1- Visit the Standish Group’s Web site at http://www.standishgroup.com/. Read one of the CHAOS articles or a similar report on information technology project management on their site or a similar site. Write a one-page summary of the report, its key conclusions, and your opinion of the report.
This article (O’Hara, 2004) relates to information technology project management and what is important to a successful project, it shows the way it has to be managed, why developing a structured process is necessary and the key role of communication to move the project forward. It describes a mix of technical know-how and management skills that a manager must have to make the company and stakeholders get a positive outcome. It reveals the importance to determine the sequence of activities in a project to find a better solution for the tasks that have to be performed and some of these tasks include planning, scheduling and controlling IT projects. The article also emphasizes that a manager has to understand the development needs and some significant activities that cannot be left out, such as scope control, scheduling techniques and budget planning.
Project managers need to plan for the unexpected, keep conflicts at a minimum and cannot be afraid to deal with tough jobs, they need confidence and they cannot be intimidated by the environment to do well and deliver quality which ensures that the project will satisfy the needs of the company, it is necessary not only good communication skills but also know how to achieve the project needs and never take no as answer, they need to struggle to work with the defined budget and if necessary, they have to reassess the scope sliding tasks and motivate people to move forward even when the chances are stacked against them. According to the article (O’Hara, 2004), some factors that help projects to succeed are: user involvement, clear planning direction, vision and objectives to the many different people involved, minimized scope, proper planning, executive support, ability to explain technical information and the way it impacts the operation and communication. Managers need the ability to communicate well at different levels, they must be straightforward to take to the public what they need to understand.
Managers have been facing problems with workload, it is important to have an efficient scheduling time to avoid this matter and make sure that when defining the project scope each member of the team compromises to certain amount of hours to dedicate only on that project. Managers cannot wait for permission when the deadlines are tight, they have to make certain decisions by their own, take the right approach, be creative, have a good attitude and take responsibilities for their actions because by the time they wait for everything to be official, they lose precious time that can affect the accomplishment of the project.
In my opinion, managers need to be sure about the goals and objectives, establish realistic deadlines, be compromised and flexible to changes that may occur. They need to have a good budget plan and resource allocation to lead a successful project because every project involves risks and a clear consistent scope with justification and objectives can minimize them. I also understand that it is very important to create a customized work breakdown structure (WBS) that describes how a project will be managed to meet the company needs and deliver the quality of work as expected by the organization
References:
O’Hara, C., (2004) – Studies in excellence / Factiva Website – Retrieved September 10, 2007 from http://global.factiva.com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/ha/default.aspx
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