Information Technology Project

Management Fourth Edition

By Jack T. Marchewka
Northern Illinois University
Power Point Slides by Gerald DeHondt
Grand Valley State University

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Copyright 2012 John Wiley & Sons,

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The Nature of Information

Technology Projects
Chapter 1

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Learning Objectives

Describe the dominant eras of information systems called the

electronic data processing (EDP) era, the micro era, the
network era, and the globalization era, and understand how
managing IT projects has evolved during these eras.
Understand the current state of IT project management and
how successfully managing IT projects remains a challenge
for most organizations.
Explain the value-driven, socio-technical, project
management, and knowledge management approaches that
support ITPM.
Define what a project is and describe its attributes.
Define the discipline called project management.
Describe the role and impact IT projects have on an
organization.
Identify the different roles and interests of project
stakeholders.
Describe Extreme project management.
Identify the Project Management Body of Knowledge
(PMBOK) core knowledge areas.
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The Two End Points in a Project

Inspiration

Operation

A miracle occurs

IT and Modern Day Project Management

1940s
First
Electronic
Computer

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1950s

1960s
EDP
Era

1970s
PC
Era

1980s

1990s

2000s

Network
Era

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2010s

Globalization

Introduction

Information Technology (IT) projects are

organizational investments that require
Time
Money
And other resources such as people, technology,
facilities, etc.
Organizations expect some type of value in return
for this investment
IT Project Management is a relatively new
discipline that attempts to make IT projects more
successful and combines traditional Project
Management with Software
Engineering/Management Information Systems
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An ITPM Approach

Organizational resources are limited, so

organizations must choose among competing
interests to fund specific projects
This decision should be based on the value a
competing project will provide to an
organization

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Modern Project Management

Often credited to the U.S. Navy as an

outgrowth of the Polaris Missile Project in the
1950s.
Focuses on reducing costs and product cycle
time.
Provides an important link between an
organizations strategy and the deployment of
that strategy.

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Can have a direct impact on an organizations

bottom line and competitiveness.

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Which Situation is Worse?

Successfully building and implementing a
system that provides little or no value to the
organization?
Or
Failing to implement an information system
that could have provided value to the
organization, but was underdeveloped or
poorly managed?

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Why Do IT Projects Fail?

Larger projects have the lowest success rate

and appear to be more risky than medium and
smaller projects

Technology, business models, and markets change

too rapidly so projects that take more than a year
can be obsolete before they are completed

The CHAOS studies also provides some insight

as to the factors that influence project success

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Why IT Projects Fail

The Software Crisis

The CHAOS study published in 1995 by The

Standish Group found that although the U.S
spent over $250 billion on IT projects,
approximately

31% were cancelled before completion

53% were completed but over budget, over
schedule, & did not meet original specifications

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For mid-size companies, average cost overruns were

182%, while average schedule overruns were 202%!

Copyright 2012 John Wiley & Sons,

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Has the Current State of IT Projects

Changed Since 1994?

The Standish Group has continued to study IT

projects over the years.
In general, IT Projects are showing higher
success rates due to

Better project management tools & processes

Smaller projects
Improved communication among stakeholders
More skillful IT project managers

But there is still ample opportunity for

improvement!

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Figure 1.1 - Summary of the Chaos Studies from 1994 to 2008

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1 Summary of CHAOS Study Factor Rankings for Successful Projects

apted from the Standish Group. CHAOS (West Yarmouth, MA: 1995, 2010) & http://www.infoq.com/articles/Interview-Johnson-Standi

Ra
nk

1994

2001

2006

2008

User Involvement

Executive Support

User Involvement

User Involvement

Executive
Management
Support
Clear Statement of
Requirements

Experienced
Project Manager

Executive
Management
Support
Clear Business
Objectives

Proper Planning

Clear Business
Objectives

Optimizing Scope

Emotional Maturity

Realistic
Expectations

Minimized Scope

Agile Process

Optimizing Scope

Smaller Project
Milestones

Standard Software
Infrastructure

Competent Staff

Firm Basic
Requirements

Project
Management
Expertise
Financial
Management

Project Management
Expertise

Ownership

Formal
Methodology

Skilled Resources

Skilled Resources

Clear Vision &

Objectives

Reliable Estimates

Formal
Methodology

Execution

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Hard-working,
focused team

Other

Standard Tools and

Infrastructure

Tools &
Infrastructure

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User Involvement

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Executive Support
Clear Business
Objectives

Agile Process

Table 1.2: IT Project Success Criteria

Source: Source: http://www.drdobbs.com/architecture-and-design/202800777.

Criteria

Response

61.3% said it is more important to deliver a system

Schedul
when it is ready to be shipped than to deliver it on
e
time.

Scope

87.3% said that meeting the actual needs of

stakeholders is more important than building the
system to specification.

Money

79.6% said that providing the best return on

investment (ROI) is more important than delivering
a system under budget.

Quality

87.3% said that delivering high quality is more

important than delivering on time and on budget.

Staf

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75.8% said that having a mentally and physically

healthy workplace is more important than delivering
on time and on budget.
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Table 1.3: Summary of Factor Rankings for Challenged and Failed (Impaired)
Projects
Source: Adapted from the Standish Group. CHAOS (West Yarmouth, MA: 1995)
Factors for Challenged
Factors for Failed (Impaired)
Rank
Projects
Projects
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Lack of user input

Incomplete requirements

Incomplete requirements

Lack of user involvement

Changing requirements &

specifications

Lack of resources

Lack of executive support

Unrealistic expectations

Technology incompetence

Lack of executive support

Lack of resources

Changing requirements &

specifications

Unrealistic expectations

Lack of planning

Unclear objectives

Didnt need it any longer

Unrealistic time frames

Lack of IT management

10

New technology

Technology illiteracy

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Tata Consultancy Services 2007 Report

Included

800 senior IT managers from

the UK, US, France, Germany, India,
Japan, & Singapore:
62% of the IT projects failed to meet
their schedules
49% experienced budget overruns
47% experienced higher-than expected
maintenance costs
41% failed to deliver the expected
business value and ROI

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Improving the likelihood of success

A Value-Driven Approach

Socio-technical Approach

Its not just about the technology or building a better

mouse trap

Project Management Approach

Plain & Simple: IT Projects must provide value to the

organization

processes and infrastructure (Methodology)

resources
expectations
competition
efficiency and effectiveness

Knowledge Management Approach

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lessons learned, best practices & shared knowledge

Copyright 2012 John Wiley & Sons,
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The PMBOK Guides Definitions for Project

and Project Management
A

project is a temporary endeavor

undertaken to create a unique
product, service, or result.
Project management is the application of
knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to
project activities to meet project requirements.

A project manager is the person assigned

by the performing organization to achieve the
project objectives.

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The Context of Project Management

Project Attributes

Time Frame
Purpose (to provide value!)
Ownership
Resources (the triple constraint)
Roles
Project Manager
Project Sponsor
SME (domain & technical)[ Subject Matter Expert ]
Risk & Assumptions
Interdependent Tasks

progressive elaboration steps & increments

Planned Organizational Change

Operate in Environments Larger than the Project Itself

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The Triple Constraint

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Figure 1.3

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The Triple Constraint

Every project is constrained in different ways by its

Scope goals

1.

What work will be done, what the sponsor or the customer expect
from the project?

Time goals:

2.

How long should it take to complete the project what is the project
schedule?

Cost goals:

3.

What should it cost to complete the project, and what is the projects
budget?

experienced project managers know that you must decide which aspect of the
triple constraint is most important: if time is most important, then you must
often change the initial scope and/or cost goals to meet the schedule

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The Triple Constraint of Project

Management

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Extreme Project Management (XPM)

A new approach & philosophy to project management

that is becoming increasingly popular
Characterizes many of todays projects that exemplify
speed, uncertainty, changing requirements, and high
risks
Traditional project management often takes an orderly
approach while, XPM embraces the fact that projects are
often chaotic and unpredictable
XPM focuses on flexibility, adaptability, and innovation
Traditional and new approaches together can provide us
with a better understanding of how to improve the
likelihood of project success

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Copyright 2012 John Wiley & Sons,

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What is Project Management?

Project management is the application of

knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to
project activities in order to meet project
requirements (PMI*, Project Management
Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide))

*The Project Management Institute (PMI) is an international

professional society. Their web site is www.pmi.org.
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Project Management Framework

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9 Project Management Knowledge Areas

Knowledge
areas
describe
the
key
competencies that project managers must
develop

4 core knowledge areas lead to specific project

objectives (scope, time, cost, and quality)
4 facilitating knowledge areas are the means
through which the project objectives are achieved
(human resources, communication, risk, and
procurement management)
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knowledge
area
(project
integration
management) affects and is affected by all of the
other knowledge areas
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PMIs 9 Knowledge Areas

1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)

Project integration management

Scope
Time
Cost
Quality
Human resource
Communications
Risk
Procurement

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Project Management Tools and

Techniques

Project
management
tools
and
techniques assist project managers and
their teams in various aspects of
project management

Some specific ones include

Project Charter, scope statement, and WBS (scope)
Gantt charts, network diagrams, critical path analysis,
critical chain scheduling (time)
Cost estimates and earned value management (cost)

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How Project Management Relates to

Other Disciplines

Much of the knowledge needed to manage

projects is unique to the discipline of
project management
Project mangers must also have knowledge
and experience in

general management
the application area of the project

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History of Project Management

Some people argue that building the

Egyptian pyramids was a project, as was
building the Great Wall of China
Most people consider the Manhattan
Project to be the first project to use
modern project management

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Sample Gantt Chart

The WBS is on the left, and each tasks start and finish date
are shown on the right using a calendar timescale. Early Gantt
Charts, first used in 1917, were drawn by hand.

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Sample Network Diagram

Each box is a project task from the WBS. Arrows show dependencies
between tasks.
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Sample Enterprise Project Management

Tool

In recent years, organizations have been taking advantage of

Software to help manage their projects throughout the enterprise.
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The Project Management Profession

The job of IT Project Manager is in the list of

the top ten most in demand IT skills
Professional societies like the Project
Management Institute (PMI) have grown
tremendously
Project
management
research
and
certification programs continue to grow

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Top Ten Most in Demand IT Skills

Rank
IT Skill/Job
Average Annual Salary
1
SQL Database Analyst
$80,664
2
Oracle Database Analyst
$87,144
3
C/C++ Programmer
$95,829
4
Visual Basic Programmer
$76,903
5
E-commerce/Java Developer
$89,163
6
Windows NT/2000 Expert
$80,639
7
Windows/Java Developert
$93,785
8
Security Architect
$86,881
9
Project Manager
$95,719
10
Network Engineer
$82,906
Paul Ziv, The Top 10 IT Skills in Demand, Global Knowledge Webcast
(www.globalknowledge.com) (11/20/2002).

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Project Management Knowledge

Continues to Grow and Mature

PMI hosted their first research conference in June

2000 in Paris, France, and the second one in
Seattle in July 2002
The PMBOK Guide 2000 is an ANSI standard
PMIs certification department earned ISO 9000
certification
Hundreds of new books, articles, and presentations
related to project management have been written
in recent years

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Project Management Certification

PMI provides certification as a Project

Management Professional (PMP)
A PMP has documented sufficient project
experience, agreed to follow a code of ethics,
and passed the PMP exam
The
number
of
people
earning
PMP
certification is increasing quickly
PMI and other organizations are offering new
certification programs.

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Growth in PMP Certification, 1993-2002

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Ethics in Project Management

Ethics is an important part of all
professions
In order to earn PMP certification,
applicants must agree to the PMP
code of professional conduct

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Project Management Software

By 2003, there were hundreds of different products

to assist in performing project management
Three main categories of tools exist:
Low-end tools: Handle single or smaller projects
well, cost under $200 per user
Midrange tools: Handle multiple projects and users,
cost $200-500 per user, Project 2000 most popular
High-end tools:
Also called enterprise project
management software, often licensed on a per-user
basis
Project 2003 now includes a separate version for
enterprise project management.
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The Project Management Body of

Knowledge (PMBOK)

The Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge

(PMBOK Guide) documents 9 project management
knowledge areas
The PMBOK Guide is published and maintained by the
Project Management Institute (PMI)
http://www.pmi.org
PMI provides a certification in project management called
the Project Management Professional (PMP) that many
people today believe will be as relevant as a CPA
certification
PMP certification requires that you pass a PMP
certification exam to demonstrate a level of
understanding about project management, as well as
satisfy education & experience requirements and agree
to a professional code of conduct
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Project Management Body of Knowledge Areas

Figure 1.8
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4Q Process
Q1 - Measure

Q2 - Analyze

Define opportunity. Investigate

to understand the current
state in detail.

Identify and confirm root

causes of the problem.

Q4 - Sustain

Q3 - Improve

Maintain the improvements by

standardizing the work
methods or processes.

Develop, pilot, and implement

solutions that eliminate root
causes.

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