UK business needs good project managers more than ever
before, according to two studies published last month. But what
skills can IT staff learn to bolster their CVs and help improve the
success rates of IT projects?
Research from Microsoft found that large UK companies are wasting
more than £13m a year each by not scrapping failing IT projects
(Computer Weekly, 18 May).
Meanwhile, the British Computer Society and the Royal Academy of
Engineering warned that the UK is failing to produce IT staff with
the necessary skills to handle complex IT projects. Their study
found that less than 20% of all IT projects in the UK could be
considered truly successful, and failed projects had led to
billions of pounds being wasted on IT systems.
One of the most popular standards for project management in both
public and private sectors is the Prince2 (Projects in Controlled
Environments) methodology.
Prince2 is a structured project management method designed to show
up deficiencies in projects at an early stage.
Originally developed for the government to control large IT
projects, the Prince2 methodology is available for about £55 from
HM Stationery Office.
Prince2 takes a business-based approach to product management. The
customer specifies the desired outcome and pays for it, and a
supplier provides the skills, resources and deliverables. The
customer can be external or within the same organisation.
Prince2 is process-based and defines what activities are to be
carried out at each stage and who is responsible for them.
End-users are involved throughout. There is an emphasis on progress
monitoring and management information.
Although the Prince2 foundation exam has a 99% pass rate - training
takes three days and costs about £1,150, or you can get CD-based
multimedia training - less than 75% of candidates pass the Prince2
practitioner exam. Courses in Prince2 and other methodologies are
run by various training agencies.
As well as Prince2, there are project management certification
courses from the Project Management Institute (PMI) and the
Association for Project Management (APM).
US and international companies often look for PMI certification
while UK companies and UK government departments tend to favour the
AMP.
Derek Armshaw, PMI UK Chapter director of membership, said, "Our
certification offers a project management body of knowledge, with
those passing our exams becoming a PMP (project management
professional)."
Like all certification in project management, PMI candidates do not
need experience in any specific software tools. Armshaw said,
"Tools are obviously important, but what is really important is how
you manage the projects."
David Roberts, chief executive of user group the Corporate IT
Forum, called on the IT industry to emulate the engineering
industry, which he described as "the roots of project management".
The difficulty for IT though, said Roberts, is that IT evolves much
faster than engineering technology.
Roberts said personal skills were just as important as
certification for project management.
"Those going into project management have to be strong individuals
who can resist pressure from various areas in the enterprise -
there will be people telling them to roll out projects when they
are not ready and to implement solutions in a way that is not
suitable.
"[Project managers] need to be disciplined, good communicators, be
able to check project feasibility, define tasks for others, manage
delivery, work with all budget holders, and keep all parties
informed, from employees to the board."
Despite the concerns raised about the state of project management
in the UK, there are some grounds for optimism. Research sponsored
by Computer Weekly last year found that management of UK IT
projects is improving and is better than previously thought.
Readers can download a copy of the report from
www.computerweekly.com.
Project management essentials
Closely define requirements
Agree roles and responsibilities
Plan tightly and effectively
Introduce risk management
Use monitoring, reporting and controlling mechanisms
Post-project reviews are essential so that lessons can be learned
for future projects.
Source: Project Management Institute