IT:A students - try this question (Challenge!)

[excal]

According to the Chaos Report (1995), it was found that over 30% of IT projects are canceled before they are even completed. On top of this, 52.7% of projects (that either fail or succeed) will end up costing over 189% of their original budget.

This loss does not take into account opportunity costs.

On the other side of the fence, only 16% of projects are completed on-time and on-budget on average. It was also found that larger companies have a lower success rate at 9%. However, even when completed successfully, an average of 42% of the originally proposed features and functions ended up in the final product. Smaller companies do better at about 75%.

1a) Using the SDLC (or 'Problem Solving Methodology'), explain which elements are most important for ensuring the success of a project.

b) From (a), explain the discrepancy between smaller and larger companies in terms of project success.

c) Propose ways to improve the probability that a project will be delivered on-time and on-budget.

[ShadowSong]

Lets see if i answer even 1 bit of it...since i dont feel like doing any other work at all...

a) The elements that are most important for the success of a project is:
1. Time constraint
2. Budget constraint
3. Resource constraint
4. Time and place must be in accurate.
5. The project must be sliced into chunks (parts) and be listed from start to finish.
6. Parts of the project must be completed systematically. Part B cannot begin until Part A is completed if Part B is dependent on Part A.
7. The project's audience must be recognised and noted as part of the project's plan.
8. The purpose of the project must be in conjuction with the audience and vice versa.

b) The discrepancy between the smaller and larger companies exist because of differences in the scope of their projects. Other factors include: level of cooperativness between workers; allocation of resources, time, personell, budget; size of project (smaller companies have smaller projects and large companies have larger projects); the risk factor for the project

c) 1. Set out the goals clearly right from the start. Identify each of the goal's requirements (time, cost, effort)
2. List the outcome of the goals, which is virtually the outcome of the project.
3. Identify each task within your project. Allocate suitable time, budget, etc for each task. Permit a grace amount for resources required for the task. If it exceeds by too much, the task may have to be rethought or replaced by something less consuming.
4. Keep track on the progress of all the tasks. If it is faster than anticipated, concentrate on some non-dependent tasks. If behind schedule, concentrate and try and find ways to improve its speed.
5. Identifty all possible risks to the project and create backup plans to combat unforseen circumstances, eg. cash shortage.
6. Allocate human resources to their respective tasks, strengths and weakness of a worker must be evaluated and sent to the appropriate task for completion.

[excal]

Lets see if i answer even 1 bit of it...since i dont feel like doing any other work at all...

a) The elements that are most important for the success of a project is:
1. Time constraint
2. Budget constraint
3. Resource constraint
4. Time and place must be in accurate.
5. The project must be sliced into chunks (parts) and be listed from start to finish.
6. Parts of the project must be completed systematically. Part B cannot begin until Part A is completed if Part B is dependent on Part A.
7. The project's audience must be recognised and noted as part of the project's plan.
8. The purpose of the project must be in conjuction with the audience and vice versa.

b) The discrepancy between the smaller and larger companies exist because of differences in the scope of their projects. Other factors include: level of cooperativness between workers; allocation of resources, time, personell, budget; size of project (smaller companies have smaller projects and large companies have larger projects); the risk factor for the project

c) 1. Set out the goals clearly right from the start. Identify each of the goal's requirements (time, cost, effort)
2. List the outcome of the goals, which is virtually the outcome of the project.
3. Identify each task within your project. Allocate suitable time, budget, etc for each task. Permit a grace amount for resources required for the task. If it exceeds by too much, the task may have to be rethought or replaced by something less consuming.
4. Keep track on the progress of all the tasks. If it is faster than anticipated, concentrate on some non-dependent tasks. If behind schedule, concentrate and try and find ways to improve its speed.
5. Identifty all possible risks to the project and create backup plans to combat unforseen circumstances, eg. cash shortage.
6. Allocate human resources to their respective tasks, strengths and weakness of a worker must be evaluated and sent to the appropriate task for completion.

That's quite a good response, particularly from a IT:A level student.

For 1a, however, the question asks you to refer to the SDLC/PSM (the former is the proper term). So perhaps you could discuss how the Analysis, Design and Evaluation steps have to do with the project success rate.

For b, you're pretty much on the right track. In a larger organisation, the 'distance' between IT and the business can often be much greater (consider 'IT departments') whereas in smaller business, they could potentially be integrated into the team. Why does this matter? Knowledge of the users. From 1a, it should be mentioned that project success depends on exact requirements gathering and stakeholder consultation - both of which should exist in the Analysis phase (I don't expect you to have known this). Having a pre-existing knowledge and relationship of the users makes the above two tasks far similar.

For c, that's a pretty good list - I'd add the stuff I mentioned for b.

I invite more answers to the above questions