Page 5 - W M Donald Newsletter - Edition Twelve

Author Software – Purpose, Process, People
W M Donald uses many different software packages across its business. As the business grows and tackles larger and more complex projects, the use of Author software is becoming ever more valuable.
Author* was originally developed in Aberdeen for use in the oil industry, but the underlying concepts are valid in all sectors. On any given W M Donald project Author can be used to clarify what we are doing, how we are doing it and who is doing it. Author is the catalyst for W M Donald to revisit the processes it uses, the associated documentation, and the clarity and visibility
of both to those working at the sharp end on site. The aim is to identify blockages and avoid duplication.
For each process, Author can be used to identify and reference all relevant documentation. Allocation of RACI** roles forms a key element within the development of each process. Author creates simple, clear and effective flow diagrams for each process.
When a process has been developed and signed off it is published to html on a Cloud platform. This makes it accessible on any device. It also ensures that all processes are held in one central document register and can be easily identified.
Scott Dickie is already in the
process of writing up the processes for Temporary Works and uploading them to the document register.
Although Author has been used on individual projects in the past, ‘go live’ across all business processes is targeted for the first quarter of 2022.
*www.mandossoftware.co.uk
**RACI, as used by W M Donald, stands for ‘Responsible, Assist, Consulted, Informed’. It is used to assign roles and responsibilities across a task.
In summary,
‘Responsible’ is the individual responsible
for task completion - there should only ever be one ‘Responsible’; ‘Assist’ relates to those that do the work to complete the task; ‘Consulted’ relates to those whose advice and guidance is required to complete the task - these are often subject matter experts; ‘Informed’ details those parties who are kept up-to-date with progress but have no direct involvement in the task.
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