Failures, Successes And Identifying Best Practices For Higher Success of IT Projects CHINOYEREM DEBORAH OKOROAFOR CHIMA W. ORIJI ELEAZAR CHIDIKE O KEREKE

IT Project Failure: Common reasons /causes for IT Project Failure IT Project Success: Examine IT Project Success from Perspectives Identifying Best Practices for IT Project Success: Identify the skills sets that must be explored in an effort to contribute to the progressive evolution of Project Management.

CHIMA ORIJI

Thousands of people have spent entire life-times pursuing project management as their career. Huge amounts of money have been pumped into handling and managing projects “the professional way” in order to avoid Project Management failure. Yet, at the end of the day, there is not much to report by way of success but failures. Surveys after surveys have beamed gloomy pictures about the way projects end up.

A study in Project failure by Dr. John Mcmanus and Dr. Trevor Wood-Harper Reports: Research highlights that only one in eight information technology projects can be considered truly successful (failure being described as those projects that do not meet the original time, cost and quality requirements criteria). Despite such failures, huge sums of money continue to be invested in information systems projects and written off. For example the cost of project failure across the European Union was €142 billion in 2004.

Failed IT Projects cost US companies an estimated $145 billion per year and these failures causes serious business problems. Consistently, since Standish Group began surveying companies for their project outcomes, the percentage of Project Management Failure has been on the high side.

THE CHAOS REPORT According to a 1995 Survey by Standish Group published in a study entitled “CHAOS”: 31.1% of projects were cancelled 52.7% of projects cost more than estimated budget. (189% of their original estimates) An average of only 16.2% of software projects was completed on-time and on-budget.

THE CHAOS REPORT Other Surveys by Standish Group report similar figures in failure of IT Projects such as: A 2001 Study by Standish Group Reports: Only 16% of all IT Projects as fully successful while the remaining 84% failed. The Standish Report therefore categorized Projects into 3 distinct outcomes referred to as Resolutions:

THE CHAOS REPORT Resolution Type 1-“Project Success”: Project was completed on-time and on-budget, with all features and functions as initially specified. Resolution Type 2-“Project Challenged”: The project was completed but operational cost more than estimated budget, over estimated time, and/or does not contained all features and functions that was originally specified. Resolution Type 3-“Project Cancelled/Failed”: The project was abandoned/cancelled due to Project Management Failure.

WHY IT PROJECTS FAIL Resolution type 2: Project Challenged Resolution type 3: Project Cancelled/Failed

The five major factors causing challenged projects are: Lack of User Input Incomplete Requirements & Specifications Changing Requirements & Specifications Lack of Executive Support Technical Incompetence

The five major factors causing cancelled projects are: Incomplete Requirements Lack of user involvement Lack of Resources Unrealistic Expectations Lack of Executive Support

CHIMA ORIJI

Lack of user involvement Organizational Structure/Lack of Executive Management Support Lack of clear vision Improper planning Unrealistic time scales/ expectations Lack of Resources Changing Requirements & Specifications Lack of Training Unable to Manage Team Unable to cope with Project size Poor Testing

Eleazar Chidike Okereke

How did the IT industry define project success? From Scott’s survey data: Schedule: 61.3 percent of respondents said that it is more important to deliver a system when it is ready to be shipped than to deliver it on time. Scope: 87.3 percent said that meeting the actual needs of stakeholders is more important than building the system to specification. Money: 79.6 percent said that providing the best return on investment (ROI) is more important than delivering a system under budget. Quality: 87.3 percent said that delivering high quality is more important than delivering on time and on budget. Staff: 75.8 percent said that having a healthy, both mentally and physically, workplace is more important than delivering on time and on budget.

In 1960s and 1970s IT Project success was usually limited to meeting: cost, schedule, and scope objectives

Later, both quality and stakeholder satisfaction was added

Planning for the Sydney Opera House began in the late 1940s It cost sixteen times as much to build It took four times as long to complete as the original estimates Completed in 1973 Was declared UNESCO World Heritage Site. People now have better understanding of what project management is all about

Was this project really a failure? Was declared UNESCO World Heritage Site. People now have better understanding of what project management is all about

32% of projects were successful, 44% were challenged, and 24% were considered failures

1.User Involvement 2.Executive Management Support 3.Clear Statement of Requirements 4.Proper Planning 5.Realistic Expectations

1. The project manager (2001 CHAOS report (The Standish Group International, 2001, p6) 1. Soft skills: 2. Technical Skills: 2. The project team (PMBOK Guide, 2004, p215). 1. Good Team 2. Skill and Competence 3. Good communication Channel 3. The project itself (Belassi & Tukel, 1996, p144). 1. size 2. Uniqueness

4. The organization (Tukel & Rom, 1998, p48) (CHAOS Report, 2001, p4) 1. Top Management Support 2. Benefits to the organization 5. The external environment (Belassi & Tukel, 1996, p145). 1. Political, Economic, Social Cultural and Technology (PEST)

Chinoyerem Deborah Okoroafor

Best practices are those strategies, activities, or approaches that have been shown through research and evaluation to be effective in a given discipline, area of study, or application. Organization Teams Individuals

Organizational practices Knowledge Management One way to provide others with experience known by the organization. can expect productivity of application development increases of 40%. Edification Educating stakeholders regarding aspect of project management. Corporate Policies and Governance All organizations need processes and procedures that provide guidance to individuals. However, it should be applied with common sense.

Motivation Motivation plays a key role in achieving team performance. Keeping team members motivated is one of the eleven key characteristics of high-performing teams. Motivation management helps connect employee motivation to performance and leverage the three keys (confidence, trust, and satisfaction) in a belief system model to build high-performing teams effectively and efficiently

Team Practices Team Processes: Front-end Planning Without planning and controls, the project will drag on. Integrating the definitive stakeholders from the beginning of the process allows for more time to identify a thorough outlook of the project interdependencies. Good Communications Ensuring that Stakeholders are provided updates at milestones and that their expectations are being managed is also critical for project success.

Individual Practices Personal Processes Personal processes are intrinsic behaviors and thought methodology of an individual. It is an individual's acknowledgement and recognition of the relationship that exists between personal values and values of the project.

If you lose with an IT project, do not lose the lesson. Not every IT failure can be labeled as a “failure”, especially if lessons can be learned and applied. User involvement is important. Require that users participate in design and implementation of your project Planning should involve the project stakeholders. Ensure that the IT project has clear objectives. Ensure and communicate regular about the progress, even if it seems invisible. Make sure you have the appropriate planning, communication, and technology skills.