Lecture 15 Chapter 8 Managing IT Project Delivery

2 Announcements Business Case Returned last week. Grades out of 50: Upper quartile: 44 Median: 40.5 Lower quartile: 37 Optional draft team business analysis this Thursday Some info on final exam today

Themes for chapter 8 1.Understand possible sources of IT project risk and how these can be managed 2.Recognize different approaches to project execution and understand their relatives merits 3.Understand the value of both consistency and agility in project management 3

What is an IT Project? Clear beginning and end Can be any size or complexity level Managed by a project manager 4

Why are IT projects difficult to manage? Some things are easy to get wrong… Amount of change involved Time required Misunderstanding of requirements 5

Major sources of implementation risk 1.Project size 2.Experience with the technology 3.Requirements volatility 6

Effects of Additional Risk Factors (Large Size, High Technology, High Requirements Volatility) on Project Risk

8 Project Implementation Dip Most projects don’t go smoothly all the way New system going live common point Expectations not always realistic Short term downward shift may be necessary All happens in middle of business cycle and worker turnover Need to focus on end goal to get through value of change when people are complaining Ideally see it before it comes and get people ready

What People Expect and What Often Happens at System Cutover

What would you do as PM? 10

11 Portfolio Risk Multiple projects can add or reduce risk Low-risk not always good All high-risk is vulnerable Identify risks in all projects, then consider combined portfolio of risks

12 Portfolio risk

13 Governance

14 Project Categories and Degree of Risk

15 Risk Assessment Risk profile questionnaire Higher risk score, higher management approval required Repeated several times throughout project Different perspectives on risk expectation can lead to disaster

16 Risk and Return Distribution for Portfolio of Projects

Development Methodologies A development methodology is a sequence of phases that a project will follow. Analysis and design Construction Implementation Operation and maintenance 17

Adaptive Methodologies Adaptive methodologies often focus on prototyping and rapidly going through the normal development phases several times Iterative – design, construct, implement on each iteration Fast cycles Early delivery of limited functionality Require skilled management to quickly change plans Analysis of value such as ROI becomes difficult 18

19 Project Management No single correct plan Management Tools –External integration tools –Internal integration tools –Formal planning tools –Formal result controls See table 10.1: Tools for project management

20 Tools for Project Management

21 Influences on Tool Selection Low requirements volatility/low tech projects –Easy to manage –Least common –PERT (program evaluation review technique) –CPM (critical path method) Low requirements volatility/high tech projects –Difficult to manage –Eg. Converting mainframe system, developing web access –Outputs well defined –Technical complexity drives characteristics of successful manager –Formal planning not likely to add as much value

22 Influences on Tool Selection (ctd) High requirements volatility/low tech projects –Involve users in design, development and implementation –Develop user support –Formal planning and control tools help –Close, aggressive management of external integration –Leadership from management not technologists High Requirements Volatility/high-tech projects –Managers need technical expertise –Ill-defined projects common –Formal tools useful once clarity is reached in direction –Cross effects of different factors becomes important

23 Project Management Relative Contribution of Management Tools –Depends on specific project –Results-oriented tools work in structured/formal environment –Depends on corporate culture Emergence of Adaptive Project Management Methods –Approaches to design, deployment, implementation and investment that assume a need to gather information and learn as one goes. –Not really effective universal methods yet Software Development Life Cycles –SDLC breaks down development into stages: –Analysis and design –Construction –Implementation –Operation and maintenance

24 Project Management (ctd.) Adaptive Methodologies –Quickly build rough preliminary version –Iterate through stages rather than finish every stage –Fast cycle through stages –Aim to deliver limited functionality fast –Require skilled staff Adaptive Methods and change management –Intensely involve users in evaluating outcomes –Strictly control migration of system features from development, testing to production –Separating stages avoids major problems

25 Process Consistency and Agility in Project Management Balancing tension between process consistency and process agility Tools useful one place shouldn’t necessarily be applied to everything Success in balance often includes minimal formalization Flow –Understand interrelationships between projects Completeness –Keeping track of all tasks in project Visibility –Getting info on status of rest of project

Final exam The final exam will be on Thursday, June 14 at 8am – 11am. There are three sections: 1. Short answers (~25%) 2. Long answers (~25%) 3. Case study (~50%) The exam is closed book, and designed to test your understanding of concepts from class 26

Preparing for the final exam Review the text book and class notes, including cases –What are the main messages in each chapter? –What are the main lessons from each case? Focus on understanding the content rather than memorizing details –Figures are helpful Questions will come more from my slides than from the textbook –If a topic wasn’t covered in class it won’t be in the exam –The textbook helps explain concepts in more detail 27

28 Final Exam Sample Questions Short answer: What is the difference between security and reliability? What is virtual integration and which company did we study who specializes in it? Give three advantages a startup company has over an established company in information technology strategy

29 Final Exam Sample Questions Long answer (~250 words) Your business has just decided to outsource part of their IT for the first time. What are some of the most important things you should know about negotiating and managing the outsourcing contract?

30 Case study questions Questions will be short and long answer from the case Identify and analyze core issues, in a similar way to how we have discussed cases in class