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Dekker, Ltd. Announces Release of Dekker Traction™ Performance and Risk Management Software at Annual PPM Forum

SAN DIEGO, CA, May 31 – Dekker, Ltd. officially released its new software tool Dekker Traction™ – which tracks risk items, key performance indicators, and project stakeholders – at the annual Dekker Project Portfolio Management (PPM) Forum™, held from May 21-26, 2006, at Humphrey’s Half Moon Inn and Suites. Simon Dekker, CEO, and President of Dekker, Ltd., announced the release during the general session of the PPM Forum.

“Goals and objectives should support the organization, including the mitigation of risks,” stated Dekker as he highlighted the key benefits that Traction provides to an organization. “Traction allows you to spot risks early on, which gives you more time to decide whether to retain, reduce, transfer, or avoid the risk before it becomes a liability.”

Dekker said Traction is able to serve as a risk officer’s watchdog over strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, trends, and threats (SWOTT). He explained that the software is capable of tracking risks through all four phases of a project or program – defining, planning, executing, and delivering – across the five sectors affected by risk (administrative, operational, schedule, capacity, and financial). This omniscient overview gives project managers better strategic control over revenue, resources, and information.

By standardizing an organization’s formal information, such as contacts and their relevant attributes, Traction facilitates communication to and from all project stakeholders at any stage of the risk management process, from establishing risk contexts to the review and evaluation of implemented risk management plans. Traction’s key feature is that it enables users to generate action requests that are delivered by Microsoft® Outlook or Lotus® Notes. Action requests are created in triplicate to ensure accountability: a copy for the sender; one for the receiver; and one on file. The action requests contain information concerning the requested action, its priority level, who is requesting the action, who is responsible for the action, how long the action should take, and its desired outcome.

Traction’s benefits are fully optimized when combined with Dekker, Ltd.’s flagship project management software product, Dekker TRAKKER®. This combination makes possible the further contextualization of risks and performance indicators within an organization’s projects and programs, and their respective schedules and budgets. Additionally, integrating Traction with Dekker iPursuit® allows users to track risk items and performance via digital dashboards.

The Traction unveiling underscored the Forum’s overall theme of “Coping With Unforeseen Project Management Risk.” Former Indy racecar driver and businesswoman Lyn St. James delivered the keynote address, which focused on her ability to manage risk and attain her goals in a traditionally male-dominated sport. St. James described the importance of communication in reducing the risks associated with auto racing, and said that even the most experienced drivers will sometimes fail to qualify for the Indy 500 if his or her team isn’t communicating properly.

“People tend not to focus on the human factor,” explained St. James. “As a default, whenever there is a team failure, technology is sometimes blamed before human elements. This is a poor strategy.” St. James went on to say that instead, organizations should track and communicate risks as early and as empirically as possible. Simon Dekker emphasized St. James’ remarks, saying that Traction enables the human elements on a project team to communicate more efficiently and transparently through technology that is easy to use.

Other speakers at the Forum’s general session included John Duvall, Project Manager and EVMS Lead on an Air Force contract at Arnold Air Force Base, Richard Chipman, Vice President in SAIC’s Office of Corporate Engineering and Technology, and Steve Volandt, a senior consultant for the Department of Defense.

Volandt agreed that Traction would be beneficial in maintaining a governance framework to corral and organize disparate entities at the enterprise level of any organization. “Information needs to be discoverable, understandable, and authoritative,” said Volandt.

Beyond the general session, the remaining days of the PPM Forum were filled with training sessions focused both on the use of Dekker, Ltd. products and advanced project management techniques. These training courses earned the attendees valuable Project Management Institute (PMI) Certified Professional Development Units (PDUs).

Attendees also formed business relationships at numerous networking events. Dekker, Ltd. hosted several evening functions at the Silver Gate Yacht Club, including a magic show and catered hors d’oeuvres and dinners, as well as a poolside reception at Humphrey’s with an opportunity for attendees to have photos taken with a full-grown cougar and a tiger cub, symbols of Dekker, Ltd. products Traction and iPursuit, respectively.

For additional information on Dekker Traction™ and other project management solutions offered by Dekker, Ltd., call 1-800-4-DEKKER, or visit www.DekkerLtd.com.

ABOUT DEKKER, LTD.
Dekker, Ltd., based in Ontario, California, is a software, training, and consulting company specializing in project management solutions since 1984. Dekker has been a leading provider of Enterprise Project Management, Project Portfolio Management, and Earned Value Management solutions. Dekker provides commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software to commercial enterprises, government contractors, and government and civilian agencies to help build and maintain the discipline of an integrated project management process. The Dekker suite of project management tools provide maximum profitability and return on investment, while enabling organizations to easily meet the requirements of regulatory standards such as Sarbanes-Oxley, ANSI/EIA Standard 748-98A, and the Office of Management and Budget’s Exhibit 300 reporting requirements.