Social Responsibility and Managerial Ethics Essay Example

Social Responsibility and Managerial Ethics Essay Introduction Corporate social responsibility(CSR) refers to the managers are not only create profit for shareholders, but also assume the responsibility for employees, consumers and other stakeholders. (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter 2008). Corporate social responsibility requires companies to exceed traditional goals of profit-worship and make contribution to public welfare in the working process. Companies spend more time and resources in managing social responsibility to coordinate the benefit between shareholders and other stakeholders. Corporate social responsibility can achieve the sustainable development of society and economic. Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter 2008). In this essay, firstly, I will introduce the corporate social responsibility, and then I will explain why companies need to speed expensive time and resources in the CSR, thirdly, I will show the way how to achieve the CSR. Main Body Already it is fiendishly hard to define a corporate social responsibility. The re are two main views which are classical and socioeconomic views. In classical view, management has only social responsibility to get the maximise profits. It mean that company’s social responsibility is only satisfied with the shareholders. Here is a case of the Manville Corporation in United States. Fifty years ago, its senior management had found that asbestos which is one of its products caused fatal lung disease. As a matter of policy, management decided to hide the fact from affected employees. Why? Profits! In the mid-1940s, the company replied the lawyer that their policy can save more money. That might be true in the short term, but it surely wrong in the long run. The company was forced to file for bankruptcy in 1982 because of the thousands of lawsuits about asbestos. Until 1988, the company emerged from bankruptcy. We will write a custom essay sample on Social Responsibility and Managerial Ethics specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Social Responsibility and Managerial Ethics specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Social Responsibility and Managerial Ethics specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer But they got huge liabilities. They had to pay US$2. 6 billion in cash and bonds. On 1 April 1996, Manville Corporation closed the company permanently and there is a independent trust fund continue to pay out the liabilities in Manville’s name. (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter 2008). In socioeconomic view, management’s social responsibility exceed classical view and include making contribution to society’s welfare. (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter 2008). It generally refers to achieve the benefit while base on ethical values, comply with legal requirements, and respect for people, communities, and the nvironment. (Catalyst Consortium 2002). So, managers need to coordinate the benefit between shareholders and other stakeholders. Toyota Australia installed a 350,000 litre underground stormwater tank in its new corporate headquarter in Melbourne. The huge tank collects stormwater from the roof and used to flushing toilets and irrigating gardens which are surround the buildings. ( Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter 2008). Toyota build water tank can save water for the society and decrease expense in water, this action is subjective. European Commission emphasize that the CSR is an independent behaviour which is decided by the companies, nobody is compulsive, and it concerted the relationship between company and society. ( Lefter MureSan 2010). Thus, many corporations do not like to increase attention in CSR before they have been censured by the Greenpeace, media and human-rights organisations. For example, in the early 1990s, Nike was boycotted by large group of consumers. Why? Because the New York Times and other media disclose that the labours in its factory in Indonesian were reviled. (Porter Kramer 2006). In general, Companies supply goods and services, because the market economy system offers incentives if the companies do it. Market economy operates according to Adam Smith’s invisible hand. (Nick, 2008). Companies contribute social interests to get intangible benefit such as goodwill. Corporate social responsibility can be a long-term economic performance. This action achieve the sustainable development of society and economic. Avon Products Inc. was being socially responsible when it started its Breast Cancer Crusade to provide women with breast cancer education and early detection screening services. After 14 years, this project has increased more than US$400 million in 50 countries worldwide. Brazilian cosmetics manufacturer Natura developed sustainable development projects with farmers and small communities. It is socially responsible. Why? Through each of the programs, managers have protected and improve society’s welfare. (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter 2008). Nowadays, more and more companies are conscious of that in order to keep powerful in produce and compete in a constant changing market, they need to become socially responsible. In the last ten years, globalization make the earth as a country. The development of technology results in most companies lost the dominant position. In this globalization completive environment, companies want to improve their ability to get profits and avoid risks. How can they do it? Devoting expensive time and resources to managing their social responsibility. Because of globalization, skilled employees, stable consumers and investors become more and more important. CSR can connect the employees, consumers and investors in an mutual benefit. (Catalyst Consortium 2002). So, successful corporations need society to ensure that they can get enough good workers, government policies, consumer markets and national resources. At the same time, a healthy society needs successful companies to protect and improve welfare. (Porter Kramer 2006). Insurance Australia Group(IGA) has been consider with the global warming for some time. They decided that paying more attention to prevent global warming, but not just paying compensation in the end. Global warming caused more storms, more storms can cause more compensations, more compensations cause expenses raise up and then the income of the company does not increase. Snow, 2005). In a series of cycle, companies and society get less than they have paid. It is a vicious cycle. Many companies want to get profit through the CSR. It is hardly distinguish whether this kind of CSR is good or bad. Some people think it as mutual benefit, and something to celebrate; others regard it is hypocritical. And, even some companies think that CSR is just show the name on the Giving List. Is CSR then mostly for show? It is hardly to identify, because CSR has many different styles and is started by many different motives. For most companies, CSR is little more than a cosmetic treatment. Big multinationals also show their CSR criteria, it is pretty. But they have never achieve it. (Crook, 2005). The tragic happened and oil spill show a corporate culture at BP that always ignore worker safety and environmental standards. If BP can increase precautions, many accidents will not happen. Ironically, the company just finished a very successful advertising campaign, show itself as environmentally friendly an does better than other oil companies. BP makes a perfect marketing work. It shows that BP is a corporate social responsibility advocate. In fact, all the action which BP does are face job. Essentially, BP cannot carry out its corporate social responsibility. (Cherry Sneirson2011). These actions called ‘greenwash’ and also called ‘faux CSR’. When we devoted expensive time and resources to managing our social responsibility, we did not want to get this result. How to achieve the real corporate social responsibility? Typically, the more closely connected to a social issue is to an entity’s business, the greater the opportunity to leverage the firm’s resources and benefit society. (Porter Kramer 2006). For example, Since1999, Optus has been a major sponsor and partner of Kids Help Line, which is a free confidential telephone counselling service for young people who are aged 5 to 18. (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter 2008). Conclusion Companies should devote more time and resources to managing their corporate social responsibility. CSR in generally means that management achieve sustainable development between company’s profit and society’s benefit. If companies pay attention to CSR, it can refer to increasing their competitive force in the global market. Companies need to carry out their real CSR, not for face job or the Giving List. Corporations are not responsible for all problems of the world, and they also do not have enough resources to solve them. Each company can decide the particular set of societal problems which can balance the ability of solve problem and the competitive benefit. Reference list Crook, C. (2005, Jan 20). The good company. The Economist. Retrieved August 28, 2011, from http://www. economist. com/node/3555212? Story_id=3555212 Catalyst Consortium (2002). What is Corporate Social Responsibility?. Retrieved August 28, 2011, from http://www. rhcatalyst. org/site/DocServer/CSRQ_A. pdf? docID=103 Cherry, M. A. , Sneirson, J. F. (2011). Beyond Profit: Rethinking Corporate Social Responsibility and Greenwashing After the BP Oil Disaster. Tulane Law Review, 85(4), 983-1038. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Lefter, C. C. , MureSan, L. L. (2010). THE ETHICAL AND SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOR OF THE COMMERCIAL COMPANIES. Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Brasov. Series VII: Social Sciences. Law, (52), 207-212. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Lin-Hi, Nick (2008). Corporate Social Responsibility: An Investment in Social Cooperation for Mutual Advantage, Wittenberg Center for Global Ethics Discussion Paper, 2008-6. Porter, M. E. , Kramer, M. R. (2006). Strategy and society: The link between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility. Harvard Business Review, 84(12), 78-92. Robbins, Bergman, Stagg, Coulter (2008). Management, 5th ed. , Sydney, Australia: Pearson Education. Snow, D. (2005, September 14). Green is good. Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved September 14, 2005, from http://www. smh. com. au/news. business/green-is-good/2005/09/13/112637712729. htnl

The UK copyright act of 1988 Essays

The UK copyright act of 1988 Essays The UK copyright act of 1988 Essay The UK copyright act of 1988 Essay Essay Topic: Law It is difficult for intellectual property laws to keep pace with technology. When technological advances cause ambiguity in the law, courts rely on the laws purposes to resolve that ambiguity. However, when technology gets too far ahead of the law, and it becomes difficult and awkward to apply the old principles, it is time for re-evaluation and change. (Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights (Information Infrastructure Task Force), Intellectual Property and the National Information Infrastructure (Preliminary Draft, July 1, 1994)) The copyright, Designs and Patent Act (CDPA) of 1988 was introduced to give legal protection to the creators of these works in order to prevent exploitation and to ensure their moral rights. The purpose of the CDPA was to protect the following types of work: * Literary Works * Dramatic Works * Artistic Works * Musical Works * Films * Broadcasts * Published Edition * Performers Rights Whilst the CDPA theoretically protects certain technological plagiarism through Section 107 of the Act which states that where an individual sells, hires, exhibits, or distributes an infringing copy of a copyright work in the course of a business, or distributes otherwise than in the course of a business to such an extent as to affect prejudicially the owner of the copyright an offence will be committed. Nevertheless the extent of this protection has been greatly eroded due to fast moving changes in technology. One of the most significant legal questions surrounding the emerging Internet technologies is, admittedly, how copyright (and intellectual property in general) applies when unimaginably vast amounts of information can be digitally stored, copied and transmitted, cheaply and speedily. For many, we have entered a new era where copyright protection is still necessary, but its enforcement is no longer effective, or, even, possible. Perhaps even more importantly, whereas most technologies (e.g. camcorders, video recorders, etc.) would simply make copyright protection more difficult, digital computers managed to alter the fundamental concepts behind copyright (1). Especially when combined with telecommunications networks; with Richard J. Soloman stating in his book Computers and the Concept of Intellectual Property that they pose `issues completely at odds with copyright traditions based on the printing press of 400 years ago. Why is the Copyright Act of 1988 no longer adequate? * Users Attitudes towards materials found on the internet Originally the internet was associated with free information access and sharing that was limited to a relative small number of people, many of whom originated from the academic community. However the growth of the internet and its users has meant an increased use of the internet for information retrieval and distribution, communication, and interaction by a global audience. This set of new users do not feel bound by academic standards, or the set of rules known as `Netiquette that previously governed users conduct in cyberspace and thus they feel that anything found on the internet is public material and thus any copyright notice attached with it is considered of little or no consequence. The problem of improper use of copyright protected materials is further amplified by the incredible ease with which the WWW can be created, and which allows virtually anyone to become a web publisher. * Underlying Characteristics of the Internet Caching The Internet, operates on a ubiquitous `copying and transmitting fashion, i.e. information is accessed by duplicating data stored in binary files before sending it across the globe a process known as Caching. Although `cached copies are purely transitory and will be discarded as soon as the computer used is shut down, it has not been so far clarified decisively. In the context of U.K. copyright law, temporary storage of a copyrighted work in a computers RAM memory is at first sight an infringing reproduction, therefore browsing could also be, despite the fact that without a transient copy there is no access to on-line information. Inlining Inlining is a technique, which enables creators of web pages to embed content (e.g. text, or images) by including a reference to the URL location of the material. No cache copy of the inlined material is made on the host server, since it is retrieved every time from the original source, yet many information providers feel threatened by this practice, because the inlined content appears as integral part of the page, to which it is inlined. So far, there has been only one dispute arising from inlining. It involved the comic strip `Dilbert and has settled out of court with removal of the materials involved (2). Framing Introduced in 1996 by Netscape Communications Corporation as a feature of their web browser, the FRAME tag allows the viewer screen to split into multiple scrollable sections (`frames) that operate as independent windows containing text, graphics, multimedia, or other frames. It is therefore argued that end users may be easily misled to believe that all material on screen originates from the same server. Only site owners themselves can ensure that there is no confusion as to the ownership of the materials presented within the frame. Furthermore, it is arguable whether framing can be covered by the scope of the implied licence for linking, since it does not take the end user to the web site, but rather brings the site to the user through another (framing) site, thereby altering his or her perception of the material. The controversial nature and threat to copyright of this feature was seen in the Washington Post Co. v. Total News case. * Ease of Plagiarism and illegal copying Although the UK Copyright Act of 1988 protects Musical/Artistical works and the rights of performers, technology has once again outdated this feature of the act as well. The introduction of uploading software, CD copiers and file formats such as MP3 and AIV have meant that these works are no longer protected. This point was perhaps best highlighted in the recent court case between Napster.com and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) which branded Napster a copyright infringement machine (3). However whilst Napster has now been shutdown, nevertheless it acted as a catalyst to many other sharing communities like itself such as aimster.com, imesh.com and mp3.com. Similarly this approach to illegal copying is not merely limited to music files and is extended to movies and software. This is as a result costing the entertainment industry and software companies amongst other, billions of dollars out of pocket. * Jurisdiction Issues Perhaps the greatest shortcoming of the UK copyright Act of 1988 is that it only implies to the United Kingdom and thus what maybe considered against the law and breaking copyright agreements in the UK may be perfectly legal in the United States. Similarly this problem has been further exasperated as cyberspace has no geographical boundaries. Information and data are transmitted across state borders at incredible speeds. Bonds to geographical jurisdiction are fragmented, if non-existent, and questions as to where copyright infringements occur arise. The Internet and copyright: An alternative viewpoint One alternative yet radical viewpoint is that by placing their materials on the Internet, copyright owners are granting `implied licences to the rest of the users to link to this information. The rationale for that is based on the nature of the Internet itself as a meta-network, i.e. the network of networks, which requires guidance by pointers for users to locate the vast amounts of information stored on it. Linking is custom and practice, and the reason for the WWWs success. So, there is, more or less, an implied licence for linking, unless the site owner has expressly stated an objection. However I believe that this theory should be linked with Netiquette with an e-mail request sent to the owner of the site for permission to link. Proposed Solutions When determining possible solutions to the current inadequacies of the UK copyright Act of 1988 it is vital to comprehend that the current laws were designed mainly for the protection of published material. Digital works are an entirely different category, both conceptually and technically and thus it may be said that they require a whole separate set of laws. Whether we approach this matter from a progressive or conservative point of view, the fact remains that there is an urgent need for copyright law to be able to deal with the new challenges posed by Internet technology. * Encryption Encryption is one possible solution that has been presented by which a purely technological solution would allow the protection of digital data. Such a method has already been used for email with the invention of Phil Zimmermans Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) (7). However such a system would put the publisher in a very strong position compared to the other party, and would be open to abuse. Similarly the system would again raise grey areas of what data should be encrypted and what should be available to the general public. * Electronic Copyright Management Systems (ECMS) One proposed method is employing electronic copyright management system (4). Such a system is seen as being more preferable to encryption and allows viewing and reading for free, but a fee for permanent storage and downloading. However such a system may have legal implication and large grey areas in terms of what information should be charged for and what should be public knowledge. * Transcopyright Xanadu Project A notion developed by Ted Nelson in conjunction with his project Xanadu(5).Xanadu publishing is a long-standing proposal for a new literary medium (very much like the WWW) that would preserve integrity, copyright and royalty for digital works, and yet allow everyone to reuse already existing materials. * Cyberlaw The disjunction between the territoriality of legal disputes and the ubiquity of cyberspace has led to several proposals concerning the creation of a separate jurisdiction for cyberspace. Jurisdictional problems can be tackled on an international level by either creating a special international court for on-line disputes arising from intellectual property infringements, or by introducing an international advisory and arbitration organisation that will assist national courts in dealing with them. A potential model upon which this international court or organisation can be mapped is the Virtual Magistrate Pilot Project (6) of the Cyberspace Law Institute (CLI), a new on-line tribunal not bound by territorial borders. The project is carried out by eight magistrates (usually with an in-depth knowledge of technical as well as legal matters) who conduct arbitration via e-mail and publish their decisions on the institutes web site. The decisions cannot award damages, only injunction type r emedies; nevertheless, they are issued much faster than any decision of a national court. So far, the magistrates have only dealt with e-mail disputes, but it may not be too long before they will have to arbitrate intellectual property cases. In contrast such a dual method will mean every country will have two sovereigns governing different areas of law. This would create vast grey areas between them that could render the proposal ineffective. Conclusion To conclude, the UK Copyright Act of 1988 was adequate at the time of design. However in the thirteen years since its design, Technology has come forward leaps and bounds. As a result this act that was initially designed mainly for the purpose of non electronic sources has now become out of date or is being largely ignored due to the growth of technology. However when incorporating any solutions to the current inadequacies, it is vital to realise that whilst the rights of copyright owners are an important component of the copyright equation, so are the rights of public for information dissemination, freedom of expression and informational privacy. As a result looking into the future, the government needs to re-evaluate the interests of all those involved and legislate towards a new more flexible copyright framework, suitable for the digital age. Similarly, due to the global nature of digital technology with no geographical boundaries, perhaps a more suitable solution would be to inco rporate such a framework into a cyberlaw.

Information Technology - E-Gov Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Information Technology - E-Gov Paper - Essay Example B) manages, directs and supervises the data and information, financial management, the administrative procurements, and different managerial and directive rules and strategies. Moreover, it helps to develop administrative management, builds up enhanced performance measures, manages mechanism and eases redundant burdens on the public. The largest constituent of OMB is the four resource management offices; namely, office of information and regulatory affairs, office of federal procurement policy, the office of federal financial management, and office of e-government and information technology. Other wide support offices of OMB are office of general council, office of legislative affairs, the budget review division and legislative reference division. Federal Enterprise Architecture (FEA) is the subdivision of OBM federal government and it was emerged in response to a legislation called, â€Å"Clinger-Cogen Act of 1944†. This provided a common methodology for information technology acquisition in the United States federal government. It also instructed the federal agencies to develop a master plan for integrating technologies, managing information technology, and measuring and reporting performance. FEA is established so that businesses’ performance could be improved and agencies could implement their core missions in an enhanced manner; FEA helps to achieve these goals. Moreover, through FEA the information and resources are easily shared across federal agencies which not only reduce the costs but citizen services are also enhanced. FEA is built using five different models; performance reference model, business reference model, service component reference model, data reference model, and technical reference model. These models help to develop a common taxonomy and ontology that describes the IT resources elaborately. These models can be enabled using different modeling tools that would help to align the enterprise architecture. Some of the Federal enterprise

LEGAL STUDIES Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

LEGAL STUDIES - Essay Example ..†1 Therefore, it was his duty to preserve the information received by him by fax as secret. Being a civil servant, he must have had some experience in making difference between secret information and public one. Geoffrey might be found guilty under subsection 1, Section3 of the Act (1) as being â€Å"A person who is or has been a Crown servant or government contractor is guilty of an offence if without lawful authority he makes a damaging disclosure of—(a)any information, document or other article relating to international relations.† Geoffrey told his wife Jean about the information in the fax without lawful authority, as required by the law. According to Section 7 of the Act For the purposes of this Act, authorized disclosure is defined as â€Å"a disclosure by a Crown servant is made with lawful authority if, and only if, it is made in accordance with his official duty.† Geoffrey did not have the necessary authorization to disclose that kind of informa tion and therefore, he should have kept it to himself. On the other hand, Geoffrey might have not known that this information was secret, as the case description speaks about a secret agreement between Government ministers and the United Nations that no exact figures would be given as to the number involved. Therefore, he might raise the defence provided by the Official Secrets Act 1989, in Section 3, subsection (4), which stipulates that: â€Å"It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this section to prove that at the time of the alleged offence he did not know, and had no reasonable cause to believe, that the information, document or article in question was such as is mentioned in subsection (1) above or that its disclosure would be damaging within the meaning of that subsection.† If Geoffrey can prove that he was not aware that the information was confidential and its disclosure would be damaging, he might avoid being held liable for disclosing it. On the other hand, by telling his wife, whom he, of course, knew that is a journalist, it must have occurred to his mind that his wife, as any journalist, might use that information in her own interest and make it public. I believe that Geoffrey, as a Crown servant, should have acted with caution as regards the information and find out if it is secret or not before passing it to other parties. His wife, on the other hand, might be held liable for publishing this information under Section 5 of the Act, within the provisions of which she might fall. Section 5 (2) stipulates that: â€Å"Subject to subsections (3) and (4) below, the person into whose possession the information, document or article has come is guilty of an offence if he discloses it without lawful authority knowing, or having reasonable cause to believe, that it is protected against disclosure by the foregoing provisions of this Act and that it has come into his possession as mentioned in subsection (1) above.† So, unle ss the disclosure was not damaging, Jean can be held liable under the Act. This is the case of the information passed to Jean by her husband, as he entrusted her that information, in accordance with Subsection 1, Section 5 of the Act. Geoffrey should have warned his wife about the importance of the information and the necessity to keep it secret. This is applicable, unless Geoffrey intentionally told his wife about t

Collaboration and Argument Essay Example for Free

Collaboration and Argument Essay Boothe Collaboration and Argument Collaboration is defined as working collectively with others or concurrently to achieve a goal especially in a creative attempt to put together the right elements of success implemented to accomplish something. Argument is defined as controversy or the implication of expression through opinions for an effort to persuade; for the submission that provides support or is in contrast to some idea. Robert Ennis defines an argument as an attempt to support a conclusion by giving reasons for it. (Critical Thinking, 1995) Irving M. Copi, in his Introduction to Logic, defines an argument as a group of propositions of which one, the conclusion, is claimed to follow from the others, which are premises. Collaboration changes the research process because it is a group ideal instead of an individual ideal. Collaboration gives each individual on the team the ability to share creative and innovative thoughts and interact with others by sharing ideas through critical thinking, preparation and work practice with individuals in defined areas which provide an opportunity for each team member to strive for higher standards within the group. Collaboration can be an incentive for the better-prepared students to provide assistance and encourage the members of the team who are most likely not going to meet the goal, and the less-prepared students are likely to work harder so as not to disappoint the other team members. By having a team leader it shares the accountability for student success through frequent use of collaboration as an approach to improving instruction for an effective use of common planning time. Collaboration encourages diversity with a social support system in a more personal environment that will aid in the development of skills, time management and problem solving that can be used on the job and beyond. Collaboration can actually make it easier and harder when having to evaluate sources. The goal is find a way to get knowledgably team members to be productive an establish a formal process to perform work, develop distinct purpose, and assist in the process of better connections among team members. As a group you have to think as a group with one ideal and be able to comprehend and engage structure collaboration process while maintaining a strong affiliation among teammates. Provided that a time line has been created the work load should be evenly distributed for all of the team members and information should be shared willingly. Communication is very important so that all members can equally speak whether positively or negatively about the topic as well as listening to all of the group members. By analyzing different types of collaborative tasks each member can interoperate what is relevant by their own learning skills, strategies and personal experiences that would encourage conversation within the group that provides feedback and encourages questions, negotiations and open mindedness with the differences of each person’s creative and innovative ideals which will generate a good argument. In order for a group to produce their ethos for a team paper it is important that each member knows the definition of an ethos. Ethos, or a reputable position, is a matter of gaining the confidence of the audience by either the character or the author. Respect and trust are both valuable traits that are needed from your audience therefore giving you the authority on your topic so that the group is able to persuade their audience that their ideas are credible, or more credible than someone elses. The ethos for a team paper is produced as a group within the quality of the produced product. With the blended combination and disposition of the group they must be believable or convincing and be able to characterize the differences between fact and opinion based on sound logic and solid evidence that encourages trustworthiness or credibility prototypes within the group and while persuading your audience. Papers that are written collaboratively are created in a different form then papers that are written by an individual due to the fact that collaboration means to work with another or others on a joint project while individual means working independently. Collaborative writing refers to organizing and the planning of shared written documents during the process of team building. As a team you also have more members that can get the job done faster and even sometimes better. Collaboratively written papers start with preliminary discussions of an ideal then on to brainstorming as input is divided into sections so that participation can be achieved by each team member with open channels of communication within the allotted time line so that the assignment can be assessed by the group to provide the final draft. The independent working individually creates their papers differently by doing all of the work on their own with full control of their time limits, methods, process and style. They are responsible for their own argument. The downside is that they are not able to collaborate and get ideals from others and time restraints can be a factor on large tasks and when something becomes too difficult to handle there is no one to assist you. Collaboratively and individually arguments are written differently on the account of facts and opinions that are researched as a group and the individual argument is researched solely by the individual. The members of the group decide on which activities are to be completed as a group and which one should be completed by individual group members. Deliberation improves critical thinking by providing a constant consideration and synthesis of other viewpoints. These issues become the argument for the group. With respect for the other team members opinions will continue to simultaneously push the boundaries of the other team members’ experiences which will create a new mode of thinking, analyzing, criteria and judgment that often reveals new and unique approaches. Team members benefit from reflection and by verbalization. The peer coaching helps all the members, both the high and the low achievers, to become actively involved with the material. When it comes to independent study there is no one else that can incorporate other viewpoints into their own opinions nor or they able to incorporate communication or listening skills, but they are able to avoid conflicts enhance their own effectiveness and efficiency. When writing collaboratively, an argument that is determined by one’s own position should be decided by which side of the issue they are willing to take on or if they are prepared for both sides by matching up each team member’s ability and talent no matter what their strengths or weakness may be. When determining the fundamental quality of an argument it gives the team member the ability to understand the arguments of others and evaluate the quality arguments used to improve their skills. The person who represents knowledgeable information is factual and some team members may have difficulty evaluating arguments on the basis of their quality. By explaining skills that are important to overall argument and by the use of an evaluation the team may show an increased performance by the immediate feedback. By giving the team members the tools to evaluate the production of their own individual work could enhance their ability to find their position. It is also important that the individual who has his own argument is being respectful and open minded so that the team member has the ability to persuade and influence others on similar subjects and while gaining additional information from their team. When a team member supports an argument that they find not to be creditable the reason for that could be the disagreement of opposing viewpoints due to the lack of interest in the topic or a similar subject in which the member is not convinced of the views causing the team member to reject information that is incorrect or irrelevant. In order to avoid conflict within the team, the team member suspends judgment and avoids new solutions that may hinder statements that are not supported by research that could weaken the final paper. Individuals often have a strong emotional connection to the positions they argue in essays because of the all of the challenging research work that they have done to find credible resources. The individual could educate the other team members about their own experiences of encouragement, awareness and understanding of the argument. Depending on the position of each member f the team the discussion of the topic may not all be shared by the same similarly intense connection therefore the role of the team should be a peer review that encourages and contains constructive criticism; this method is used to improve one’s project and not to shoot down anyone’s work. Two common peer review methods are the inspection method and the walk-through method. Work is heavily analyzed throug h the inspection method. As each individual puts in their input and guides the conversation. Each peer then provides comments to help improve the quality of work. Constructive and respectful criticism provides useful feedback even though the team member may show strong emotion on the argument. The best methods of peer review used for evaluating the quality of an argument in a paper is more of a conversation designed to give constructive criticism through discussion and communications. Using groups to give feedback to other group members on specific questions about their own papers that they would like reviewed. Members are encouraged to write down questions at the beginning of the peer review and ask peers to take these questions into consideration while writing their review. This is feedback encourages students to have their work analyzed through questions and deliberations of their own. Advanced peer reviews encourage paper writing as a mode of conducting peer reviews. Self-Evaluations is the assessing one’s own work. When writing collaboratively, the best processes for making sure sections of a project written by different team members are logically consistent is to make sure that the directions are clear, uncomplicated and easy to understand in order to be rational. Write a short introductory paragraph that would introduce the reader to the topic and explain what it is and how it should affect people and also provide a brief history of the issue. The process for evaluating a team paper for plagiarism differs from the process of evaluating ones work is that group writing represents an exclusive challenge because each person has their own different passions, opinions and backgrounds towards writing. Whether the members of the team are not able to make the time lines and strive for the easiest route or intentional or unintentional copy an author’s work the team’s work could suffer. The team should be educated about plagiarism either by self detection or software programs. The team writing process that would produce the strongest arguments would be an argumentative paper that argues for a particular side that has opposing information or opinions that are debatable issues. In order to be most persuasive, understand both sides of the issue by having at least three reasons that support your point of view and two reasons that support the opposing viewpoint and it is important that the paper has a strong thesis statement and strong support for the position. Counter argument for why they are not valid reasons. The topics that are selected for individual argument papers differ from those chosen for team papers because a decision is made within the group on which person will do what work as an individual, but other factors should be considered such as time and how well the assignment can be completed. All team members have a vested interest in understanding the appropriate response. Conclusion Today’s research and teaching is no longer performed independently or in seclusion. Research and teaching shows that both collaboration and argument work hand and hand and can benefit others and help to address problems when we work in collaboration with those whom we research with. Collaboration provides specific guidelines that help all diverse backgrounds come together with ideals and experiences for solutions and understanding and that argument assists in providing the best reasoning to distinguish between facts and opinions through detailed observation.

Minimising IT Project Management Failure

Minimising IT Project Management Failure 2.0 REVIEW OF EXISTING KNOWLEDGE The following sections will provide a critical review of the research work that had been undertaken. This information is relevant to the project and most importantly is associated with the project aims and objectives. A variety of sources were analysed in order to achieve a better understanding in some of the areas considered for this research project. 2.1 Project Management The fundamental aspect of this research is project management as it focuses on how IT project management failure can be minimised. There are numerous definitions of project management; one definition given by (The Project Management Institute, 2009) states; â€Å"The application of knowledge, skills, tools and technique to project activities to meet project requirements† According to (Lewis, 1995) however, project management is the planning, scheduling, and controlling of project activities to achieve project objectives. The first definition of project management focuses more on the soft skills of project management. The definition of soft skills given by the (Oxford Dictionary, 2010) is â€Å"Personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and  harmoniously with other people† In comparison to Lewis this is more specific to what actually is required. Although Lewiss description is not invalid, it gives a more generalised approach to project management highlighting the fundamental points. These two definitions contain different characteristics that are important to project management but what both of these definitions have in common is completion of the project requirements or activities. To generalise project management is to apply certain personnel management skills and the application of knowledge, planning and scheduling to achieve a desired objective. 2.2 Project Methodologies and Frameworks Yardley (2002) identifies it is overwhelming why many IT projects fail. Yardley (2002) states that if something was to fail and keep on failing then at some point there would be gradual improvements to why failure occurs so often in the particular area. Gradual improvements should have been made from the lessons learnt from the failure of IT projects over a period of time. However this has not been the case as there have been many failures in IT, with the same problems reoccurring. For example, common reasons for IT failure given by (Computer Weekly, 2010) are; Commencing work too early Ambiguous contracts Inadequate estimation of work Breaking the contract Lack of engagement Al-Ahmed et al (2009) suggests that the IT industry is still young compared to other industries such as manufacturing but still attributes failure to the project management methodologies. Therefore the IT industry is still yet to formulate the needed operational standards and procedures. However as the following sections will clarify, there are â€Å"guidelines, frameworks, rules, methods† in place to counter such argument. These will be identified and critically evaluated in the following. With all these clarification in place it is overwhelming to understand the amount of failure in IT as stated by (Yardley, 2002). 2.2.1 Managing a project Lewis (2007) in his book, Fundamentals of Project Management, gave a generalised approach to what a project contains. At each relevant step, questions are to be asked by a project manager for them to consider. Lewis gives a brief indication on these steps that are considered for managing a project as illustrated below in Fig.1 Figure 1 above illustrates a general approach to project management which consists of six main areas. The illustration identifies how the project is to be started up, planned, controlled and how the project is to close. On this basis of managing a project can seem simple enough however the accomplishment of each area is a different matter, hence the number of failures within IT. Al Neimat (2005) identifies the reason for failure is due to project management processes and the aligning of IT within the organisational structure. This view is also agreed by (Al-Ahmad et al.,2009) as project management discipline in most organisations are minimal they do not have the infrastructure to provide; education, training, or management disciplines in order to allow projects to achieve successful completion. Both these authors views are correct to some extent; this is because the project management processes are not followed exactly. For example, the reasons for failure as previously mentioned by (Computer Weekly, 2010) states project work is commenced too early and highlighting some do not plan the project effectively. Al-Ahmad et al (2009) view is correct to some degree. This is because some companies may not have sufficient resources to provide training and education in project management. However (Archbold, 2008) states that over the past ten years there had been a rise in interest in project management. Archbold (2008) states the reason for the rise in interest is because there are more projects then there were ten years ago. Archbold (2008) goes on to state organisations are becoming more successful and growing very quickly and recognising that staffs are managing projects without having the project manager title. 2.2.2 Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) The PMBOK guide provides the fundamental framework which is an industry standard to managing a project. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) state the real use of the PMBOK guide is to provide companies how to manage project irrespective of the characteristics. It provides the minimum knowledge that is required of a manager in order for the manager to be effective. Stackpole (2010) agrees that the PMBOK is a standard but also goes on to say it defines what is to be best practice on most of the project most of the time. The PMBOK guide is created from individuals who are affiliated with the Project Management Institute (PMI). The members of the PMI meet every few years to update and input their intellectual knowledge into the PMBOK Guide. There have been a number of guides produced over the years with the latest version in 2008. The following sections are a brief description of the two subject areas of PMBOK which are project processes and knowledge areas adapted from (The PMBOK Guide, 2008). This is to provide managers an overview and critical review of these areas; Project Processes There are five main processes to the PMBOK that are used to manage projects. In comparison to the general guideline mentioned in 2.2.1 the PMBOK covers five out of the six areas already identified; Initiating The initiating process is where the project is defined, project sponsor is on board, project manager, the team and the requirements are identified. Planning Times scales are drawn up, scope of the project is defined in detail, risks and resources are also identified. Executing The team executes the work that needs to be done in order to achieve its objectives. The project manager in this process co-ordinate the activities within the project, some of these include managing the resources and contractors. Monitoring and Controlling Monitoring the situation and analysing what stage it should be against the project plan. The controlling of the project is achieved by comparing what the project has achieved against what was outlined in the project plan. If it not according to plan then corrective actions is taken to bring it back to target if not going according to plan. Closing Ensure all objectives are met and stakeholders are happy with a review for lessons learnt for future projects. Knowledge Areas Project managers should also be familiar with the following knowledge areas to be considered as a professional. Each knowledge area contains a set of project management processes (Abdomerovic, 2008). Knowledge Areais aimed at promoting and sharing with some of the best scholarly literature material and available tools in the management, executive education, organizational behaviour and organizational psychology fields (Delegate Management Services, 2010). Project Integration Management Integration ensures that the project is planned properly, executed and controlled. The project manager must co-ordinate and integrates each activity in order to achieve the objectives of the project. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) agree with the definition given by (The PMBOK Guide, 2008) but also add the project manager must have overall vision of the project and must understand the technical as well as the human side of planning. Project Scope Management Schwalbe (2009) definition of project scope is to define in detail the scope or work required for the project, a view also shared by (Phillips, 2007; Nokes and Kelly, 2007). Phillips (2007) states the project manager and the project team must have clear vision of what is expected from the project. This is where one of the key components of project failure arises when people on the project team are not striving for the same goals, which includes the stakeholders of the project. However Phillips agrees with the PMBOK guide but also adds to create a scope, several inputs are required. The PMBOK Guide (2008) defines project scope management to include the processes required to ensure that the project includes all the work required, and only the work required, to complete the project successfully. Scope management as identified, only focuses on the output of the project and what is required to achieve the project deliverables. It does not have any concerns as to the time it takes to achieve the objectives or how much it costs (Phillips, 2007). For example, The National Insurance Recording System (NIRS2) was to be developed to replace the previous system in 1997. However one of the underlying problems was as the project commenced it became clear the system size and project scope was bigger and more complex than originally thought. This eventually led to the delay of the system at a cost of  £38 million (www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk, 2010). PMBOK identifies there to be 5 areas of project scope which are: collecting the requirements, defining the scope, creating a Work break-down structure (WBS), verifying the scope and control or monitoring the scope. WBS is the process of subdividing project deliverables and project work into smaller and more manageable tasks (The PMBOK Guide, 2008). Haugan (2002) gives a detailed explanation of WBS as follows; â€Å"A deliverable-orientated grouping of project elements that organises and defines the total work scope of the project. Each descending level represents an increasingly detailed definition of the project work† WBS allows the project manager to integrate each activity and prioritise certain tasks over others. An example of a WBS is given below in Fig. 2 Project Time Management A schedule is developed to achieve the objectives, estimating the time for each task, determining the critical path and then controlling the work actually does happen. There are a number of project management tools that could be used to manage time. OConchuir (2011) identifies the simplest form of time management would be to use Milestone List which illustrate when each stage is to be completed. OConchuir (2011) also identifies that The Gantt Chart to be a widely used tool to display the milestones in a visual format. Figure 3 illustrates a Gantt Chart. Marmel and Muir (2011) state the Gantt Chart was developed by Henry Gantt in 1910, however (Parviz and Anantatmula,2005; Schwalbe, 2009; www.ganttchartmac.com, 2011) state it was developed in 1917. Chiu (2010) does not specify a specific year, however states that it was developed during the First World War. Therefore it can be assumed it was produced in between the years of 1910 to 1918. The Gantt Chart is easy to understand, modify and is a simple way to depict progress status (Westcott, 2006). However as a planning tool, there are some notable limitations as described by (Springer, 2004). The limitations are that the chart is potentially subjective, interrelationships among the schedule activities are not depicted and no follow-on implications from schedule movement. Project Cost Management Schwalbe (2009) states project cost management includes the processes required to ensure that a project team completes a project within an approved budget. Schwalbe (2009) also states it is the project managers duty to satisfy stakeholders of the project as well as striving to reduce and control costs. It is here the costing of the project is calculated: this involves estimating the resources needed, staff and materials. As the project is conducted, costs are controlled and kept on track to make sure it is kept under or on budget. There have been many projects that have been completed but failed to meet the budget due to the project spiralling out of control. A notable IT project failure was the Wessex Regional Health Authoritys (WRHA) Regional Information Systems Plan (RSIP) in 1984. This project was an initiative to improve the provision of clinical and health services. It was to cost  £25.8 million and be completed in five years. However the project was not even completed and ab andoned with the eventual cost rising to  £43 million. The reason for this high increase was because of overspending, high cost of implementation and lack of funds (Chua, 2009). Project Quality Management Saladis and Kerzner (2009) identifies the main objective of quality management is customer satisfaction. However (Stackpole, 2010) states quality management is applied to the project and product. Although in essence both these authors are correct, as providing quality throughout the project and the products will provide customer satisfaction. Schwalbe (2009) argues project quality management is a difficult knowledge area to define. This is because there are many definitions to quality management and the definitions are still vague. Schwalbe (2009) also identifies some that experts base quality on â€Å"Conformance to requirements† which means project processes and products meeting written specification. In relation to these views of the authors (The PMBOK Guide, 2008) defines project quality management as the degree to which a set of inherent characteristics fulfil requirements. Below Fig. 4 is the PMBOK guides quality management process. The PMBOK Guide (2008) identifies managers have to grasp three aspects of quality management which includes processes and activities as shown in Fig. 4; 1) Plan Quality Schwalbe (2009) states in the planning aspect of quality it involves identifying the standards that are relevant to the projects and how to satisfy these standards. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) agrees and identifies a few standards that can be used; ISO 9000/2000: The International Organisation of Standardisation (IOS) this is to provide a framework around which a quality management system can effectively be implemented www.bsi-emea.com, 2011. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) agree and explain adhering to the processes approved by the IOS will produce a consistent output. Six Sigma: Pyzdek and Keller (2009) define six sigma as a rigorous, focused, highly effective implementation of proven quality principles and techniques. Its aim is to have virtually error-free business performance. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) state the methodology for meeting these performance levels is to follow a procedure referred to as DMAIC: define, measure, analyse, improve, control. Total Quality Management (TQM): a comprehensive and integrated way of managing any organisation to meet the needs of customers consistently and continuous improvement in every aspect of the organisations activities (Evans et al.,1996). It is an approach where everyone is responsible for quality. It is designed to enable an organisation to gain competitive advantage by striving to meet 100% customer satisfaction (Yardley, 2002) 2) Perform Quality Assurance The PMBOK Guide (2008) defines quality assurance as the process of regularly evaluating the overall performance of the project to ensure the project will satisfy quality standards. Francis and Horine (2003) agree and explain quality assurance involves making sure everything is done correctly and fulfils the requirements of the project. 3) Perform Quality Control Monitoring and recording the results to see if they meet the requirements (The PMBOK Guide, 2008). This is to be achieved by statistical process control and Pareto analysis as stated by (Barkley and Saylor, 2001) and identify that this an important factor of quality even though these tools are inspection based. For example in 1992 BAE Automated System was awarded a $175.6 million contract by the city of Denver to build an airport with an integrated baggage handling system for the new Denver International Airport (DIA). This system was supposed to route and deliver luggage in the airport using unmanned carts. However it was a catastrophic failure due to the following reasons as stated by (Chua, 2009); One of the reasons for failure was the sheer expanse of the DIA it was twice the size of Manhattan, New York. Overly ambitious, as it was asked to be built in one year, but was estimated to take four years. No experience of dealing with such a large project, Conflicts with contractors, Poor management of user expectation, Continuous changes. Eventual cost was close to $2 billion over budget and sixteen months behind schedule. This example stipulates the importance of having quality aspects imbedded into the project. The project should have followed some quality guidelines such as TQM where this approach identifies everyone responsible for the quality. Project Human Resource Management Identifying the personnel needed to do the job by giving their roles and responsibilities within the team, managing and motivating that team. Also the identification of key stakeholders within the project is made here. Project Communications Management Communication is vital to any project; (The PMBOK Guide, 2008) acknowledges that the communication knowledge area involves planning and disseminating information relevant to the project. Project Risk Management Kerzner (2009) defines risk management as the act or practise of dealing with risk. This includes planning for risk, identifying potential project risk, analysing and prioritising risk, developing risk response strategies and monitoring and controlling risks to determine how they have changed. Dinsmore et al (2010) agrees and makes a valid point identifying that all projects will have a certain element of risk. This is because no two projects are the same as some are characterized by the following: Uniqueness, Complexity, Change, Assumptions, Constraints, Dependencies and most importantly People. Project Procurement Management Determining which goods and services are necessary for the project and how they are to be acquired. The PMBOK provides a great platform for understand how to manage a project. The PMBOK is a framework that covers proven techniques and practices given by existing project managers. The framework is used in major organisation such as Fujitsu and Boeing Aircraft (Blokdijk, 2008). It is more associated as knowledge based framework as it identifies â€Å"What† the project might require rather than â€Å"How† to manage a project. It does not show in great detail exactly how to go about managing a project which is why it is mentioned also as a framework and more as a guideline. The reason for identifying the method as knowledge based is because every few years PMI meet to update and input their intellectual knowledge. This can be an advantage as members input the knowledge of successful proven practices needed to manage the life-cycle of a project. For each process it outlines which necessary tools and techniques are needed. The PMBOK however has its disadvantages; PMBOK poin ts out human resource management as important but fails to miss out the need to document the processes. The reason why it is a disadvantage is because by not documenting the process, it fails to provide information for anyone else to come into the project at a later date, or when re-evaluating the project at the end why such action was taken or needs to be taken. Another disadvantage is it provides minimal amount of coverage of various project management techniques such as WBS or Gantt Chart. Managers would therefore need to consult specialised texts to grasp the subject further. It is also complex for smaller projects and has to be adapted specifically to the industry area (www.theprojectmanagement.com, 2008). 2.2.3 PRINCE2 Methodology Hedeman et al (2010) identifies PRINCE2 as an acronym for PRoject IN Controlled Environments and is a structured method for managing projects. Hedeman et al (2010) also states that PRINCE2 is a de facto standard that is used by the United Kingdom (UK) Government and is widely recognised in the private sector. Van Bon and Verheijen (2006) also agree the PRINCE2 methodology as a de facto standard in the UK and widely used in the Netherlands and Australia. Lock (2007) identifies that the PRINCE2 methodology was at first intended for use on IT projects, however it has since emerged to be effective in any given project. PRINCE2 is a set of activities to achieve its business product with the organisation structure defining responsibilities to manage the project. PRINCE was established and launched in 1989 and was based on an earlier model called PROMPT; PRINCE took over from PROMT within Government projects. PRINCE2 was published in 1996 and is the trade mark of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) PRINCE2 Process Model In the following section is a brief overview of the process model which has been summarised from the (Managing Successful Project with PRINCE2, Office of Government Commerce, 2002) The PRINCE2 Process model consists of a number of distinctive management processes. Graham (2010) states most people fall into the trap of following this model exactly as a standard approach. It is therefore in the best interest of the project manager not to blindly follow the exact approach stated in the model. Depending on the experience of the project manager and what the project needs elements of the model can be taken and applied to a particular project. Figure 5 shows the different levels of management; Directing a Project (DP) DP is aimed at the Project Board: the board manage and monitor the projects by reports and controls through a number of decision points. Key decision points are initiating the project on the right track, commitment of more resources after checking results and project closure. This process does not cover the day to day activities of the project manager. Starting up a Project (SU) A pre-project process designed to ensure the basic elements are in place. In this process the project team is assembled and a project brief is prepared. This process also brings out the Project Mandate which defines the reason for the project and what the outcome is to be. Initiating a Project (IP) The team decides whether it is feasible for them to proceed with the project and if feasible then a business Case is produced. Other key activities here are setting up project files, encouraging the Project Board to take ownership of the project, assembling the Project Initiation Document (PID), ensuring the investment and time required is considered wisely. Portman (2009) identifies different steps to this process in comparison to (Managing Successful Project with PRINCE2, Office of Government Commerce, 2002). Portman (2009) focuses more on the people aspect as it states that all parties are to be aware of the product that is to be delivered, at what time, and quality aspects. Also management and responsibilities are made clear. Both these texts identify valid points which will enable a project manager to clarify what is to happen at this stage. But raises questions as to why the people aspects are not covered or examples given as it only states a large portion of documentation in the Managing Successful Project with PRINCE2. It gives indication that theory and actual practise is different. Controlling a Stage (CS) The Project Manager monitors and controls the day to day activities and forms the core role of the Project Manager. Other key activities include authorising, gathering progress information, reviewing stages and reporting. Managing Product Delivery (MP) Ensure planned products are created and delivered by the project. The process makes sure that the work is being done, ensuring that products meet quality criterias set. It makes sure that the work on products allocated to the team is effectively authorised and agreed. Other key activities include assessing work progress and forecasts regularly, obtaining approval for the completed products. Managing Stage Boundaries (SB) This process dictates what should be done towards the end of the stage. The objectives for this process are to assure the Project Board that all deliverables have been completed for the current stage plan, provide information for the Project Board to asses on whether to continue with the project or not, provide enough information to approve the current stage and authorise the start of the next stage and record any lessons to be learned for later projects. Closing the Project (CP) Portman (2009) states this process are the activities required to close the project and release the project manager. The project could either be the actual project end or a premature end. Objectives here are to check to see if the PID objectives or aim have been met, confirm acceptance of the product, and make recommendation for future work. Resources are freed up for allocation to other activities and prepare end project report. Planning (PL) Planning is a repeatable process and plays an important role in other processes. A few are mentioned below: Planning for an Initiation Stage Planning for a Project Planning a Stage Producing an Exception Plan As previously stated PRINCE2 is the de facto standard for the UK Government and the reason for this is the attention to detail, documentation, business justification and emphasis on dividing the project into manageable and controllable stages (www.prince2.com, 2011). There are many documentation points which enable everyone to know what has happened and how they can improve for the future. Although this methodology may be unsuitable for smaller projects, elements of this methodology can be taken out such as area of control (Bentley, 2005) and implemented into managing a project. However, the question is that if this is such a widely used methodology and is the de facto standard used by the Government, then why are IT projects still failing? And why do IT projects really fail or is it just a widely used perception of IT always failing? These are some of the questions which are going to be explored as the literature review is conducted. Analysing PRINCE2, it is evident why managers and the UK Government use this methodology. This is because it allows the manager to build on experience and the manager to be proactive and not reactive (Harris, 2010). It ensures the project process is viable to senior management (Yardley, 2002). By identifying early warning signs of potential problems and allowing proactive measures to be taken to help alleviate them. The advantages and disadvantages are identified in Table 2. The key point to consider is some project managers fail to differentiate that this is a methodology and does not need to be followed exactly to each and every point, process or technique. Project managers become too inflexible and fixed on the idea that they have to follow each and every step which can make the project long and with unnecessary processes (Charvat, 2003). Another key point regarding PRINCE2 in comparison to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) is the PRINCE2 misses the importance of th e need of soft skills (Charvat, 2003). PRINCE2 also misses out on areas such as human resources, leadership and management techniques, health and safety. This is different to the PMBOK which focuses on soft skills such as people management. There are numerous benefits for using a structured approach to managing a project. Below are the advantages and disadvantages given by (Office of Government Commerce (OGC), 2002) are; 2.2.4 Waterfall Methodology The waterfall method was developed by Winston W. Royce in the 1970 and is considered to be a traditional approach. This was one of the first formal approaches for information system analysis and design as stated by (Johns, 2002; Carkenord, 2009). The method is a process followed in a sequence where a task is completed before moving on to the next in a sequential manner. Figure 6 shows the waterfall methodology, (Rainardi, 2007) illustrates the approach of the waterfall when one task is completed after another. The advantages and disadvantages to the waterfall methodology according to Charvat (2003) are illustrated in Table 3 Although this is for a software development or information system methodology, the same approach can be applied to a project in completing one section and then moving on to the other. The waterfall however does not always reflect on how a project is undertaken and is rarely done in such a sequential manner. However as (Charvat, 2003) identifies, it does produce a phase by phase checkpoint. This will allow the project to stay on the right track in meeting its objectives. 2.2.5 Structured Systems Analysis and Design Method (SSADM) SSADM is a structured approach into the analysis and design of developing an Minimising IT Project Management Failure Minimising IT Project Management Failure 2.0 REVIEW OF EXISTING KNOWLEDGE The following sections will provide a critical review of the research work that had been undertaken. This information is relevant to the project and most importantly is associated with the project aims and objectives. A variety of sources were analysed in order to achieve a better understanding in some of the areas considered for this research project. 2.1 Project Management The fundamental aspect of this research is project management as it focuses on how IT project management failure can be minimised. There are numerous definitions of project management; one definition given by (The Project Management Institute, 2009) states; â€Å"The application of knowledge, skills, tools and technique to project activities to meet project requirements† According to (Lewis, 1995) however, project management is the planning, scheduling, and controlling of project activities to achieve project objectives. The first definition of project management focuses more on the soft skills of project management. The definition of soft skills given by the (Oxford Dictionary, 2010) is â€Å"Personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and  harmoniously with other people† In comparison to Lewis this is more specific to what actually is required. Although Lewiss description is not invalid, it gives a more generalised approach to project management highlighting the fundamental points. These two definitions contain different characteristics that are important to project management but what both of these definitions have in common is completion of the project requirements or activities. To generalise project management is to apply certain personnel management skills and the application of knowledge, planning and scheduling to achieve a desired objective. 2.2 Project Methodologies and Frameworks Yardley (2002) identifies it is overwhelming why many IT projects fail. Yardley (2002) states that if something was to fail and keep on failing then at some point there would be gradual improvements to why failure occurs so often in the particular area. Gradual improvements should have been made from the lessons learnt from the failure of IT projects over a period of time. However this has not been the case as there have been many failures in IT, with the same problems reoccurring. For example, common reasons for IT failure given by (Computer Weekly, 2010) are; Commencing work too early Ambiguous contracts Inadequate estimation of work Breaking the contract Lack of engagement Al-Ahmed et al (2009) suggests that the IT industry is still young compared to other industries such as manufacturing but still attributes failure to the project management methodologies. Therefore the IT industry is still yet to formulate the needed operational standards and procedures. However as the following sections will clarify, there are â€Å"guidelines, frameworks, rules, methods† in place to counter such argument. These will be identified and critically evaluated in the following. With all these clarification in place it is overwhelming to understand the amount of failure in IT as stated by (Yardley, 2002). 2.2.1 Managing a project Lewis (2007) in his book, Fundamentals of Project Management, gave a generalised approach to what a project contains. At each relevant step, questions are to be asked by a project manager for them to consider. Lewis gives a brief indication on these steps that are considered for managing a project as illustrated below in Fig.1 Figure 1 above illustrates a general approach to project management which consists of six main areas. The illustration identifies how the project is to be started up, planned, controlled and how the project is to close. On this basis of managing a project can seem simple enough however the accomplishment of each area is a different matter, hence the number of failures within IT. Al Neimat (2005) identifies the reason for failure is due to project management processes and the aligning of IT within the organisational structure. This view is also agreed by (Al-Ahmad et al.,2009) as project management discipline in most organisations are minimal they do not have the infrastructure to provide; education, training, or management disciplines in order to allow projects to achieve successful completion. Both these authors views are correct to some extent; this is because the project management processes are not followed exactly. For example, the reasons for failure as previously mentioned by (Computer Weekly, 2010) states project work is commenced too early and highlighting some do not plan the project effectively. Al-Ahmad et al (2009) view is correct to some degree. This is because some companies may not have sufficient resources to provide training and education in project management. However (Archbold, 2008) states that over the past ten years there had been a rise in interest in project management. Archbold (2008) states the reason for the rise in interest is because there are more projects then there were ten years ago. Archbold (2008) goes on to state organisations are becoming more successful and growing very quickly and recognising that staffs are managing projects without having the project manager title. 2.2.2 Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) The PMBOK guide provides the fundamental framework which is an industry standard to managing a project. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) state the real use of the PMBOK guide is to provide companies how to manage project irrespective of the characteristics. It provides the minimum knowledge that is required of a manager in order for the manager to be effective. Stackpole (2010) agrees that the PMBOK is a standard but also goes on to say it defines what is to be best practice on most of the project most of the time. The PMBOK guide is created from individuals who are affiliated with the Project Management Institute (PMI). The members of the PMI meet every few years to update and input their intellectual knowledge into the PMBOK Guide. There have been a number of guides produced over the years with the latest version in 2008. The following sections are a brief description of the two subject areas of PMBOK which are project processes and knowledge areas adapted from (The PMBOK Guide, 2008). This is to provide managers an overview and critical review of these areas; Project Processes There are five main processes to the PMBOK that are used to manage projects. In comparison to the general guideline mentioned in 2.2.1 the PMBOK covers five out of the six areas already identified; Initiating The initiating process is where the project is defined, project sponsor is on board, project manager, the team and the requirements are identified. Planning Times scales are drawn up, scope of the project is defined in detail, risks and resources are also identified. Executing The team executes the work that needs to be done in order to achieve its objectives. The project manager in this process co-ordinate the activities within the project, some of these include managing the resources and contractors. Monitoring and Controlling Monitoring the situation and analysing what stage it should be against the project plan. The controlling of the project is achieved by comparing what the project has achieved against what was outlined in the project plan. If it not according to plan then corrective actions is taken to bring it back to target if not going according to plan. Closing Ensure all objectives are met and stakeholders are happy with a review for lessons learnt for future projects. Knowledge Areas Project managers should also be familiar with the following knowledge areas to be considered as a professional. Each knowledge area contains a set of project management processes (Abdomerovic, 2008). Knowledge Areais aimed at promoting and sharing with some of the best scholarly literature material and available tools in the management, executive education, organizational behaviour and organizational psychology fields (Delegate Management Services, 2010). Project Integration Management Integration ensures that the project is planned properly, executed and controlled. The project manager must co-ordinate and integrates each activity in order to achieve the objectives of the project. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) agree with the definition given by (The PMBOK Guide, 2008) but also add the project manager must have overall vision of the project and must understand the technical as well as the human side of planning. Project Scope Management Schwalbe (2009) definition of project scope is to define in detail the scope or work required for the project, a view also shared by (Phillips, 2007; Nokes and Kelly, 2007). Phillips (2007) states the project manager and the project team must have clear vision of what is expected from the project. This is where one of the key components of project failure arises when people on the project team are not striving for the same goals, which includes the stakeholders of the project. However Phillips agrees with the PMBOK guide but also adds to create a scope, several inputs are required. The PMBOK Guide (2008) defines project scope management to include the processes required to ensure that the project includes all the work required, and only the work required, to complete the project successfully. Scope management as identified, only focuses on the output of the project and what is required to achieve the project deliverables. It does not have any concerns as to the time it takes to achieve the objectives or how much it costs (Phillips, 2007). For example, The National Insurance Recording System (NIRS2) was to be developed to replace the previous system in 1997. However one of the underlying problems was as the project commenced it became clear the system size and project scope was bigger and more complex than originally thought. This eventually led to the delay of the system at a cost of  £38 million (www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk, 2010). PMBOK identifies there to be 5 areas of project scope which are: collecting the requirements, defining the scope, creating a Work break-down structure (WBS), verifying the scope and control or monitoring the scope. WBS is the process of subdividing project deliverables and project work into smaller and more manageable tasks (The PMBOK Guide, 2008). Haugan (2002) gives a detailed explanation of WBS as follows; â€Å"A deliverable-orientated grouping of project elements that organises and defines the total work scope of the project. Each descending level represents an increasingly detailed definition of the project work† WBS allows the project manager to integrate each activity and prioritise certain tasks over others. An example of a WBS is given below in Fig. 2 Project Time Management A schedule is developed to achieve the objectives, estimating the time for each task, determining the critical path and then controlling the work actually does happen. There are a number of project management tools that could be used to manage time. OConchuir (2011) identifies the simplest form of time management would be to use Milestone List which illustrate when each stage is to be completed. OConchuir (2011) also identifies that The Gantt Chart to be a widely used tool to display the milestones in a visual format. Figure 3 illustrates a Gantt Chart. Marmel and Muir (2011) state the Gantt Chart was developed by Henry Gantt in 1910, however (Parviz and Anantatmula,2005; Schwalbe, 2009; www.ganttchartmac.com, 2011) state it was developed in 1917. Chiu (2010) does not specify a specific year, however states that it was developed during the First World War. Therefore it can be assumed it was produced in between the years of 1910 to 1918. The Gantt Chart is easy to understand, modify and is a simple way to depict progress status (Westcott, 2006). However as a planning tool, there are some notable limitations as described by (Springer, 2004). The limitations are that the chart is potentially subjective, interrelationships among the schedule activities are not depicted and no follow-on implications from schedule movement. Project Cost Management Schwalbe (2009) states project cost management includes the processes required to ensure that a project team completes a project within an approved budget. Schwalbe (2009) also states it is the project managers duty to satisfy stakeholders of the project as well as striving to reduce and control costs. It is here the costing of the project is calculated: this involves estimating the resources needed, staff and materials. As the project is conducted, costs are controlled and kept on track to make sure it is kept under or on budget. There have been many projects that have been completed but failed to meet the budget due to the project spiralling out of control. A notable IT project failure was the Wessex Regional Health Authoritys (WRHA) Regional Information Systems Plan (RSIP) in 1984. This project was an initiative to improve the provision of clinical and health services. It was to cost  £25.8 million and be completed in five years. However the project was not even completed and ab andoned with the eventual cost rising to  £43 million. The reason for this high increase was because of overspending, high cost of implementation and lack of funds (Chua, 2009). Project Quality Management Saladis and Kerzner (2009) identifies the main objective of quality management is customer satisfaction. However (Stackpole, 2010) states quality management is applied to the project and product. Although in essence both these authors are correct, as providing quality throughout the project and the products will provide customer satisfaction. Schwalbe (2009) argues project quality management is a difficult knowledge area to define. This is because there are many definitions to quality management and the definitions are still vague. Schwalbe (2009) also identifies some that experts base quality on â€Å"Conformance to requirements† which means project processes and products meeting written specification. In relation to these views of the authors (The PMBOK Guide, 2008) defines project quality management as the degree to which a set of inherent characteristics fulfil requirements. Below Fig. 4 is the PMBOK guides quality management process. The PMBOK Guide (2008) identifies managers have to grasp three aspects of quality management which includes processes and activities as shown in Fig. 4; 1) Plan Quality Schwalbe (2009) states in the planning aspect of quality it involves identifying the standards that are relevant to the projects and how to satisfy these standards. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) agrees and identifies a few standards that can be used; ISO 9000/2000: The International Organisation of Standardisation (IOS) this is to provide a framework around which a quality management system can effectively be implemented www.bsi-emea.com, 2011. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) agree and explain adhering to the processes approved by the IOS will produce a consistent output. Six Sigma: Pyzdek and Keller (2009) define six sigma as a rigorous, focused, highly effective implementation of proven quality principles and techniques. Its aim is to have virtually error-free business performance. Saladis and Kerzner (2009) state the methodology for meeting these performance levels is to follow a procedure referred to as DMAIC: define, measure, analyse, improve, control. Total Quality Management (TQM): a comprehensive and integrated way of managing any organisation to meet the needs of customers consistently and continuous improvement in every aspect of the organisations activities (Evans et al.,1996). It is an approach where everyone is responsible for quality. It is designed to enable an organisation to gain competitive advantage by striving to meet 100% customer satisfaction (Yardley, 2002) 2) Perform Quality Assurance The PMBOK Guide (2008) defines quality assurance as the process of regularly evaluating the overall performance of the project to ensure the project will satisfy quality standards. Francis and Horine (2003) agree and explain quality assurance involves making sure everything is done correctly and fulfils the requirements of the project. 3) Perform Quality Control Monitoring and recording the results to see if they meet the requirements (The PMBOK Guide, 2008). This is to be achieved by statistical process control and Pareto analysis as stated by (Barkley and Saylor, 2001) and identify that this an important factor of quality even though these tools are inspection based. For example in 1992 BAE Automated System was awarded a $175.6 million contract by the city of Denver to build an airport with an integrated baggage handling system for the new Denver International Airport (DIA). This system was supposed to route and deliver luggage in the airport using unmanned carts. However it was a catastrophic failure due to the following reasons as stated by (Chua, 2009); One of the reasons for failure was the sheer expanse of the DIA it was twice the size of Manhattan, New York. Overly ambitious, as it was asked to be built in one year, but was estimated to take four years. No experience of dealing with such a large project, Conflicts with contractors, Poor management of user expectation, Continuous changes. Eventual cost was close to $2 billion over budget and sixteen months behind schedule. This example stipulates the importance of having quality aspects imbedded into the project. The project should have followed some quality guidelines such as TQM where this approach identifies everyone responsible for the quality. Project Human Resource Management Identifying the personnel needed to do the job by giving their roles and responsibilities within the team, managing and motivating that team. Also the identification of key stakeholders within the project is made here. Project Communications Management Communication is vital to any project; (The PMBOK Guide, 2008) acknowledges that the communication knowledge area involves planning and disseminating information relevant to the project. Project Risk Management Kerzner (2009) defines risk management as the act or practise of dealing with risk. This includes planning for risk, identifying potential project risk, analysing and prioritising risk, developing risk response strategies and monitoring and controlling risks to determine how they have changed. Dinsmore et al (2010) agrees and makes a valid point identifying that all projects will have a certain element of risk. This is because no two projects are the same as some are characterized by the following: Uniqueness, Complexity, Change, Assumptions, Constraints, Dependencies and most importantly People. Project Procurement Management Determining which goods and services are necessary for the project and how they are to be acquired. The PMBOK provides a great platform for understand how to manage a project. The PMBOK is a framework that covers proven techniques and practices given by existing project managers. The framework is used in major organisation such as Fujitsu and Boeing Aircraft (Blokdijk, 2008). It is more associated as knowledge based framework as it identifies â€Å"What† the project might require rather than â€Å"How† to manage a project. It does not show in great detail exactly how to go about managing a project which is why it is mentioned also as a framework and more as a guideline. The reason for identifying the method as knowledge based is because every few years PMI meet to update and input their intellectual knowledge. This can be an advantage as members input the knowledge of successful proven practices needed to manage the life-cycle of a project. For each process it outlines which necessary tools and techniques are needed. The PMBOK however has its disadvantages; PMBOK poin ts out human resource management as important but fails to miss out the need to document the processes. The reason why it is a disadvantage is because by not documenting the process, it fails to provide information for anyone else to come into the project at a later date, or when re-evaluating the project at the end why such action was taken or needs to be taken. Another disadvantage is it provides minimal amount of coverage of various project management techniques such as WBS or Gantt Chart. Managers would therefore need to consult specialised texts to grasp the subject further. It is also complex for smaller projects and has to be adapted specifically to the industry area (www.theprojectmanagement.com, 2008). 2.2.3 PRINCE2 Methodology Hedeman et al (2010) identifies PRINCE2 as an acronym for PRoject IN Controlled Environments and is a structured method for managing projects. Hedeman et al (2010) also states that PRINCE2 is a de facto standard that is used by the United Kingdom (UK) Government and is widely recognised in the private sector. Van Bon and Verheijen (2006) also agree the PRINCE2 methodology as a de facto standard in the UK and widely used in the Netherlands and Australia. Lock (2007) identifies that the PRINCE2 methodology was at first intended for use on IT projects, however it has since emerged to be effective in any given project. PRINCE2 is a set of activities to achieve its business product with the organisation structure defining responsibilities to manage the project. PRINCE was established and launched in 1989 and was based on an earlier model called PROMPT; PRINCE took over from PROMT within Government projects. PRINCE2 was published in 1996 and is the trade mark of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) PRINCE2 Process Model In the following section is a brief overview of the process model which has been summarised from the (Managing Successful Project with PRINCE2, Office of Government Commerce, 2002) The PRINCE2 Process model consists of a number of distinctive management processes. Graham (2010) states most people fall into the trap of following this model exactly as a standard approach. It is therefore in the best interest of the project manager not to blindly follow the exact approach stated in the model. Depending on the experience of the project manager and what the project needs elements of the model can be taken and applied to a particular project. Figure 5 shows the different levels of management; Directing a Project (DP) DP is aimed at the Project Board: the board manage and monitor the projects by reports and controls through a number of decision points. Key decision points are initiating the project on the right track, commitment of more resources after checking results and project closure. This process does not cover the day to day activities of the project manager. Starting up a Project (SU) A pre-project process designed to ensure the basic elements are in place. In this process the project team is assembled and a project brief is prepared. This process also brings out the Project Mandate which defines the reason for the project and what the outcome is to be. Initiating a Project (IP) The team decides whether it is feasible for them to proceed with the project and if feasible then a business Case is produced. Other key activities here are setting up project files, encouraging the Project Board to take ownership of the project, assembling the Project Initiation Document (PID), ensuring the investment and time required is considered wisely. Portman (2009) identifies different steps to this process in comparison to (Managing Successful Project with PRINCE2, Office of Government Commerce, 2002). Portman (2009) focuses more on the people aspect as it states that all parties are to be aware of the product that is to be delivered, at what time, and quality aspects. Also management and responsibilities are made clear. Both these texts identify valid points which will enable a project manager to clarify what is to happen at this stage. But raises questions as to why the people aspects are not covered or examples given as it only states a large portion of documentation in the Managing Successful Project with PRINCE2. It gives indication that theory and actual practise is different. Controlling a Stage (CS) The Project Manager monitors and controls the day to day activities and forms the core role of the Project Manager. Other key activities include authorising, gathering progress information, reviewing stages and reporting. Managing Product Delivery (MP) Ensure planned products are created and delivered by the project. The process makes sure that the work is being done, ensuring that products meet quality criterias set. It makes sure that the work on products allocated to the team is effectively authorised and agreed. Other key activities include assessing work progress and forecasts regularly, obtaining approval for the completed products. Managing Stage Boundaries (SB) This process dictates what should be done towards the end of the stage. The objectives for this process are to assure the Project Board that all deliverables have been completed for the current stage plan, provide information for the Project Board to asses on whether to continue with the project or not, provide enough information to approve the current stage and authorise the start of the next stage and record any lessons to be learned for later projects. Closing the Project (CP) Portman (2009) states this process are the activities required to close the project and release the project manager. The project could either be the actual project end or a premature end. Objectives here are to check to see if the PID objectives or aim have been met, confirm acceptance of the product, and make recommendation for future work. Resources are freed up for allocation to other activities and prepare end project report. Planning (PL) Planning is a repeatable process and plays an important role in other processes. A few are mentioned below: Planning for an Initiation Stage Planning for a Project Planning a Stage Producing an Exception Plan As previously stated PRINCE2 is the de facto standard for the UK Government and the reason for this is the attention to detail, documentation, business justification and emphasis on dividing the project into manageable and controllable stages (www.prince2.com, 2011). There are many documentation points which enable everyone to know what has happened and how they can improve for the future. Although this methodology may be unsuitable for smaller projects, elements of this methodology can be taken out such as area of control (Bentley, 2005) and implemented into managing a project. However, the question is that if this is such a widely used methodology and is the de facto standard used by the Government, then why are IT projects still failing? And why do IT projects really fail or is it just a widely used perception of IT always failing? These are some of the questions which are going to be explored as the literature review is conducted. Analysing PRINCE2, it is evident why managers and the UK Government use this methodology. This is because it allows the manager to build on experience and the manager to be proactive and not reactive (Harris, 2010). It ensures the project process is viable to senior management (Yardley, 2002). By identifying early warning signs of potential problems and allowing proactive measures to be taken to help alleviate them. The advantages and disadvantages are identified in Table 2. The key point to consider is some project managers fail to differentiate that this is a methodology and does not need to be followed exactly to each and every point, process or technique. Project managers become too inflexible and fixed on the idea that they have to follow each and every step which can make the project long and with unnecessary processes (Charvat, 2003). Another key point regarding PRINCE2 in comparison to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) is the PRINCE2 misses the importance of th e need of soft skills (Charvat, 2003). PRINCE2 also misses out on areas such as human resources, leadership and management techniques, health and safety. This is different to the PMBOK which focuses on soft skills such as people management. There are numerous benefits for using a structured approach to managing a project. Below are the advantages and disadvantages given by (Office of Government Commerce (OGC), 2002) are; 2.2.4 Waterfall Methodology The waterfall method was developed by Winston W. Royce in the 1970 and is considered to be a traditional approach. This was one of the first formal approaches for information system analysis and design as stated by (Johns, 2002; Carkenord, 2009). The method is a process followed in a sequence where a task is completed before moving on to the next in a sequential manner. Figure 6 shows the waterfall methodology, (Rainardi, 2007) illustrates the approach of the waterfall when one task is completed after another. The advantages and disadvantages to the waterfall methodology according to Charvat (2003) are illustrated in Table 3 Although this is for a software development or information system methodology, the same approach can be applied to a project in completing one section and then moving on to the other. The waterfall however does not always reflect on how a project is undertaken and is rarely done in such a sequential manner. However as (Charvat, 2003) identifies, it does produce a phase by phase checkpoint. This will allow the project to stay on the right track in meeting its objectives. 2.2.5 Structured Systems Analysis and Design Method (SSADM) SSADM is a structured approach into the analysis and design of developing an