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Final year Project: Final Report. A Decision-making tool for the evaluation and selection of Project. Management Information System.
Typology: Summaries
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Ona Rautenbach 15363414
Prof C.S.L. Schutte
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Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the following people for contributing towards a successful project:
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ECSA Exit Level Outcomes Reference The following table includes references to sections in this report where ECSA exit level outcomes are addressed.
1. Problem Solving 1, pp.1- 3 - Development of a problem solving methodology 5. Engineering Methods, Skills & Tools including Information Technology
2, pp.6 - 9 3, pp.10- 4, pp.26- Appendix B
Entire document The technical content of this project is communicated professionally in this document as well as at an oral presentation
9. Independent learning ability
2,pp. 4 - 24 4,p p.26-36 & Appendix A
Entire report - A thorough explanation of why choices were made is provided at all stages
Research the Project Managment Environmentand Management Information Systems Define the criteria necessary inevaluating and selecting a PMIS Document the Decision- making Tool
Expert opinion andevaluation Analitic HierarchyProcess(AHP)
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Abstract
The use of a Project Management Information System (PMIS) provides many benefits to organizations involved in project work. These systems can be seen as information managers that integrate and control information flows to assist management in gaining an overview of past and present events, as well as enable them to make future predictions. However, with organizational needs varying, and features provided by these systems covering different project management areas, finding the correct fit between the organization and the most comprehensive system is difficult. The vast amount of evaluation criteria, and the variety of software packages on the market, further complicates the problem.
This report addresses this problem by developing a decision-making tool based on multi-criteria decision-making methods, more specifically, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). A structured development methodology was followed to develop the tool. It includes the initial attainment of knowledge of the Project management, and management information system environments. Next the criteria on which the model would be based was selected from these environments in terms of functional-, organizational-, and software acquisition requirements, resulting in fourteen specific criterions. The final decision-making tool was then developed by utilizing the AHP methods as well as Visual Basic programming in Excel. The criteria were structured in a hierarchy, and alternatives were measured against each of these criterions to obtain a weighted rank of the alternatives.
The final result can be seen as an easy-to-use tool that covers a comprehensive range of decision- making criteria. The tool can be used in collaboration with other methods to aid users in PMIS software selection. An evaluation of the tool by experts confirmed that the tool could be used successfully in the project management environment, provided some adjustments are made. The valued opinion of these experts and the entire development process was document to allow future expansions and improvements.
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Table of Contents
Acknowledgements....................................................................................................................................... ii Declaration ................................................................................................................................................... iii ECSA Exit Level Outcomes Reference .......................................................................................................... iv Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... v Opsomming .................................................................................................................................................. vi List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................... ix List of Tables ................................................................................................................................................. x Glossary ........................................................................................................................................................ xi
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- 3.3.1 Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) - 3.3.2 Weighted TCO element importance xi
Glossary
AHP Analytic Hierarchy process
ANP Analytic Network Process
IS Information System
MIS Management Information system
PMI Project Management Institute
PMIS Project Management Information System
TAM Technology Acceptance Model
TCO Total Cost of Ownership
Figure 1 - Decision-making tool development methodology
A thorough literature study was done on the project management environment as well as on management information systems as these aspects form the basis of the PMIS. The nature of information flows, especially those in the project environment, needed to be understood to define exactly what the role of the PMIS is and to ensure that all aspects would be taken into account when developing the final decision-making tool. Gaining a broad overview of the field made it possible to make essential decisions on the criteria that would describe a comprehensive PMIS.
The main criteria identified as important in evaluating and selecting a comprehensive PMIS were technical requirements, organizational requirements, as well as the software acquisition requirements of the organization. The literature provides accounts of many different criteria examined by Gerogiannis et. (2010:368), Wei and Wang (2004:162), Jaafari and Manivong (1998:252). This specific mix of criteria was selected to support the functions of the decision-making tool. After a broad perspective of PMIS was obtained, it was possible to expand the main criteria into sub-criteria, by using the background knowledge acquired in the literature study.
The expansion of the main criteria resulted in fourteen sub-criteria that had to be evaluated by the decision-making tool. This is a large number of criteria. After considering many alternative multi-criteria decision making processes it was decided that using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method would be the most suitable approach for developing the decision-making tool. An introduction to this process was
obtained in Operations Research 344. Further research into the methods allowed for Excel sheets to be set up to perform the pairwise comparisons necessary in the AHP approach. The importance of the criteria relative to each other could then be determined, as well as comparisons made of user-specified software packages relative to each criteria. Finally, through matrix multiplication, the software packages could be ranked.
Before the Decision-making model was finalized, the preliminary model was presented to experts in the project management environment for evaluation. They were asked to use the tool and comment on the efficiency and accuracy of the output. Their feedback was used to improve the final tool. This step is critical, as acceptance by experts at the development stage should improve the chances of this tool being accepted in organizations.
The expert opinions were analyzed and, where possible, alterations were made to the model. The methods and processes used to develop the tool were documented. Documentation of the entire development process is very important, for both future users, and developers to use as building block in improvement.
need for integration of activities between the different organizational units and different role-players on different levels of the project. This integration can only take place through sharing of information between parties. During a project, documents are produced and transmitted instantaneously to support a real-time representation of the current project status (Nicoletti, 1998:115). Since all activities are running concurrently, projects will not permit face-to-face interaction and as a result, information flows generated by information technologies are utilized to increase efficiency. Information flows should be consistent, accurate and ready for submission due to the urgent nature of projects.
Companies often take on a diverse range of projects at the same time. All of these projects are composed of many functions that have to be performed, and in some cases, these functions have sub- functions. Keeping track of all the associated functions and elements is the role of the project manager. Project management can be seen as the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to tasks to meet project requirements. The Project Management Institute (PMI) identifies processes through which the project manager can manage the project to completion (Project Management institute 2004). They include initiation, planning, executing, monitoring, controlling and closing (Figure 3).
Defining the project scope is the initiating step. This enables boundaries to be established and identifies people, processes, and resources to be involved in the project. At this stage, information gathered from previous as well as current projects, guide management teams in decision-making (Amami, 1993:26). Proceeding from the planning phase to the executing phase, all the objectives and goals set by the
Figure 3 - Project Management Process groups SOURCE: Project Management Institute, 2004, p.
management team have to be accurately communicated to all role-players, inside and outside the organization/ project space. Work in the project is broken down through a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), allowing for the sorting of information by engineering and design area, major techniques, priorities etc. Only after this has taken place, integration between the functions can commence. Data is then integrated from different sources and in different formats. Information, as the driving force of the project, is stored in an interactive database allowing project managers to access it when needed. This information (in the form of text, graphs and networks) can then be used in planning, communicating, scheduling, budgeting and procuring resources. The real-time analysis of projects is in focussing on critical factors relating to the project.
It is essential to monitor the progression of the project as well as formalise closing procedures as the processes in F igure 3 indicates Performance indicators & measures must be communicated to different functional units, who can in turn, monitor the progress and investigate & clarify variances. All information generated here should be stored in a database to benefit future project management.
In conclusion, it is clear how project management can benefit from an information system. Data from previous projects can be utilised to highlight the interdependence of tasks and roles in decision-making.
Information Systems (IS) can be seen as a combination of hardware, software, infrastructure and trained personnel organized to facilitate the handling of data (Business Dictionary, 2011). Most businesses have one or more IS in place: transaction-processing systems, process control systems, office automation systems, management IS, decision support systems or executive IS (Kendall, 2011:30). These types of systems were already implemented in the 1960s, but at the time, access and usage thereof were limited to a small number of wealthy companies. Today, in an age of globalized communication and control, computers are a part of everyday work. The World Wide Web has granted individuals and companies easy access to a wide range of information.
Each of the above IS provides specific information in the organizational context. In most cases, the specific information needs to be shared with other agents. Like any valuable resource, it is of critical importance that the information flows between role players are managed effectively and that control be
The success of companies was measured by their project management capabilities and companies had to utilize all resources to remain competitive. The PMIS was one of these resources (Snyder, 1985:74). PMIS can be seen as important building blocks in project management. The PMIS is valuable to project managers, improving their effectiveness and efficiency in managerial tasks. In addition, increased productivity and timelier decision-making has also emerged because of the use of the PMIS (Snyder, 1985). These systems have changed from MIS only focussed on scheduling and resource management, to wide-ranging systems supporting the entire life cycle of projects, programmes and portfolios. They take into account the unstable and complex nature of the project environment, as described above, and provide management with the ability to detect warning signals and take early corrective action (Snyder, 1985:73).
Timely management of information flows enables the project manager to control activities during the project life cycle. Through situational information, decision makers gain a broader understanding of what exactly is going on in the project and are then more inclined to act on insights gained (Bendoly, 2007:617). With the monitoring of the execution of activities, unwanted situations can be avoided by planning and implementing corrective actions, as in many cases the information that is generated by one activity, generates information flows in other activities. With each project being original and differing substantially from others, there is always the potential for innovation, uncertainty and risk (Turner, 2000:66). “The importance of information is directly proportional to its improbability”, as Jerry Pournelle the American science fiction writer stated (Pournelle, s.a.). Thus the more uncertain a situation, proposal or idea, the more important it is to gather information to support or explain it. The integrated project management environment described above constitutes one of these uncertain environments. This shifting environment calls for a large amount of information. Investment in a PMIS that increases information visibility is therefore very valuable.
If the on-site information that is shared can be improved to always represent the correct status of the occurring problems in activities, integrate relevant project information and satisfy the demand for activity evaluation, project success would increase significantly (Tsai, 2009:323). A PMIS, as an information manager, integrates and controls information flows to assist management in gaining an overview of the organisation. It stores information in centralized databases and allows the generation of documentation in a form that the users desire. A survey done by Raymond & Bergeron (2007) investigated the elements contributing to the impact of the PMIS on project success. Even though the PMIS itself did not directly influence the system, the use thereof was shown to make a positive
contribution to the success of the project. PMIS quality was found to be a strong predictor of information quality obtained from the system, with available, reliable, precise, comprehensive and secure information being the result of a high-quality PMIS.
The need for the PMIS has enabled it to progress significantly from the 1990s to today. Software development techniques and resources have improved and as a result, the quality of the systems in the 20 th^ century is of high standards. There are a variety of packages available, each with different features and specifications.
PMIS currently employed in the project environment are one of three types: Commercial-off-the-shelf software, custom developed in-house software or web-based project management systems. When commercial software doesn’t meet the specific requirements of an organisation, some firms will often develop their own software in-house. Web-based systems are becoming increasingly popular as they are readily available from any location, and there is no initial purchasing cost. The list of PMIS currently available ( Table 1 ) is just a small portion of the actual PMIS available. Developers are continuously improving previous versions or creating interfaces between different software packages, therefore it is difficult to obtain and exact list of all software packages available.
Table 1 - PMIS currently available (Commercial & Web-based) PSNext PeopleSoft Enterprise Program Management Project Insight: Web based Project Management Software
Primavera P6 Enterprise Project Portfolio Management Projectron BCS 6.2 Oracle Projects: Oracle Project management AMS REALTIME Projects Acumen Fuse project.net AstaPowerproject easyprojects.net Deltek Enterprise Project Management: Cobra Workplan Dekker PMIS Minute Man Project Management Software iPlan Project Management Jonas Software: Project Management Panview: Project portfolio management Micro Planner: X-Pert Artemis: Views MS Project 2010 ]project-open[ OSS Project Management Omniplan
SOURCE: Project Management Software Dictionary, s.a.