Chapter 2:

The Project Management &

Information Technology Context

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Learning Objectives
Describe the systems view of the project
management.
Understand organizations, including the four
frames, organizational structures, and
organizational culture.
Explain why stakeholder management and top
management commitment are critical for a
project’s success.

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Learning Objectives cont..
Understand the concept of a project phase
and the project life cycle and distinguish
between project development and product
development.
Discuss the unique attributes and diverse
nature of information technology projects.

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 Projects Cannot Be Run
In Isolation
Projects must operate in a broad
organizational environment
Project managers need to take a holistic
or systems view of a project and
understand how it is situated within the
larger organization

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 Understanding Organizations

Structural frame: Human resources frame:.

Political frame: Symbolic frame:

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Many Organizations Focus on the
Structural Frame
3 basic organization structures – Functional,
Project and Matrix.

 Functional Organizational Structure

 Project Organizational Structure
 Matrix Organizational Structure

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Functional, Project, and Matrix
Organizational Structures

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Organizational Culture
Organizational culture is a set of shared
assumptions, values, and behaviors that
characterize the functioning of an
organization.
Many experts believe the underlying
causes of many companies’ problems are
not the structure or staff, but the culture.

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 10 Characteristics of Organizational
Culture
Member identity*  Risk tolerance*
Group emphasis*  Reward criteria*

People focus  Conflict tolerance*

Unit integration*  Means-ends

Control orientation
 Open-systems focus*
*Project work is most successful in an organizational
culture where these characteristics are highly prevalent
and where the other characteristics are balanced.

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Stakeholder Management
Project managers must take time to
identify, understand, and manage
relationships with all project stakeholders.
Senior executives and top management
are very important stakeholders.

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 What Helps Projects Succeed? (1)
Importance of Top Management Commitment:
Several studies cite top management commitment as
one of the key factors associated with project success.
Top management can help project managers:
◦ Secure adequate resources.
◦ Get approval for unique project needs in a timely manner.
◦ Receive cooperation from people throughout the
organization.
◦ Learn how to be better leaders.

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What Helps Projects Succeed? (2)

Need for Organizational Commitment to

Information Technology (IT),
Ifthe organization has a negative attitude toward
IT, it will be difficult for an IT project to succeed
Having a Chief Information Officer (CIO) at a
high level in the organization helps IT projects
Assigning non-IT people to IT projects also
encourage more commitment

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What Helps Projects Succeed? (3)
Need for Organizational Standards:
Standards and guidelines help project managers be
more effective.
Senior management can encourage:
◦ The use of standard forms and software for project
management.
◦ The development and use of guidelines for writing
project plans or providing status information.
◦ The creation of a project management office or center of
excellence.

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Project Phases and the Project
Life Cycle
A project life cycle is a collection of project
phases
In general, Project life cycle defines:
◦ What work will be performed in each phase.
◦ What deliverables will be produced and when.
◦ Who is involved in each phase.
◦ How management will control and approve work
produced in each phase.
A deliverable is a product or service produced or
provided as part of a project.
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More on Project Phases
 In the early phases of a project life cycle:
◦ Resource needs are usually lowest.
◦ The level of uncertainty (risk) is highest.
◦ Project stakeholders have the greatest opportunity to
influence the project.
 In the middle phases of a project life cycle:
◦ The certainty of completing a project increases.
◦ More resources are needed.
 In the final phase of a project life cycle:
◦ The focus is on ensuring that project requirements were
met.
◦ The sponsor approves completion of the project.

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Phases of the Traditional Project Life
Cycle

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Product Life Cycles

 All Products also have some type of life cycles for ex: Cars, buildings,
and so on.
◦ Basic life cycle may be design, build & test new products
 Most information technology professionals are familiar with the
concept of a product life cycle, especially for developing software.
 Most of the IT projects are software development projects.
 Therefore, it is important to consider about the System Development
Life Cycle (SDLC).
 A Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is a framework for
describing the phases involved in developing information systems.

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 Distinguishing Project Life Cycles
and Product Life Cycles

The project life cycle applies to all projects,

regardless of the products being produced
Product life cycle models vary considerably based
on the nature of the product
Most large IT products are developed as a series
of projects
Project management is done in all of the product
life cycle phases

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The importance of Project Phases and
Management Reviews
A project should successfully pass through each
of the project phases in order to continue on to
the next
Management reviews (also called phase exits or
kill points) should occur after each phase to
evaluate the project’s progress, likely success,
and continued compatibility with organizational
goals

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The Context of IT Projects
IT projectscan be very diverse in terms of size,
complexity, products produced, application area,
and resource requirements.

IT project
team members often have diverse
backgrounds and skill sets.

IT projectsuse diverse technologies that change

rapidly. Even within one technology area,
people must be highly specialized.

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Chapter Summary
 Project managers need to take a systems approach when
working on projects.
 Organizations have four different frames: structural,
human resources, political, and symbolic.
 The structure and culture of an organization have strong
implications for project managers.
 Projects should successfully pass through each phase of
the project life cycle.
 Project managers need to consider several factors due to
the unique context of information technology projects.

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Questions
Explain the four frames of organizations.
how can they help project managers
understand the organizational context for
their projects?
Briefly explain the differences between
functional, matrix and project
organizations. Describe how each
structure affects the management of the
project.

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