QSM's recent webinar, From Proposal to Project: Getting Resource Demand Early, presented by Andy Berner and Keith Ciocco, featured a thoughtful Q&A session from our audience. Here are the highlights:
Q: Which PPM products does SLIM work with right now?
A: We're working with customers to see what products they're interested in. It's adaptable to multiple PPM systems and we'd like your input on which ones we should deliver for you early. We can work with you so you can build a customized input to your own system. So the framework is very general and is released as part of the SLIM product. We will be providing adapters to common PPM systems and that's what we would like to learn from our design partners - which ones to deliver first. (Note: if you are a SLIM customer or prospect, you can request to join our design group by emailing Keith Ciocco).
Q: You showed SLIM-WebServices. Does that come with the desktop tool? Do you use them separately or together?
A: You can use them separately or together. A lot of our clients like to use the desktop tool as the back office or command center, that would be where the power users are, and then they use SLIM-WebServices when they want to roll it out to larger groups of people across the enterprise. So if you want to buy each as a standalone, you can, but usually clients will combine them together.
Q: Where can I find the spreadsheet that you were using with SLIM-MasterPlan?
A: The SLIM-MasterPlan Skill Aggregator is available to QSM clients on the Downloads section of the QSM website. Contact QSM Support to request a username and password.
Q: Does SLIM have a way to show if our proposals are competitive?
A: Yes. The Compare to History view in SLIM is perfect for that. Basically, you're able to look at the proposal estimate compared to industry trends and see if it's competitive. You can see if an estimate is better or worse that industry averages and in the range of what's reasonable for past completed projects.