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Papers & Presentations by David J Williamson
"The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information technology ... more "The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information technology (IT) projects in the U.S. Due to the abstract nature and inherent complexity of software development, IT projects are among the most complex projects encountered. Most existing schools of project management theory are based on the rational systems view; however, for projects with a high degree of complexity, a complex adaptive systems view more effectively describes the full range of project behavior. To investigate the problem, a distinction was made between project complexity and project complication. To help reduce the frequency of IT project failure, project attributes that contribute to complexity and complication were identified from literature, and a survey instrument was developed to measure and investigate relationships between IT project complication, IT project complexity, and IT project success. The survey was tested and administered to the U.S.-based membership of the Project Management Institute's Information Systems Community of Practice (PMI IS CoP). A total of 235 qualified responses were received, exceeding the minimum sample size of n = 115 determined by power analysis. The survey data was analyzed and transformed, and parametric Pearson's correlation coefficients and nonparametric Kendall's taub and Spearman's rho correlations were determined. Results indicated IT project complexity and IT project complication were positively correlated, but IT project complexity had a greater negative correlation with IT project success. The study expanded the application of complex adaptive systems theory to project management theory by providing empirical evidence of a distinction between project complexity and project complication, and between their respective relationships with project success. Implications for practice and future research include identifying and managing project attributes related to complexity to increase the likelihood of project success, and further investigation of project attributes related to project complexity, complication, and success.
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![Research paper thumbnail of Assessing the relationships among information technology project complexity, complication, and success [PMI Research & Education Conference, 2012]](https://a.academia-assets.com/images/blank-paper.jpg)
](The Standish Group's (2009) Chaos Summary reported that 32% of information technology (IT) projec... more The Standish Group's (2009) Chaos Summary reported that 32% of information technology (IT) projects undertaken in the United States in 2008 were successful, whereas 68% were late, over budget, or canceled. High failure rates among IT projects have been attributed to a wide range of organizational, process, and technological causes. One underlying cause of project failure may be unrecognized project complexity. The purpose of this study was to gather data on a sample of IT projects to assess the relationship between IT project complexity and complication and then compare their individual relationships with IT project success. A conceptual model was developed depicting the relationships among IT project complexity (ITPCx), IT project complication (ITPCn), and IT project success (ITPS). Three quantitative constructs representing the study variables were synthesized from prior literature. A survey instrument was developed to gather data about participant demographics, organizational characteristics, and each of the factors of ITPCx, ITPCn, and ITPS. Survey invitations were sent by email directly to the membership of Project Management Institute's Information Systems Community of Practice (PMI IS CoP). A total of 235 qualified responses were received, exceeding the minimum sample size of n = 115 as determined by power analysis. After correction for a non-normal distribution of the responses for ITPS with a rank order normal transformation, Pearson's correlation coefficients were derived for the relationships between the independent variable constructs ITPCx and ITPCn, and between the independent constructs and the dependent NITPS normal transform. To confirm the validity of the parametric correlations with the normal transform, nonparametric Kendall's taub and Spearman's rho correlations were also calculated between the independent variable constructs ITPCx and ITPCn and the dependent ITPS construct. Results indicated that IT project complexity and IT project complication were positively correlated but were distinct sets of project characteristics. In addition, IT project complexity had a greater negative correlation with IT project success than did IT project complication.
When responding to a question from an executive, you have about 3 seconds to make your point...an... more When responding to a question from an executive, you have about 3 seconds to make your point...and if they are still listening, 10 seconds to provide some explanation…and if they are still listening, 30 seconds to summarize the details. In a presentation to a group of executives, you have about 3 minutes to make your case…and if they are still listening, 10 minutes to provide some explanation…and if they are still listening, 30 minutes to summarize the details. Executives tend to be busy people who manage by exception. They don’t always need to know all the details, they just want to know you know the details. A short attention span is often just the indication of the need to move on to something else. In this presentation, you will learn some tips and tricks you can put into action immediately for preparing project status updates and presentations to communicate with executives and stakeholders.
Problem: IT project failure • Causes: Many, but project complexity is underdiagnosed • Theory: Mo... more Problem: IT project failure • Causes: Many, but project complexity is underdiagnosed • Theory: Most PM methods are based on the rational systems view; however, a complex adaptive systems view more effectively describes project behavior • Methodology: Model distinguishing between complexity and complication; quantitative, correlational study using a web-hosted survey • Survey: New survey instrument developed, tested, and administered to the U.S. membership of the PMI IS CoP • Results: ITPCx and ITPCn were positively correlated; ITPCx had a greater negative correlation with ITPS • Implications: Identify and mitigate project attributes related to IT project complexity to increase the likelihood of IT project success
IT and business strategy alignment (IT&BSA) has been studied by scholars and attempted by prac-ti... more IT and business strategy alignment (IT&BSA) has been studied by scholars and attempted by prac-titioners for more than 15 years. Success has remained surprisingly elusive. If it is indeed possible to align a rapidly changing resource with a rapidly moving target, the potential for business benefit from alignment is tremendous. However, without some changes in current paradigms and assump-tions, alignment may be an unachievable state. This systems approach, qualitative paper analyzes 47 IT&BSA studies from 1990 through 2005. It assesses research approaches, methods, strategies, and techniques, and summarizes the key organizational, IT, and alignment concepts and topics using content analysis and semiotics. It then synthesizes the underlying trends in research and top-ics to determine how the field has changed in the last 15 years. Findings include a predominance of the systems approach in IT&BSA research. Both empirical and conceptual research strategies are common. Three dominant schools of thought pervade the study period. Strategic alignment maturi-ty has appeared in the literature relatively consistently since 1993. The balanced scorecard emerged in the late 1990s and is still under consideration. Shared domain knowledge, terminology, and vision is a more recent concept. These larger trends in IT&BSA research have also been sup-plemented by other smaller changes in concepts and topics. The study shows that IT and business strategy alignment is an elusive, if not impossible goal. Implications for practitioners include the need to continually reevaluate the strategic alignment and integration of these critical functions. Implications for researchers include the need for a unifying paradigm or model for future research.
Keywords: Information Technology, Strategic Alignment, Research Methods
Information Technology, Jan 1, 2006
Project management, and IT project management in particular, is complex and difficult. Literature... more Project management, and IT project management in particular, is complex and difficult. Literature and practice show IT projects are often late, over budget, unsuccessful, or canceled. One possible explanation for this poor track record is inadequate or ineffective project estimation. Another possible explanation is the complexity inherent in IT projects themselves. Several key sources for recent developments in IT project management were assessed, including the Project Management Institute, the Software Engineering Institute, the Standish Group, and leading academic journals. While recent work on project management maturity models holds out the hope for increased project rationality and predictability, other recent research into IT project failure and agile project management suggests greater flexibility is required. The emerging field of chaos theory and complex adaptive systems provides models and theories which may be adapted to IT project management, in particular addressing project organization, methodologies, and training and education.
This study reviews 30 representative contributions to the software process improvement (SPI) lit-... more This study reviews 30 representative contributions to the software process improvement (SPI) lit-erature, first assessing history, broad themes, and research methods, then categorizing each article by its stated or implied organizational paradigm. In addition to the traditional rational, natural, and open systems views, the emerging paradigm of complex adaptive systems from chaos theory is ap-plied. Based on this perspective, the factors influencing SPI success and failure are grouped, ana-lyzed, and summarized by the organizational paradigms from which they were observed. Factors are then subcategorized through affinity analysis into those related to management, organizations, processes, projects, teams, and users. The overall purpose of this classification scheme is to deter-mine whether factors found to influence success and failure of SPI vary by the researcher's organi-zational paradigm. Significant differences are found between the factors emphasized by researchers applying different paradigms. Factors vary by distribution among the subcategories and by content within the subcategories. Implications for practioners and researchers include the necessity of un-derstanding the operative organizational paradigm before undertaking SPI or SPI research.
Keywords: Software Process Improvement, Research Methods, Organizational Paradigms, Complex Adaptive Systems
Papers by David J Williamson
Abstract: The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information te... more Abstract: The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information technology (IT) projects in the US Due to the abstract nature and inherent complexity of software development, IT projects are among the most complex projects encountered. Most existing schools of project management theory are based on the rational systems view; however, for projects with a high degree of complexity, a complex adaptive systems view more effectively describes the full range of project behavior. To investigate ...
"The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information technology ... more "The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information technology (IT) projects in the U.S. Due to the abstract nature and inherent complexity of software development, IT projects are among the most complex projects encountered. Most existing schools of project management theory are based on the rational systems view; however, for projects with a high degree of complexity, a complex adaptive systems view more effectively describes the full range of project behavior. To investigate the problem, a distinction was made between project complexity and project complication. To help reduce the frequency of IT project failure, project attributes that contribute to complexity and complication were identified from literature, and a survey instrument was developed to measure and investigate relationships between IT project complication, IT project complexity, and IT project success. The survey was tested and administered to the U.S.-based membership of the Project Management Institute's Information Systems Community of Practice (PMI IS CoP). A total of 235 qualified responses were received, exceeding the minimum sample size of n = 115 determined by power analysis. The survey data was analyzed and transformed, and parametric Pearson's correlation coefficients and nonparametric Kendall's taub and Spearman's rho correlations were determined. Results indicated IT project complexity and IT project complication were positively correlated, but IT project complexity had a greater negative correlation with IT project success. The study expanded the application of complex adaptive systems theory to project management theory by providing empirical evidence of a distinction between project complexity and project complication, and between their respective relationships with project success. Implications for practice and future research include identifying and managing project attributes related to complexity to increase the likelihood of project success, and further investigation of project attributes related to project complexity, complication, and success.
"
The Standish Group's (2009) Chaos Summary reported that 32% of information technology (IT) projec... more The Standish Group's (2009) Chaos Summary reported that 32% of information technology (IT) projects undertaken in the United States in 2008 were successful, whereas 68% were late, over budget, or canceled. High failure rates among IT projects have been attributed to a wide range of organizational, process, and technological causes. One underlying cause of project failure may be unrecognized project complexity. The purpose of this study was to gather data on a sample of IT projects to assess the relationship between IT project complexity and complication and then compare their individual relationships with IT project success. A conceptual model was developed depicting the relationships among IT project complexity (ITPCx), IT project complication (ITPCn), and IT project success (ITPS). Three quantitative constructs representing the study variables were synthesized from prior literature. A survey instrument was developed to gather data about participant demographics, organizational characteristics, and each of the factors of ITPCx, ITPCn, and ITPS. Survey invitations were sent by email directly to the membership of Project Management Institute's Information Systems Community of Practice (PMI IS CoP). A total of 235 qualified responses were received, exceeding the minimum sample size of n = 115 as determined by power analysis. After correction for a non-normal distribution of the responses for ITPS with a rank order normal transformation, Pearson's correlation coefficients were derived for the relationships between the independent variable constructs ITPCx and ITPCn, and between the independent constructs and the dependent NITPS normal transform. To confirm the validity of the parametric correlations with the normal transform, nonparametric Kendall's taub and Spearman's rho correlations were also calculated between the independent variable constructs ITPCx and ITPCn and the dependent ITPS construct. Results indicated that IT project complexity and IT project complication were positively correlated but were distinct sets of project characteristics. In addition, IT project complexity had a greater negative correlation with IT project success than did IT project complication.
When responding to a question from an executive, you have about 3 seconds to make your point...an... more When responding to a question from an executive, you have about 3 seconds to make your point...and if they are still listening, 10 seconds to provide some explanation…and if they are still listening, 30 seconds to summarize the details. In a presentation to a group of executives, you have about 3 minutes to make your case…and if they are still listening, 10 minutes to provide some explanation…and if they are still listening, 30 minutes to summarize the details. Executives tend to be busy people who manage by exception. They don’t always need to know all the details, they just want to know you know the details. A short attention span is often just the indication of the need to move on to something else. In this presentation, you will learn some tips and tricks you can put into action immediately for preparing project status updates and presentations to communicate with executives and stakeholders.
Problem: IT project failure • Causes: Many, but project complexity is underdiagnosed • Theory: Mo... more Problem: IT project failure • Causes: Many, but project complexity is underdiagnosed • Theory: Most PM methods are based on the rational systems view; however, a complex adaptive systems view more effectively describes project behavior • Methodology: Model distinguishing between complexity and complication; quantitative, correlational study using a web-hosted survey • Survey: New survey instrument developed, tested, and administered to the U.S. membership of the PMI IS CoP • Results: ITPCx and ITPCn were positively correlated; ITPCx had a greater negative correlation with ITPS • Implications: Identify and mitigate project attributes related to IT project complexity to increase the likelihood of IT project success
IT and business strategy alignment (IT&BSA) has been studied by scholars and attempted by prac-ti... more IT and business strategy alignment (IT&BSA) has been studied by scholars and attempted by prac-titioners for more than 15 years. Success has remained surprisingly elusive. If it is indeed possible to align a rapidly changing resource with a rapidly moving target, the potential for business benefit from alignment is tremendous. However, without some changes in current paradigms and assump-tions, alignment may be an unachievable state. This systems approach, qualitative paper analyzes 47 IT&BSA studies from 1990 through 2005. It assesses research approaches, methods, strategies, and techniques, and summarizes the key organizational, IT, and alignment concepts and topics using content analysis and semiotics. It then synthesizes the underlying trends in research and top-ics to determine how the field has changed in the last 15 years. Findings include a predominance of the systems approach in IT&BSA research. Both empirical and conceptual research strategies are common. Three dominant schools of thought pervade the study period. Strategic alignment maturi-ty has appeared in the literature relatively consistently since 1993. The balanced scorecard emerged in the late 1990s and is still under consideration. Shared domain knowledge, terminology, and vision is a more recent concept. These larger trends in IT&BSA research have also been sup-plemented by other smaller changes in concepts and topics. The study shows that IT and business strategy alignment is an elusive, if not impossible goal. Implications for practitioners include the need to continually reevaluate the strategic alignment and integration of these critical functions. Implications for researchers include the need for a unifying paradigm or model for future research.
Keywords: Information Technology, Strategic Alignment, Research Methods
Information Technology, Jan 1, 2006
Project management, and IT project management in particular, is complex and difficult. Literature... more Project management, and IT project management in particular, is complex and difficult. Literature and practice show IT projects are often late, over budget, unsuccessful, or canceled. One possible explanation for this poor track record is inadequate or ineffective project estimation. Another possible explanation is the complexity inherent in IT projects themselves. Several key sources for recent developments in IT project management were assessed, including the Project Management Institute, the Software Engineering Institute, the Standish Group, and leading academic journals. While recent work on project management maturity models holds out the hope for increased project rationality and predictability, other recent research into IT project failure and agile project management suggests greater flexibility is required. The emerging field of chaos theory and complex adaptive systems provides models and theories which may be adapted to IT project management, in particular addressing project organization, methodologies, and training and education.
This study reviews 30 representative contributions to the software process improvement (SPI) lit-... more This study reviews 30 representative contributions to the software process improvement (SPI) lit-erature, first assessing history, broad themes, and research methods, then categorizing each article by its stated or implied organizational paradigm. In addition to the traditional rational, natural, and open systems views, the emerging paradigm of complex adaptive systems from chaos theory is ap-plied. Based on this perspective, the factors influencing SPI success and failure are grouped, ana-lyzed, and summarized by the organizational paradigms from which they were observed. Factors are then subcategorized through affinity analysis into those related to management, organizations, processes, projects, teams, and users. The overall purpose of this classification scheme is to deter-mine whether factors found to influence success and failure of SPI vary by the researcher's organi-zational paradigm. Significant differences are found between the factors emphasized by researchers applying different paradigms. Factors vary by distribution among the subcategories and by content within the subcategories. Implications for practioners and researchers include the necessity of un-derstanding the operative organizational paradigm before undertaking SPI or SPI research.
Keywords: Software Process Improvement, Research Methods, Organizational Paradigms, Complex Adaptive Systems
Abstract: The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information te... more Abstract: The specific problem addressed in this study was the low success rate of information technology (IT) projects in the US Due to the abstract nature and inherent complexity of software development, IT projects are among the most complex projects encountered. Most existing schools of project management theory are based on the rational systems view; however, for projects with a high degree of complexity, a complex adaptive systems view more effectively describes the full range of project behavior. To investigate ...