Applying Project Management Practices to Continuously Improve the Chance of IT Project Success Charlie C. Chen, Ph.D., PMP Dept. of Computer Information Systems Appalachian State University

Agenda  Major reasons of information technology (IT) project failure  Five biggest challenges for IT PM in 2006  Applying project management (PM) practices to continuously improve the chance of IT project success  Scope, Time, Cost, Quality, Human Resources, Communications, Risk and Procurement  PM vs. CMMI  Conclusion  Q&A

74% of IS projects cannot deliver the promised functionality on time and on budget. (Keil and Robey, 2001) 74% of IS projects cannot deliver the promised functionality on time and on budget. (Keil and Robey, 2001)

More projects fail on time, on budget, within scope, or with quality!

Why Most IT Projects Failed?  Poorly defined goals, lack of project plan, unrealistic deadlines and budgets, and invisible product (the software being developed) and the project (the development process) (Jurison, 1999)  Ineffective communication among multiple interdependent parties (Smith and McKeen, 1992)  Poor user participation (Barki and Hartwick, 1989)  Delayed risk and conflict resolutions (Robey, Farrow and Franz, 1989)  Creeping requirements due to internal and external environmental changes  Requirements uncertainty (Davis, 1982)  Requirements instability and diversity (Zmud, 1980)  Poor measures of project performance  Efficiency, effectiveness and timeliness (Henderson and Lee, 1992)

Software developers are lack of knowledge of valuable PM practices, and capability to implement them. Source: Crawford, 2005

PM as Five Interactive Process Source: Modified from PMBOK 3 rd Edition

Software Project Phases  Source: Jurison, 1999

Essential PM Skills of IT Project Teams Source: Modified from PMBOK 3 rd Edition

PM Body of Knowledge Source: Modified from PMBOK 3 rd Edition

Five biggest challenges for IT PM in Global Teams 2. Moving Parts 3. Development 4. Vendor Partners 5. Project Portfolios Source: ComputerWorld (Brandel 2006)

Applying PM Skills to Solve IT Project Problems: Global Teams  Problems  24/7 is a scheduling problem  Local nomenclature (including language differences) is a communication problem  High turnover rate (25-30%) is a human resource problem  Low knowledge transfer effectiveness is another communication problem  PM Solutions  Time management  Communication management  Human resource management

Applying PM Skills to Solve IT Project Problems: Moving Parts  Problems  Multifaceted leads to creeping requirements  Multiyear leads to scheduling, budgeting and requirements uncertainty  Large-scale projects lead to coordination and communication difficulty  PM Solutions  Scope management  Time management  Cost management  Risk management  Communication management

Applying PM Skills to Solve IT Project Problems: Development  Problems  Agile development techniques (e.g. RAD) entice projects with higher risks and poor quality  Geographical distance creates delayed feedback  Value compliance  PM Solutions  Scope management  Time management  Quality management  Communication management  Risk management

Applying PM Skills to Solve IT Project Problems: Vendor Partners  Problems  Outsourcing increases risks  Responsibilities cannot be outsourced  Outsourcing creates integration problems  PM Solutions  Procurement management  Integration management  Risks management

Applying PM Skills to Solve IT Project Problems: Project Portfolios  Problems  Estimate to please  Subjective and immeasurable objectives  Misalignment between strategic goals and project goals  PM Solutions  Cost management  Risk management  Integration management  Communication management

CMMI vs. PM  Objectives of PM  The application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements  Process perspective  Initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, closing  Knowledge areas  Integration, scope, time, cost, quality, HR, communications, risk, procurement management  Objectives of CMMI  Establish controls of software development processes, and to measure and track their effectiveness.  Continuous representation  Select the order of improvement to meet organizational objectives  Staged representation  Provide a proven sequence of improvements Source: Crissis, Konrad, and Shrum (2003)

Commonalities between CMMI & PM  Integrated Project Management (ML 3)  Integrated Supplier Management (ML 3)  Integrated Team (ML 3)  Project Monitoring and Control (ML 2)  Project Planning (ML 2)  Quantitative Project Management (ML 4)  Risk Management (ML 3)  Supplier Agreement Management (ML 4) Source: Chrissis et al. 2003, p.86

Conclusion  IT projects are constantly susceptible to internal and external changes to business environment  PM practices can be viewed from process and knowledge perspectives  PM and CMMI have many commonalities.  Applying PM skills, tools and techniques to manage IT projects can enhance the chance of success  On time, on budget, within scope, and with quality

References (1)  Barki, H., and Hartwick, J. (1989). Rethinking the Concept of User Involvement. MIS Quarterly, 13(1),  Brandel, M. (January 02, 2006). What's Next in 2006: Project Management. Retrieved June 25, 2006, from =viewArticleBasic&articleId= =viewArticleBasic&articleId=  Crawford, J. (2006). Practicing What We Preach: Understanding Inhibitors to the Faithful Use of Project Management Practices. Retrieved June 20, 2006, from e=Crawford&FName=Crawford  Crissis, M. B., Konrad, M., and Shrum, S. (2003). CMMI: Guidelines for Process Integration and Product Improvement. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.  Davis, G. B. (1982). Strategies For Information Requirements Determination. IBM Systems Journal, 21(1), 3-30.

References (2)  Henderson, J. C., and Lee, S. (1992). Managing I/S Design Teams: A Control Theories Perspective. Management Science, 38(6),  Jurison, J. (1999). Software Project Management. Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 2(17),  Keil, M., and Robey, D. (2001). Blowing the Whistle on Troubled Software Project. Communications of the ACM, 44(4),  Robey, D., Farrow, D. L., and Franz, C. R. (1989). Group Process and Conflict in System Development. Management Science, 35(10),  Smith, H. A., and McKeen, J. D. (1992). Computerization and Management: A Study of Conflict and Change. Information & Management,, 22(1),  Zmud, R. W. (1980). Management of Large Software Development Efforts. MIS Quarterly, 4(2),

Thank you! Charlie C. Chen, Ph.D., PMP Dept. of Computer Information Systems Appalachian State University