Frequently Asked Questions

TrueProject Basics

TrueProject is a management control and oversight SaaS solution designed to monitor all your projects all the time. It identifies risk and early warning signs for virtually any type of project and allows you to effectively review your KPI’s and proactively address potential problems before they become unmanageable. TrueProject gathers information from all project team members allowing enforcement and measurement against best practices. The analytics provide insight weeks or even months in advance to avoid challenged or failing projects. The result? Increased project success! 

TrueProject exposes the missing pieces of inaccurate project status by gathering feedback from all project stakeholders. TrueProject can eliminate late or troubled project surprises by pointing out potential causes of project failure and highlighting the lack of adherence to best practices or standards processes. Ultimately, TrueProject paves the way for higher levels of success.

TrueProject utilizes a unique process to collect and analyze project data and return critical insights to project managers, PMO leaders, and executives. The TrueProject process starts with the collection of both quantitative project data and stakeholder feedback gathered from assessments. Once the data is collected, it is analyzed by the system and compared to the best practices selected for the project. The system measures compliance against the best practices and identifies the results of the analysis through multiple KPI’s, reports, and real-time dashboard visuals. The resulting insight is utilized to predict the future course of the project, allowing managers to make the proper strategic and tactical adjustments to ensure project success.

TrueProject resides in a different category than products such as MS Project and Jira, as they focus primarily on time and task management. TrueProject is a management control and oversight solution designed to monitor all your projects all the time and is complementary to traditional time and task management project systems. In fact, TrueProject protects the investment in your time and task systems by incorporating data elements of those systems into TrueProject’s analytics engine for a complete view of your projects. TrueProject combines discipline and best practices with your projects’ ongoing monitoring and governance, providing stakeholders with the insight required to run successful projects. No time and task management system does this. TrueProject exposes potential problems to substantially reduce project surprises and failures. Addressing project issues while there is still time to act saves your organization valuable time and money, reduces overall project costs, and allows your organization to realize the benefit of each project sooner.

No, TrueProject does not replace the traditional “time and task management” solutions such as MS Project and Jira. Instead, TrueProject uses data from your existing PM and/or financial management tools while implementing a management discipline that supports project governance and monitoring. Traditional project portfolio management applications function as a rear-view mirror as to what has already occurred, whereas TrueProject becomes the heads-up display into the future performance of your projects.

Yes. TrueProject helps avoid project problems before you know you have them and will expose potential problems and substantially reduce project surprises and failures. Addressing project issues while there is still time to act will save your organization valuable time and money, reduce overall project costs, and allow your organization to realize each project’s benefit sooner.

Any organization that runs projects can benefit from TrueProject. Organizations of any size, or industry, will experience improved project efficiencies using TrueProject. Organizations that deliver professional services and consulting can see improved customer engagement, staff utilization, customer satisfaction, and overall project performance. In addition, organizations that have experienced the following situations are most likely to have an urgent need for TrueProject:

  • Multiple late or failed projects that have the attention of C-Level executives.
  • An organization is about to begin a single large and complex project, or the overall workload of the project management office is expected to increase.
  • An organization has realized the need to improve project delivery and is adjusting current practices or creating a new project management office.

    CAI created TrueProject to better monitor projects for our customers. CAI quickly learned how effective and necessary this new approach for overseeing and governing projects is for customers. As a result, 26 enterprise and upper mid-tier organizations have enjoyed measurable benefits using TrueProject. Current clients include government, high-tech, and supply chain/logistics communities.

    As the cost of failure is typically many times more extensive than the investment in TrueProject, a return on the TrueProject investment can typically be realized with the deployment of the very first project. It is not unusual for an organization to experience this type of ROI. The ability to predict troubled or failed projects weeks or months ahead of time can make the difference between business success and failure.

    TrueProject Detail

    TrueProject collects qualitative data through our proven assessment process. Assessment questions are determined by several factors, including the stage of the project, the role of the individual receiving the assessment, and the selection of KPI’s and best practice repositories being utilized. TrueProject automatically selects and sends the proper assessment based on the configuration of the solution and the project. The assessment questions have been created using academic, industry, and real world practical knowledge and research with decades of expert experience in project management.

    You need TrueProject Enterprise to expose potential project problems and to substantially reduce project surprises and failures. TrueProject Enterprise gathers feedback from all project stakeholders to point out potential causes of failure so they can be resolved saving your organization valuable time and money, including reduced overall project costs. Your organization cannot afford any more failed projects.

    TrueProject utilizes quantitative project data that is readily available to project managers. A listing of these is provided below:

    Required Data:

    • Actual and projected start/end dates for a project
    • Type of project
    • Project phase, starting phase
    • Project budget

    Optional Data:

    • Earned value
    • Actual cost
    • Planned value
    • Estimate at completion
    • Expected finish date

    The frequency of the assessments can be adjusted based on the discretion of the client, but one assessment per week is recommended for most situations. Most assessments can be completed within 3-5 minutes.

    Assessments are role-based and the questions asked will vary based upon the role or roles everyone is assigned within a project. Changing the roles has a direct effect on the assessments themselves. The primary roles that can be assigned are project sponsor, project manager, business analyst, project office, and project team member. Each user is assigned a role for the correct association with assessment questions. Roles can also be customized based on the request of the client. Should the client require a custom assessment, a corresponding set of custom roles can be added.

    Some assessments are event-based, such as a phase gate, and are issued once. Other assessments may be issued periodically to predict project performance at a given point in time. TrueProject’s unique and extensive configurability allows for assessment questioning to be structured to accommodate virtually any project situation.

    No, TrueProject does not limit the number of assessment takers that can be connected to a particular project or the portfolio of projects. TrueProject also allows an unlimited number of users to ensure all project team members can provide information by completing the automated assessments. TrueProject incorporates an unlimited user licensing model.

    TrueProject provides sample correspondences to convey the importance of completing assessments and encourages our clients to set clear expectations of team members that will be receiving assessments. TrueProject automatically reminds assessment takers if they have not completed their assigned assessment. The application also offers full tracking of assessment completions so team members that fail to take assessments can be easily identified.

    TrueProject is a management control and oversight SaaS solution designed to monitor all your projects all the time. TrueProject gathers information from all project team members allowing enforcement and measurement against best practices. The analytics provide insight weeks or even months in advance to avoid challenged or failing projects. TrueProject excels with large projects, long durations, and geographically disbursed teams. But it also works well with smaller projects as it provides necessary guidance for project managers and team members. TrueProject also shows systemic issues and trends across the entire portfolio of projects. For very small projects or work requests that are just a week or two or that only have two or three people, TrueProject may not apply. It is important to note that TrueProject does adjust the level of governance and effort needed to use TrueProject based upon project size and scope.

    There are 25 best practice repositories, 150 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and over 1,000 questions that can be configured in TrueProject. In addition, customers can also have their own KPIs and questions configured in their implementation of the system.

    Yes, PMI management methodologies are incorporated into the best practices featured in TrueProject.

    The funnel depicts how TrueProject collects project information and uses AI/Analytics to predict project risks.

    This can be further expanded upon below.

    CAI was awarded two US patents, one for the overall TrueProject solution (Patent #: US 9,269,087 B2) and one specifically for the “Control Room” AI functionality (Patent #: US 8,041,647 B2). The following is an excerpt from the Control Room patent:

    The system is the most advanced concept in MCSs (Management Control Systems). It is an easy-to-modify construct that accepts rules, procedures, data, and information from the enterprise. It uses a conceptual control unit that manages this flow of hard and soft information. The system readily automates and institutionalizes both the objective (empirical) and subjective (human) knowledge needed to optimally manage the enterprise. The integration of business rules, checklists, advice, etc., is married with the operational flow of data. This interrelation of hard and soft data provides the most accurate, qualified, and meaningful information.

    TrueProject does this through the following functions and capabilities:

    Assessment Engine

    • An expert consultant would walk around interviewing all project stakeholders.
    • Just like an expert, TrueProject does this by asking the appropriate questions based on a person’s role, project type, project phase, project status, and previous answers. TrueProject’s “Reflexive Questioning Assessments” change questions in real-time based upon the assessment taker’s responses to previous questions.

    Scheduling Rules

    • An expert consultant would also review the results of the collected data triggering additional drill-down and questioning.
    • Just like an expert, TrueProject does this by distributing questionnaires based upon a state or data change.

    Best Practice Benchmarking

    • An expert consultant would base their analysis on other project successes and failures.
    • Just like an expert, TrueProject can predict whether a project will be successful based upon these benchmark comparisons.

    TrueProject is designed to manage agile and waterfall projects and contains appropriate best practices that can be applied to either approach. Whether your organization refers to the initiatives upon which they work as “projects” or “sprints” or a collection of sprints that make up a project, it is the overall process of performing the work and the overall business benefits realization where TrueProject focuses its oversight and governance. TrueProject provides the overall governance and not individual task assignment, time reporting, or sprint retrospectives.

    A sprint in Scrum is a short period wherein a development team works to complete specific tasks, milestones, or deliverables. Sprints, also called “iterations,” essentially break the project schedule into digestible blocks of time in which smaller goals can be accomplished. TrueProject does not manage the backlog, task prioritization, assignment, or tracking of these tasks. There are many great tools available to do so. TrueProject looks at the overall agile and project management best practices instead of individual tasks and deliverables.

    TrueProject Enterprise requires 40 hours of a Named Liaison’s time for set-up, configuration, and introduction to the solution in your organization. An executive from your organization must invest 5 hours of their time, and all users need to spend 1 hour attending introductory sessions and reviewing our self-paced education materials to help them understand the purpose and operation of the solution. TrueProject Enterprise is an extremely intuitive solution to implement and can be mastered in a very short time. We designed the offering to not require any long-term education, but rather to experience short-term benefit.

    TrueProject is a SaaS solution that is deployed in the cloud. TrueProject is hosted by AWS and exceeds rigorous security and availability standards.

    Yes, TrueProject can be utilized for a single project or hundreds of projects. The unique unlimited user and tiered number or project pricing model allows for a “utility” type investment for our clients. You will work with your dedicated Customer Success Manager to customize your instance of TrueProject.

    Yes, external suppliers and vendors that have a stake in a project can be incorporated into a TrueProject HealthCheck. Team members external to your organization will receive the appropriate project assessment so their critical feedback can also be captured and incorporated into the system-generated insight provided to management. Clients have full control over system security, so all external team members will interact with the system only as intended.

    TrueProject enables data to be imported via an ETL function. The amount of project data required to be entered into TrueProject is minimal and can be entered manually if desired.

    Yes, TrueProject is customizable. The solution is built to handle many different applications, so the customization capability is built into the system. You can customize everything from your assessments and reports to KPIs and project types. We even allow you to utilize your own logo!

    Yes, an organization may incorporate their own internal best practices into TrueProject as the application is designed to handle customizations and the addition of proprietary client best practices. Clients will consult with the TrueProject professional services team to implement any custom or proprietary best practices.

    Yes, TrueProject clients can create their own best practices and assessment questions if required.

    TrueProject Data Collection

    TrueProject KPIs and dashboards are informed by the assessment responses and the project manager’s quantitative project data. Thus, the collection of information through the TrueProject assessments is the primary driver of the displayed KPI’s. /p>

    Yes, additional data can be incorporated into the TrueProject dashboards by customizing the reporting and dashboard tool. This work will require an engagement of the TrueProject professional services team, but we can customize KPI’s and dashboards per the client’s request.

    TrueProject provides KPIs, dashboards, and reporting at both the project and portfolio level. TrueProject applies insight to specific projects for individual project governance, as well as insight into the health of the entire project portfolio. Users may drill into specific projects and utilize the portfolio view to identify trends and issues that may exist across all projects at the portfolio level.

    TrueProject Reporting & Analytics

    TrueProject offers extensive reporting capabilities in the form of dashboard visualizations and PDF reports that can be accessed within the application or delivered automatically via e-mail. The dashboards include an analysis of KPIs, a general project overview, participation analysis, and a project data overview. TrueProject supports both single and multi-project reports. TrueProject has embedded a leading BI, analytics, and reporting solution (MicroStrategy) that supports interactive dashboards, scorecards, highly formatted reports, ad hoc queries, thresholds and alerts, and automated report distribution. In addition, TrueProject leverages MicroStrategy’s Hyperintelligence capability to have specific project data find you instead of searching for it – through ANY browser-based application! Custom reports are available and can be created in consultation with the TrueProject professional services team.

    TrueProject displays project and portfolio insight through dashboard KPI’s and reports. Executives and Project Managers can use the provided insight to perform corrective actions required to optimize project success. The TrueProject professional services team provides clients with the knowledge required to expertly interpret the provided project insight through our Virtual Project Office (VPO) services.

    Analytics are realized in TrueProject through dashboards and reports. Each KPI and chart displayed breaks down your data to visualize it in the most effective manner. TrueProject’s patented algorithms analyze your data to provide the most useful representations. Based upon the metrics being tracked, different findings and recommendations are presented to help you get your projects back on track.

    TrueProject uses the statistical concept of “statistical significance.” In principle, a statistically significant result is a result that is not attributed to chance. We have elected to use a 90% “confidence interval” in our determination of statistical significance. The 90% confidence interval defines a range of values that TrueProject can be 90% certain contains the population mean. With large samples, the mean is known with much more precision than with a small sample, so the confidence interval is quite narrow when computed from a large sample. Thus, confidence in TrueProject’s data is based upon the observed data, how many people were asked a question, and how many people answered that question. It is NOT a percentage of people that responded but rather a statistical calculation based upon 90% confidence.

    TrueProject Investment & Implementation 

    TrueProject is licensed on an annual basis and based upon the number of concurrent active projects. Users are unlimited. Project-based licensing is utilized so as not to inhibit user participation as is in the typical user-based licensing model. It is available in 25, 50, 100, and 200 concurrent active project licenses. Custom-tailored plans are available for over 200 concurrent projects. Tiered pricing provides a decreased price per project as additional projects are added. Multi-year discounts are also available. Implementation and consulting services are included with a deployment of TrueProject, and a variety of service packages are available based on client needs.

    TrueProject is also available on a one-time investment (See TrueProject HealthCheck) of only $5,000 for one project, one-time assessment, status report, and professional consultant readout.

    TrueProject is a software-as-a-service solution that provides unlimited user access and is licensed on an annual basis, dependent upon the number of active projects managed each month. For example, for an organization that uses TrueProject for up to twenty-five (25) active projects, their annual license would be $72,000. TrueProject is also licensed to service providers under our Delivered Services Opportunity (DSO) program, to use for managing their project implementations to their end-user clients for $750 per customer project per month.

    A TrueProject implementation follows a standard process of discovery, configuration, training, and roll-out. This typically occurs in less than 30 days for “out-of-the-box” configurations. However, in instances where custom configuration is desired, implementation can be performed in as little as 45-60 days based on the client’s requirements.

    TrueProject can be operated with just one system administrator for only a few hours per week once the solution is fully deployed and configured. The admin is responsible for managing the overall instance and ensuring all questions/concerns are answered within your organization. Project Managers can review a complete status of a project in only 2 hours per week and receive an equivalent amount of time savings per week in system-generated reporting. A typical project stakeholder only needs to spend a few minutes per week responding to assessments and reviewing reports.

    Configuration and product training services are included with your investment in TrueProject. For customizations, additional professional service hours may be purchased. Most organizations benefit from the PM training module to help project managers most effectively use TrueProject.

    Included with a TrueProject license is 90-day Virtual Project Office (VPO) service. The VPO service comes alongside of TrueProject to help with the analysis and interpretation of your reports and dashboards.

    If desired, the VPO service is available to purchase after the initial 90-day period. This is available as a professional service offering.

    VPO, or “Virtual Project Office,” is a service that ensures that the TrueProject system is administered appropriately. VPO helps the client interpret and understand the TrueProject outputs. VPO is included with the initial implementation of TrueProject. It can also be purchased on an ongoing basis. VPO provides administration of TrueProject, analysis of projects using TrueProject, weekly up to 2-hour presentation for management, Weekly up to 2-hour executive presentation, and support and guidance for top X projects. “X” depends on how many Active projects a client is licensed for.

    Each TrueProject Customer appoints a liaison. This liaison is the focal point for TrueProject support. Should they need to reach out to the TrueProject service and support personnel they can do so via e-mail or by calling our 7X24 manned service desk.

    TrueProject is licensed by number of active projects. This establishes the boundary of how many projects an organization is licensed to use. There are no bounds on the number of users a project can have. The license supports 25, 50, 100, or 200 projects. Organizations with over 200 concurrent projects can also be accommodated with a custom license. There is no technical boundary on number of projects or users.

    TrueProject is a SaaS solution hosted in the AWS cloud and your data is protected first through AWS’s built in security and firewalling. Encrypted data volumes and encrypted backups protect your data at rest. All data is protected behind the Virtual Private Cloud with internet-facing access limited to the TrueProject web application’s authenticated front-end and secured APIs.

    TrueProject’s Identity and Access Management (IAM) implementation utilizes OpenID Connect (OIDC) for authentication and authorization. All accesses are controlled via access tokens obtainable only for a properly authenticated user.

    If desired, multifactor authentication is also available in addition to a username and password, utilizing a Time-based One Time Password (TOTP). Configurable by any user, it works with Google Authentication, Free OTP, Microsoft Authenticator, and Duo Mobile.

    Data transmitted over the Internet to and from the browser is encrypted using the latest Transport Layer Security (TLS 1.3).

    TrueProject data are segmented so that each customer has access to only their own data. Only users in your organization will have access to your TrueProject instance.

    Included with the Implementation (SKU = TP-MPP-Implement) is “Pre-production Configuration services and product training.”
    This will equip the client with what they need to use and administer TrueProject. No other training necessary. No other cost involved.

    With the included VPO services for the first 90-days (SKU = TP-VPO-90 Days) we provided “Administration of TrueProject, analyze projects using TrueProject, weekly up to 2-hour presentation for management, Weekly up to 2-hour executive presentation, Support and guidance for top X projects”. “X” depends on how many Active projects license they purchased.
    This service ensures that the system is administered properly and we help the client interpret and understand the TrueProject outputs. No other cost involved.

    To get up and running there is no additional training needed other than what is included in the pricing configurator for those SKUs!

    We offer two additional, for-fee, courses aimed at educating Senior Managers and Project Managers. While the courses do touch on TrueProject, the focus is not on the tool usage, it is on what their roles are in running projects.

    Experience TrueProject (TrueProject HealthCheck)

    You may experience TrueProject for an actual live project with TrueProject HealthCheck for only $5,000. The TrueProject HealthCheck assessment allows clients to select one project, for a point in time assessment utilizing the TrueProject process and have up to 30 people participate in the project assessment. The project team will receive assessments to gather the necessary project data, and the client also gets a comprehensive report and a consulting session that includes recommended action items. A TrueProject HealthCheck pilot can typically be completed in just 10-days and requires zero training. A single TrueProject HealthCheck assessment can pay dividends of tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars of benefit.

    TrueProject HealthCheck is a TrueProject status discovery solution for a single project validated against best practices. The output is a detailed report and an expert consulting readout and review. TrueProject HealthCheck allows up to 30 project stakeholders to participate. The “snap-shot” in-time assessment for the selected project produces output, highlighting risks and trouble areas to avoid, as well as providing confidence prediction for your project.

    TrueProject HealthCheck provides you with a fast, independent analysis of any one project. It uncovers the underlying risk factors that have the potential to cause project failure. You need TrueProject HealthCheck to ensure your project is successful. There is no education required, and an organization can begin within minutes. TrueProject HealthCheck is typically used as a) a single or series of a single point-in-time assessments, or b) as a 10-to-14-day pilot for a full TrueProject deployment.

    You can register for TrueProject HealthCheck using a simple online form. Use the link www.trueprojectinsight.com to get started. It only takes a few minutes to register one of your projects.

    TrueProject HealthCheck provides you with a summary and detailed reports highlighting the underlying risks, early warning signs of failure, and pulse of the project team. In addition, the report identifies the factors with the potential to cause failure and includes consultant recommendations to mitigate/resolves those findings.

    TrueProject HealthCheck is -purchased on a per-project basis for $5,000 per project.

    TrueProject HealthCheck supports up to 30 participants for anyone project. The solution supports one project at a time; however, you may choose to purchase as many TrueProject HealthCheck assessments as you require. TrueProject HealthCheck bundles are available for purchase – contact us for details.

    The following is required to experience TrueProject HealthCheck:

    • Registration and acceptance of our clickwrap agreement
    • A selection of one of your projects
    • Up to thirty (30) participants to receive a digital assessment and up to 15 minutes of their time to complete the assessment
    • The identification of your personnel assigned to a list of participant “roles.”
    • One (1) hour of time from the project sponsor to spend in a TrueProject HealthCheck analysis readout session where our consultant will explain what the report has found and the recommendations derived from the report to improve your project success potential.

    As TrueProject HealthCheck is continuously operational, there is no install time or learning curve. Once registration is complete, the typical time to experience TrueProject HealthCheck is about 7-10 days. This includes promoting the assessment to your desired group, the assessment completion time, the compilation of the TrueProject HealthCheck report, and a one-hour consulting meeting to discuss the findings and recommendations.

    Yes, we will credit your purchase investment against your full Enterprise solution if TrueProject Enterprise is licensed within 60-days of the TrueProject HealthCheck report delivery.

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