on training required for a client project
- Management Training: Trinity provides extensive training to its management from mid-level to Sr. executive management. We require the project managers to undergo corporate sponsored PMI training and certification. The internal Project Management training includes training on scheduling, estimating, creating and managing the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and automated tools. Senior management is required to maintain certifications and participate in various soft skill and management training programs.
- Quality Management: All employees are required to attend quality management training offered as an In-house training program. This is a very successful training program as it enhances the employee’s quality skill and helps the organization to meet/exceed its customer’s needs.
- Soft Skills Training: In light of the changing workplace, Trinity offers several soft skills training programs:
• Assertive Communications
• Communicating Effectively with your Supervisors
• Conflict resolution
• Ethics in Workplace
• Leadership
• Making Diversity Work for All of Us • Organizing your Work
• Personality Styles
• Program Management
• Team Building
• Time Management
• Your Attitude, Your Life, Your Career
- Knowledge Exchange: Trinity has implemented a knowledge management portal, which enables the employee to share their knowledge across their projects. It enables sharing of technical data & information and pitfalls and successful objects among all employees. We conduct Knowledge Exchange sessions either as an in-house training or via our portal. This has been very successful & been appreciated by our customers as it helped reduce project delivery timelines.
- Performance Evaluation Strategy: Employees form the backbone of an organization. At Trinity, we align employee performance with the project’s performance strategies based on interaction of knowledge, skills, and competencies. We hold monthly reviews to check the employee performance and our managers are tasked specifically with encouraging discussion up and down the chain of command concerning issues, complaints, and methods to improve the efficiency/effectiveness of work operations. Our employee performance reviews use a structured system with four phases:
• Performance planning
• Feedback and coaching
• Assessment and review
• Rewards and recognition
Our performance review program fosters a commitment from employees by linking performance to rewards and to the success of the organization. This process also encourages two-way communication and feedback for employees and managers to strengthen or improve work performance, as well as monthly open discussions on career development.
- Annual Performance Review: Annual performance is intended to be a source of communication between employees and their supervisors. They are used to evaluate an employee’s performance, define goals for the upcoming year, commend strengths, point out opportunities for improvement, and alert the supervisors to the needs of employees. Project Managers are free to conduct formal performance reviews more often than once a year, if they feel it is helpful to do so. In addition to our formal reviews, we encourage employees and supervisors to discuss job performance on a regular basis. Employees demonstrating the skills commensurate with higher-level job categories are primary candidates for vacant or new higher-level positions. Our employees know that we offer unlimited opportunity for career growth through promotion from within. The preferred method of filling vacancies is to promote or re-assign a qualified and experienced in-place staff member. Recognition of professional achievement by internal promotion is a strong motivator and sends a powerful message to the entire staff. This minimizes performance risks for the client, as the person promoted is a proven performer. In the yearly performance reviews, we give higher weightage to individuals who have completed their professional certifications and educational training.
Trinity existing timesheet management system provides for a timekeeping system that:
• Identifies employees’ effort against the assigned projects
• Has the provision for recording the work on an hourly basis, project wise
• Analyzes timesheets project wise on a monthly basis and generates timesheet analysis reports as well as productivity reports
Retention of Personnel & Approach to Personnel Changes
Trinity’s staffing policy adheres to methods that have proven most successful in attracting and maintaining a qualified and stable workforce. These policies address various compensation components as shown in the figure below. One important element that ensures a stable and qualified workforce is technical and professional training. Our Team training programs afford our staff the opportunity to enhance skills and obtain multiple professional certifications.
These staff development programs, when combined with a level of pay and benefits offered by Trinity, have contributed to a stable workforce with an employee turnover rate significantly less than the industry average. We will apply these proven methods to the proposed workforce supporting this task thereby reducing any risk of staff turnover.
Trinity’s extensive past experience with these, and similar projects, has solidified the key to effective performance, which is a fully qualified, stable workforce. The method of recruiting and retaining such a workforce is a combination of competitive salaries, benefits, and individual recognition for the contribution to mission success. Our approach to personnel management has resulted in significantly lower voluntary turnover rates than the industry average.
Trinity’s proven recruiting and new hire processes will focus on retaining appropriate incumbent personnel while identifying qualified candidates as new hires to augment staffing needs as required. Our approach to workload surges or short notice staffing requirements leverages our flexible framework for anticipating workload and a robust strategy for an effective, timely response.
Our Project Manager will manage a resume repository of qualified personnel with the appropriate experience, certifications, training, and security clearance necessary to meet task order requirements. If there is a surge or replacement requirement, Trinity will ensure that domain knowledge is transferred without loss to continuity of operations.
The following is a list of the other primary methods employed to retain staff members followed by a brief description of each of these items. Management focuses on these areas to promote overall staff retention:
• Providing a supportive management
• Individual career development
• Competitive salaries
• Competitive benefits package & incentives
• State-of-the-art work environment
- Providing a Supportive Management: Industry studies indicate that the direct supervisor is the most important factor in an employee’s decision to remain at or leave an organization. Trinity management supports its employees by providing timely feedback, recognition, individual career planning, and ensuring that employees have the tools they need to do their jobs. Communication is a key factor to employee retention. Feedback is provided consistently through verbal and written communications, and through formal and informal performance reviews. Recognition is provided through several mechanisms, including:
• Verbal and written commendations “on the spot”
• Verbal and written commendations at meetings
• Awards and bonuses
Management provides consistent feedback in order to open lines of communication for both positive and negative feedback to and from the employee. Employees receive “on the spot” awards for outstanding performance as it occurs. Employees are recognized for their contributions at meetings and company-wide gatherings. We will hold regularly scheduled staff meetings, luncheons and grass roots level meetings to communicate project events, status of work schedules, and other relevant information. The TO Program Manager, Mr. Amit Kumar Dubey holds encouraging discussions with our consultants concerning work place issues and complaints, and provides methods to motivate and improve the efficiency/effectiveness of work operations. Individual and group awards are presented to recognize both individuals and teams for sustained excellence. Another key ingredient to retention is the individual career plan and their growth in the organization. - Individual Career Development: Trinity managers work with each employee to develop individual career plans. The plans contain three types of goals and objectives: 1) achievements on behalf of the customer, 2) achievements specific to Trinity, and 3) training programs to help meet the targets identified in the first two areas. The goals and objectives identified in the career plan provide the basis for the employee’s annual performance review. The plan communicates what the employee is expected to accomplish and is developed by the employee with input from the direct supervisor. This participatory management style provides the employee the opportunity to set the direction of his/her career and the criteria by which he/she will be judged. The result most often is that the employee sets higher goals than the supervisor would have set. The employee also works harder to achieve goals and objectives than he/she would have had the goals and objectives been set solely by the supervisor.
- Competitive Salaries: Trinity’s staff both employees and teaming partners, have a strong commitment to excellence and are our most valuable assets. Trinity has established corporate guidelines for fair and equitable salary based on skills, years of experience, and education and training. The salary ranges for our respective labor categories are based upon industry standard salary surveys appropriate to the areas in which we do business.
- Competitive Benefits Package: While compensation has been found to be one of the lesser reasons employees use to determine whether to stay with an organization or move on, we at Trinity provide competitive salaries with an outstanding benefits package. The benefits package includes the educational and training programs described earlier, a 401(k) program, cafeteria-style family health care options with multiple health care options to choose from, and a vacation program that begins with two weeks and ramps up to five weeks over the next ten years.
- State-of-the-Art Work Environment: Key to Trinity’s ability to retain personnel is the fact that we offer the opportunity to work on the latest software development technology such as .NET, Java, J2EE, Oracle 11i/11g, SQL Server, TFS ALM, JQuery, other Microsoft products and implementing cutting edge solutions in terms of Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) using Extensible Markup Language (XML), Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), Web API, Model View Controller (MVC) and others. Trinity offers its employees opportunities in the software engineering, system engineering, and data engineering fields; enabling each employee to realize his/her career path.
Performance Monitoring and Control
Trinity’s Performance Management concept integrates strategic planning, performance planning, budgeting, and other management activities into an aligned and coherent process. It enables planning of the project in a methodical and predictable manner to improve business results and set task execution expectations for the whole team.
Performance Measurements are established at the Task Order (TO) level to define indicators, collection mechanisms, outcome/output distinctions and access to best practices benchmarks. TO metrics appropriate for the type of service, are rolled up to the contract level to produce multiple perspectives on contract performance. This will also assist in responding to performance-related reporting requirements, mandates and directives.
This process will help create and maintain a formal Performance Assessment process for reviewing metrics against defined and measurable targets. Performance Assessment will drive actions to continually improve the processes and performance. It will also provide tangible and quantifiable data against which staff performance will be appraised, recognized and enhanced.
Trinity has performed various contracts and has deployed a range of appropriate and cost-effective tools and techniques to meet the performance objectives of our clients.
Work Progress Monitoring and Reporting
Trinity monitors all tasks using our CMMI-compliant processes, tools, and techniques as identified in the figure above. We determine our performance levels, identify areas for improvement, and implement management controls (corrective actions) to ensure effective process improvement. Formal and informal reviews are conducted to control project performance, resolve problems, discuss alternative solutions, and resource expenditures. Cost or performance measures outside of planned values are reported to Trinity management and the County’s Contracting Officer through Red Flag Reports, requiring immediate corrective action to bring incurred costs and/or performance in line with plans. Corporate and project managers receive a monthly report on their projects and contracts.