Project Failure: Case Study

Today, I am going to share a case study of a software project that failed to be delivered in time and within budget. The case study will highlight its causes and future recommendations.

Tips to Improve Written Communication

Many people fall into habit of using technical jargon that can be understood only by experts in same field.

In written communication, writers ignore the conclusion by discarding it from the report, or write in a too wordy manner with grammatical errors, spelling mistakes and wrong sentence structure. 

In order to improve written communication, some of the tips to follow are:

·         Use simple words & phrases.

·         Use short & familiar words

·         Use personal pronouns (such as “you”) whenever appropriate.

·         Give illustrations & examples; use charts.

·         Use short sentences & paragraphs.

·         Use active verbs, as in “Manager plan…”

·         Avoid unnecessary words.

Managers have the absence of significant knowledge to make effective decisions.  They are mostly overloaded with too much of the information then is actually required. They should take into account, the following managerial tasks to be successful:

• Managers should distinguish in selecting information.
• What do I really need to know for my job?
• What would happen if I did not get this information on regular basis?
• Not maximum information but relevant information.
• No universally applicable communication system; must be tailored to manger’s needs.

Effective Organizational Communication

Organizational communication can be made effective by encouraging an environment of open communication. The communication should commit to ethics and proficiency should exist in communication technology. Dynamics of intercultural communication should be understood. Messages should be created and processed efficiently and an audience centred approach should be used while communicating.  

 Tips to Achieve Communication

·         Communicate a clear vision.

·         Focus attention on the customer.

·         Reinforce the vision by taking action.

·         Bring in competent skilled people.

·         Move information quickly.

·         Focus on the right things.

·         Check all organizational system.

·         Invite involvement.

  Ways to Improve Organizational Communication

·         Emphasis on teamwork

·         Improve management system

·         Change the organizational culture.

·         Improve reporting system

·         Focus on employees’ participation & involvement.

·         Flatter hierarchy.

·         Cross functional teams.

·         Fewer controls.

Types of Communicating in an Organization

       ·         External communication network.

       ·         Internal communication network.

Organizational Skills

In order to improve the effectiveness of communication for both the sender and receiver, following skills are required:

         ·         Follow up

         ·         Regulating information flow

         ·         Understanding richness different media.

Communication and Management

Managers in an organization basically perform three jobs that involve collecting information, confirming that information and promoting interpersonal unity. The information is collected through multiple mediums like phone calls, conversations, databases, internet, reports, documents etc. this information is then conveyed to relevant stake holders. In addition, managers motivate their resources through conversations wither formal or informal. In all these jobs, communication forms the basis.

The role of communication is in coordination, delegation, development etc. It is required in every aspect of organization including establishment of organizational standards, taking corrective actions after reviewing performance, developing reward system etc. thus, managers coordinate and influence their subordinates through means of communication. But to have an effective communication is what matters.

The key points in the effectiveness of management through communication involve the following:

·         Most of the time at work is spent in communication.

·         As a manager, success is dependent on effective communication.

·         With the increase in globalization, communication has become more vital for diversity of workplace specialization.

·         It is a must tool for those who intend to be in contact with the remaining world.

·         Among other factors, it is communication as well that can either break or make the career of an organization.

In a management process, role of communication is depicted in the figure below:

In order to be an effective manager, a manager requires information to carry out managerial activities. If there is an overload of information, he may lack vital information that is required for decision making.

Communication Management : Introduction

Communication

As mentioned in my previous blog, communication management is one of the core areas of project management. 

Communication is a process in which one person or group transmits some type of information to another person or group. In terms of organizations, communication is a process through which things are got done. When a message is sent in a way that the receiver gets the message in as close meaning as it is in actual then communication is effective.

 

Communication in Organizations:

Communication plays a significant role in management as it deals with all the organization processes thus carrying on activities within the organization. The purpose is to have a certain degree of accuracy in making participants understand what is to be done. Communication within an organization enables information to flow faster and avoids having short stoppage on fast moving production lines which in turn can result in loss of output if not communicated effectively. It is the communication that fulfills the organizational needs of getting relevant information, the type of information required that can assist managers to make effective decisions and to get the information from all relevant departments.

Relationship of communication with the organizational goals is depicted below:

Elements of Communication:

Several elements of contribution collectively make it effective. They include the following:

·         Encoding

·         Perception& Interpretation

·         Nonverbal Communications

·         Communicator

·         Channel

·         Message

       Business authorities lay importance to communication.  Some of them express it as follows:

“There may be no single thing more important in our efforts to achieve meaningful work and fulfilling relationships than to learn and practice the art of communication.” [The Art of Leadership- Max De Pree, Author]

“Top executives from Fortune 500 companies rate communications skills as the most important quality for business leaders.” [New York Times - Business Section]

Project Management Knowledge Areas

There are mainly nine knowledge areas in project management. Amongst them some are the core functions while others perform the facilitating functions.

Core Knowledge Areas:

·         Scope Management

·         Time Management

·         Cost Management

·         Quality Management

Facilitating Knowledge Areas:

·         Human Resource Management

·         Communication Management

·         Risk Management

·         Procurement Management

Integration Management:

Both the core and facilitating areas bring together integration management.

Project Management Process: Closing a Project

Acceptance of the project or its phase is formalised in closing the project and the project is brought into an orderly end. The project manager needs to make sure that all the project deliverables are complete, lessons are documented, no outstanding issues are left, maintenance plan and resources are there, ongoing user support is there and a formal acceptance has been taken by the client.

Closing Processes:

The core processes involved in closing a project are as follows:

Procurement

Contract close out.

Communication

Administrative closure

Project Management Process: Controlling a Project

Controlling of a project begins as a preventive action in anticipation to possible problems. Complexity of a project determines the level of control. If a project is complex, high control is required whereas if a project is simple, low control works with it. Ongoing administration and management planned project controls involve the following processes:

·         Risk Management

·         Communications

·         Status Reporting

·         Issue Management

·         Project Changes

·         Project Documentation

Core Processes:

The core controlling processes are as follows:

Communications

Performance reporting.

Integration

Integrated change control.

Facilitating Processes:

The facilitating processes in controlling a project are given as under:

Scope

Scope verification and scope change control.

Time

Schedule control.

Cost

Cost control.

Quality

Quality control.

Risk

Risk monitoring and control.

Project Management Process: Executing a Project

Project execution involves requirements, analysis, design, coding, testing and maintenance. It involves core and facilitating processes to work in parallel.

Core Process:

The core process involved in project execution is integration.

Integration

This process involves execution of project plan.

 Facilitating Processes:

The facilitating processes which run in parallel to the core process of project execution are given as under:

Procurement

Solicitation, source selection and contract administration.

Quality

Quality assurance.

Human Resources

Team development.

Communication

Information distribution.

Project Management Process: Planning a Project

Planning of a project involves core processes and facilitating processes to work in parallel. They together form an integrated project plan. A work break down structure (WBS) is made in this stage. Major part of a project manager’s job is done if the project is planned well.

Core Processes:

The core processes involved in planning include the following:

Scope

Scope planning and scope definition.

Time

Activity definition, activity sequences, activity duration estimating and schedule development.

Cost

Resource planning, cost estimating and cost budgeting.

Risk

Risk management planning.

Integration

Development of project plan.

Facilitating Processes:

The facilitating process which run in parallel to the core processes are given as under:

Quality

Quality planning.

Communication

Communication planning.

Human Resources

Organization planning and staff acquisition.

Procurement

Procurement planning and solicitation planning.

Risk

Risk identification, qualitative risk analysis, quantitative risk analysis and risk response planning.

Project Management Process: Initiate a Project

Initiating a project involves the following steps:

Product Description:

The product description is written in collaboration with key personals. It contains definition of problem, key objectives and constraints and business justification.

Sponsors:

The sponsors of the project should be committed and should perform major activities of a project including approval of plans, schedule and budget, steering committee chair, ensuring availability of resources, resolve major issues and review progress of the project.

Project Charter:

The project charter is written collectively by the sponsor and project manager. It highlights direction on funding source and budget authority, level and selection of planning and controls, assignment of resources for project activities and identification of other groups of whom involvement is required in the project.

The initiation process must be approved in order to start working.

Project Management Process

Usually the processes involved in a project life cycle involve Initiating, planning, executing, controlling and closing processes that are linked to each other and work in collaboration. These are also known as the Process Groups.

The project management processes can be tactical, physical or tangible as demarcated in the figure below:

Common Project Stages in Its Life Cycle

The beginning and end of a project is determined in a project life cycle. A project life cycle has number of phases each of which is marked by completion of one or more deliverables.  A tangible and verifiable work product serves as a deliverable for example a working prototype.

Three common project stages include Establish, Execute and Complete. Details are given below:

1.  Establish a Project:

In this stage, objectives of a project are defined including scope and approach that will be utilised. In addition, project team is mobilised. Two sub-processes involved in establishing a project are project selection and confirm definition.

Project Selection:

This sub-process includes the steps to define project scope, objectives, approach, business case and selecting the best projects.

Confirm Definition:

This sub-process includes the steps to understand expectations of project sponsor, understand project scope and objectives, confirm any assumptions and identify risks involved in the project.

2. Execute a Project:

In this stage, work plan is executed to get the desired results. Four sub-processes involved in executing a project are to plan the execution, organise resources, control the work and report status. These sub-processes run in a cycle.

Plan the Execution:

This sub-process includes the steps to define project deliverables, developing work plans, scope, change control, issue management, sign-off processes, risk mitigation plan and quality plan.

Organise Resources:

This sub-process includes the steps to identify the roles and responsibilities of the project team. Then tasks according to the work plan are assigned to team members and training is provided to them. Responsibilities, target dates and deliverables are to be communicated properly and physical resources are organised.

Control the Work:

This sub-process includes monitoring the work progress and resolving any issues that come across. Performance is measured at this stage.

Report Status:

This sub-process includes assessing the progress made in the project and status reports are created. The progress is communicated to the relevant stakeholders and it is to make sure by the project manager that all the issues that result from the status update meeting should be followed up.

3. Complete a Project:

In this stage, any development or administrative activities that are left need to be completed. A sign-off is taken regarding the final project deliverables and if appropriate, maintenance team is transited.

The overall stages of a project are depicted in the figure below:

                                                                         Stages in a Project:

Project Constraints

A project revolves around three constraints for which the project managers are answerable. These three constraints are time, cost and scope. Time defines the schedule of the project. Scope defines the totality of work to complete a specific project and cost is the budget for a particular project. These three constraints combine together to have control over the other three variables of project management which are risk, people and quality.

The three project parameters or constraints are dependent on each other in a way that often leads to compete amongst them.  A tight time leads to increased cost but reduced scope. Similarly, a tight budget can lead to reduced scope but increased time. Increase in scope leads to increase in time and cost both.

Project Management: Introduction

Project Management:

Project Management is a method of managing projects with the scientific application of tools and techniques that enable to meet or exceed the stakeholder needs within the defined time, cost and quality. Various unique activities that a project involves are planned, implemented, financed, monitored and controlled through the use of modern project management techniques.

In order to meet stakeholder’s needs form a project, the competing demands should be balanced as shown in the figure below:

The modern day tools and techniques involve work breakdown structures, action plans, Gantt charts, linear responsibility charts, network diagrams, CPM/PERT, milestone charts etc.

Basics of a Project

Project:

“A project is usually a one-time activity with a well-defined set of desired end results…complex enough that the subtasks required careful coordination and control in terms of timing, precedence, cost and performance.” [Project Management: A Managerial Approach, Jack R. Meredith and Samuel J. Mantel, Jr. 1995]

In 1999, Accenture defined a project as: “The assignment of resources to accomplish specific results (deliverables) with a well-defined schedule and budget.”

A project is usually defined as a cycle comprising of activities that are unique and in connection with each other and all leading to one goal having constraints to be fulfilled. The constraints are that the activities should be accomplished in specific time, within budget and according to the defined terms.

When we say that a project has unique activities, it depicts that these activities have never happened before in the project and will not happen again under the same specifications. These activities are complex and follow an order in which they should be completed. Connections form a sequence in a way that output from one activity serves as input to another activity.

Every project has a single goal to which all activities are heading to along with a defined completion time. In order to have a successful project, it has to be within the resource limits i-e within budget.

What is expected from a project is specified by the client and a certain level is setup for the functionality to be provided which forms the project requirements. Multiple projects make up a program which is larger in scope than a project.

Project Characteristics:

A project has a specific start and end date with specific objectives. It has a budget and produces specific deliverables. It has an owner or sponsor. A project can vary in complexity, duration and size and may only be a phase within a larger project.