New Insights into IT Project Failure

1
New Insights into IT Project Failure How to
Avoid It

• Matthew G. Miller
• Application Analyst, ConocoPhillips, Warwick, UK
• Ray J. Dawson
• Senior Lecturer, Computer Science Department,
  Loughborough University, UK
• Kieran B. Miller
• IT Business Consultant, Accenture, London, UK
• Malcolm Bradley
• Visiting Fellow, Computer Science Department,
  Loughborough University, UK

2
IT Project Success Failure

• One major study has shown the success rates of IT
  projects to be just 29. 1
• The prosperity of many IT organisations relies
  on the successful delivery of IT projects.
• By understanding IT failures, we can hope to
  increase the likelihood of success.
• 1 Standish Group (2006)

3
About the Research

• Two studies completed between October 2006 and
  May 2008.
• Collected empirical data on 294 IT projects
  completed since January 2005.
• Focus groups with 68 participants.

4
Definition of Failure

• Any project that matches one or more of these
  criteria
• Exceeds the original budget by 10
• Exceeds the original schedule by 10
• Does not deliver business benefits by 10
• Is cancelled before completion.

5
Measured Success Rate
Measured success rate using 10 allowances.
N294
6
Project Success Rate Over Time
Future success predicted using Standish CHAOS
figures with our own.
7
Perceptions of IT Project Success
The measured success rate (10 allowances)
compared to how the project managers perceived
their projects.
8
Project Manager Experience
Comparison of a Project Managers experience and
the outcome of their projects in number of
years and number of projects managed
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Outsourcing Offshoring

• Project used outsourcing 26.7
• Project did not outsource 45.8
• The effect of outsourcing on the project success
  rate. N69
• Local 27.3
• Near-shoring 44.4
• Offshoring 34.5
• The effect of the type of outsourcing on project
  success rate. N49

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Key Conclusions

• IT project success may be improving but there
  still more failures than successes.
• Outsourced projects had a much lower success rate
  than projects that did not involve outsourcing
• Projects led by qualified project managers were
  found to be 15 more successful. The number of
  projects as PM has managed has far greater effect
  than their number of years experience.

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Future Research

• What defines success failure?
• Continued understanding of the symptoms and
  causes of failure.
• More in-depth analysis of the effect of
  outsourcing on IT project success.
• Wider analysis of the effect of a project
  managers experience on the success of their
  project.

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Contact Information

• E-mail matthew_at_mgmiller.co.uk
• Web www.mgmiller.co.uk