ADD2727 Programme performance software tool

1.1.    This decision sets out the Good Growth directorate’s requirement for a programme performance management (PPM) tool. Having explored several options, the purchase of at least 50 licences for Asana is recommended. This is already used by some GLA teams. The Improvement and Change Board has previously approved this interim solution, pending any potential future decision on a GLA-wide solution.  
1.2.    Currently, Good Growth officers make use of various tools and templates for project management and collaboration. The Energy Unit would look at increasing efficiency of the team by using a PPM tool to effectively track complex projects; manage performance; collaborate across projects/organisational boundaries; and easily monitor and report on the performance of projects, programmes and portfolios, with a view to increase efficiency. 
1.3.    To better meet internal governance reporting requirements, and our responsibilities to the Mayor’s Office, the Energy Unit would look at increasing the efficiency and improving visibility of the use of resources, and improving automation and functionality to aggregate performance data using a PPM 
1.4.    The Energy Unit would look at increasing the efficiency effectiveness, improving the ability to proactively manage performance and take timely decisions. This would improve the forecasting and performance visibility, positively impacting the Good Growth directorate. The proposed portfolio, programme and project management solution would allow the aggregation of data not only at directorate level, but also across units and teams; and it would align with the new Mayoral mandates. Improving performance monitoring will increase understanding of the impact, and interdependencies across teams and portfolios.  
1.5.    The Good Growth Coordination team (GGCT) is proposing the adoption of a tool on an interim basis, whilst a long-term, organisation-wide PPM solution is explored. The proposed PPM tool will make the directorate more efficient, and increase transparency and accountability. It also connects to Power BI, enabling dashboard representation of data (as with the current proposals for corporate performance reporting).  
1.6.    The use of this interim PPM tool will support the wider work across the GLA in developing the final performance tool solution. It will provide lessons that can be used in building the new organisational solution, based on user experience, functionality and performance.  
 

2.1.    We expect that the adoption of the recommended tool will result in: 
•    improved accountability and greater transparency 
•    enhanced portfolio performance monitoring, through aggregated information, to show cumulative outputs, impacts and risks; it will do so via dynamic and interactive dashboards, making it easier to assess the performance of the directorate, units and teams. 
•    support officers’ ability to manage their projects in a cloud-based platform, centralising data records.
•    improved standardised governance tools and templates across projects 
•    improved quality assurance 
•    greater efficiency and better use of resource time. 
2.2.    Users will be able to: 
•    manage, monitor and report on the performance of projects and programmes within the Energy team, and the ability to expand to other GG teams once Asana is embedded in the business as usual of the Energy team.
•    store project management data in the cloud, strengthening transparency and accountability. 
•    better monitor the progress of the various portfolios (teams, units, directorate, and themes), via the Power BI dashboards available to users and key audiences  
•    improve corporate reporting and decrease duplication, via data flows. 
Costs 
2.3.    The monthly cost per licence, contracted directly with the supplier, is £35.27 (for one user). TfL procurement recommends using the reseller’s framework; and notes that the price could rise by 0-3 per cent. Therefore, 50 licences will cost under £30,000. The GGCT expects to renegotiate the licence price. If there is a decision to proceed with a wider roll-out of the PPM solution across the directorate. This would depend on the pilot’s success, and the directorate’s future needs.  
 

3.1.    This project development and trial of the platform has no more or less significant impact on any groups than on others. This platform will not be available to general Londoners but will assist GLA officers in their work. The commissioning team will consider those with protected characteristics when developing the application. As a minimum, we will require the system to meet WCAG 2.0 level A accessibility. Any future development will comply with this requirement. 
3.2.    Under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, the Mayor and GLA are subject to the public sector equality duty and must have due regard to the need to: 
•    eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation.  
•    advance equality of opportunity between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not; and  
•    foster good relations between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not.  
3.3.    The “protected characteristics” are age, disability, gender re-assignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and marriage/ civil partnership status. The duty involves having appropriate regard to these matters as they apply in the circumstances, including having regard to the need to: remove or minimise any disadvantage suffered by those who share or is connected to a protected; take steps to meet the different needs of such people; encourage them to participate in public life or in any other activity where their participation is disproportionately low. This can involve treating people with a protected characteristic more favourably than those without one. 
 

4.1.    There are no conflicts of interest to note for any of those involved in the drafting or clearance of the decision.
4.2.    The GGCT, with the support of the DEU, assessed the following PPM tools:  
•    MS Project Online (TfL solution) 
•    Asana 
•    GLA OPS 
•    Monday.Com 
•    Click Up 
•    OnePlan.
4.3.    Asana was selected as the most suitable product, evaluation criteria, included: price, functionality and performance against requirements.
4.4.    The GGCT acknowledges that the DEU will not be responsible for providing support in establishing the technology or product during the Asana pilot. The GGCT will act as the product owner, providing user support; training; establishment of Asana within the management of projects; and the move to business-as-usual. 
Audience 
4.5.    For the pilot, the Energy team officers are the key audience as data input and service users. External stakeholders will be able to collaborate with Energy team officers through this tool. 
4.6.    Data will be shared at multiple levels (through Power BI dashboards) to senior officers, Assembly members, the Mayor’s Office, and Deputy Mayors. Some relevant corporate-level officers will also benefit from accessing data visualisation, such as in the Performance and Governance Unit team. 
4.7.    Lessons learnt from this pilot will be used by officers across the GLA who are working on the long-term performance tool. This will help inform the design and development of the corporate-wide system. 
Key risks and issues 
4.8.    There are no reputational, data management, health and wellbeing, or other serious risks identified. The risks to the delivery of the projects sitting with the Energy team are minimal. The worst potential outcome is that they continue to depend on the same working methods they currently practice. 
4.9.    The risks to effective delivery are assessed and mitigated as follows: 

5.1.    Approval is requested for: 
•    expenditure of up to £30,000 to purchase 50 licences of Asana, a software programme performance tool 
•    delegated approval for expenditure for additional licences, that:  
o    is up the value threshold where a Director Decision would be required 
o    is within existing approved limits of the Executive Director of Good Growth, subject to available funds 
o    does not exceed £75,000 in total.  
5.2.    This expenditure will be funded from the Retrofit London budget within the Environment and Energy Unit’s approved budget for 2024-25. 
 

6.1.    The project will be delivered according to the followin

g timetable: