Research Proposal Factors Affecting Successful Completion of Projects in the IT Industry in the UK Research Background “With developing technological possibilities, IT projects are becoming increasingly ambitious in both goals and scale” (Alami, 2016, p.62). A key reason for the importance of projects is linked to the rapid pace of globalization, change, and the specialized way of doing business in today’s business environment. Most of these projects are IT oriented and are distinct. Successful project management is a vital issue among researchers and practitioners and this has resulted in different models of successful project management through history, pointing to different levels of thought in managing successful projects (Sjekavica & Radujkovic, 2017). IT projects, whether the goal is to design, re-engineer, or to install, are often driven by phases of frequent change and aggressive deadlines. Resources have to be identified and allocated, with structured and well organized activities in line with technical and business requirements in order to get the job done. IT projects are characterized by various sizes and magnitude such as development projects, feasibility studies, implementation projects, design projects, support services projects, migration projects, and upgrade projects. Utilization of project management approach to create opportunities and solve IT problems implicates both end-users and managers, and outlines activities, roles, plans and milestones. Managers of IT projects are key players in harnessing information technology potential within organizations. Every IT project is goal oriented and the project is successful or not when the goal is achieved or not. Rationale Information Technology (IT) projects play crucial role among firms in the UK. In 2017 the UK government spent £18.6bn on 39 information and communication technology projects. An example ICT project was the Home Office Biometrics Programme. The purpose was to establish an integrated, single, real time biometrics service that would provide support for community and border protection (IPA, 2017). The project has turned out to be successful as its application is witnessed at the borders, airports and in different communities across the UK. However, there are several other IT projects that after commencement were aborted or turned out to be unsuccessful along the line. Such projects cost huge sums of money and in the long run affect agencies, senior management and executives, small and medium sized businesses, etc. There have been a plethora of research work on why projects succeed or fail, and others highlighted the causative failure and success factors, but very few aim at studying their negative consequences and how to manage them. The rationale for this research is to study possible approaches to managing the negative impacts of unsuccessful IT projects on individuals (managers, executives, stakeholders) and the performance of the organization (productivity, profitability, and revenue). It is expected that the findings of the study would contribute to existing knowledge and literature on the subject matter. Governments, policy makers, project managers, engineers and software developers would also find the study useful in understanding the concept of IT projects and how to manage negative outcomes in case of IT project failure. Purpose of the Research The IT sector is a key contributor to the economic development of the United Kingdom. For this reason, IT project management is essential for the competitive positioning of the UK economy. In recent times, firms in the UK have been using successful IT projects to facilitate their business operations. This research area “IT Project Management” is of interest to the researcher for some reasons. IT projects support organizations to define, develop, and implement their strategies, in order to transform their culture, structure, and behaviour in a competitive business environment. Numerous firms have witnessed failed implementation of one IT project or the other. These have resulted in several negative outcomes for the individuals and the organizations as a whole. Little research has been conducted to understand, identify, and manage the nature of these effects. The researcher is interested in filling this research gap and hence the purpose for this study. The purpose of the research is to identify the factors that affect the successful completion of IT projects within the UK’s IT sector. More importantly, the research will examine the effects of unsuccessful IT projects on individuals and the organization as a whole, and how these negative outcomes can be managed effectively. Research Question This research seeks to answer the question “What are the key factors that lead to unsuccessful IT projects”? Research Objectives 1) To identify Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for the completion of IT Projects 2) To determine the factors that inhibit the implementation process of IT projects 3) To develop strategies to manage negative impacts of unsuccessful IT projects on individuals and the organization LITERATURE REVIEW Empirical evidence is available which shows that within project oriented organizations, failure is a persistent trauma. In IT there has been a failed UK NHS patient record system. IT project failures are a common place and IT project managers and planners often expect such. Alami (2016) studied why information technology project fail. The author proposed that three key issues can impact the ecosystem of a project and lead to its failure and these include volatility, uncertainty and unknowns. Depending on these aspects it is possible to estimate the performance of future projects as well as manage them individually. Taherdoost & keshavarzsaleh (2015) studied critical factors that lead to the success and failure of projects in the global market place. The authors pointed to risk factors such as complexity, contract, financial, legal, scope & requirements, planning& control, and execution as risk factors that could led to the failure of an IT project. Both researches that have been cited indicate that failures of IT projects have one thing in common and that is the environment in which the projects take pace. Furthermore, different studies have attempted to detect critical success factors in project management. Some have even attempted to group these success factors and explain how they interact. Some of the critical factors have been reported and include environmental factors, team members and the performance of the project managers. Koch & Barth (2019) studied critical success factors in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) upgrade projects. The research design and approach was based on a literature review and qualitative interviews with CIOs, CEOs, and ERP project managers and consultants that recently performed an ERP upgrade projects in their respective organizations. The authors found 14 critical factors for ERP upgrade projects. Some of the factors included external support, effective project management, application of multiple system landscape, and the composition of the ERP team played vital roles in achieving a successful ERP upgrade. Orouji (2016) performed a survey on various studies linked to critical success factors in project management. The research covered related studies based on value added published articles from 1987-2017. The survey revealed that there has been much attention focused on important factors which influence the success or failure of ERP. The authors found that successfully implementing Six Sigma could contribute to successful projects. da Silva et al (2019) studied critical success factors for project manufacturing environments. The aim of their study was to identify and understand the relationship between project performance and critical success factors of project manufacturing environments. Using a logistic regression analysis, a sample of 182 participants, and quantifying the influence of critical success factors on success achievement in four dimensions (efficiency, consumer impact, team impact, and future preparation), findings showed that project success cannot be explained by all critical success factors. Hence, project managers have to evaluate the effects of each and use it to make informed decisions. The research works cited above exude originality and value. IT projects such as ERP upgrade have a huge organizational impact but this depends on the success or failure of the projects. Managers also have a role to play in identifying which critical success factors impact the success of IT projects. Moreover, The Iron Triangle is a project management concept and is also known as the Triple Constraint, or the project management Triangle, is a key aspect of how project success is understood. According to Pollack, Helm & Adler (2018) “The Iron Triangle is a representation of the most basic criteria by which project success is measured; namely whether the project is delivered by the due date, within budget, and to some agreed level of quality, performance or scope. The Iron Triangle as a concept is a good way to communicate the interrelationships between the criteria for success. Typically, it is portrayed as a triangle having the criteria on the vertices. For example, the movement of a particular criterion in response to resource limitations or demands of clients can exert pressure on the other criteria. Mokoena et al (2013) asserted that when one constant fails, it causes negative pressure on one, both or the other two. There could be project failure if the project manager and other stakeholders misinterpret or misunderstand the Iron Triangle in spite of effectively managing all other aspects of the project. It has been found that effectively managing the Iron Triangle is key to project success, and conversely, it has come to light that the Iron Triangle is one of the most overlooked aspects of project management (Van Wyngaard et al., 2012). References Alami, A. (2016) Why do Information technology Projects Fail? Procedia Computer Science, Vol.100, pp.62-71. da Silva, A.L., Ignacio, A., Pacifico, O., da Silva, S.L., Pacagnella, A.C. (2019) Critical Success Factors for Project manufacturing Environments. Project management Journal, Vol.50(2), pp.243-258. IPA (2017) Infrastructure and Projects Authority: Annual Report on major Projects 2016-2017. pp. 2-16. Koch, S., Barth, C. (2019) Critical Success factors in ERP Upgrade Projects. Industrial Management & Data Systems. Mokoena,T., Pretorious, J., Van Wyngaard, C. (2013) Triple Constrain Considerations in the management of Construction Projects. Proceedings of the 2013 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management. IEEE Conference Publications, pp.813817. Pollack, J., helm, J., Adler, D. (2018) What is the Iron Triangle, and how has it Changed? International Journal of Managing Projects in Business, Vol.11(2), pp.527-547. Taderhoost, H., Keshavarzsaleh, A. (2015) Critical factors that lead to projects’ Success/Failure in global Marketplace. Procedia Technology, Vol.22, pp.1066-1075. Van Wyngaard, C., Pretorius, J., Pretorious, L. (2012) Theory of the triple Constraint- A Conceptual review. Proceedings of the 2012 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management. IEEE Conference Publications: 1991-1997. Assignment Number and Weighting Coursework 1 (100%) Submission Date See Moodle and Time submission link Anonymous marking No Expected return 14 working days from the deadline of feedback and marked work 17:00:00 Assessment is made up of multiple submissions Yes Details of multiple item in submission if relevant Item Title Weighting Item Due Date and 17:00:00 Research 100% Proposal Submission Procedure Electronically via Moodle (Turnitin) ONLY Word Count 2500 Assignment Title Business and Management Research Proposal See Moodle submission link Assessment Learning Outcomes This assignment is designed to assess learning outcomes: 1. Understand various approaches and methods in management research and be able to distinguish between poor and well-founded research project proposals 2. Understand the key concepts involved in developing a research proposal and how they interrelate in a complementary way to form a coherent research proposal 3. Undertake a critical review of the literature in the chosen subject area prior to framing the research question 4. Formulate a set of research question and objectives 5. Critically compare alternative research techniques and evaluate their uses and limitations 6. Prepare a research proposal which reflects utility and which demonstrates an understanding of validity, reliability and generalisation This assignment is made up of a report and a presentation. Please find details below: Mid-term Presentation Submission Deadline: please check Moodle page submission link Presentation: Mid-term (week 5 or 6) during seminar activity sessions. Students are expected to complete the Individual Review document. Assessor: The Presentation is assessed by the Tutor and fellow students 20% of the final marks contribute to your attendance and participation of the Presentation. Students are expected to complete the Individual Review document and attach it to the end of term submission. Important Instructions 1. You MUST participate in the Presentation and you MUST all be on time – if you do not participate, you will be allocated a mark of ZERO for your final assessment. 2. After the presentation has taken place you will be expected to complete the Individual Review document (see ‘Assignment’ section on Moodle). These documents will be part of your appendix for your final assessment. PURPOSE OF THE PRESENTATION • To educate others about your research topic; • To get feedback/critique from peers before submitting your assessment • To network with other students who are interested in the same research SECTIONS OF THE PRESENTATION 1. Working Title 2. Research Background into the proposed research topic Justification/Rationale – Why did you want to investigate this area? Who could benefit from the results? Invest time in explaining a compelling reason for the study rather than just showing past literature that found similar results. Purpose – Exactly why you want to research this area? 3.One Research question and 3 research objectives (4th objective can be recommendation) The research question which is one overall question Research objectives (3 different research objectives) must be clear statements that identify what the research process seeks to achieve. This must relate to the research question/topic Both research question and the three research objectives must relate to the literature review 4. Literature Review Top 5 lists of the most important or significant studies, theories/models/framework How relevant are the mentioned studies, theories/models/framework? 5. References Starts here End of Module Assessment (100% include 20% mid-term formative assessment): Research Proposal Submission Deadline: please check Moodle page submission link Word limit: 2,500 Assessor: Tutor This Assignment requires you to engage with the Business and Management Research Methods tools typically employed to plan for a proposed piece of original research. The Mid Term Module Assessment requires you to produce a Research Proposal to investigate a relevant business issue and will contribute to existing knowledge. It is imperative that you complete the requirements as part of the marking criteria. Your research proposal MUST be in line with your specialisation. Approaching the Assignment: 1. Identify the key terms and requirements for a Research Proposal 2. Use the Marking Criteria to understand the expectations of the reader. 3. Create an outline of your assignment. 4. Use your Research and Referencing to support and justify all your points 5. Use Evidence to support your proposed research design and methodology 6. Your assignment should include in-text citations and be supported with a full List of References. You are expected to use the CU/CULC Harvard Referencing Style. Please refer to the CU/CULC referencing guide. Please remember that when you submit your assignment, you need to include: • Your Name • Your Student ID number • The Title of the Assignment (in the Submission Title box) Suggested Structure - Research Proposal 1. Research Proposal Title – Reflect as accurately as possible the content of your chosen topic. 2. Abstract – This is a brief statement of what you are intending to research. This needs to describe the proposal content. 3. Introduction • Relevance of the Proposed Research to Business Research • Place the proposed study in context • Justification of the chosen topic • Value of this research 4. Research Question(s) and Research Objectives • The research question which is one overall question • Research objectives (3 different research objectives) must be clear statements that identify what the research process seeks to achieve. This must relate to the research question/topic • Both research question and the three research objectives must relate to the literature review 5. Literature Review • Clear and precise knowledge that relate to the research topic. • Explain how your proposal relates to the academic debate which has been identified as part of the literature review. • Demonstrate a link between previous work and current work that has been done in your field of research interest. • Highlight in your literature review where your research question(s)/objectives came from. 6. Method • Relates to your research questions and research objectives and shows how you will achieve them. • Your method consists of two parts: (1) Research design – relates to the research opinion (philosophies, approaches, strategies, choices, time horizon). You are expected to make strong justifications in support of your chosen research design. (2) Data collection – relates to the last phase of the research onion (techniques and procedures). Identify how specifically the data will be collected (i.e. questionnaire, focus group, etc...). You are expected to provide the advantages and disadvantages of the various data collection methods and select the most appropriate data collection method(s). • Your chosen method (1) Research design and (2) Data collection must relate to the purpose of your study. • A copy a proposed questionnaire or semi/unstructured interview questions should be presented as part of the appendices. A covering letter to explain the purpose of the questionnaire should be presented. 7. Research Ethics 8. Timescale • Break down the research process into a series of steps • Highlight how much time is needed to be made available for data collection and analysis 9. Resources • Think about the resources needed for the completion of the project that you are proposing. This could include direct costs (travel, accommodation) or indirect costs (time). 10. References 11. Appendix • A covering letter to explain the purpose of the questionnaire/interview should be presented. • A copy a proposed questionnaire or semi/unstructured interview questions should be presented as part of the appendices.
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