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PRESENTATION TITLE

THE IMPORTANCE OF BUILDING A

FOUNDATION FOR USER INVOLVEMENT IN

INFORMATION SYSTEM PROJECTS

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Introduction

Effect of Lack of User Support

Importance of User Support

Various User Support Risk Control

System Development

Preproject Partnering

Study/Research

Results/Findings

Conclusion

CONTENT/SCOPE

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What is a Project needs? A Project’s needs begin a series of events that

ultimately result in the production of a deliverable design to satisfy the user’s wants.

Traditional project approaches focus on the followings:

Identifying Needs. Specifying Requirements.

These approaches provide excellent information on the followings:

Understanding functions of current system. Determining available inputs and desired outputs. Locating interested parties. Determining nature of stakeholders interests.

These approaches however are not able to prevent a lack of user support during the entire development process of the projects.

INTRODUCTION

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Numerous studies from mid 1980s’ to mid 1990s’ have demonstrated the negative effects a lack of user support has on project performance.

Lack of User Support on Project Performance give rise to the following negative effect: Resistance to change. Unwilling involvement.

EFFECTS OF LACK OF USER SUPPORT

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User involvement in the process of developing Information System (IS) is a critical component of eventual success.

In the 1960s’, IS practitioner and research communities considered user support as one of the most critical IS Project success factors.

IMPORTANCE OF USER SUPPORT

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User Support Risk Control is a measure to offset risk of low user support. In other words it is to improve user involvement and participation in IS Project.

Various User Support Control proposed by researchers from late 1970s’ to late 1990s’ were as follows: Assigning IS users as members of IS project

development team. Providing System Development training and

education to IS users. Defining System Requirements. Using prototyping and evolutionary approaches. Providing feedback and status report to IS users. Getting top management support Avoiding changes in user jobs.

cont…

VARIOUS USER SUPPORT RISK CONTROL

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The scope of aforementioned proposed approaches is however, a response to the lack of user support during the system development stage.

Project Managers must therefore involve users throughout the entire project development stage.

Many recent experts argue that prevention of lack of user support before and during an IS project requires the followings:

Good effective communication. A positive relationship between IS users and IS

staff.

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System Development involved numerous stakeholders namely as follows: IS Staffs. IS Users. Financial Sponsors. Top Management. Functional Managers. Customers. Public.

Discrepancies will occur and must be expected both prior to the start of the project and during the evaluation stages.

If the goals, objectives or expectations of the stakeholders are not aligned, thus the system success is doomed.

SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT

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Preproject partnering refers to a philosophy in which system stakeholders work together before project begins.

In other words, it allows management, IS Users, IS Project Managers, IS Development Teams and Sponsors to work together before the project begins.

It could help build a foundation for collaboration among stakeholders prior to the project beginning.

Its primary objective is to heighten the quality involvement of the users.

Intent and emphasis of preproject partnering are as follows:

To build a foundation among stakeholders for collaboration. Activities of identifying potential conflicts areas. Providing a process for resolution of conflict. Incorporating a continuous improvement component into

the project process. cont…

PREPROJECT PARTNERING

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Advantages of Preproject Partnering activities are as follows:

Identifying potential areas of conflict prior to the commencement of the project.

Establishing contingency to handle possible challenges to success.

Understanding system goals and assumed responsibilities for each system stakeholders.

Identifying each system stakeholders and negotiating the system expectation.

Altering working relationship between IS Users and IS Staffs on a new project.

These ideas are receiving growing attention in IS project management and some researchers till late 1990s’ have shown that preproject partnering activities has significantly influenced the project managers’ performance and improved final project outcomes.

cont…

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However, the direct relationship between preproject partnering and user support has not yet being examined by any researchers up till late 1990s’.

In 2002, a study was carried out by three (3) researchers to examine the impact of preproject partnering activities on the user support risks and project performance.

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In 2002, three (3) researchers namely James J. Jiang, Edward Chen & Gary Klein had conducted studies empirically explore on the relationships and specifically focused on three (3) propositions as follows:

Preproject partnering activities have a direct relationship to risk involving a lack of user support.

Preproject partnering activities directly impact the final project performance.

Risk of a lack of user support has a significant relationship with project performance.

The research sample consists of five hundred (500) randomly selected Project Management Institute (PMI) IS members. Questionaire consisting of the following topics were sent to them:

Item concerning the extent of preproject partnering employed.

Amount of user support risk perceived. Project Performance characteristics.

cont…

STUDY/RESEARCH

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The sample was well qualified to responds to the questionnaires related to risks and success of the IS development because the respondent consisted of the followings:

>80% IS Project Managers & IS Project Leaders. >90% has work experience in IS of >= 6 years. Just under 91% worked in companies with >= 100

employees. Has various experience in different types and sizes of IS

applications.

A total of 186 responses to the questionnaires were returned from PMI IS members, representing a response rate of 36%.

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From the survey of 186 PMI IS professionals, result indicated preproject partnering activities did significantly effect the extent of user support and the level of the project performance.

The study confirmed the followings: A direct relationship between the risk of a lack of user

support and project performance. Both functional management and user support are found to

be critical for system success. Overall, the three (3) proposition were supported indicating

the followings: The activities of building an effective partnering relation are

fundamental to lowering the risk of poor user support. The effectiveness of preproject partnering on user related risk

reduction and improved project performance.

Based on the findings, the three (3) researchers concluded the followings:

Preproject partnering activities should be implemented by an organisation.

Project management process should include preproject partnering activities which relates to building a foundation to resolve conflict and maintain quality. cont…

RESULTS/FINDINGS

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A successful project development is the product of a partnership between the IS staff and the customers ie the eventual users.

The users must do their share to ensuring maximixing the likehood that the system meeting the users’ needs by assisting during the project development stage in the followings areas:

Participating in needs definition. Approving schedules. Assisting in various development stages.

The users must realised two (2) realities as follows: The users and IS staff have limitation that are not deficiencies. Project Management process is an exercise in compromise.

The significance of top management support in the preproject partnering activities is paramount in that:

Top management must consistently and visibly endorse the principle of partnering both with words and actions.

Encouraging and insisting the expectations to be communicated clearly among the stakeholders

Conflict among stakeholders must be resolved collaboratively.

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User involvement in the development of an IS Project is paramount for the success of the project.

Preproject partnering activities should be included in the Project Management process relating to building a foundation to resolve conflict and maintain quality. These does not reduce the needs for user participation and involving the various stakeholders but should supplement sound practices employed during the system development.

The more the preproject partnering activities were conducted for an IS Project, the lower the risk of a lack of user support and the better the project performance.

CONCLUSION

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