Migration - MS Project to Smartsheet

Industry

Clinical Research

Company Size

2000 Employees

Customer Profile

Global contract research organization (CRO) delivering clinical development services for biotech, pharmaceutical, and medical device companies. The organization focuses on operational excellence and regulatory compliance to manage complex clinical trials efficiently and reliably.

Business Situation

Global PMO Partners supported a leading CRO in modernizing their projectmanagement approach. The organization faced challenges with Microsoft Project: sharing was cumbersome, adoption was low, and plans quickly became outdated. Additionally, the tool lacked portfolio management, reporting and dashboard capabilities, and automation features, limiting visibility and slowing decision-making across projects.

Problem

A leading CRO struggled with project management inefficiencies due to reliance on Microsoft Project. Low adoption and cumbersome sharing processes caused project plans to become outdated quickly, limiting transparency and slowing decision-making.

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Key pain points included:

Poor collaboration and low user adoption of Microsoft Project.
Outdated project plans due to lack of real-time updates.
No portfolio management capabilities for overseeing multiple projects.
Limited reporting and dashboard functionality for leadership visibility.
Lack of automation, requiring manual updates and repetitive tasks.

Solution

Smartsheet Implementation: Built simplified, user-friendly project plans, dashboards, and portfolio-level reporting to improve visibility, tracking, and decision-making.
Change Management: Executed a comprehensive change management plan including migration and validation of data from Microsoft Project, user training, documentation, office hours, risk management, and resistance mitigation.
Continuous Improvement: Identified additional issues during implementation—such as gaps in subject matter knowledge and inaccurate data—and implemented corrective actions to address them, ensuring higher data quality and process maturity.

Results

High adoption of Smartsheet across project teams, replacing Microsoft Project.
Portfolio-level reporting provided leadership with clear visibility across all projects.
Improved customer satisfaction through more accurate, up-to-date project timelines and deliverables, enabling better planning and communication with sponsors.
Strengthened change management ensured smooth transition and sustained usage.