9. Implementation

The system has now been tested and everyone is happy that it is working correctly. It now needs to be installed so that staff can use it. There are three different ways that you can implement (install) a new system:

1) Switch off the old system and switch on the new.

Of course, this is the simplest scenario!  All the workers are waiting for the fabulous new system to come 'on -line' but as the minutes tick by,  a new customer has just ordered a holiday / medical operation / flight / mortgage.

How do you deal with these last-minute (but vital) clients?

Answer: You must deal with last  minute changes and accept that there may be some upheaval and mistakes made in the short term.

2) You run the old and new system in parallel for a time.

A popular method compared to the switch off / switch on approach. After all, the customer does not care what your IT system is made up of - they are only (rightly) concerned with their holiday / medical operation / mortgage etc being booked correctly.

And so,  a popular method is to allow the old system to run alongside the new one. Then in the quiet period (say overnight) , the new system absorbs all the old system's information. By the next morning, the system is fully loaded and ready to go.

3) You run only part of the new system

This can be done by introducing the whole system to just a couple of branches and checking how it works and quickly fixing any bugs that are found. Once things are running smoothly the system will be introduced to the rest of the company.

Or it could be that just parts (modules) of the system are introduced at a time. As they are found to work, further parts are released.