INTRo Overview and Transition Strategy
What is the IDEAL-Based New Technology Rollout
(INTRo)?
Who Will Benefit?
How can you get involved?
General Users
Community of Practice Members
What is a community of practice?
Is this a new approach for the SEI?
How will this work?
What is the SEI's role?
Contact Us
What is the IDEALSM-Based New Technology Rollout (INTRo)?
INTRo is a structured approach for adopting and deploying new tools and technology. INTRo helps IT professionals and project managers make connections between business problems, technology solutions and their implementation. The INTRo process has been designed to meet the needs of large efforts including multi-site, cross-organizational, enterprise-wide rollouts.
Unlike most approaches that recognize change in only one dimension, INTRo manages change in multiple dimensions: technology, people, processes, and organizational culture. As a result the change effort goes smoothly and efficiently.
Using INTRo, an organization can introduce new software tools and technologies by following a series of structured and informative process steps, tutorials, tips, checklists, and sample process outputs. The model emphasizes the importance of sharing information and disseminating knowledge practices throughout an organization in order to develop more lasting and complete business solutions.
INTRo manages each technology adoption and deployment effort as a project. Activities performed are presented in a work breakdown structure (WBS). This WBS structure is three levels deep, consisting of stages, steps, and tasks. Users are led, step-by-step, through the process of selecting, implementing, and deploying an IT package solution across their organization.
Who Will Benefit?
Those responsible for selecting and rolling out new software technology, on a large scale, across an organization. Examples include managers of user services, technology change agents, and CIOs.
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How can you get involved?
The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) has a three-part strategy for the release of INTRo:
- Make INTRo freely accessible to all (general users).
- Build a community of practice.
- Engage in strategic consulting: adapting and testing parts of INTRo.
- Provide technology infrastructure needed to establish and sustain virtual interactions within the community.
- Produce critical explanatory materials.
- Serve as "Content Director" for electronic environment.
- Observe and respond to feedback.
- Sponsor initial face to face events, (e.g., INTRo users' group).
- Support mentoring (down stream) for those who want to use INTRo actively in their practice, thereby creating coaches.
We have identified two distinct user populations for INTRo, general users and community of practice members.
General Users
General users are not required to work in IT software package
selection and deployment, are not restricted by their project
management practices, and have variable levels of experience with
technology adoption. In exchange for access to INTRo, general users
provide a minimal amount of feedback.
Community of Practice Members
A community of practice is open to individuals interested in sharing their
knowledge and experience with INTRo and technology adoption. Within a virtual
workspace, community members may interact with each other and with the SEI to
encourage the sharing of information and experience.
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What is a community of practice?
The term "community of practice" has been used for over a decade to describe social communities or groups that share cultural practices reflecting their collective learning.1 They combine both formal and informal aspects of learning.
1 Wenger, Etienne. "Communities of Practice and Social Learning Systems", in Organization, volume 7(2), Sage Publications, p. 229
Knowledge is not treated as an object; it is a living part of practice even when this knowledge is documented.
Is this a new approach for the SEI?
This is not the first SEI effort of this kind; in some ways Software Process Improvement Networks (SPINs) exhibit characteristics of a community of practice. Our approach is designed to accelerate the transition of INTRo and knowledge sharing on software technology adoption. The community of practice will encourage connections between members --creating a knowledge network-- as well as collection of assets.
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How will this work?
INTRo will be made freely available through a password-protected SEI Web site with modest conditions on its use; this should provide general users and community of practice members easy access.
Anyone interested in sharing their knowledge and experience with INTRo and technology adoption is invited to participate in the community of practice.
We will be tracking evolution and change in the community of practice, and effectiveness issues related to INTRo. This will be done with an eye to adjusting processes that benefit and sustain the community. Feedback will help the SEI to identify additional materials that are needed to explore alternative transition strategies for the community and future SEI initiatives.
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What is the SEI's role?
To establish a community of practice, the SEI will:
To ensure that the benefits and lessons learned from the use of INTRo are available to both the SEI and its constituencies, we will establish proper protections of intellectual property, and encourage use and production of derivative works.
Note: The information on this Web page is also available in MicrosoftSM Word.
Contact Us
We are happy to consult with both general users and community of practice members in ways that best take advantage of INTRo in your organization. If you have questions or comments, send e-mail to: intro-team@sei.cmu.edu
