Sim it project mgm gb.doc
-
Upload
tyas-setyo -
Category
Documents
-
view
223 -
download
0
Transcript of Sim it project mgm gb.doc
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 1/23
MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM
RESUME CHAPTER 11:
IT PROJECT MANAGEMENT
GROUP 8
Atika Windi Virgiana F1!1"#18$
%intang A&' (inanti F1!1"#)*$
T&a+ S,t&- Harini F1!1"#8)$
FACU%TY OF ECONOMICS AN. /USINESS
SE/E%AS MARET UNIVERSITY
0#1)
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 2/23
IT PROJECT MANAGEMENT
It management requires not only knowledge of system development methodologies such
as SDLC, prototyping, "agile" approaches and purchasing life cycle but also "best practices" for
managing proects! he #roect $anagement Institute %#$I&, an international society of proect
management professionals established in '()(, has developed a globally recogni*ed standard for
managing proects! here are nine knowledge areas certified by the #$I+
#roect scope #roect time #roect cost
uman resources -uality management .isk management
#roect communications #rocurement #roect integration
/ proect is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service! It
typically is a one time initiative that can be divided into related activities that require
coordination and control, with a definite beginning and ending!
#roect management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to a
broad range of activities in order to meet the requirements of a particular proect!
/ #rogram $anagement 0ffice %#$0& is an organi*ational unit with full time personnel
to provide a full range of standard approaches to proect management support and services that
are utili*ed across proect, lessons learned from each proect are collected from post proect
reviews and shared across proect managers!
IT PORTFO%IO MANAGEMENT
I portfolio management is typically the responsibility of a committee of senior business
leaders and I leaders who approve and prioriti*e I proect requests for an entire organi*ation
and then monitor progress on approved I proects until they are completed! /n organi*ation1s I
portfolio usually includes investments in new I applications as well as I infrastructure
investments %i!e!, networks, servers, storage equipment, data warehouses& to support these
applications! 2ew I proect requests are typicallu submitted using an organi*ation specific
template for a business case that captures the e3pected business benefits and both the initial
resources costs for maintaining the new system! /s part of the system prioriti*ation process, an
evaluative categori*ation scheme for all proects of a certain si*e is typically applied! 0ne such
scheme, would categori*e proects into four buckets+
• /bsolute $ust! / mandate due to security, legal, regulatory, or end of life cycle I issues!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 3/23
• ighly Desire45usiness Critical! Include short term proects with good financial returns
and portions of very large proects already in progress!
• 6anted! 7aluable, but with longer time periods for returns on investment %more than a '8
month period&!
• 2ice to ave! #roects with good returns but with lower potential business value!
In most organi*ations proects in the top two categories would most likely be funded for the
budget year in which they were submitted!
PROJECT MANAGEMENT RO%ES
9very I proect will have at least one formal I proect manager and one proect
sponsor! In addition to these two formal roles, many I proects also need a proect "champion"!
'! #roect $anager
/ systems proect is typically led by an I proect manger who has demonstrated
both technical and managerial skills! his manager is responsible for managing
relationships with the proect sponsor and other stakeholders, as well as initiating,
planning, e3ecuting, controlling, and closing a proect! he choice of the proect manager
depends not only on the degree to which the application proect will impact a specific
business unit or division but also on the degree to which the proect requires technical
e3pertise, both internal and e3ternal! he proect manager1s responsibilities in general are
to plan and e3ecute the proect, including controlling for proect risks and ensuring that
necessary business changes have been implemented! his requires several different types
of skills, including team management skills +
Leadership Skills+ Sets e3ample, energetic, vision, delegates, positive attitude!0rgani*ational Skills+ #lanning, goal:setting, analy*ing!
Communication Skills+ Listening, persuading!
eam:5uilding Skills+ 9mpathy, motivation, esprit de corps!
Coping Skills+ ;le3ibility, creativity, patience, persistence!
8! #roect Sponsor and Champion .oles
he proect sponsor role is typically played by a business manager who
financially "owns" the proect %i!e!, the person who "writes the check" for the proect&!
he sponsor oversees in the development of the initial proect proposal, including an
assessment of the feasibility of the proect! he sponsor also argues for the approval of
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 4/23
the systems proect before the committee members responsible for new system proect
approvals! 0nce the systems proect has been initiated, the proect sponsor provides the
funds for the proect and continues to play an oversight role during the life of the proect!
he sponsor also typically takes responsibility for ensuring that the most appropriate
business managers and other users are assigned to the proect team and that these proect
team members are empowered to make decisions for the business units they represent! In
addition, the sponsor is often relied on to ensure business personnel who are not formal
team members are made available as needed at certain points in the proect, such as
providing information about current work processes or procedures in the Definition
phase, evaluating screen designs from a user perspective early in a Construction phase,
performing system tests at the end of a Construction phase, or training other users during
an Implementation phase! 0nce the system proect has been completed, the sponsor
should also be held accountable for ensuring that the proected system benefits are
achieved after the system is installed!
he proect champion role is another role associated with successful I proects!
In essentially all situations, the champion role needs to be played by a business manager,
not an I manager, for the following reason+ / manager with high credibility among the
business users who will be impacted by the new system solution will be best able to
prepare workers for the process and workflow changes required! ;or some I proects,
the proect sponsor and the proect champion may even be the same business manager!
owever, for other proects in which the sponsor1s daily responsibilities are far removed
from the business activities to be affected by the new system, the champion role is better
played by a lower level business manager whose direct reports will be highly impacted by
the proect!
FIVE PROCESSES OF AN IT PROJECT MANAGEMENT ARE:
PROJECT INITIATION
he first phase of proect life cycle is the proect initiation phase in which the proect is
formally authori*ed and a determination is made as to whether the proect should actually
proceed or not! / key deliverable for this phase is a proect charter that states in some detail the
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 5/23
proect1s specific obectives, its intended scope, any underlying assumptions and known
constraints, and the estimated benefits based on the feasibility analysis step of the I proect!
he scoping of a proect involves setting boundaries for the proect1s si*e and the range of
business function or processes that will be involved! hree types of feasibility analyses are
typically conducted for systems proects as part of the Definition phase of a systems life cycle+
economic feasibility, operational feasibility, and technical feasibility!
he economic feasibility investigation usually involves a formal cost benefit analysis
based on the overall obectives and scope of the proect as well as an estimate of the proect
budget! ;or proects with benefits that are easily measured, on .0I will be easy to calculate!
owever, for proect that involve a business innovation, such as building a new organi*ational
capability, it is much more difficult to quantify the potential benefits! ;or these types of strategic
application proects, a technique such as rank:ordering the alternatives can be used to overcome
total reliance on .0I measure that could be very difficult to calculate!
.ank /lternatives 9ven if it is not possible to compute
e3plicit numerical values, it may be
possible to estimate with enough accuracy
to rank the alternatives!
Sensitivity /nalysis <se sensitivity analysis to deal with
uncertainties! If a precise value is not
known for a parameter, repeat the analysis
with alternative values!
Several other types of feasibility concerns can also be studied in order to better
understand the best way to manage a systems proect and its interdependencies, including
operational feasibility issues such as schedule feasibility, legal and contractual feasibility, and
political feasibility! Schedule feasibility takes into account the potential impact of e3ternally
imposed deadlines, such as the effective date of new federal regulation or a seasonal date of
importance for competing in a given industry! Legal dan contractual feasibility concerns mightneed to be investigated to understand the issues related to partnering with one or more I
vendors for delivering the product solution! #olitical feasibility involves an assessment of
support for the proposed system on behalf of key organi*ational stakeholder groups, which may
not have been captured as part of an operational feasibility study!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 6/23
PROJECT P%ANNING
he obective of the planning process is to ensure that the proect goals are achieved in
the most appropriate way! he three maor components of proect planning are proect
scheduling, budgeting, and staffing! hese components are obviously interrelated, and poor
planning for one component can severely affect another! /lthough we emphasi*e ne3t some
proven techniques for good proect planning and control, it should also be kept in mind that
e3perienced proect managers will tailor their approaches to match the special circumstances of a
given proect or organi*ational situation! =Scope creep> is often touted as a potential pitfall to
watch out for during proect planning! /ccording to .ussell %8??@&, =scope creep> only becomes
a problem when the proect manager and business stakeholders donAt agree that the scope has
been changed and the impacts of these changes arenAt formally and realistically accounted for in
the proect schedule, budget, and staffing!
S2,d'3ing
Developing a proect schedule typically involves a 4-rk 5r,akd-4n ana3&+i++ identifying the
phases and sequence of tasks that need to be accomplished to meet the proect goalsBas well as
the goals for other organi*ational and e3ternal party obligationsBand then estimating the time of
completion for each task! ;or systems proects, the proect phases as well as the detailed
activities for each step and their sequence can typically be derived from the systems
methodology being used for the proect! ime estimates are typically based on the relevant past
e3periences of the organi*ation or the proect manager, or both! 0ther sources for time estimates
include benchmarking studies for similar proects in other organi*ations, activity estimates
embedded in software estimation packages, and proect databases of system consultants!
he detailed work activity list, the task interdependencies, and the time estimates for each task
are then used to develop a master schedule for the proect that identifies the 6r-7,t i3,+t-n,
dates and deliverables! he level of detail provided in a master schedule depends upon proect
characteristics such as si*e, functional comple3ity, and task interdependencies, as well as
organi*ational practices!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 7/23
he proect scheduling process is somewhat different when an organi*ation has adopted a
timebo3ing philosophy! he term ti,5-9ing refers to an organi*ational practice in which a
system module is to be delivered to the user within a set time limit, such as si3 months! %his
technique is a characteristic of the rapid application development ./D methodology discussed
in Chapter (!& 5ecause the intent of timebo3ing is to deliver new I solutions as rapidly as
possible, a work plan might be designed in which a given module is initially implemented during
the timebo3 without full functionality, and then the functionality is increased in subsequent
releases!
/ common pitfall in developing a master schedule is a failure to understand the
interdependencies among proect tasks and subtasks! Including a customer verification step as
part of the master scheduling process can help identify misunderstandings at an early stage of the
proect planning cycle! /nother common pitfall is estimating task completion times based on a
level of e3pertise associated with an e3perienced worker, rather than the average worker
typically available in the organi*ation!
9ffective scheduling is critical to the proectAs success and is a key input to the proect budgeting
component! owever, the master schedule is also meant to be a living document! / good
planning process therefore also provides for change:control procedures to request schedule
changes! /side from a process to request the necessary management approvals, changes to the
master schedule should be documented with the date of the change, the nature and reason for the
change, and the estimated effects of the change on other proect components %e!g!, budget,
resource allocations& and related proect tasks!
/'dg,ting
he proect budget documents the anticipated costs for the total proect! hese costs are typically
aggregated into meaningful categories at the level at which the proect costs will be controlled!
here are two traditional approaches to estimating proect costs+ bottom:up and top:down! he
proect work plan from the scheduling process is typically used for a bottom: up process+ Cost
elements are estimated for the work plan tasks and then aggregated to provide a total cost
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 8/23
estimate for the proect! /ccording to ;rame %'((E&, a top:down approach =eschews> the cost
details and provides instead estimates for maor budget categories based on historical e3perience!
/ top:down approach %also called parametric cost estimating& could be used in the proect
initiation stage because not enough is known about the proect to do a work breakdown analysis!
owever, once a master schedule has been developed, a bottom:up process is recommended,
especially if the proect is large and comple3! hese two approaches can also be used as checks
for each other!
2o matter which approach is used, the budgeting process needs to build in cost estimates to
cover proect uncertainties associated with changing human resources, immovable proect
deadlines %that could require overtime labor&, as well as changes in technology and contract costs
outside the organi*ationAs control!
Like the master schedule, the proect budget is a living document of anticipated total costs! /
good planning process therefore also provides change:control procedures to request approvals
for deviations from an estimated budget! Changes to the budget should be documented with the
date of change, the nature and amount of the requested budget deviation, the reason for the
change, and the estimated effects of the change on other proect components %e!g!, scope,
schedule, resource allocations&!
/ccording to ;rame %'((E&, ine3perienced estimators typically fall into three estimation traps+
hey %'& are too optimistic about what is needed to do the ob, %8& tend to leave components out,
and %F& do not use a consistent methodology, so they have difficulty recreating their rationales!
Good training in how to estimate proect steps and organi*ational checklists of items to include
in estimates can help the amateur estimator quickly improve!
9ven for the e3perienced proect manager, cost estimations can be complicated by many types of
unknowns, including the lack of precedents, unpredictable technical problems, and shifting
business requirements! #roects that use standard and mature I components are the most likely
to have published estimates available from consultants or other third:party vendors and are
generally the easiest to estimate! 5oth budget padding and lowballing are apparently widely
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 9/23
used, but both of these techniques can also cause dysfunctional consequences %see the bo3
entitled =ighballing 7ersus Lowballing #roect Costs>&!
Staing
#roect staffing involves identifying the I skill mi3 for specialists assigned to the proect,
selecting personnel who collectively have the skills needed and assigning them to the proect,
preparing team members for the specific proect work, and providing incentives for them to
achieve the proect goals!
In proect work, the human resources are a critical production factor! /s part of the proect
planning, the proect manager should be able to estimate the skill type, proficiency level,
quantity, and time frame for personnel to e3ecute each proect phase and critical task! Some
human resources need to be dedicated to the proect full:time, whereas others %e!g!, a database
administrator& will likely be shared with other
proect teams! Still others %e!g!, users who help test a system& might not be formal team members
but will be relied on for their e3pertise at critical points in the proect!
6herever possible, individual employees with the best qualifications for the proect work should
be selected! owever, in an organi*ational setting this is not always possible, due to the si*e and
talent of the specialist pool internal to the organi*ation! 5ecause of the diverse set of specialist
skills that might be needed across proects, it is not uncommon for at least a portion of the team
members to undergo speciali*ed training in anticipation of a proect! Some IS organi*ations use a
skill centers approach in which IS specialists belong to a ,nt,r - ,9,33,n, managed by a
coach who is responsible for developing talent and selecting personnel for proect assignments
based not only on the proectAs needs for specific skill sets but also on individual development
needs %Clark et al!, '((@&! In addition, personnel from a #$0 may be involved to help plan
communications with key stakeholders and other business employees, as well as to ensure that
the most current documents are available to all employees who need access to them!
;or systems proects, it is also not uncommon to hire outside contractors for proect work for
either quality or workload reasons! his is especially desirable if a distinct I specialty is
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 10/23
required for a single proect, but it does not make economic sense to develop and maintain these
speciali*ed resources in:house! It also might be impractical to use internal resources if a proect
requires a significant number of additional personnel for ust a short period of time! he
downside in these situations is that the company can become highly dependent on a talent base
that is temporary! In the late '((?s, many companies began to focus on decreasing dependence
on outside contractors by developing their own I specialist talent! 0ne way to do this is to build
in a requirement for =knowledge transfer> to internal employees from the outside consultants or
contractors as part of the e3ternal vendor contract!
/nother key aspect of systems proect team staffing is the selection of business personnel for the
proect team! 5usiness personnel with enough authority and credibility to work with both
business leaders and other business workers who will be using the new software need to be
selected with the help of the proect sponsor! he careful selection of business employees can
obviously be a critical step in the staffing process! IS specialists are dependent on business users
for their functional e3pertise %referred to as subect matter e3pertise, or S$9&! ;ormal
documented procedures are not always the way that work tasks actually get done, and the proect
team must also be able to elicit these differences from business users as part of the Definition
phase! ;urther, making maor changes in the ways that business personnel get their work done
can be a maor proect obective! Changes in business processes are most common when an
organi*ation is implementing a new software package without modifications %referred to as
=vanilla> implementations&, and the right business personnel need to be part of the proect team
to accomplish this obective! In addition, business personnel who are not formal team members
may have a role as =e3tended> team members to help with defining the systems requirements,
testing, and training over the life of the proect!
9ven after a well:managed selection process, there is sometimes a need for special team:building
e3ercises to build team spirit and to help team members who have not worked together before to
get to know each other quickly! he degree to which team building is needed will depend on the
characteristics of the proect, the prior e3periences of the team members, and the degree to which
the systems methodology or other proect practices will be new to the team members! eam:
building and fostering ongoing motivation for meeting the proect obectives are easiest when
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 11/23
team members are in the same physical location %colocated&, there is a stable roster of team
members, and the proect manager is able to manipulate the appropriate motivating factors! %See
the section =Special Issue+ $anaging 7irtual eams> at the end of this chapter!&
5ecause proect incentives can influence individual performance and productivity, proects that
require especially intense efforts, personal sacrifices %e!g!, postponed vacations&, and possibly
geographic relocation might also have attractive proect:based incentives to help ensure that the
proect goals are achieved! he dot:com I start:up culture within the <nited States in the late
'((?s epitomi*ed this highly intensive lifestyle for which stock options were the primary reward!
Similar motivators are sometimes needed for I proects with highly aggressive schedules in
order to meet proect deadlines! %<nlike a dot:com start:up, however, the duration of the proect
is usually known and the rewards can be more certain!& ;or e3ample, key proect team members
on multiyear enterprise implementation proects could be asked to make commitments to the
proect in return for special proect completion bonuses or even stock options! %See the bo3
entitled =#roect Completion Incentives when the Stakes /re igh >& 6hen designing incentives,
it should also be kept in mind that an individualAs response to a particular incentive can vary over
time due to changing personal needs %e!g!, family pressures for work:life balance&!
P3anning .-',nt+
wo documents are typically created from the proect planning phase+ a +tat,,nt - 4-rk
SOW$ for the customer and a proect plan to be used by the proect manager to guide, monitor,
and control the e3ecution of the proect plan!
he S06 document is a high:level document that describes what the proect will deliver and
when! It is in effect a contract between the proect manager and the e3ecutive sponsor! It
therefore can be used as a high:level guide for business managers to plan for their own unit
implementation as well as to monitor the proectAs progress toward the proect goals of on:time
completion within budget!
/ll program managers or committees that oversee the proect typically review the proect plan!
;or e3ample, a program manager and other I proect managers may initially review the proect
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 12/23
plan, and then a proect oversight committee of business managers and IS leaders may be asked
to endorse it!
wo types of proect management charts are also typically developed during the planning phase
and used during proect e3ecution+ %'& #9. or C#$ charts and %8& Gantt charts! hese are two
complementary techniques for proect scheduling and resource planning, as described ne3t!
/ #9. chart %a #rogram 9valuation and .eview echnique developed for a missile4submarine
proect in '(H& graphically models the sequence of proect tasks and their interrelationships
using a flowchart diagram! /n alternative method called C#$ %Critical #ath $ethod& was
developed by Du#ont about the same time! /s shown in ;igure ''!), each maor task is
represented as a symbol %here circles&, arrows are used to show predecessor and successor tasks,
and the time period to accomplish each task %here in days&! 5y e3amining these dependencies %or
critical paths&, the sequence of activities that will take the longest to complete can be calculated
%here the path at the top, '( days&! /ny delays in completing the activities on this critical path
will result in slippage on the proect schedule! .esearchers have found that proects in which
C#$ or #9. techniques are used are less likely to have cost and schedule overruns %$eredith
and $antel, '((&!
/ Gantt chart graphically depicts the estimated times %and later, the actual times& for each proect
task against a hori*ontal timescale! asks are presented in a logical order along with a bar graph
depicting the estimated time duration for each task on an appropriate linear calendar %i!e!,
minutes, hours, days, or weeks& for the number of months and years planned for the life cycle of
the proect %see ;igure ''!@&! he precedence relationships in the #9.4C#$ chart are reflected
in the start and end dates of the activities, and overlapping tasks can be easily seen! Gantt charts
are therefore particularly useful for displaying a proect schedule and for tracking the progress of
a set of tasks against the proect plan %as discussed in the =#roect 93ecution and Control>
section ne3t&! /n important proect management skill is to determine at what level of detail to
plan the proect tasks! oo much detail can be stifling and result in too much time being spent on
tracking rather than on more critical proect tasks! oo little detail can result in inadequate
proect management controls and both missed deadlines and cost overruns!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 13/23
Pr-7,t E9,'ti-n and C-ntr-3
he documents described in the #lanning section are best recogni*ed as living documents that
need to be refined and reassessed throughout the life of the proect! he obective of the
e3ecution process is to effectively coordinate all resources as the project plan is carried out!
$easuring variances from what was planned versus what progress is actually achieved is part of
the controlling process!
In large, comple3 proects, the planning activities still continue after a proect team has been
selected and some initial tasks have been undertaken, and the revised plan goes through the same
endorsement procedures a few months into the proect, as described previously!
/lthough proects vary by si*e, scope, time duration, and uniqueness, most proects share the
three following life:cycle characteristics %#$I, 8??E&+
'! .isk and uncertainty are highest at the start of the proect!
8! he ability of the proect stakeholders to influence the outcome is highest at the start of
the proect!
F! Cost and staffing levels are lower at the start of the proect and higher toward the end!
#roect management software tools are used to plan and visuali*e proect tasks across the entire
proect management life cycle! $icrosoft #roect is the most commonly used general purpose
software, but more than '?? such products are available today, including hosted 6eb:based
applications! In some cases an organi*ation develops its own proect management tools, or a
consulting firm might provide such a system! 0ur focus here is not on the software tools used,
but on three general proect management practices+ communication, coordination, and measuring
progress!
Communication about the proect to all affected stakeholders and potential users is key to
successful implementation for systems proects in particular! ;or large proects with maor
business impacts, a proect =kickoff> event is frequently scheduled at which the proectAs sponsor
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 14/23
or champion e3plicitly communicates the proect obectives and perhaps also presents some
general ground rules for proect team members to make decisions on behalf of their constituents!
It is the proect managerAs responsibility to have an e3ternal communications plan appropriate for
the proect! his includes formally communicating the proect status on a regular basis %typically
weekly or monthly& to any oversight groups, all key stakeholders, and the user community that
will be affected by the proect! <sing the planning charts mentioned earlier, variances from the
forecasted proect budget and proect milestones can be reported in a way that highlights
deviations from the proect plan and their causes %see ;igure ''!&! 6hen outside consultants are
used, the tracking of consultant costs and utili*ation is also a key proect manager responsibility!
he usage of templates for proect:related communications also contribute to productivity! ;or
e3ample, some organi*ations have also adopted a red:yellow:green %or red:amber:green, ./G&
traffic light approach to signal what is =on track,> potential problem areas, and proect problems
to business oversight groups+
• Green indicates a proect is on track
• Jellow flags potential problems
• .ed means a proect is behind
his type of high:level approach helps ensure that business managers focus on corrective actions
to avoid a bottleneck, or consider maor revisions to the proect plan, to better manage proect
risks!
Successful e3ecution and control also include a process for documenting and approving %or
denying& requests for proect changes! ;igure ''!( is an e3ample of a form that can be used as
part of the change control process!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 15/23
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 16/23
.ecent research also suggests that all I proects e3perience fluctuations in momentum, both
positive and negative! I proect managers who take steps to proactively stabili*e or counteract
negative spirals in momentum are therefore more likely to lead proects to a successful
completion %2elson and Kansen, 8??(&!
Good communications among the proect team members are also critical for task coordination
and integration! he mechanisms here include both formal activities %e!g!, weekly meetings of
team leaders& and informal %e!g!, e:mail communications and in:the:hall progress reporting&!
.ecently researchers %appelman et al!, 8??)& have provided evidence that potential proect
failures can be avoided if proect managers and team members pay attention to =early warning
signs> of people:related and process:related issues and then take appropriate actions to mitigate
these risks! Some of the people:related early warning signs are+
• Inadequate business stakeholder involvement or participation in the proect
• Subect matter e3perts %S$9s& in the business are overscheduled
Some process:related signs are+
• / lack of documentation of the success criteria for the proect %e!g!, budget, timeline,
high:level system requirements& as well as the e3pected future benefits %the business
case&• eam members have been re:assigned to a higher priority proect
Managing Pr-7,t Ri+k+
/ll proects carry some risks, and one of the goals of proect management is to reduce the risk of
failing to achieve the proectAs obectives! Standard risk management practices include+
identification and classification of proect risks, planning how to avoid them, and establishing
plans to otherwise detect, mitigate, and recover from problems if they occur %see the summary in
;igure ''!'?&! he e3tent of risk e3posure for approved proects can vary widely across proects
as well as across organi*ations! he culture of an organi*ation can lead some managers to take a
more defensive approach overall, while managers in a different organi*ation might purposely
pursue high:risk proects because of the potential for higher competitive rewards!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 17/23
.isk identification should be undertaken at the proectAs outset, based on e3perience with similar
proects! / common risk management approach is to develop a list of risk factors and then to
weight them according to their potential impact! Identified risks are typically classified on
several dimensions, including the nature and cause, the likelihood of occurrence, and the
potential consequences! .isks can be due to a variety of causes, including characteristics of the
proect itself %i!e!, proect si*e, availability of business e3perts, newness of the technologies to be
utili*ed&, as well as characteristics of the e3ternal environment
%i!e!, competitive risk for not completing a proect, e3traordinary economic events&!
he risk assessment for a given proect is then used for decisions about proect staffing or
technical platform alternatives that lower the total risks, beginning with the planning stage! /
potentially serious risk should be addressed by detailed plans and dedicated tasks! Some
e3amples of common strategies for resource decisions are shown in ;igure ''!''! ;or e3ample,
an e3change strategy could result in subcontracting with vendors, and a reduction strategy could
result in allocating the =best and brightest> to a proect team to minimi*e the potential for failure!
Sometimes the proect budget includes monetary resources allocated to a contingency fund that
can be used at the discretion of proect team members to resolve anticipated thorny problems that
cannot be specifically defined at the outset of the proect!
he highest level of proect risk typically occurs at the proectAs outset! 0nce the proect is
underway and the team members learn more about a business unitAs needs, a new technology, or
a vendorAs software package, the proect risks will typically decrease! /fter more resources have
been invested, the organi*ationAs stake in the proect also increases and thus its risk e3posure also
increases+ $ore will be lost if things go wrong! Good risk management depends on accurate and
timely information on proect characteristics that managers view as likely indicators of risk
%amilton, 8???&! Deviations from e3pectations need to be clearly highlighted, and this
information needs to reach the right people at the right time in order for further investigation and
corrective actions to be taken! 0ne of the maor pitfalls in monitoring the risks of proects that
are already underway is to ignore negative feedback+ #roect managers need to be careful not to
=turn a deaf ear> to bad news or to downplay symptoms of what could be maor problems %eil
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 18/23
and .obey, '(((&! /n outside consultant may be needed to evaluate a troubled proect and to
help devise alternative courses of action!
Managing /'+in,++ C2ang,
6hen new systems are implemented, they typically involve maor changes in business processes,
which in turn require changes in the way employees do their work and information flows into
and out of their work activities! C2ang, anag,,nt, or the ability to successfully introduce
change to individuals and organi*ational units, is therefore key to successfully implementing a
new system!
6hen a new information system will affect organi*ational power structures, strategies and tactics
to deal with these political aspects of the proect need to be e3plicitly developed! /ccording to
$arkus %'(F&, the sources for resistance to the implementation of a new information system can
often be anticipated by comparing the distribution of power implied by the new system and the
distribution of power e3isting in the organi*ation prior to the new system! ;aced with potential
shifts in organi*ational responsibilities, key stakeholders could consciously, or unconsciously,
employ counterimplementation tactics that result in preventing or delaying the completion of a
new system or in modifying its initial requirements! 93amples of e3plicit or implicit resistance
tactics include+
• withholding the people resources needed for a task %including designating a
representative who is not qualified to make the decisions needed&
• raising new obections about the proect requirements, resulting in schedule delays
• e3panding the si*e and comple3ity of the proect %rescoping&
.ecogni*ing from the beginning of a proect the potential political implications and then
devising solutions to avoid them is usually more effective than overtly trying to overcome
resistance tactics! Devising system solutions that will be viewed as desirable by all stakeholders
is of course an ideal outcome! 0ne key way to achieve this type of win:win situation is to
involve potential obectors in the implementation process so that they participate in negotiating
the requirements as well as the implementation schedule
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 19/23
for a new system! owever, it should also be kept in mind that sometimes resistance also can
occur postimplementation not only at the individual level but also at a department level
%Lapointe and .ivard, 8??H&!
/s business managers have come to recogni*e the importance of change:management practices
in general, researchers have proposed multistage models for managing changes in organi*ations!
$ost of these change models have their roots in a simple three:stage model %originally proposed
by %,4in;S2,in$ as described below!
1< Unr,,=ing +tag,+ hose individuals who will be significantly affected by the new system
must embrace the need for this change! o help motivate them, a work environment in which it is
=safe to
change> needs to be created! hat is, individuals who need to change have to be convinced that
giving up the old ways of doing things will not personally disadvantage them!
0< M->ing +tag,+ Change requires knowledge transfer and training! <ntil the knowledge and
skills required for the new roles are acquired, change cannot take place! Information about
changes in work tasks needs to be assimilated, and adequate time needs to be allocated for the
people to learn these new skills and behaviors!
4. R,r,,=ing +tag,+ he new behavior becomes the accepted way of doing things! 2ew
incentive systems could be needed to reinforce the new behaviors, and the change might
not be routini*ed until new informal norms have also been adopted within relevant
workgroups across an enterprise! odayAs common wisdom is that modern organi*ations
and their people need to be able to accept change easily! his suggests that one of the new
behaviors to instill in an organi*ation after a maor change initiative is for an
organi*ationAs employees to become =change:ready> %Clark et al!, '((@&+ Change:ready
personnel view change as a desirable, ongoing state for competing in todayAs business
world! If this occurs, the <nfree*ing stage should become less difficult to move through
for future proects involving a lot of workplace change!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 20/23
ased on a study of successful and failed efforts to transform an organi*ation, otter %'((H& has
proposed an eight:step framework for leaders of maor organi*ational change efforts+
'! 9stablish a sense of urgency
8! ;orm a powerful guiding coalition
F! Create a vision
E! Communicate the vision
hese four steps help bring an organi*ation through the $oving stage %described earlier& by
establishing a sense of urgency for the change and both creating and communicating a vision to
help direct the change effort!
'! 9mpower others to act on the vision
8! #lan for and create short:term wins
F! Consolidate improvements and produce still more change
E! Institutionali*e new approaches
If a new system is first piloted, or implemented in stages, the choice of the pilot or first business
unit to implement the system are very important choices for creating early =wins!> /ccording to
otter, the th step will only occur if the change becomes rooted in the organi*ationAs norms and
values, and this clearly requires top management support!
otter and other change:management researchers have recently emphasi*ed that maor
organi*ational change efforts cannot be entirely planned in advance! Instead, change efforts
should be e3pected to be somewhat =messy> and =full of surprises> %otter, '((H&! / successful
changemanagement effort therefore requires both planned %preplanned& activities as well as
=improvisational> responses to unforeseen circumstances %0rlikowski and ofman, '((@&!
Similar to risk management, then, a maor systems proect trap is to ignore negative feedback!
#aying careful attention to those in the organi*ation who are closest to the people who will be
affected by the systems proect will help avoid implementation failure!
hree maor categories of change:managementactivities have been associated with successful I
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 21/23
proects+ communicating, training, and providing incentives! Communication activities are part
of good proect management, and communicating the need for change %the vision& is one of the
first activities that needs to be addressed! he second category, training, is part of the installation
step in a systems life:cycle implementation phase! /ccording to the practitioner press, however,
the amount of user training required for an initial implementation success is typically
underestimated! he third category, incentive system changes %e!g!, performance rewards&, helps
motivate the attitudes and behaviors needed for the Lewin4Schein moving stage and helps
institutionali*e the behaviors for a .efree*ing stage! Special proect incentives may be used for
high:risk proects and be under the control of the proect manager%s&! owever, long:term
incentive schemes to influence behavioral changes are clearly beyond the scope of a single
proect!
In many situations, the budget for an I proect does not include change:management activities!
2ot allocating sufficient resources for managing business change when the implementation of an
I proect includes maor changes in business processes can be a maor barrier to implementation
success %5rown and 7essey, 8??F&! In organi*ations with a #$0 %or proect office&, specific
activities to ensure =change:readiness> are more likely to be a part of the proect plan! hese
include formal assessments of the proectAs impacts on different types of ob positions! 5ased on
the level of these impacts, resources are then allocated for training workers! his type of
approach was taken by $otorola %in their Semiconductor #roducts sector& in preparation for a
maor 9.# release that affected H,@?? employees worldwide! <nder the leadership of their
change:readiness unit, individual workers were assigned to instructor:led, train:thetrainer: led, or
computer:based training depending on the anticipated impacts of the new system on the
individualAs ob role %.oberts et al!, 8??F&!
SPESIA% ISSUE: MANAGING COMP%E? IT PROJECT
93perienced I proect managers or I program managers are increasingly likely to be asked to
lead large, comple3 systems proects across an enterprise, such as 9.# package implementations!
Consulting firms are also frequently contracted to help with these comple3 proects because of
their e3periences in implementing the same package in other organi*ations! #roect comple3ity
therefore needs to be recogni*ed as a key characteristic of many systems development and
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 22/23
implementation proects in todayAs digital world! / multiyear field review of how large, comple3
proects were implemented led to the identification of three high:level factors that are critical to
success %.yan, 8??F&+
'! he business vision was an integral part of the proect!
8! / testing approach was used at the program level %not ust at the individual application
level&!
F! he proects used a phased:release approach %rather than a single:release rollout
strategy&!
SPESIA% ISSUE: ANAGING VIRTUA% TEAMS
#roect teams with members working at different locations within the same company have
become increasingly common as distributed tools have facilitated working across national and
organi*ational
boundaries! hese so:called =virtual teams> in which team members are not colocated and cannot
regularly meet face:to:face are often formed to take advantage of unique skill sets or knowledge
not available at a single geographic location!
8/20/2019 Sim it project mgm gb.doc
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/sim-it-project-mgm-gbdoc 23/23
Figure: Project Management Complexity Increases with Off-site and Offshore Resources
!ased on Poria" #$$%&