Software Project Success Research Papers (original) (raw)

Software project management is the utilization of resources in efficient manner to complete a project within time and budget. It is like a corner stone in every successful project. Sound software project management techniques are very important for the development of software projects both for organizations that develop outsourced projects and in-house projects. The data was collected through interviews and questionnaire. Most of the respondents were project managers having postgraduate degrees. From analysis it is concluded that project management practices play important role in the successful completion of projects. Sixteen percent of projects had no project plan. Many standard software practices are not being applied constantly in the projects. The risk assessment and mitigation are not carried out until the risk occurs. The role of software project management tools and techniques and their practices are also analyzed in detail in this paper. Many believed that decision making is the most important ability of project managers. In this paper we have described different factors that cause the success or failure of projects. Our results present general guidance for project managers to make sure that their projects be successful. This study shows the importance of project management tools and techniques in the industry. It also shows how project management is important for a successful and quality software product. If a project is managed properly, we get a quality product within allocated time and budget.

- by Basharat Jehan
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- Computer Science, Software Engineering, Statistics, Computer Engineering

This paper is based on an industrial survey conducted
on software engineer motivation as previous research shows that
motivation is amongst the most frequently highlighted causes of
software projects failure. Motivation greatly impacts
practitioner’s productivity. Yet motivation is mostly ignored in
software engineering literature and practice. Researchers have
conducted studies on motivation in software engineering mostly
in western culture. There have been very few studies on
motivation of software engineers from Asia. We have not been
able to find any empirical study conducted on this subject in
South Asia, which is an important region in information
technology industry worldwide. We therefore decided to conduct
an empirical study in Pakistan to identify factors that motivate or
de-motivate software engineers. Given the nature of the research
we used an online questionnaire based on Job Characteristic
Theory to identify (de)motivational factors that affect software
engineers at work place. Results are based on 306 responses.
Results are relatively different from previous studies as most of
the previous work is done in western countries. These differences
are analyzed in the light of Hofstede’s Cultural Dimension 5
Dimensional Model. National culture impacts factors that
(de)motivate software engineers in a country. Software
companies should follow culture sensitive steps to deal with
(de)motivational factors affecting their software engineers.

Fortune 500 organizations are executing their tasks using projects. Project management is the area of concentration across the world. Different stakeholders have a different perspective about project success. The meaning of project success has been explained in this paper. In addition, the Project Critical Success Factors (CSFs) are mentioned. The research of Standish Group on project success and project success metrics is presented. Earlier research on the meaning of project success and project critical success factors is highlighted. The works of Jeffery K. Pinto and Dennis P. Slevin, David and Adam, DeLone and McLean, and The Standish Group Research will be discussed in this paper. The methodology includes secondary research based on literature view of prominent empirical studies and the literature reviews by making note of findings and observations from those studies. The initial literature collected leads to further search of articles based on their references. The research findings indicate that the top of the most success factors for many projects include project objective, top management commitment, competent project team and user involvement.

Due to the expanding trend to globalise software development organisations need to understand and address issues which previously did not arise. Cultural distance has been identified as one of these key issues. This paper presents the results from a three year study which identified the implications of misunderstanding and not addressing cultural differences. This work was undertaken within a multinational organisation which offshored part of their software development process from Ireland to Malaysia. Of particular relevance was where cultural difference was initially perceived as something which could be leveraged. The opposite proved to be the case and resulted in key Malaysian personnel being forced to leave the organisation. This was due to their cultural aversion to decline requests to undertake additional work. This resulted in serious implications for the success of the projects concerned. Ultimately the requirement for cultural training was recognized by the management and staff at both locations.

- by Kamran Ghani and +2
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- Computer Science, Software Engineering, Statistics, Requirements Engineering
- by Ashly Pinnington
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- Engineering, Project Management, Software Project Success, Project performance

Management of successful IT projects in a sustainable manner is influenced by numerous factors. Organizational awareness of the necessity of engaging all project stakeholders is an important is-sue that helps in meeting project sustainable development goals. While there are many studies on the success factors of IT software projects, there is still little coherent research on the success fac-tors of IT service projects. The purpose of this article is to contribute in filling this gap by attempt-ing to identify success factors of the IT services project involving both traditional and agile ap-proaches and considering sustainable development, specifically in terms of the stakeholders’ role in project management. We conducted questionnaire-based research involving 155 IT service pro-ject managers. The results of the study were subjected to exploratory factor analysis. As a result, we presented and thoroughly formally examined the factorial model of success components in the IT service industry. We distinguished four factors: (1) agile techniques and change management, (2) organization and people, (3) stakeholders and risk analysis, and (4) work environment. The results were compared with analogous studies found in the literature. The research showed that both traditional and agile management approaches coexist, meet sustainable development goals, and are significant for the successful management in IT service projects where all stakeholders play an important role.

- by Szymon Zaleski and +1
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- Project Management, Project Success, Success factors, IT Project Management

Software Development Outsourcing, a global IT trend, have gained significant stride in IT business and organizations; aimed at reducing cost, reducing time, and achieving quality in software development projects. The researcher identified four sectors in Nigeria-Banking/Finance sector, Medical/Health Sector, Education sector, ICT sector; the aim of this study is to determine the critical success factors of software development outsourcing peculiar to each of the identified sectors, using a two-step clustering analysis approach. To achieve this aim, the researcher adopted six critical success factors from a prior but related study-Cost Saving and Financial Stability, Effective Communication and Trust, Technical expertise and Knowledge Transfer, Understanding Software Development Outsourcing Industry, Effective Software Privacy and Security, and Overcome Cultural Barrier; and using a two-step cluster analysis, the researchers grouped the six continuous critical success factors around the sectors, to find out the success factor(s) that is/are peculiar and critical to each sector. The result of the analysis indicated that at least two success factors loaded strongly on each sector; thereby contributing strongly to successful software development outsourcing in these sectors. The researcher thus recommends that adequate attention be paid by institutions and firms in these sectors; to those critical success factor that is/are peculiar to each sector in other to be derive maximum success and satisfaction in the quality of software developed for them from the outsourcing firm.

- by IKENNA OLUIGBO and +1
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- Software Development, Outsourcing, IT Outsourcing, Software Project Success
- by Gamze Sart
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- Creative Writing, Critical Theory, Entrepreneurship, Finance

This thesis aims to shed light on two streams of project management research that are rapidly gaining importance: the first is project governance and the second is the emerging concept of Benefits Realization Management (BRM). Both concepts are at the forefront of the fairly recent drive to revisit and re-conceptualize the theory and practice of project management, as evidenced by comprehensive initiatives such as Rethinking Project Management, which was a two-year research program (2004-2006) funded by the UK Government that involved a research network of academicians and practitioners working to extend and enrich project management theory in accordance with the developing practice. A key recommendation of said initiative is to shift focus from product creation to value creation. This is fueled by the increasingly large body of evidence that the majority of projects fail to meet success criteria. Adding to the urgency is the increasing pressure from business managers for projects to justify their value contribution to the organization. In this context, project governance and BRM are vital for ensuring that projects deliver expected business benefits and value. In doing so, these concepts help align project outcomes with organizational strategy. This study aims to address an important gap in the literature: the relationships between project governance and BRM, and their effects on project success. These relationships were studied based on 326 responses from Pakistan’s burgeoning IT & Software sector, which is increasingly becoming vital for the country’s future economic growth as Pakistan transitions from an industrial to service-based economy. The findings of this study indicate that the aspects of project governance included in this study have a positive significant effect on both BRM and Project Success. Also, it is found that BRM mediates the relationship between two aspects of project governance, namely Relational Governance and Governance of Project Management (GoPM), and Project Success. The results supports the overall proposition of this study that strong project governance creates the context in which effective BRM can occur. For the theory of project management, specifically project governance and BRM, this study hopes to contribute much needed empirical evidence to the literature and responds to recent calls for research on BRM. Additionally, this study attempts to adapt a scale for the GoPM concept, which fills an important gap in the existing operationalizations of different aspects of project governance and may prove useful for future academic studies. For the practice of project management, this study hopes to initiate a discussion on how project governance and BRM may be integrated to support the achievement of organizational strategic objectives through projects and programs. Furthermore, this research aims to assess the current levels of, and create awareness of the developments in, project governance and BRM in Pakistan. This should help organizations to not only improve the success rates of their projects but also to extract business value from projects.

- by Ata Ul Musawir and +1
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- IS Benefits Management, Benefits realisation, Project Success, Benefits tracking and realisation

ABSTRACT During discussions with a group of U.S. software developers we explored the effect of software development practices on software project outcomes. Later we asked our practitioners to respond to a questionnaire that covered many important project risk topics. Then, in order to compare practices in different environments, another group of practitioners from the U.S. and a group of practitioners from Australia completed our questionnaire. Most software engineering research stresses the importance of good requirements engineering practices and suggests that they are essential to successful projects. We report on requirements engineering risk practices, including 1) the effects of the sponsor and customer/users, 2) requirements issues, and 3) the project manager and management of the development process, in order to identify early lifecycle factors useful in predicting project outcomes. If project managers are able to identify problematic projects early enough, they can take mitigating action. Our results suggest that the best predictor of project success is that the requirements are completed at some stage during the development process.

In the age of fast evolution, software development project must accept many challenges of unpredicted requirements change and new technology environment. Software development processes should have adjustable and extendable features to meet the multifaceted needs of the users. Iterative and Incremental Development (IID) is a practical approach to overcome the various challenges of software development. However, continuous testing and building new versions need to spend more time and human resources that is a major obstacle of IID. The other, the iterative operations must have a sound communication skills. Lack of standard version control and intercommunication manner often lead to failure of software project. High quality Continuous Integration (CI) environment can effectively make up the defects of IID. In this paper, CI environment and advantages are deeply surveyed. In order to overcome the defects of IID, CI environment needs combine the perfect procedures and qualified tools, and concretely enhance the quality of CI environment. Based on the process quality measurement model, this paper proposes the Process Quality Improvement Mechanism (PQIM). Applying PQIM, in software development, the processes problems and the CI environment quality defects can identify timely and indeed revise to reduce the risk of CI environment.

- by Mario Rivas
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- Information Systems, Software Engineering, Software Development, Job Satisfaction