IT Projects and the organisation

System View of Project Management

1. system philosophy: overall model for thinking about things as systems
2. system analysis : problem-solving approach that requires defining the scope of system, dividing into components, then identifying tand evaluating its problems, opportunities, constraints and needs
3. systems management: addresses the business technological, and organisational issues associated with creating, maintainnig and modifying a system

                /- Business
successful proj -- Technological
                \- Organisational

Understand the organisation

• most projects fail because of organisational issues
• project managers often do not spend enough time identifying all the project stakehodlers & neglect the political context of a project or the organisation culture

Four Frames of Organisation

• Structural frame: roles and responsitbilities, coordination and control. Organizational charts help describe this frame
• Human resource frame: provide harmony between needs of the organisation and needs of people
• Political frame: coalitions composed of varied individuals and interest groups. conflict and power are key issues
• Symbolic frame: symbols and meanings related to events. culture, language, traditions and image are all parts of this frame

Organisational Structures

• functional: bureaucratic organisational structure. divides the ocmpany into departments
• matrix: reporting relationships are established as a matrix
• projectized: establishe especially for a project. prj team members work under the management of the project manager
• composite: a combination of other types of structures

Functional Organisation Structures

• traditional type of granisation chart used across many business and orgs to visualize company structure
• shows leadership roles such as managers and executive positions towards the top connected to their direct reports and associates towards the bottom

+ stable organisation structure
+ employees have a career growth path
+ employees have clear chain of command
+ flexibility in staff deployment

- project manager has little to no authority
- multiple projects compete for limited shared resources
- employees likely to remain to functional manager

Project Organisational Structures

• project managers are usually full time in the role ... and may manage several small project at once

Matrix Organisation Structures

* dual bosses : functional manager and/or project manager

Influence of Project Management in Organisation Structures

Organisation Cultures

• shaped by people
• underlying beliefs, assumptions, values and ways of interacting that contribute to unique social and psychological environment of an organisation
• beliefs and assumptions are developed from what we perceive from our surroundings and the experiences we have from our actions

Clan Cultures

• family-like / friendly / collaborative culture
• helping each other during work hour, eating lunch tgt, playing games, happy memories

+ productivity and company growth is consistent
+ clear communication
+ employees are appreciated for good work and criticized without hurting their sentiments

Adhocracy Cultures

• risk taking culture
• leaders are innovative and creative
• accept challenges/take risks , ready to break organisational assumptions
• employees dont get their chances to try multiple times when they don't get the outcome

+ shared commitment
+ competitive advantage in marketplace
+ inclusive environment that welcomes all ideas

Market Cultures

• results-driven, market-oriented, extremely competitive 🏁
• very high expectations 💯
• employees are given difficult goals ⚽️
• performance is closely monitored 👀

+ goals are met / new ways are explored to reach them
+ employees are consistently pushed to go the extra mile and are driven and inspired by their leaders
+ always ready to react to any changes in the market to ensure they maintain the market share and stay ahead of the game

Hierarchy Cultures

• formalised and structured work environment
• efficiency-based coordination and organisation
• formal rules and policies to keep the organisation together
• long term goals = stability / efficien & smooth execution of tasks

+ employees feel more secure, get paid on time, safe to stay in role for long
+ propotion can lead to exclusive advanced status and reward, motivator for employees
+ employees more likely to achieve expert status in that one field

Project Phase and Life Cycle

Product Life Cycle

Predictive Life Cycle

Adaptive Life Cycle

Recent Trends Affecting ITPM

1. Globalisation : lower trade/political barriers
2. Outsourcing : reduce cost
3. Virtual Teams

Virtual Teams +ve and -ve
|
+ increase competitiveness/responsiveness
+ lower cost
+ increase expertise and flexibility
+ increase work/life balance
|
- isolation interpersonal relationships
- communication problems
- dependency on technology