Al Enzweiler’s Accumulated Lessons Learned

As One of Enzweiler’s Senior System Architects

10 of Al Enzweiler’s lessons learned accumulated from 1986 to 2023 collaborating with CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, business unit managers, project managers, planners, analysts, subject matter experts, professionals, tool specialists, configuration specialists, system development specialists, IT speciaists to complete an improved version of Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology.

1. Launch an Improved Digital Marketing Campaign

In 2023 Al Enzweiler published the website you are reading as an improved marketing campaign.

2. Stop Conducting Seminars to Market Enzweiler’s Services

By the early 2000s https://Enzweiler.com was putting a sufficient number of opportunities in the pipeline, that Al Enzweiler decided he could stop flying around the United States and Canada conducting the seminar Benchmarking World Class Systems.

3. Get an MBA Education

Collaborating with CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, and managers on their organization chart to complete the current version of Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology, Al Enzweiler learned collaborating as one member of an Architecture Team is the equivalent of collaborating to complete a case study used by business schools to educate MBAs.

One day in 1999 Al Enzweiler was pleasantly surprised to discover Harvard’s Business School had published a case study on how Cisco Systems had engaged a big consulting firm and incurred a big consulting fee to implement an ERP System. An ERP System which had been architected and developed by an IT supplier was configured, demonstrated, implemented, and used;

To maintain a bill-of-materials database used by materials requirement planning (MRP) models

As an integral part of a State-of-the-Art Financial System to publish audited financial statements required to report quarterly earnings

The case study documented lessons learned by a consulting firm completing the last client’s engagement, which could be used to improve the firm’s methodology used to start the next client’s engagement.

Cisco Systems.: Implementing ERP Harvard Business School 9-699-022 September 24, 1999

4. Conduct Benchmarking World Class Systems Seminars

After architecting the first client’s Targets Systems, Al Enzweiler started conducting the seminar Benchmarking World Class Systems to market the current version of Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology.

5. Eureka Targets System!

During an Architecture Team’s collaborations to decide managers will set and manage to hit metric targets to deliver quality manufactured products to customers on-time as promised using supply chain systems,  Al Enzweiler had one of those “eureka” moments when Rick Savitz said,

“We are setting metric targets for managers responsible for fulfilling customer demand and for managers responsible for marketing, advertising, and selling products to increase customer demand, because metric targets which get set will get hit to hit top line targets on Income Statements.”

Next client’s engagement started with members of an Architecture Team collaborating with one of Enzweiler’s Senior System Architects to decide metric targets will be set and hit, to consistently make contributions to hitting top line targets on Income Statement(s).

Enzweiler does not publish client’s names, but Rick Savitz, CFO of Justin Boot Company agreed to have his interview published in an educational video. The educational video was published in 1998 by the Computer Channel and featured Al Enzweiler marketing the 1998 version of Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology.

6. Continually Improve Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology

As one of Enzweiler’s Senior System Architects no longer responsible for managing and mentoring System Architects to become a Senior System Architect, Al Enzweiler discovered he could use the lessons learned completing the last client’s engagement to make improvements to Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology used by one of Enzweiler’s Senior System Architects to start the next client’s engagement.

7. Grow Enzweiler Group to Become Enzweiler

The 1.0 release of ERP Systems created more demand for completing Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology, than could be fulfilled by one of Enzweiler’s Senior System Architects.  Al Enzweiler decided it was time to realize his vision of managing a big consulting firm. Using an angel investor’s capital, he started recruiting, managing, and mentoring System Architects in completing Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology.

Fortunately, it did take long to learn a lesson the hard way. A methodology which starts with one of the firm’s Senior System Architects collaborating to complete an Initial Investigation over a short duration and before consulting fees are incurred, is in a client’s best interest but is not a good methodology for growing a consulting firm.

Although he had failed to realize his vision Al Enzweiler was not discouraged. He had learned that he enjoyed collaborating with CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, and managers on their organization charts as members of Architecture Teams more than he enjoyed managing and mentoring System Architects.

He changed the firm’s name from Enzweiler Group to Enzweiler, changed his vision from being a big consulting firm to being the #1 consulting firm doing business in the United States and Canada, and continued to be one of Enzweiler’s Senior System Architects.

8.  Use an ERP  System to Maintain Databases and as an Integral Part of State-of-the-Art Financial System(s)

In the early 1990s a few IT suppliers raised the capital required to architect and develop ERP Systems. Architected and developed ERP Systems were sold to customers to hit fat margin top line targets on Income Statements. Customers configured, demonstrated, implemented, and used ERP Systems to maintain bill-of-materials databases, maintain other databases used by Supply Chain Systems and used as an integral part of a State-of-the-Art Financial System.

After the 1.0 release of ERP Systems in the United States and Canada, Al Enzweiler started offering sage advice, making recommendations, explaining and answer questions using facts which can be easily validated on how clients had configured, demonstrated, implemented, and were using an ERP System to maintain bill-of-materials databases, to maintain other databases used by Supply Chain Systems and as an integral part of a State-of-the-Art Financial System

9. Conduct Planning a State-of-the-Art Financial System Seminars

When founded Enzweiler Group’s marketing campaign was Al Enzweiler publishing articles, speaking at conferences, and referrals from customers and clients who had used his services when he was one of Information Science’s senior managers and one of Touché Ross & Co.’s Senior System Architects.

Then one day Al Enzweiler read an ad in Inc. magazine soliciting proposals to conduct seminars for the Executive Education business units of universities’ business schools. He submitted a proposal to conduct a seminar titled, Planning a State-of-the-Art Financial System.

Boston University became the first university to sponsor the seminar. Within two years, more than twenty universities in the United States and Canada were marketing Al Enzweiler as a seminar leader responsible for collaborating with seminar participants to complete the seminar Planning a State-of-the-Art Financial System.

10. Found Enzweiler Group as a Consulting Firm With the Integrity to Propose Starting Engagements With of  the Firm’s Senior System Architects

Al Enzweiler founded Enzweiler Group in 1986 as a consulting firm with integrity to propose starting client’s engagements with one of the firm’s Senior System Architects who could complete an Initial Investigation over a short duration and before consulting fees are incurred.

One of the firm’s Senior System Architects was responsible for offering; sage advice, making recommendations, explaining, and answering questions using facts which can easily validated on how clients were;

Setting and managing to hit metric targets for delivering quality products and/or services to customers on-time as promised to consistently make contributions to hitting top line targets on Income Statements, using Supply Chain Systems.

Realizing productivity gains using a State-of-the-Art Financial System to publish their enterprise’s audited financial statements required to report quarterly earnings.

During collaboration with CEOs, and/or CFOs, and/or CIOs as initial members of the next client’s Architecture Team.

Al Enzweiler’s vision was to grow Enzweiler Group to be a big consulting firm.  His strategy for growing Enzweiler Group to be a big consulting firm was Al Enzweiler will be one of the firm’s Senior System Architects until opportunities in the pipeline to complete Enzweiler’s Architecture Team Methodology are greater than could be fulfilled by one of the firm’s Senior System Architects.

Before Founding Enzweiler

9 of Al Enzweiler’s lessons learned accumulated from 1967 to 1986 collaborating with CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, business unit managers, project managers, planners, analysts, subject matter experts, professionals, tool specialists, configuration specialists, system development specialists, IT speciaists.

1. Hitting Fat Marging Top Line Targets on an IT Supplier’s Income Statement

When Al Enzweiler joined Information Science he had experience architecting and managing to develop Human Capital Management Systems but he did not have any experience selling a Human Capital Management System. Other members of Information Science’s senior management team had more than 20 years’ experience selling a Human Capital Management System. The advice they gave Al Enzweiler was to use demonstrations to sell a Human Capital Management System which had been architected and developed by an IT supplier to be configured, demonstrated, implemented, and used by customers.

The advice was spot on. When Al Enzweiler managed planners, analysts, tool specialists and configuration specialists to demonstrate to prospective customers;

Managers could set and manage to hit metric targets for managing human resources using databases maintained by using a Human Capital Management System.

Human Resource, Benefit Administration and Payroll business units could realize productivity gains by collaborating to use a Human Capital Management System.

Human Capital Management System could be used as an integral part of a State-of-the-Art Financial System

A prospective customer’s documented requirements could be satisfied.

Contracts got signed to sell a Human Capital Management System.

His margins were so fat selling a Human Capital Management System as a licensed software product, Al Enzweiler did not want to assign any of his planners, analysts, tool specialists, and configuration specialists to the thin margin implementation services business. To get a customer to sign a contract, Al Enzweiler agreed a short duration implementation requiring a small budget would start with user acceptance testing (UAT) of what was demonstrated.

2. Complete Initial Investigations for a Big CPA Firm

When Al Enzweiler started at Touché Ross & Co. as a greenie System Architect in the consulting business unit, he was informed that getting an MBA was a requirement to be hired. If he did not want to be cut at the end of the first year, he needed to demonstrate he could use the firm’s accumulated lessons learned to complete an Initial Investigation.

One of the firm’s Senior System Architects used the firm’s accumulation lessons learned to; offer sage advice, make recommendations, explain, and answer questions using facts which can be easily validated on how clients were realizing productivity gains using a State-of-the-Art Financial System to publish their enterprise’s audited financial statements required to report quarterly earnings.

When he was promoted to be one of the firm’s Senior System Architects, Al Enzweiler put this quote from Managing the System Development Process into every proposal he submitted to a prospective client.

“Initial investigations are usually short – taking perhaps a few days, or at most, a few weeks, to complete. The steering committee reviews the results and decides whether the project should proceed to the Feasibility Study. Members of the committee must have a broad understanding of the company to be able to weed out inappropriate requests at an early stage. Terminating a project at the initial investigation stage obviously minimizes the expenditure of corporate resources.”

Quote is on Page 51 of “Managing the System Development Process” published by Touché Ross & Co in 1980. In 1980 Touché Ross & Co. was one of the Big 8 firms. In 1989 Touché Ross & Co. merged with Deloitte Haskins & Sells to become Deloitte, one of the Big 4 firms.

3. Get an MBA Education

While collaborating as one member of Holiday Inn’s Architecture Team to architect a State-of-the-Art Financial System, Al Enzweiler received an MBA degree from the University of Memphis.

4. Architect Holiday Inns’ State-of-the-Art Financial System

Holidex was so successful, the new CFO decided Holiday Inns would staff an Architecture Team. Holiday Inn’s Architecture Team would be responsible for using BSP to architect a State-of-the-Art Financial System to be developed and used by Holiday Inns. An Arthur Andersen Senior System Architect was hired to manage Holiday Inn’s Architecture Team. Al Enzweiler was promoted to be a System Architect on Holiday Inns’ Architecture Team.

As one member of Holiday Inns’ Architecture Team Al Enzweiler was responsible for architecting a State-of-the-Art Financial System. The architected State-of-the-Art Financial System was developed, configured, implemented, and used by human resources staffing business units on the organization charts of the more than 30 enterprises owned by Holiday Inns to realize productivity gains;

Transacting their enterprise’s business with customers and suppliers in multiple currencies

Compensating their enterprise’s human resources who are employed and/or under contract

Complying with taxations and regulations in multiple countries

Publishing their enterprise’s financial statements

At Holiday Inn’s headquarters in Memphis a financial business unit, managed by the CFO, realized productivity gains publishing consolidated, audited financial statements required to report quarterly earnings.

After the State-of-the-Art Financial System went live on-time to be within a big system development budget, Arthur Andersen attested Holiday Inns’ published consolidated financial statements complied with GAAP and FASB 1.

5. Digitally Transform the Hospitality Industry

In the early 1970s Holiday Inns and IBM collaborated to use IBM’s Business System Planning (BSP) system development methodology to architect, manage to develop and use Holidex.

Holidex was a leading-edge reservation system which digitally transformed the hospitality industry by maintaining a database of rooms available to be reserved and maintaining a database of rooms sold to customers. The database of historical customer demand was analyzed by an Analyst to discover data correlations.

Discovered data correlations were used by a System Architect to architect customer demand forecasting models. Architected customer demand forecasting models were developed, demonstrated and used by planners to continually improve at forecasting customer demand for rooms at Holiday Inns.

Price elasticity models were architected by a System Architect. Architected models were developed, demonstrated and used by planners to continually improve at raising the price of rooms when forecasted customer demand was greater than rooms available to be reserved and lowering the price of rooms when forecasted customer demand was less than rooms available to be reserved.

In the podcast Birthing Hampton Inns published by No Vacancy, Ray Schultz the IBM Account Manager who used BSP to develop Holidex recounts how Kemmons Wilson, the founder of Holiday Inns, told him before Holidex he had to sell Holiday Inn franchises, after Holidex he took orders for franchises.

6. Manage to Deliver Quality Products to Customers On Time Using a Supply Chain System

Al Enzweiler started his professional career as the Controller of InnKeepers’ Supply – Atlanta, an enterprise owned by Holiday Inns. After being blamed by the CEO for a large inventory write off, Al Enzweiler managed a project to implement the supply chain system being used by InnKeepers’ Supply – Memphis to be used by InnKeepers’ Supply – Atlanta

The supply chain system went live on time to be with budget being used by managers to set and manage to hit their metric target for delivering quality products sourced from thousands of suppliers to customers on-time as promised.

Managers consistently make their contributions to hitting top line targets on InnKeepers’ Supply – Atlanta’s Income Statement using a Supply Chain System.

7. On the Beach as a United States Marine

During his senior year at Eastern Michigan University, Al Enzweiler received a low number in the first draft lottery. He decided the best was to start his “professional career” and to fulfill his obligation to serve his country was to join the Marine Corps reserve unit in his hometown of Tampa Bay, Florida.

Over 6 months, he graduated Parris Island a Marine and graduated Camp Pendleton a Marine responsible for landing amphibious tractors on the beach one weekend each month and two weeks each summer.

8. Get a BBA Education

While working as a Data Processing specialist for National Bank & Trust, Al Enzweiler received a BBA degree from Eastern Michigan University.

9. Start a Long Career

Al Enzweiler started his career as a Data Processing Specialists for National Bank & Trust Co., in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Credentials

One of a Big CPA Firm’s CPAs

When Al Enzweiler joined Touché Ross & Co. in 1975 as a greenie System Architect with an MBA and experience architecting Holiday Inns’ State-of-the-Art Financial System, being a CPA was a requirement to be promoted to be one the firm’s partners. He passed the CPA exam and became one of big CPA’s firm’s Senior System Architects and CPAs.

During the years he was one of a Big CPA firm’s Senior System Architects, Al Enzweiler was responsible for completing Initial Investigations over a short duration and before consulting fees are incurred by using the firm’s accumulated lessons learned to offer sage advice, make recommendations, explain, answer questions using facts which can be easily validated on how clients were using State-of-the-Art Financial Systems to realize productivity gains publishing their enterprise’s audited financial statements required to report quarterly earnings.

During the years he was one of a Big CPA firm’s CPAs, Al Enzweiler was not responsible for managing audits to attest a client’s published financial statements complied with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and SEC regulations.