Project Management

The steps Sentinel takes to help get your IT project completed on time and on budget

Project management plays a pivotal role in the successful deployment of IT solutions within your organization’s environment. It ensures your projects are executed efficiently, on time, and within budget, while also satisfying specific objectives and quality standards. Sentinel’s project management team provides a structured framework to help you navigate the challenges of integrating new technologies, managing expectations, and addressing unforeseen obstacles.

Always Leading Expertise

Our PMP-certified project managers bring a wealth of expertise to the table, along with mastery of industry best practices and methodologies. All of Sentinel’s projects are run through the ServiceNow platform incorporated into our My Sentinel online portal, so your organization can effectively coordinate tasks, track progress, share documents, ask questions, manage resources, and communicate with other team members in real-time, promoting transparency and alignment throughout the project lifecycle.

The Sentinel Project Management team is skilled in both Waterfall and Agile methodologies, two widely recognized process models with different approaches based on the type of engagement. Waterfall requires a project to be completed in a specific linear order, while Agile groups different pieces of a project together in a series of “sprints” that are each completed over limited time frames. ServiceNow enables Sentinel to take a hybrid approach with certain engagements, where some phases are completed using Waterfall and others employ Agile in an effort to maximize overall efficiency.

A standard Sentinel project management engagement (typically requiring 80+ hours of technical services) begins with the following*:
Introduction Call
Within two days of PMO notification, a Sentinel Project Manager will contact you to make an introduction and answer any of your initial questions.
Schedule Customer Kick-Off

Within three days of the Introduction Call, the Project Manager will call again to arrange a “Customer Kick-Off” meeting with you and your team.

(Between the Introduction Call and Customer Kick-Off meeting, Sentinel assembles its team for an Internal Kick-Off to conduct a formal review of the project’s characteristics, inherent risks, and to perform formal planning and scheduling.)
Customer Kick-Off Meeting

Within ten days of the Introduction Call, the Customer Kick-Off will be held either virtually or in-person at the customer’s location.

The purpose of this meeting is to:

  • Approve the initiation documentation, risk review, and Top-Down Structured Planning (TDSP)
  • Conduct a site walkthrough (if the project requires it)
  • Schedule blueprint meeting(s)
After the Customer Kick-Off, a detailed final work schedule will be created and placed in ServiceNow. This schedule will be used to track and control the project. Once a schedule has been set and resources prepared, the project moves into the Design phase.

*Planning sessions, the creation of schedules, and other administrative project management documents such as risk plans, communication plans, and resource scheduling may extend beyond the time frames outlined above. The Project Management process may be customized based on factors including project size, urgency, or complexity.