Management & IT Project Management Introduction

1. Management & IT Project ManagementIntroduction Important information, widely distributed by new technology, has radically altered the balance of power among institutions, governments, and people. Power bases dependent on information are being built, transformed, and destroyed as critical information flows around the globe with little or no restriction.

2. Management & IT Project ManagementIntroduction Information technology has altered the way many people do their jobs, and has changed the nature of work in industrialised societies. In these nations information technology has brought change to nearly everyone. To succeed in such rapidly changing environments, managers must be prepared to adopt new practices and techniques.

3. Management & IT Project ManagementIntroduction • Management practice has been greatly affected. • “New technology “ has become a major part of formal education, and is now essential for employment and career success. • The rapid pace of IT innovation has created growth in job opportunities for skilled IT managers. • Senior executives who can manage complex IT tasks are in great demand.

4. Management & IT Project ManagementInformation and Organisations The creative combination of skilled people and advanced information technology has revolutionised the concept of management. High performance organisations employ empowered, motivated workers using well-developed information systems to: • Attain or exceed challenging goals, • Satisfy or expand established markets, • Develop important new markets, and • Create superb value for owners, employees, and customers.

5. Management & IT Project ManagementInformation, Employees& Authority The need for more information to work in today’s increasingly knowledge-based work environment generates an increased responsibility and demands a greater intellectual effort from employees. Where information is shared and used collectively, an increased joint responsibility for, and ownership of organisational success develops among employees. However, these conditions may conflict with the traditional basis of authority within the organisation.

6. Management & IT Project ManagementInformation Technology Organisations The IT organisation within a business will generally have a number of departments with specific responsibilities, that report through departmental managers to the senior IT manager. Traditionally, the senior IT manager reported to the finance executive. However, an emerging alternative is to have a senior IT executive (often entitled Chief Information Officer or CIO) who is responsible for IT functions across the business.

7. Management & IT Project ManagementInformation Technology Organisations An organisation’s culture and industry/environment are key factors that govern the activities and responsibilities of the IT function. Where there is a heavy dependence upon information technology, the IT technical support role will (generally) be broad and comprehensive. Where there is less dependence, developers and other technical specialists may also have to provide technical support. Structures vary with corporate and departmental needs, and evolve as the organisation adopts new technology or reengineers to improve operations.

8. Management & IT Project ManagementDefinitions- 1 Information Technology - the organisations computing and communication structure, including computer systems, telecommunications network, and multimedia hardware and software. Information Management - the business related data and telecommunications standards and operations of an organisation.

9. Management & IT Project ManagementDefinitions - 2 Information Resource Management - activities associated with investing in and managing the people, technology and data, and establishing policy regarding the use of these organisational assets.

10. Management & IT Project ManagementDefinitions - 3 Information Technology Management - is the task of managing the infrastructure, standards and operations, of making technology related investments, and recommending appropriate corporate policy.

11. Management & IT Project ManagementIT Management Challenges - 1 Many IT managers find themselves , and their organisations in very difficult positions. They spend large amounts of money implementing new technologies that promise high potential value to the organisation, but are also high risk. They support clients who request increased services, while senior executives, observing slow (or no) progress in improving productivity, challenge increasing expense levels.

12. Management & IT Project ManagementIT Management Challenges - 2 Poor performance and the lack of success negatively impacts the careers of IT managers who fail to successful manage rapid technological change. For example, unmanaged demand for services can lead to expanding work backlogs. As expectations for IT rises in an organisation, senior IT managers may struggle to meet growing challenges.

13. Management & IT Project ManagementIT Management Challenges - 3 IT managers with strong technical background, but lacking general management experience skills will be challenged when they and their IT organisation are scrutinised for productivity and resource consumption. They also require skills in people Management & appreciation of organisational issues. Furthermore, many organisations face mergers, acquisitions, and reorganisations that will threaten both the existing organisational structure, and individuals position within that structure.

14. Management & IT Project ManagementInformation Management Superiority Paul Strassman presents a model of Information Management Superiority that is based upon the idea that IT management only has value within the context of business management. He states that “the benefits of investments in information technology can be assessed only as seen from the standpoint of a business plan”.

15. Management & IT Project ManagementInformation Management Superiority Strassman’s model of Information Management Superiority has five reinforcing and interacting ideas: A: Governance B: Business Plan Alignment C: Process Improvement D: Resource Optimisation E: Operating Excellence More in later lectures

16. Management & IT Project ManagementGovernance Governance - or information politics - is used to both exercise authority, and also as a way of achieving consensus. It guides how individuals and groups co-operate to achieve business objectives.

17. Management & IT Project ManagementGovernance Governance is particularly important in mature IT organisations as the managers: • Concentrate on the rules governing technology dispersal, • Establish policies regarding distributed computing, Internet activities, portable computing , wireless networks etc.

18. Management & IT Project ManagementGovernance Governance, especially the policy making associated with establishing authority for technology acquisition and deployment, is now more critical to organisations than owning and operating large computer systems. Good governance requires IT executives to concentrate on the larger, more important policy issues associated with achieving business success. For example - the issue of globalisation and information technology.

19. Management & IT Project ManagementGlobalisation The extension and transfer of many operations internationally to areas of plentiful and inexpensive labour has led to projects entailing a mix of: • Investment, • Infrastructure, • Establishment of new facilities, • Transportation, and • Training for an inexperienced workforce.

20. Management & IT Project ManagementGlobalisation However, special problems have to be overcome in transitory or developing economies. For example 1. Some countries - especially since the Asian economic crisis - have economies that are now unstable or sluggish. These transitory economies have not developed as expected.

21. Management & IT Project ManagementGlobalisation 2. With an increasing trend towards globalisation, organisations operating in environments where there is governmentfavouritism, protection or, in extreme cases, nepotism, may find themselves suddenly “left out in the cold” and stripped of favoured status. It is therefore an issue of governance, in particular policy development, that organisations must undertake when operating in a global environment.