or… WHY SO MANY I.T. PROJECTS FAIL Information Technology solution RFPs are generally outsourced for one primary reason – internal resources are too busy to do it. It’s a sound, but insufficient, reason. Here’s why. Frequently, IT people are not … Continue reading
BACKGROUND In a long and diverse career we have written dozens of RFPs and responded to dozens more. As well, we have mediated IT contract disputes between parties and acted in litigation where major IT contracts have failed to meet … Continue reading
In Step#3 we emphasised the importance of a firm procedural foundation to successful projects. No foundation stone is more important than the inputs and outputs associated with Steering Committee over-sight. The documents should include, as a minimum; an issues log, … Continue reading
Nothing better emphasises the corporate imperative of a major undertaking than the personal endorsement of the CEO. While the project sponsor, and indeed the primary beneficiary, may be lower down the corporate ladder, the imprimatur of the CEO at the … Continue reading
Step #7 Validate the revised plan and re-affirm Business commitment Whether the business solution envisaged is to be developed in-house or via a third party, the process you have been through should have resulted in a revised plan, somewhat … Continue reading
Step #6 Validate the RFP & Selection Process Bias, conscious or unconscious, is inherent in all of us, and in every decision that we make. Even our decisions to become better informed about a topic are effected by our … Continue reading
Step #5 Ensure an informed sign-off of the requirements definition You might suppose that this step was added to round out the steps to ten. Surely the user knows what is required, or the project would not have been approved, … Continue reading
Checkpoint #1 Other than the failure to properly implement Change Management, probably the second-most systemic reason for IT project failures is the reluctance to institute and perform a checkpoint. Every major PM methodology subscribes to this process. Sometimes called stage-gate, … Continue reading
Step 4 Identify a high level champion for Change Management Change Management is THE primary determinant for a successful IT project. The absence or failure of the change management process accounts for fully 50% of failed projects – more … Continue reading
STEP 3 Invest in the Project Foundations Few significant business investments outside of IT would get approval without: a formal process of thought, investigation, discussion across a broad range of stakeholders, a sound plan and budget, all of which could … Continue reading