Build The Plan

The Implementation Plan

Let's call a spade a spade - building software products in the energy industry is risky! So many seemingly obvious ideas struggle to get past the Pilot stage due to technical, regulatory, or organizational surprises.

We pride ourselves on getting 100% of our products to launch, and writing Implementation Plans is a key tool to both de-risk the product and keep an eye on the big opportunities in front of us.

The Plan is designed to be shared with all key stakeholders to support and drive strategic decision-making - from senior executives to the day-to-day project managers to IT and optionally even other vendors.

The Process

The process laid out below is what we would do if the product was our very own.

1. Conduct Stakeholder Interviews. In a structured manner to avoid any biases, we conduct up to 10 in-depth interviews with intended users and business stakeholders. The result is a list of reconciled priorities that include the voices of project staff, leadership, and the customers.
2. Outline Product Requirements. As quickly as possible, we outline the product's requirements based on stakeholder interviews and our industry experience. Specifically, we put pen to paper on the identified context, problems, and options for solutions. These options can be evaluated on a cost-benefit basis for strategic decision-making.
3. Identify & State The Risks. Separately, we identify and share known and newly-identified risks for successfully achieving the desired outcome(s). Typical risks include technical feasibility, data availability, user interest, financial viability, and potential conflicting priorities amongst company departments. Stating the perceived challenges up front aligns and focuses the team, and derisks any forthcoming investments.

Scope & Timeline

Whether evaluating an MVP or a unicorn, drafting a shareable and final Implementation Plan takes 6-8 weeks to complete.

Plans are built by a Bellawatt Senior Product Manager, who has 2+ years of experience building software products for the energy industry. Concepts like kWh vs kW and electric rates won't be new, and they'll just need a single counterpart from the partner company to help identify key stakeholders and coordinate internal feedback.

The entire effort is designed to de-risk future larger investments, whether the implementation work is performed by Bellawatt or another team.