The Project Management and IT Context
Submitted to:
Ma’am Asma
Submitted by:
BSSIT-16-04
BSSIT-16-20
BSSIT-16-24
BS IT 6th Semester (2016-2020)
IT PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONTEXT
Project context
Project context is the environment in which a project operates. It covers both the internal and
external environment. Different projects have different contextual issues to deal with therefore is
important to understand a project's context.
The PESTLE technique can be used to analyse 6 main components of a project context:
1. POLITICAL
This component covers the relationship of the project with external political stakeholders. It may
also refer to gaining consensus across an organisations supply chain and its internal departments.
For example the change of government may have significant impact on the execution of publicly
funded capital projects, such as Building Schools for the Future and the NHS IT systems.
2. ECONOMIC
This component is concerned with balancing longer term benefits of a project with the cost of its
implementation. For example, funding a large capital project is usually dependent on public funds,
e.g. PFI or PPP. Also, long-term projects are more susceptible to the uncertainty around interest
rates.
3. SOCIOLOGICAL
This component is concerned with interaction of the project with its users and understanding the
needs of the society. For example building a power station requires a good understanding of the
sociological trends surrounding the project and the impact on the society. This makes stakeholder
identification process critical.
4. TECHNOLOGICAL
This aspect refers to a greater understanding of the technological specifications surrounding a
project. For example, computer related technology advances at a high speed; therefore
implementing a new software system requires thorough consideration of the availability of such
systems, as well as the anticipated time by which it becomes out of date.
5. LEGAL
This component can refer to health and safety issues or data protection issues, which are legally
bound. For example, the nuclear industry has a very high degree of regulatory framework in which
it operates. Also, Health and safety of employees under the Health and Safety Act needs to be
carefully managed.
6. ENVIRONMENTAL
This aspect is concerned with the impact of project on the surrounding environment. The disposal
of waste from a construction site is heavily regulated. For example, working on a site with
contaminated land which requires high degree of preparation before actual construction begins
can have significant impact on project schedule.
Project Phases and the Project Life Cycle
A project life cycle is a collection of project phases.
 In 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 middle phases of a project life cycle:
 The certainty of completing a project improves
 More resources are needed
 The final phase of a project life cycle focuses on:
 Ensuring that project requirements were met
 The sponsor approves completion of the project
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 phase.

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.
PROJECT STAKEHOLDERS
Project stakeholders are individuals and organizations who are actively involved in the project, or
whose interests may be positively or negatively affected as a result of project execution or successful
project completion. The project management team must identify the stakeholders, determine what
their needs and expectations are, and then manage and influence those expectations to ensure a
successful project.
Key stakeholders on every project include:

Project manager—the individual responsible for managing the project.

Customer—the individual or organization who will use the project product. There may be
multiple layers of customers. For example, the customers for a new pharmaceutical product
may include the doctors who prescribe it, the patients who take it, and the insurers who pay
for it.

Performing organization—the enterprise whose employees are most directly involved in
doing the work of the project.

Sponsor—the individual or group within the performing organization who provides the
financial resources, in cash or in kind, for the project.
Managing stakeholder expectations may be difficult because stakeholders often have very different
objectives that may come into conflict. For example:

The manager of a department that has requested a new management information system may
desire low cost, the system architect may emphasize technical excellence, and the
programming contractor may be most interested in maximizing its profit.

The vice president of research at an electronics firm may define new product success as stateof-the-art technology, the vice president of manufacturing may define it as world-class
practices, and the vice president of marketing may be primarily concerned with the number of
new features.

The owner of a real estate development project may be focused on timely performance, the
local governing body may desire to maximize tax revenue, an environmental group may wish
to minimize adverse environmental impacts, and nearby residents may hope to relocate the
project.
In general, differences between or among stakeholders should be resolved in favor of the customer.
This does not, however, mean that the needs and expectations of other stakeholders can or should
be disregarded. Finding appropriate resolutions to such differences can be one of the major
challenges of project management.
ORGANIZATIONAL INFLUENCES
Projects are typically part of an organization larger than the project—corporations, government
agencies, health care institutions, international bodies, professional associations, and others. The
following sections describe key aspects of these larger organizational structures that are likely to
influence the project.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES:
3 basic organization structures:

Functional: functional managers report to the CEO

Project: program managers report to the CEO

Matrix: middle ground between functional and project structures; personnel often report to two
or more bosses; structure can be weak, balanced, or strong matrix
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.
Project work is most successful in an organizational culture where these items are strong/high and
other items are balanced.
10 CHARACHTERISTICS OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE:

Member identity

Group emphasis

People focus

Unit integration

Control

Risk tolerance

Reward criteria

Conflict tolerance

Means-ends orientation

Open-systems focus
UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS:
Structural frame: Focuses on roles and responsibilities, coordination and control. Organization
charts help define this frame.
Human resources frame: Focuses on providing harmony between needs of the organization and
needs of people.
Political frame: Assumes organizations are coalitions composed of varied individuals and interest
groups. Conflict and power are key issues.
Symbolic frame: Focuses on symbols and meanings related to events. Culture is important.
A SYSTEMS VIEW OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT

A systems approach emerged in the 1950s to describe a more analytical approach to
management and problem solving
Three parts include:

Systems philosophy: an overall model for thinking about things as systems

Systems analysis: problem-solving approach

Systems management: address business, technological, and organizational issues before
making changes to systems.
Projects Cannot Be Run in Isolation:

Projects must operate in a broad organizational environment

Project managers need to use systems thinking

Taking a holistic view of carrying out projects within the context of the organization

Senior managers must make sure projects continue to support current business needs
Three Sphere Model for Systems Management:
The Context of IT Projects

IT projects can 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 projects use diverse technologies that change rapidly; even within one technology area,
people must be highly specialized
Recent Trends Affecting IT Project Management:

Globalization: lower trade and political barriers and the digital revolution have made it
possible to interact almost instantaneously with billions of other people across the planet

Outsourcing: outsourcing is when an organization acquires goods and/or sources from an
outside source; off shoring is sometimes used to describe outsourcing from another country

Virtual teams: a virtual team is a group of individuals who work across time and space using
communication technologies
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
Recent trends affecting IT project management include globalization, outsourcing, and virtual
teams