Capabilities Overview
Project Execution Network
Enabling High Performance
As your strategic projects partner, Project Execution Network offers
an array of training tools, technology products and talent solutions to help
your business development team achieve higher performance.
Our practical, structured methodology for strategic business
development, cloud-based project planning and execution platform and
flexible project staffing solutions help small and midsize businesses
identify, prioritize, plan, staff and execute strategic business development
projects more efficiently and affordably.
Our talent pool of skilled independent consultants offers experience in
a wide spectrum of business disciplines — on demand — to support your
strategic business development requirements:
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Business
Human resources
Information technology
Marketing
Operations
Sales
INTRODUCTION
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Introduction
SMB Challenges
Most small business owners start out with a fairly clear picture of their
long-term investing objectives. But in the midst of all that’s required to keep
a business running smoothly, it’s easy to lose sight of long-term objectives,
and quite difficult for members of the management team to find time to
evaluate the factors that impact business performance.
In fact, most SMBs share a few common challenges:
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Strong competition in all markets served
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A cyclical economy with uncertain investment outlooks
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A never-ending stream of cultural and technological changes that
threaten to disrupt established markets and practices
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A lean internal team that is 110% loaded by day-to-day operations
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An overwhelming array of (perceived) growth opportunities
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Limited resources available for strategic development
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High owner/investor expectations
INTRODUCTION
How We Can Help
A carefully crafted strategy, executed incrementally through projects, is
critical for long-term success in today’s lean, fast-paced business environment.
Project Execution Network can help by addressing the three critical factors that
determine strategic business development success:
Training
Business owners and managers need a straightforward, repeatable
methodology for strategic plan development and execution. Our COBRA 3D®
Business Development Process meets this requirement by helping a business
define its current (As Is) situation, set objectives for planned (To Be) improvements,
and implement these improvements — through projects — in a cost-effective
and timely manner. We offer courseware, online training opportunities, seminars
and consulting services to help you convey this process to internal and
external stakeholders.
Technology
An affordable, full-featured technology platform can help streamline the
process of planning and executing projects. Our cloud-based project execution
toolkit includes an interactive, virtual project office to facilitate team collaboration;
a unique library of project templates that can be used to jump-start the project
planning process; an easy-to-use project planning tool for work breakdown
structure refinement; and a flexible activity-tracking portal for project
coordination, communication and control.
Talent
Business development projects often require external support. Sourcing
talent has always been a challenge, but our “human cloud” of prequalified
independent professional service providers puts needed skills and experience at
your fingertips. Whether you’re looking for a single independent consultant
to complete your project team, a turnkey project managed by us, or a
comprehensive contingent workforce solution, we can help.
INTRODUCTION
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Training
Power Tools for Strategy Teams
Business development projects become more affordable
when business owners, managers and project team members
all speak a “common business language” and understand the
key objectives for each project undertaken.
Our COBRA 3D® Business Development Process provides a
framework for achieving higher returns on invested capital and
sustainable EBITDA growth, and our training platform helps you
convey the important concepts of this process to everyone
involved in the execution of business development projects.
Project Execution Network can also provide consulting
services to assist your management team in the development
of a winning strategy, and in the identification and
prioritization of potential projects.
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TRAINING
Courseware
Strategic Business Development through Projects
is the cornerstone of our business development curriculum.
This training course is intended for business owners,
investors, the management team, project managers
and internal/external resources involved in the
planning, staffing and execution of strategic
business development projects. Support materials,
including streaming, high-definition videos and hard
cover, soft cover and electronic format textbooks, are
available for purchase through the Project
Execution Marketplace.
Complimentary courseware covering strategic
marketing and high-performance sales initiatives is
currently in development.
Online Training Center
The Project Execution Network’s Online Training Center provides an
in-depth, self-paced learning opportunity for business owners, managers and
project team members. Course modules include self-scoring quizzes to reinforce
key concepts, and a certificate of completion is available for participants
achieving a score of 90% or higher on all quizzes in each course.
Online Training Center subscriptions are available for purchase through the
Project Execution Marketplace.
Training Seminars
We offer both on-site and remote workshops to meet your group training
requirements. Our workshops combine the benefits of online training with a
hands-on, immersive learning experience.
Contact your Project Execution Network representative for a no-cost,
no-obligation discussion about the COBRA 3D® Business Development Process
and how our training seminars can help you address your business
development needs.
TRAINING
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Training
Consulting Services
We believe that an internally-driven, self-directed strategy development
approach will yield important insights and lasting value for your organization.
For this reason, we encourage our SMB clients to acquire, learn and use our
COBRA 3D® Business Development Process training tools. This “do-it-yourself”
approach assumes, correctly, that you know your business best. Our role is to
serve as a sounding board and catalyst for change, when needed, guiding your
organization through the strategic business development process.
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TRAINING
Requesting Assistance …
Project Execution Network consultants are available to provide an unbiased,
experienced perspective at any stage in the strategic business development process.
Areas of expertise include business management, human resources, information
technology, marketing, operations and sales.
To request a proposal for consulting services, contact our office by phone
(724-720-9435), send us an email ([email protected]) or visit our website
(training.projectexecution.com/ tools/consulting/) and compete the consulting
services request form provided.
We’ll work with you to schedule a preliminary meeting with your strategy
development team. This meeting will help us better understand your business, the
current status of your strategy development effort, your scheduling requirements and
the scope of services requested. If we think we can help, we will:
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Identify appropriate consultant(s) in our network
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Develop a consulting services proposal for your consideration
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Work with you to execute a consulting services agreement, which outlines
our role in the strategic business development process, the scope of work
required (Statement of Work), applicable rates for consulting services rendered,
confidentiality requirements and payment terms.
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Reserve consultant(s) for your engagement
TRAINING
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Technology
Power Tools for Project Execution Teams
Once a winning strategy has been defined and conveyed to internal and
external project team members, your next challenge is to implement that strategy
in a cost-effective and timely manner. Project Execution Network has developed
a powerful technology platform that can help streamline the planning and
execution of strategic business development projects.
Our cloud-based technology toolkit includes an interactive, virtual office for
project team collaboration; a unique library of project templates that can be used
to jump-start the project planning process; an easy-to-use project planning tool
for work breakdown structure refinement and scheduling; and a flexible activitytracking portal for project coordination, communication and control.
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TECHNOLOGY
Project offices
Project templates
Project planning tools
Project portals
TECHNOLOGY
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Technology
Virtual Project Offices
Formal meetings are essential
to project success, but staying in
touch and informed between
scheduled meetings can be tricky … especially when some or all of your
project team members are working in remote locations.
With Project Execution Network, you have a solution … your very own private
project management office in our virtual ProjexOffice™ campus … a cloud-based
project management meeting and collaboration space.
ProjexOffice™ combines the unique team presence, communication, data
sharing and impromptu meeting tools of Sococo’s award-winning TeamSpace™
product with the power and flexibility of ProjexPress® — our easy-to-learn,
open source project execution software. Together, these tools provide
business owners, managers and remotely located project team members with
unprecedented, real-time communication and collaboration capabilities.
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TECHNOLOGY
Presence — When you visit a ProjexOffice™ you can actually see
other project team members working in your space. You can click into
their office or “knock on their door” to begin an impromptu conversation,
or ask an important question — regardless of physical location.
Instantaneous meetings — Schedule a meeting with a handful of
colleagues or the entire project team by sending a quick message or
calling them on the phone using click-to-call technology.
Hands-free audio — Multi-party conference calls are as simple as
can be. Everyone present in a virtual office, conference room or common
space is automatically audio-enabled using their computer’s built-in audio
input and output devices. Head sets and other add-on audio devices are
also supported through user preference settings.
Multi-screen sharing — Meeting spaces in ProjexOffice™ are
equipped with multiple, simultaneously-shareable computer screens.
No need to pass meeting control back and forth or fumble with complex
menus … simply click an available screen and begin sharing.
Live video — Meeting participants with video-enabled devices can meet
and converse in “face-to-face” high definition video.
Phone out — Call any phone in the world from any ProjexOffice™
conference room or private office.
Guest access — Bring guests (colleagues, project sponsors,
vendors, etc.) into any phone-equipped meeting by calling them on the
phone. No software downloads or access codes are required.
Chat — Chat messaging tools are available to contact project team
members who are currently away from their virtual office. Chat can be
used to communicate discreetly with others in a meeting, or to record,
save and share meeting minutes for future reference.
App integration — Use ProjexPress® and other cloud-based
productivity apps (e.g. Google Docs, Box) to kickstart meetings, transfer
files and manage project data.
Security — Bank level secure encryption on all communications
TECHNOLOGY
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Technology
Project Planning and Execution Tools
Our ProjexPODs™ (Projects On Demand) are time-saving bundles of
embedded, best-practice knowledge developed by professionals with expertise
in relevant fields. Each ProjexPOD™ includes a project charter, a deliverables
checklist, a work breakdown structure, an estimated project timeline, resource
profiles for each required skill set, and an expense summary. Starting projects
with a ProjexPOD™ can shave weeks or months and thousands of dollars
from the project planning process.
Our project planning tool is web-based, with local storage to support offline
planning activities. ProjexPlanner™ is inexpensive, easy-to-learn and can be fully
integrated within your ProjexOffice™ environment.
When your project plan is complete, all project data can be exported to
ProjexPress® — our project execution portal software. ProjexPress® helps
you track project team activities and keeps every member of the project team
informed about upcoming assignments, due dates, risk mitigation efforts
and other important project information.
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TECHNOLOGY
• Installs a preliminary project plan in under five minutes
• Provides a well-developed, editable starting point for many common
business development projects
• Conforms to COBRA 3D® project planning methodology
• Developed by seasoned professionals representing all relevant areas
of expertise
• Simplifies work breakdown structure development
• Allows skills-based or person-based resource allocation
• Conforms to COBRA 3D® project planning methodology
• Exports project data to ProjexPress® portals
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Simplifies the project coordination process by focusing attention
on the high level structure of your project (phases, gates, milestones
and key tasks).
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Facilitates communication of important project information —in
real time — to help keep everyone up-to-speed, on target and fully
engaged in the project execution process.
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Fosters collaboration by encouraging project team interaction and
aggregating the tools needed to get things done efficiently.
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Improves project control by helping you expose risks, monitor
progress, track expenses and document deliverables.
TECHNOLOGY
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Talent
Most small and midsize businesses are staffed to meet the
day-to-day demands of conducting business, with little capacity
available for the research, evaluation, planning and execution
activities needed to implement their strategic plan.
Project Execution Network can help, with flexible workforce
optimization and support solutions tailored to your
specific requirements:
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Individual project resources
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Turnkey project management services
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Project staffing services
TALENT
Individual Project Resources
Project Execution Network can help you connect with individual independent
consultants to supplement the skills and capacity available from your internal staff.
Our Service Partner Directory includes resources with a wide spectrum of
business development skills and experience:
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Business expertise
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Human resources expertise
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Information technology expertise
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Marketing expertise
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Operations expertise
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Sales expertise
How it works …
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Visit our Talent Solutions website: talent.projectexecution.com
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Select “Project Resources” and choose a service category to browse
independent contractors listed in our Service Partner Directory
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Click on service subcategory titles to further refine your search, or, if needed, use
the proximity tools provided to narrow your search to display only independent
contractors within a defined range from your location.
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View Service Partner profiles to learn more about the skills, work experience,
and availability of each consultant.
When you engage the services of independent project resources through our
Service Partner Directory, you do so on terms that have been agreed upon between
you and each individual contractor. Our role is to publicize the availability and
qualifications of each consultant, and to facilitate the inital contact.
We perform a background check and conduct due diligence in an attempt to
ascertain the accuracy of information stated in each independent consultant’s profile.
In addition, we offer a “Certified Business Development Professional” designation
to contractors who have successfully completed our Strategic Business
Development through Projects training course.
TALENT
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Talent
Project Management
In addition to helping you connect with individual, independent consultants, Project
Execution Network can also provide turnkey project management services, from initial planning
through staffing and final implementation.
All team members assigned to a turnkey project engagement are Certified Business
Development Professionals, and all services provided are covered under our general liability
and errors and omissions insurance coverages. We’ll work with you to identify key project
objectives, your preferred implementation timeframe, budget and other constraints.
If you accept our project proposal, we’ll assign a project manager to oversee planning and
execution activities, and to act as your liaison with the project team.
Our entire technology platform is leveraged to facilitate project communication,
coordination, collaboration and control, and we follow a proven, structured methodology to
maximize potential returns from your project investment.
Requesting a proposal
Requesting a project proposal is easy. Simply fill out and submit the information
requested on our website (talent.projectexecution.com/talent-solutions/turnkey-projectengagements/) or contact our sales office at 724-720-9435. We’ll review your requirements,
select project team members from our Service Partner network and work with them to
prepare a comprehensive proposal for your consideration.
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TALENT
Our Project Execution Process …
Design phase
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Develop a project charter
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Evaluate risks and (if necessary) update the business case
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Perform discovery to identify risks and opportunities
Develop risk mitigation, change management and launch communication plans
Develop a preliminary project plan (phase/milestone/activity sequencing)
Establish resource profiles (skill/experience/availability requirements)
Source/qualify/contract talent for the project team
Develop a detailed work breakdown structure
Establish important project timelines
Request approval to proceed
Development phase
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Onboard team members
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Acquire/implement physical resources
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Execute the project plan
Coordinate, communicate, collaborate and control
Test and verify solution components
Request approval to proceed
Deployment phase
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Develop launch communications
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Launch the solution/communicate to key stakeholders
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Implement change management plan strategies
Implement hypercare and extended support plans
Request approval to close project
Debrief
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Evaluate team performance
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Identify and record lessons learned
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Compare actual/estimated costs
Release project team
TALENT
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Talent
PROCESS
OPTIMIZATION
OPPORTUNITY
Affordable, Cloud-Based Solutions
Project Execution Network adds value by focusing on the big picture: Enabling high
performance. Our approach to project engagements begins with a solid understanding
of your overall business strategy and the problems and opportunities identified through your
strategic planning efforts. We deliver on our promise of operational value by leveraging highimpact, cloud-based applications to optimize business processes in a cost-effective and timely
manner. We maintain an extensive database of cloudware vendors to quickly identify the
tools that best meet your requirements. For each project undertaken:
1. We perform an in-depth analysis of your current business processes to identify
opportunities for improvement.
2. We then work with you to evaluate and implement a solution. Cloud-based software
offers many advantages, and is our recommended approach for most projects, but we can
also customize or develop software when needed to achieve project objectives.
3. We recognize the value of your legacy data and systems, and will work with you to
migrate relevant, historical data, and/or integrate existing technologies when necessary to
minimize disruptions to your business.
4. Finally, we can help ease your organization’s transition to new processes and
technologies by working with you to develop and implement a comprehensive change
management communications plan.
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TALENT
LEGACY DATA
MIGRATION/TECHNOLOGY
INTEGRATION
SOLUTION
CLOUD-BASED
APPLICATION SELECTION/
DEVELOPMENT
CHANGE
MANAGEMENT
Examples
Project Execution Network
can assist in the selection,
development and implementation
of a wide range of cloud-based
applications, inlcuding:
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Content management
(WCM) systems
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Customer relationship
management (CRM) systems
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Enterprise marketing platforms
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Human capital management
(HCM) systems
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Intranets/extranets
TALENT
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Talent
Project Staffing
Project Execution Network offers a single-source solution for the identification,
qualification and engagement of project-based talent.
Our skilled pool of independent consultants is available to supplement or support your
internally sourced talent. Our agent-of-record (1099) compliance certification and employerof-record (W-2) contractor payrolling services can be leveraged to simplify the management
of your entire project-based workforce.
Our training platform, business development certification program, project execution
technology platform and workforce management capabilities work seamlessly to help you
achieve maximum returns on your human capital investment.
Together with Solo Workforce … a leading innovator in agent-of-record and
employer-of-record staffing support services, Project Execution Network can offer
substantial cost savings and other business benefits, including:
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Flexible staffing arrangements
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A comprehensive technology platform for planning, staffing and executing projects
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Risk mitigation through contractor compliance verification
Contingent workforce management, talent optimization and reporting in a single,
centralized platform
Rapid onboarding for improved operational efficiency
TALENT
Flexible Project Staffing Solutions …
With decades of project staffing and workforce management experience, the
management teams at Project Execution Network and Solo Workforce have helped
hundreds of satisfied clients — including 10 Fortune 100 companies — engage the
services of self-employed consultants and micro-service organizations to
improve business performance:
Compliance Certification (Agent-of-Record)
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You identify an independent contractor
We evaluate and certify the contractor’s independent (1099) status
We serve as agent-of-record for the independent contractor
The subcontractor performs services per Statement of Work
The subcontractor bills us and we bill you
Contractor Payrolling (Employer-of-Record) Services
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You recruit staffing candidates
Solo Workforce becomes the employer-of-record
Solo Workforce manages payroll, benefits administration, time-tracking
and reporting services for each contingent worker
Solo Workforce bills you per negotiated rates
Recruiting Services
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You request recruiting assistance for one or more positions
We source candidates through our extensive recruiting referral network
You hire the candidate(s) and pay a small recruiting fee or request that
we do so (Solo Workforce becomes employer-of-record).
Comprehensive Nationwide Service …
Data Center
Operations
Center
Service
Center
TALENT
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Call, write or visit
us online for additional
information:
CONTACT
Amber Alke
[email protected]
724-720-9435
WEBSITE
www.projectexecution.com
Project Execution Network LLC
2009 Mackenzie Way, Suite 100
Cranberry Township, PA 16066
www.projectexecution.com
Copyright © 2015 Project Execution Network LLC
April 2015