Merima Nasser
Merima Nasser
September, 2019
Assessment of IT Project Management Practice in
Commercial Bank of Ethiopia
ADDIS ABABA
September, 2019
Assessment of IT Project Management Practice in
Commercial Bank of Ethiopia
The undersigned certify that they have read and hereby recommend to Addis Ababa
University School of Commerce to accept the Project work submitted by Merima Nasser
and entitled “Assessment of IT Project Management Practice in Commercial Bank of
Ethiopia” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of a Master’s Degree in
Project Management .
Submitted By:
Approved By:
This Project work has been submitted for examination with my approval.
Name of Advisor:
i
DECLARATIONS
I hereby declare that this project is my original work, I have carried out the present project work
independently with the guidance and support of the research advisor Abraraw C. (PhD) and the
project work has not been submitted partially or in full by any other person for an award of degree in
____________________________
Merima Nasser
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Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ......................................................................................................................... vi
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................................... vii
LIST OF ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS .............................................................................................. viii
List of Tables........................................................................................................................................ ix
List of Figures........................................................................................................................................ x
CHAPTER ONE ................................................................................................................................. 1
INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................................................................1
1.1 Background of the Study ...................................................................................................... 1
1.2 Background of the Organization...........................................................................................1
1.3 Statement of the problem .................................................................................................... 3
1.4 Research Questions .............................................................................................................. 4
1.5 Research Objective ...............................................................................................................4
1.5.1 General Objective ......................................................................................................... 4
1.5.2 Specific Objectives ........................................................................................................ 5
1.6 Significance of the Study....................................................................................................... 5
1.7 Limitations of the Study........................................................................................................ 5
1.8 Scope of the study ................................................................................................................6
1.9 Organization of the Study..................................................................................................... 6
CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................................7
2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE................................................................................7
2.1 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................7
2.2 Definitions of Project ............................................................................................................ 7
2.3 Project Management ............................................................................................................ 8
2.4 Project Management Processes .........................................................................................10
2.4.1 Initiating Process Group..............................................................................................10
2.4.2 Planning Process Group ..............................................................................................10
2.4.3 Executing Process Group ............................................................................................11
2.4.4 Monitoring and Controlling Process Group ................................................................11
2.4.5 Closing Process Group ................................................................................................11
2.5 Effectiveness of Project and Project Management ............................................................12
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2.6 Project Management Practices...........................................................................................14
2.6.1 Project Scope Management........................................................................................16
2.6.2 Project Time Management .........................................................................................17
2.6.3 Project Cost Management ..........................................................................................18
2.6.4 Project Quality Management......................................................................................18
2.6.5 Project Human Resource Management......................................................................18
2.6.6 Project Communications Management ......................................................................19
2.6.7 Project Risk Management...........................................................................................19
2.6.8 Project Procurement Management ............................................................................20
2.6.9 Project Integration Management ...............................................................................21
2.6.10 Project Stakeholder Management..............................................................................21
2.7 Empirical Review.................................................................................................................22
2.8 Conceptual Framework for accessing Project Management Practices ..............................23
CHAPTER THREE..........................................................................................................................24
3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................24
3.1 Research Design..................................................................................................................24
3.2 Research Approach.............................................................................................................24
3.3 Sources of Data...................................................................................................................24
3.4 Population of the Study ......................................................................................................24
3.5 Methods and Instrument of Data Collection......................................................................25
3.6 Method of Data Analysis and Presentation ........................................................................25
3.7 Validity and Reliability ........................................................................................................25
3.8 Ethical Considerations ........................................................................................................26
CHAPTER FOUR ............................................................................................................................27
4 DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION ...................................27
4.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................27
4.2 Response Rate ....................................................................................................................27
4.3 Assessing the general questions raised about the project .................................................29
4.4 Assessing the Project practice using the Project Management Knowledge areas .............30
CHAPTER FIVE ..............................................................................................................................42
SUMMERY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATION.....................................................42
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5.1 SUMMERY OF FINDINGS .....................................................................................................42
5.2 CONCLUSIONS.....................................................................................................................43
5.3 RECOMMENDATION ...........................................................................................................43
5.4 IMPLICATION FOR FUTURE STUDIES...................................................................................45
References ............................................................................................................................................. i
APPENDIX A: ........................................................................................................................................ iv
APPENDIX B:........................................................................................................................................ xii
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I give thanks to the almighty and Creator of the Universe for giving me the health, strength
and patience to finalize this project work.
I owe special gratitude to my advisor Dr. Abraraw C. I am grateful for his guidance and
constructive comments for the project work.
I am also grateful for the help extended by my friends and staffs throughout my study and
project work. Last but not least, I would like to thanks employees of CBE’s project
managers and PMO staff have been of a great help for the success of this project by
providing me with information and documents as well as taking their time to fill my
questionnaire and clarifying things for me. I owe all of them the heartiest gratitude.
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ABSTRACT
It is assumed that there are certain generally accepted project management practices which
enhance the effectiveness of managing projects which are expected to be distinctive
irrespective of the type of organization or project. Hence, the main purpose of this study is
to assess IT Project Management Practices in Commercial Bank of Ethiopia using the ten
project management knowledge areas defined by PMBOK. Primary data collection was
done by semi structured interview and close ended questionnaire from employees involved
in project work selected in census survey and as to secondary data CBE’s policies and
procedures were reviewed. Accordingly, descriptive research design and quantitative
approach were employed in this study. Number, percentages and mean were used to analyse
the data obtained. The findings of the study showed that, in the challenges of the projects
are both internal and external. Of the internal challenges, the projects time, cost and quality
gap ranks the first; and from the external challenges of the project environment took the
first place. On the other hand the study show that factors defined from PMBOK are practice
by most of the e-PMO employees/respondents except that in time and human resource
management which in turn displays there is a gap in practicing Project management.
Nevertheless, with the dynamic environment and the IT project nature, CBE still need to
implement the ten project management knowledge areas defined by PMBOK as a guideline.
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LIST OF ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS
IT – Information Technology
viii
List of Tables
ix
List of Figures
x
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Projects play a major role in the economic development of a country. They are the building
blocks for generating additional capital and for ensuring a flow of goods and services.
Various organizations have used project management techniques as a means of bridging the
gap between failure and success in the implementation of projects. Regardless of this
increasing awareness of project management by organizations, projects still fail. Project
management is being regarded as mandatory for the survival and success of projects. It is
mandatory not only for project based organizations but also for any firm in order to survive
in rapidly changing technological and market environment.
Currently, most firms are realizing that project management and productivity are related and
businesses should be managed as a series of projects (Kerzner, 2009). Now a days Non-Project
driven organizations have also embarked in project management since projects have become
a common phenomenon for many businesses according to (Kerzner, 2009) and (Wysocki,
2014).
A project is successful when the objectives of the project have been achieved to the full satisfaction
of users, all closeout activities have been completed and all designated interest, including the
project’s sponsor and/or initiator officially accepts the project results or products and closes the
project (Wideman. R. M., 2002).
Since its establishment in 1942, Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE, 2017) has been going
under different reforms. The bank has gone through a major expansion both in its size and
operation in recent years. This is in line with its vision of becoming “a world class bank by
2025.” Towards this end, the bank has devised various strategies and is undertaking various
initiatives. Although there are a multitude of initiatives undertaken by CBE, most of the
initiatives are related with adoption of various information technology tools to improve its
service delivery and automate internal operations. The initiatives are each being undertaken
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as individual projects with their own project teams and overseeing the implementation of
these projects is the bank’s e-PMO’.
Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE., 2018) is a pioneer to introduce technology to the
Ethiopian banking industry. In general, CBE is the leading bank in Ethiopia and serves as
the major source of finance to the national development effect.
The need for employment of information technology to facilitate the banking operation and
assist in decision-making process was recognized by the CBE quite early. Accordingly, the
attempt to take initiatives consistent with the development in information technology and
local conditions were taken for implementing application and communication architectures.
In this regards, CBE developed the first Information Technology (IT) short and long-term
roadmap document in 2006. The IT Short-term strategies that focused to pave the way to the
long-term IT Strategy of the Bank were fully implemented. Therefore, Information system
strategic roadmap is designed to deliver the required IT support and realization of the CBE’s
vision ‘to be world class commercial bank’ through time with a clearly defined roadmap
subject for periodic revision.
Hence, the purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of projects by groping how
managers and their teams are undertaking the project knowledge areas such as project scope
management, project time management, project cost management, project quality
management, project risk management, project integration management, project human
resource management, project communication management, project Procurement
management and project stakeholder management; which are discussed later in this paper.
Furthermore, the study is an attempt to contribute to fill the gap in current literature and
forward possible recommendations to enhance the practice of e-PMOs.
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1.3 Statement of the problem
The objectives of a project, if properly defined, are the primary aspects that determine its
success. Project management is a discipline that requires skills and knowledge to achieve
project goals through various project activities. It involves planning, organizing, leading and
controlling functions which are performed by the project manager (PMI., 2013)
In order to achieve its vision of becoming a world class bank, Commercial Bank of Ethiopia
is undertaking various projects to enhance its service delivery and equip its operations in
state of the art technology. Therefore, the success of such projects becomes vital for the
achievement of the bank’s vision. In line with this, the bank has re-established an enterprise
Program Management Office following the launching of the new organizational structure to
oversee the successful undertaking of its projects. In order to oversee the implementation of
the projects and provide assistance an enterprise Program Management Office was
established by the bank. According to (Wysocki, 2014) the responsibility of supporting
these projects and project teams that undertake specific projects are mandated to Project
Management Offices.
A project, to effectively meet its intended goals, needs to have a certain practices.
(Wideman. R. M., 2002) defines a practice as “a way of doing things”. It is assumed that
there are certain generally accepted project management practices which enhance the
practice of managing projects which are expected to be distinctive irrespective of the type of
organization or project. A best practice is defined as “A strategy, approach, method, tool or
technique that is particularly effective in helping an organization to achieve its objectives
for managing a project” (Best practices in risk management, 2001) .
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Projects are said to be successful if the iron triangle criteria are met: delivered on
time, within budget and meeting the predetermined quality measures. If the project takes
longer time it requires additional resources, and budgets and this increases labor, material,
machinery and equipment cost. This affects the budget of other projects and in general, it
affects the economy of the country.
During interview with the project office managements, some problems were identified.
There has been a delay in the project which is associated with time management, and there
is luck of experience project teams in the project work associated with human resource
management and some communication problems with other departments. These problems
are believed to be due to lack of following some project management practices like time,
quality, communication and etc.
In light of the above facts, conducting an academic research that focuses specifically on IT
projects of CBE. Therefore, this study tries to attempt to fill the gap by assessing the project
management practice of the using the ten project management knowledge areas defined by
PMBOK.
1.4 Research Questions
This study aimed to fill the gap by answering the following research questions:
The main objective of the study is to assess the project management practices of
IT projects in CBE.
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1.5.2 Specific Objectives
This study will also be an input to identify in which of the life cycle of the project that the
project needs improvement. Moreover, the study will also help to understand the role of
practicing project management process/ knowledge area and applying it for further
development. In addition, this paper work will serve as a future reference for researchers on
the subject matter. I have has also use the research project as an opportunity to see how the
theoretical knowledge acquired during the duration of the course is being implemented in
reality.
This is a research project so that like any other project endeavor could not be without
shortcomings. Hence I faced some limitations in the course of the research project. The first
drawback was time constraint since the time given for the research project is quite short.
The second was data collection which was a bit difficult as the project members were
located different of the city even if they are under PMO. In addition, some project
management practice concepts were not covered; for instance, project activities maturity
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level models, the five project management process groups and their processes which have
significant value for project performance improvement.
The study focused on specific IT projects and IT project management professionals in CBE
with their project teams. But there are other projects such as construction projects
implemented and under construction in CBE. Therefore, the study focused only on IT
Projects undertaken by CBE. The study includes all project teams since IT projects are
managed centrally under PMO which is located in Addis Ababa city. This study is only
concentrated on assessing project management practices, through the generally accepted
project management knowledge areas defined by PMBOK, which will enhance the
management of projects and using questionnaires and semi-structured interview.
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CHAPTER TWO
2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Introduction
This literature review part is to provide a summary of various literatures on the research
problem areas. The available literature is aimed to review the major concept and research
problem related with this research topic. Its intent is to answer the research questions and
contribute to the emergent knowledge base of Project management practice in the Project
office. The literature review is more concentrating on the Project management practice.
A variant of definitions have been given to Projects by different authors. The definition
given by PMI for a Project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product,
service, or result (PMI., 2013). A more elaborate definition states a project is a sequence of
unique, complex, and connected activities that have one goal or purpose and that must be
completed by a specific time, within budget, and according to specification (Wysocki,
2014). Likewise, (Kerzner, 2009) stated that a project can be considered to be any series of
activities and tasks that have a specific objective to be completed within certain
specifications, have defined start and end dates, have funding limits (if applicable), consume
human and non-human resources, are multifunctional (i.e. cut across several functional
lines). Project has also been defined as a unique set of coordinated activities, with definite
starting and finishing points, undertaken by an individual or organization to meet specific
performance objectives within defined schedule, cost and performance parameters' (Hindi,
2013).
A project has been defined as “a complex, non-routine, one-time effort limited by time,
budget, resources, and performance specifications design to meet customer needs” (Gray. &
Larson., 2008). According to (Wysocki, 2014) a project is defined as a sequence of unique,
complex, and connected activities that have one goal or purpose and that must be completed
by a specific time, within budget, and according to specification.
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Another author define as’ A project consists of a well-defined collection of small jobs
(tasks) and ordinarily culminates in the creation of an end product or products
(deliverables). (Gary, 2002).
As (Lewis J.P, 2000) stated that Quality expert Dr. J. M. Juran defines a project as a
problem scheduled for solution. This definition forces us to recognize that projects are
aimed at solving problems and that failure to define the problem properly is what sometimes
gets us into trouble. Interestingly, when you tell project team members that you want to
begin planning a project by writing a problem statement, they tend to say, “We don’t need
to do that. We all know what the problem is.” (John, 2004)
Projects are temporary in nature and have definitive start dates and definitive end dates. The
project is completed when its goals and objectives are accomplished to the satisfaction of
the stakeholders. (CGIAR, 2017)
Like any other organizational activity projects utilize resources. Projects consume human
and nonhuman resources (i.e., money, people, and equipment) (Kerzner, 2009). But these
resources are limited for projects. Projects have resource limits, such as a limited amount of
people, money, or machines that are dedicated to the project (Wysocki, 2014)
Planning is one of the most important functions you’ll perform during the course of a
project. It sets the standard for the remainder of the project’s life and is used to track future
8
project performance. Before we begin the planning process, let’s look at some of the ways
the work of project management is organized. (CGIAR, 2017)
Project management brings together a set of tools and techniques performed by people to
describe, organize, and monitor the work of project activities. Project managers are the
people responsible for managing the project processes and applying the tools and techniques
used to carry out the project activities. All projects are composed of processes, even if they
employ a haphazard approach. There are many advantages to organizing projects and teams
around the project management processes endorsed by PMI. We’ll be examining those pro-
cesses and their advantages in depth throughout the remainder of this book.
As stated earlier Project management is a set of tools, techniques, and knowledge that helps
to achieve the three main constraints which is scope, cost and time. According to the Project
Management Institute, project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools,
and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements (PMI., 2013). Likewise
the Association for Project Management also defined project management as the application
of processes, methods, knowledge, skills and experience to achieve the project objectives
(APM., 2006). These two definitions are oriented towards application of various means to
achieve project objectives.
On the other hand, project management has been defined from management functions
perspective by (Kerzner, 2009). (Kerzner, 2009) stated that, project management is the
planning, organizing, directing, and controlling of company resources for a relatively short-
term objective that has been established to complete specific goals and objectives.
9
Project Management is the application of knowledge, skill, tools and techniques to project
activities in order to meet or exceed stakeholder needs and expectations from project.
Meeting and exceeding stakeholder needs and expectations invariably involves balancing
competing demands among scope, time, cost and quality; stakeholders with differing needs
and expectations and identified needs and unidentified expectation (Duncan, 1996),
(Wideman. R. M., 2002)
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2.4.3 Executing Process Group
This process group involves managing teams effectively while coordinating time line
expectations and reaching benchmark goals. Project managers utilizing this set of skills will
demonstrate a high degree of organization and communication skills while addressing team
concerns. (PMI., 2013)
Good closure brings great reviews and can increase future word of mouth referrals.
• Process groups are linked by the results they produce; the result or outcome of one
becomes an input to another.
• Process groups are not discrete, one-time events; they are overlapping activities
which occur at varying levels throughout each phase of the project.
• The process group interactions also cross phases such that closing one phase
provides an input to initiating the next which means that in actual projects there will
be many overlaps.
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Figure2.1 Processes Interaction
Source: Duncan, 1996:148
It is important to note that the impression of success can change with time. That certain
objectives, e.g. that the "traditional measures" of being on time and within budget were not
met, does not necessarily mean that the product of the project was a failure. Conversely, just
because the management of the project was viewed as a great success does not mean that the
resulting product will necessarily be viewed as a success if the expected benefits are not
realized. There are many examples of such situations in the project management literature.
(Wideman., 2009)
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• Reflect general acceptance and satisfaction with the project's deliverable on the part
of the project’s customers-at-large and/or the majority of the project's community at
some time in the future.
Although also known as Key Performance Indicators, we like to refer to these criteria as
Key Success Indicators (KSIs). KSIs should clearly relate to the project's key objectives and
help in evaluating customer satisfaction and overall, the success of the project. KSIs are
usually expressed as "SMART" statements, i.e. Specific, Measurable, Attainable/
Achievable, Realistic and Time bound. (Wideman., 2009)
Note that KSIs are not the same as Critical Success Factors (CSFs). CSFs are those
measurable factors that when present in the project's environment are most conducive to the
achievement of a successful project. Examples include: Project objectives aligned with
corporate mission; Top management support; A culture of open communication, and so on.
The difference between KSIs and CSFs is that KSIs are dynamic and within the control of
the project's management while CSFs are static and generally outside the direct control of
the project's management. (Wideman., 2009)
Project Management Success is closely linked to opportunity and risk. Projects by their
nature are risky endeavours and some project hazards cannot be entirely avoided or
mitigated even when identified. Since project success may be impacted by risk events, it
follows that both opportunity and risk are necessarily shared amongst the participants.
(Wideman., 2009)
There are common dimensions of projects acknowledged by different scholars; time, budget
and specifications of projects. However, time, budget and specifications are not sufficient to
measure project management success as dimensions. Thus, the quality of the project
management process and the satisfaction of the project stakeholder’s expectations also need
to be considered (Nicholas, 2012)& (Schwalbe S. , 2004).
Therefore, extending the traditional triangle to include the quality of the management
process, the integration, the scope, the communication, the procurement, the risk and
13
stakeholder management process will be able to provide a more complete view of project
management success. That is why this study benchmarks the project management
knowledge areas defined by PMBOK as a means for an effective project management.
Effectiveness is defined as being “ a measure of the quality of attainment in meeting
objectives; to be distinguished from efficiency which is measured by the volume of output
achieved for the input used ” (Wideman, 2001). Hence, effective project management is
very important in such unpredictable business environment.
Project management processes and techniques are used to coordinate resources to achieve
predictable results. Best practice is based on experience and is used to describe the process
of developing and following a standard way of doing things. In project management, best
practice is a general term that includes: guidelines and international standards. Both
standards and guidelines are looking to improve project management (Liviu, Emil, & Ioana,
2010).
Project management does not depend on a particular methodology. It can be said that no
specific practices depend on project management. Many companies have their own
methodology, its own project management practices (Selma, Jonas, & Gislaine, 2014).
Therefore, it is necessary and important to identify which project management practices are
described in the literature, and reflecting how project managers use different management
techniques, and experiences using "real world" in the field of IT project management,
which can be considered as best practices in managing IT projects. The most useful project
management (PM) practices is to improve project management performance. By identifying
the perceived most useful tools and techniques, as having the most potential for increased
contribution to project management performance, practitioners and organizations can select
their priorities when improving PM practices. (Gabriela, Stephen, & Madalena, 2013).
The advantage of using Best practices in project management (Liviu, Emil, & Ioana,
2010)
Transfer of Knowledge transfer refers to sharing or disseminating of knowledge and
providing inputs to problem solving. In organizational theory, knowledge transfer is
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the practical problem of transferring knowledge from one part of the organization to
another.
Better Communication is an essential process in the world of project management
and behind every successful project manager is a strong communication plan.
Time and Cost saving- Cost-reduction techniques for projects are part of long-term
strategies and are frequently similar to techniques used to reduce general operational
costs. A project manager can lower controllable expenses by approaching cost
savings as a core element at the project's start effectively implementing it into the
project team's culture.
Better process quality- A quality management process is introduced in a project
towards quality planning, quality assurance and quality control. In a project, quality
characteristics are defined by the stakeholders. Some of the most common quality
characteristics are performance, functionality, suitability, reliability, consistency and
more.
Better team work- teamwork in the workplace is an important factor for project
success. Teamwork is important because it creates human synergy. It amplifies the
results of each member of your team such that the overall result is greater than the
individual contributions made by each member.
Better position on market- Market Positioning refers to the ability to influence
consumer perception. Competitive advantages allow a company to achieve regarding
a brand or product relative to competitors. The objective of market positioning is to
establish the image or identity of a brand.
Internal approach of labor- internal labor markets are those where workers are hired
into entry level jobs and higher levels are filled from within.
Better monitoring and controlling- Monitoring and Controlling Project Work
involves tracking the actual project performance with the planned project
management activities.
A more efficient and objective audit- The main objectives of the audit were to
review the effectiveness and efficiency of project management practices as well as
assess governance, risk management and compliance processes linked to managing
project.
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Though there are different indicated project management practices defined by different
scholars, this paper will be benchmarking the ten project management areas defined by
PMBOK. According to (Wideman ., 1998), “Project Management Body of Knowledge
(PMBOK) published by the Project Management Institute (PMI) represents the knowledge
and practice that is generally accepted and unique or nearly unique to the field of project
management”. The PMBOK identifies nine project management knowledge areas which
describe knowledge and practice in terms of its specific processes (Duncan, 1996).
This paper however will use all the ten project management knowledge areas defined on
PMBOK guide listed and described below.
It is the criteria (measure) for project success (time, cost and deliverables) must be
determined and agreed upon with all stakeholders at the beginning of the project. It ensures
the inclusion of all the work required to complete the project successfully.
According to PMBOK the major project scope management processes includes initiation to
begin the next phase of the project. Then, scope management plan so as to know how the
scope will be defined, validated and controlled including how to prevent scope creep, how
to handle change requests, escalation path for disagreement on scope elements between
stakeholders, process for creating scope statement, WBS, how the deliverables will be
accepted. According to (Schwalbe, 2009), this process is the first step in project scope
management in which the project's size, complexity, importance, and other factors will
affect how much effort is spent on scope planning and the main output is a project scope
management plan and the tools and techniques are template forms, standards as well as
expert judgment. The third process would be collecting requirements and comprises a
condition that must be met by a deliverable to satisfy a contract standard including
documented needs, wants, expectation of the stakeholders using stakeholder requirements,
project requirements, quality requirements with interview, focus groups, observation,
questionnaire, document analysis, etc. The next process to have is scope definition which
helps to define project and product scope, outlines what will be and what will not be
included in the deliverables, including details of risks, constraints and assumptions. Project
scope statement includes objectives, scope, requirements, boundaries, deliverables, cost
16
estimation, specifications, etc. The other main process is having a WBS to break down the
major project deliverables into smaller, more manageable components. WBS can provide
alternatives if the budget and schedule could not meet managements’ expectations. After
having the WBS we need to verify scope to formalizing acceptance of deliverables from
stakeholders/customers near the end of project/ phase deliverables. Finally, there need to be
a scope change control for controlling and assessing changes to project scope. It measures
the work product against the scope baseline to ensure the project stays on track proactively
so as to prevent unnecessary changes to the project.
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2.6.3 Project Cost Management
The process required to ensure the project is completed within the approved budget. Here,
costs for the project have to be calculated by developing an estimate of the costs for the
resources needed to complete project activities and resources have to be planned, by
determining what resources (people, equipment and materials) and what quantities of each
are needed to perform project activities.
The major processes under project cost management stated in PMBOK are, resource
planning, cost estimating, determine budget and cost control. In resource planning, we need
to know what resources (people, equipment and materials) and what quantities of each
should be used to perform project activities. After determining resources, the second process
would be estimating the cost by developing an approximation (estimate) of the costs of the
resources needed to complete project activities, which includes indirect cost and
contingency reserves. Then allocating the overall cost estimate to individual work items,
and determine when to spend the money would be the next process. Finally, there has to be
change control to the project budget by checking against the project funding requirements.
The process ensures if the project will satisfy the needs for which it was undertaken. In this
process, quality standards for the project deliverables (outputs) must be identified. There are
three sub-processes which need to be included in the process. The first is quality planning
which helps in identifying which quality standards are relevant to the project and
determining how to satisfy them. Then, quality assurance comes so as to evaluate the overall
project performance on a regular basis to provide confidence that the project will satisfy the
relevant quality standards. Finally, quality control which helps in monitoring specific
project results to determine if they comply with relevant quality standards and identifying
ways to eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance.
The process is required to ensure the timely and appropriate generation, collection,
dissemination, storage, and ultimate disposition of project knowledge.
A communications’ plan must be developed which identifies the information and
communication needs of the role-players.
According to PMI in PMBOK guide, there are four major processes under this knowledge
area. The first is communications planning which helps in determining the information and
communications needs of the stakeholders who needs what information, when will they
need it and how will it be given to them. Then it is information distribution which supports
to make all needed information available to project stakeholders in a timely manner. The
third is performance reporting which helps in collecting and disseminating performance
information which includes status reporting, progress measurement and forecasting. Finally,
administrative closure comes so as to generate, gather and disseminate information to
formalize phase or project completion and to ensure optimal information flow for effective
stakeholder expectation management.
(Kerzner, 2009) states that risk management is the act or practice of dealing with risk. It
includes planning of risk, identifying risks, analyzing risks, developing risk response
strategies and monitoring and controlling risks to determine how they have changed. Risk
management is one aspect of sound project management and seeks to increase the
probability of project success. It is concerned with identifying, analyzing, and responding to
19
project risk. Early warning signs of problems (risks) in the project must be responded in
good time.
The sub processes in project risk management are risk identification which helps to
determine which risks are likely to affect the project and documenting the characteristics of
each. Then it is risk quantification which supports in evaluating risks and risk interactions to
assess the range of possible project outcomes. The third is risk response development for
defining enhancement steps for opportunities and responses to threats. The last process
would be risk response control which aids in responding to changes in risk over the course
of the project and check if assumptions are still valid, procedures are being followed and
any deviance. It also includes identifying new risks and evaluate effectiveness of risk
response plan.
According to the PMBOK, this process is required to acquire the goods and services from
outside the performing organization and includes the below major processes. Procurement
Statement of Work (SOW) is a legal document subject to legal reviews and legal advice
should be sought throughout the whole procurement process.
The first process is procurement planning that helps in determining what to procure, when to
procure and whether to obtain products/services outside of the organization. The next
process is solicitation planning; it helps to document product requirements, identifying
potential sources and pre-meeting with them. Then it is solicitation which helps in obtaining
quotations, bids, offers, or proposals as appropriate. The third process is source selection
and conduct procurement that supports to choose from among potential sellers and award
the contract. Then it is control/administer procurements which aids in managing the
relationship, monitor contract performance, make changes and corrections. Finally it is
contract close-out for completing and settling the contract, including resolution of any open
items.
20
2.6.9 Project Integration Management
The major processes under project integration management are; develop project charter,
project plan development, project plan execution and overall change control. The first
process helps formally authorize the project and allow the project management to apply
organizational resources. Project plan development aids in taking the results of
other/subsidiary planning processes and putting them into a consistent, coherent document.
Project plan execution helps to carry out the project plan by performing the activities
included therein and implementing the approved process improvement plans and changes.
Finally, overall change control supports in coordinating changes across the entire project.
(Duncan, 1996) defines project stakeholders as“ individuals and organizations who are
actively involved in the project, or whose interests may be positively or negatively affected
as a result of project execution or successful project completion”.
21
2.7 Empirical Review
22
2.8 Conceptual Framework for accessing Project Management Practices
The proposed framework for this research is illustrated in the Figure. It shows assessing
project management practices with the ten project management knowledge areas based on
reviewed literature.
Time Communication
Scope Mgt. Management mgt
Human
Resource
Mgt.
Integration
Mgt.
Quality
Mgt.
Project
Procurement Management
Mgt. Practice using
PMBOK Risk
Managem
ent
Cost Mgt.
Stakeholder
Mgt.
23
CHAPTER THREE
3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 Research Design
The objective of this research is to examine project management practice of IT projects of
CBE. To this end, this study is conducted with descriptive research design of quantitative
and qualitative method. The study is more of quantitative; it also uses qualitative methods in
order to triangulate the responses obtained from the close ended questionnaires.
To this end, this chapter aims to describe the research approach and methodology used to
address the research problems. In this paper, quantitative and qualitative approach are
selected which is concerned with making inference based on perspective.
According to Hair et al. (2010), target population is said to be a specified group of people or
object for which questions can be asked or observed made to develop required data
structures and information. Therefore, for this paper, the target population includes
employees involved in project works.
For the purpose of this study, the census survey is used for the project employees as they are
not many in number, including all the Project coordinator, project manager, project
members and support staffs. According to (Parker, 2011) in a census survey every
participant has an opportunity to participate which reduces the concern on accuracy.
Therefore, the study conducted all the respondents from the employees involved in project
24
office. That means the study conducted all the 78 respondents from the employees involved
in project office.
The project work used both primary and secondary data sources. Questionnaire and
interview were used as a primary source of data collection tools. These data collection
instruments are designed focusing on the effectiveness of project management practices,
benchmarking the ten knowledge areas defined by PMBOK and based on the related review
of literature. Questionnaires were distributed to Project Coordinator, Project Manager,
Project Members, Support Staffs of the Projects and others Technical Experts. Semi-
structured interview was conducted with the Project Director and Leaders of the Projects
who serve as Project Managers.
The collected data through questionnaires is analysed quantitatively using SPSS Version 24
software and the semi-structured interview is analysed qualitatively using sentences and
phrases by bringing the common ideas and concepts of the responses together into common
understanding. The questionnaire were developed in five scales ranging from five to one;
where 5 represents Strongly agree, 4 agree, 3 Neutral, 2 disagree, and 1 strongly disagrees.
The analysed data is presented and interpreted using Table, Graph, Percentage and
Numbers.
(Uma & Bougie, 2016), validity is a test of how well an instrument is developed to
measures the particular concept it is intended to measure. Validity is concerned with
whether we measure the right concept and reliability with stability and consistency of
measurement.
25
considering reliability. According to him to be valid the instrument must first be reliable. In
conducting the reliability test the researcher use Cronbach’s alpha to check reliability, of the
questionnaire using SPSS statistics software 24. According to (Uma & Bougie, 2016)
reliabilities less than 0.60 are considered to be poor, those in the 0.70 range, acceptable, and
those over 0.80 good
According to (Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhil, 2009) there are key ethical issues that arise
across the stages and duration of a research project. They stated that the issues related to
privacy and consent of participants, maintenance of the confidentiality of data and their
anonymity. The researcher has obtained the consent of selected respondents orally before
delivering questionnaires. Since the researcher uses questionnaires to gather data from
respondents, their privacy is not compromised and confidentiality of the data they provided
is protected and only used for the purpose of the research project only. Furthermore, the
researcher recused herself from any interference when respondents fill the questionnaires
except for the purpose of clarifying questions.
26
CHAPTER FOUR
4 DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
4.1 Introduction
This chapter deals with the presentation, analysis and interpretation of the data which was
collected from respondents. To analyze the collected data from the questionnaires
distributed in line with the overall objective of the research, statistical procedures were
carried out using SPSS Q24.0 software. The questionnaire were developed in five scales
ranging from five to one; where 5 represents Strongly agree, 4 agree, 3 Neutral, 2 disagree,
and 1 strongly disagrees. While Qualitative analysis is done for the semi-structured
interviews conducted.
Among the total of 78 questionnaires distributed to the project office 63 questionnaires were
appropriately filled and returned which gives 80% return rate which is assumed to be
suitable for further analysis. An interview was also held with a Project Coordinator and 4
Project Managers as a source of primary data.
Frequency % N %
1 Sex M 47 74.6
63 100
F 16 25.4
2 Age Below 30 26 41.3
31-40 29 44.4 63 100
41-50 9 14.3
3 Educational Level MA/MSc 21 33.3
63 100
BA/BSc 42 66.7
4 Position in the organization Project Coordinator 2 3.2
Project manager 6 9.5
Project Member 36 57.1 63 100
Support Staff 9 14.3
other 10 15.9
Source: (Survey result and own computation2019)
27
Out of sixty three participants 16 female and the remaining forty seven are male
respondents. Among the respondents, 2 are the Project Coordinator, 6 the Project Managers,
36 project members and the remaining 9 are support staff. There are 36 respondents who are
MSc/MA holders and 42 BA/BSc holders. As to the educational background of the
respondents, which is analyzed qualitatively, various fields of studies were identified i.e.
Business Adm.& information system, Computer Engineering, Computer science,
Information System, International Business Management, Public administration &
development management, Management, IT Engineering, accounting, Information
Technology etc. there is only two respondents with project management educational
background which shows that most of the respondents have no background in a project
management.
As shown on figure 4.1, almost half of the respondent (i.e.31 respondents, and there are 7
participants with 3 years of service period and the other 25 have 4 and more years of
experience in the project work. This result implies, since most of the respondents have not
been involved in the projects, they don’t have much project work experience.
28
4.3 Assessing the general questions raised about the project
On table 4.2, which shows the general background of the project, all of the participants
responded that there is separate project management department in the organization.
Regarding the challenges of the project, 26 of the respondents mention that there are internal
challenges of Time, cost and quality while 36 of them responded the challenge was
primarily external that is the environment. This shows that the projects face both internal
29
and external challenges. Moreover, 38(60.3%) respondents are not involved in Project
management or project teams prior to current assignment. This shows that more than half of
the project team does not have much experience.
Concerning the training access in the project, 18 the respondents do not know there is a
training access in the organization and 39 respondents replay that the training given by the
bank is not related to Project Management. With respect to the status of the project success,
while 10 rated it as a very successful project, the remaining 36 and 17 rated it as a project
that was successful and fairly successful respectively.
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Factors
Agree
Agree
mean
S.D.
Total
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Requirements were
7 11.1 37 58.7 15 23.8 3 4.8 1 1.6 63 100 3.73 .79
clearly defined from the
30
beginning
Table 4.3 depicted that factors of Project scope management mean score range between 3.36
up to 3.78 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.70 up to 0.92 which shows that the listed
factors are practiced.
Based on the table shown above 45 respondents strongly agreed and agreed that plan scope
management was well defined on the projects and 14 respondents were uncertain whether
plan scope management was defined or not. Whereas the remaining 4 respondents disagreed
that the plan scope management was clearly defined. This implies that plan scope
management was defined for the project.
The same table shows the responses of the respondents to inquiries if requirements were
defined and out of the 63 respondents, 44 agreed that the requirements were defined and 15
were not sure if requirements were defined, however the majority of the respondents agreed
and strongly agreed that the requirements were defined, with response rate of 58.7%
and11.1% respectively. This shows the project requirements were defined consistently.
The other question put forward to the respondents was if WBS was created and 37
respondents agreed that it was created, 22 respondents put themselves on neutral, and the
31
remaining 4 disagreed that it was created. Based on this result, a conclusion reached that
WBS was not created as good as it was supposed to be since 22 have no idea about it and 4
disagreed. Respondents were asked if scope was verified as it is shown table and 45 agreed
that it was verified, 14 were uncertain about it, 4 disagreed that scope was verified. Hence,
this result shows that greater part of the respondents agreed scope was verified.
In response to the question that was intended to know if changes to the project scope were
controlled, 34 of respondents agreed and 20 were uncertain, whereas 7 disagreed and 3
strongly disagreed. Therefore, it can be analyzed based on the response of the majority that
changes to the project scope were controlled.
Hence, based on the above elaboration and the average mean of the factors under project
scope management, which is 3.64, it was shown that the practice of project scope
management was carefully done on the project. This statement is also supported by the
interview that held with project managers that the project requirements(scope), constraints
and specific schedule dates clearly identified and communicated to all stakeholders as early
as possible.
32
Table 4.4: Project Time Management Practice
Factors
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
S.D.
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Activities were defined 0 0 2 3.2 14 22.2 42 66.7 5 7.9 63 100 2.21 0.62
Activities were sequenced 1 1.6 24 38.1 19 30.2 12 19 7 11. 63 100 3.00 1.04
1
were estimated
Changes to the project 0 0 2 3.2 15 23.8 42 66.7 4 6.3 63 100 2.24 0.62
Table 4.4 depicted that factors of Project Time management mean score range between 2.21
up to 3.00 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.62 up to 1.04 which shows that the listed
factors are not practiced and the individual responses did deviate much form the mean.
On table 4.4, the mean of each factors and the average mean of the factors under project
time management has been indicated, it can be understandable that time/ schedule plan was
not developed and activities were not defined as it should be. Since the activity definitions
were not sequenced, the duration of the activities was not estimated and changes to the
project schedule were not controlled as they should have been, majority of the respondents
agree that project time management was not done cautiously. In addition, the above result
backed by the Project coordinator and Managers replied in the interview that projects take
longer time than planned.
33
Table 4.5: Project Quality Management Practice
Factors
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
S.D.
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Table 4.5 depicted that factors of Project Quality management mean score range between
3.44 up to 3.52 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.79 up to .88 which shows that the listed
factors are practiced and the individual responses did not deviate much form the mean.
The Table 4.5 shows the results obtained in response to the questions asked regarding the
practice of project quality management in the project office. The mean of each factors
shows that quality standards were defined and reviewed as they should have been.
Moreover, performances of the project were evaluated on regular basis as the mean shows
3.44 and is above average. The project results were monitored to verify their compliance
with the identified standards to the expected level. Hence, the average mean of the factors,
which is 3.48, showed that despite 9 respondents disagree with it. Therefore as a standard
for project management, practice of project quality was identified and project quality
management was practiced. This supported by the Project coordinators and managers that
there is a close follow up of monitoring and controlling of projects.
34
Table 4.6: Project Cost Management Practice
Factors
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
S.D.
N % N % N % N % N % N %
The quantity of the 5 7.9 32 50.8 19 30.2 7 11.1 0 0 63 100 3.56 .80
Cost plan was well-defined 7 11.1 31 49.2 17 27. 7 11.1 1 1.6 63 100 3.57 .89
The project cost was 7 11.1 38 60.3 12 19. 6 9.5 0 0 63 100 3.73 .79
estimated
The required budget was 7 11.1 33 52.4 17 27. 5 7.9 1 1.6 63 100 3.63 .85
determined
Changes to the project 6 9.5 31 49.2 15 23.8 9 14.3 2 3.2 63 100 3.48 .96
Table 4.6 shown that factors of Project Cost management mean score range between 3.48 up
to 3.73 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.79 up to .96 which shows that the listed factors
are practiced.
Table 4.6 depicted that the majority of the respondents agree that the factors of the cost
management were practiced in the project. However, 7 of the respondents disagree and 19
have no idea the quantity of the necessary resources were determined. Similarly, the other
factor of project cost management is changes to the project budget, which was not
controlled as per the 11 respondents and 15 did not know whether the budget is controlled.
On the other hand, most of the respondents are agree that the required budget estimated and
determined and the main objective of cost management is to complete the project within the
approved budget, but the interview result shows that the final cost of the projects exceed the
initial budget.
35
Table 4.7: Project Risk Management Practice
Factors
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
S.D.
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Risk management plan
2 3.2 33 52.4 19 30.2 9 14.3 0 0 63 100 3.44 .78
was developed
Table 4.7 shown that factors of Project Risk management mean score range between 3.24 up
to 3.44 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.71 up to .79 which shows that the listed factors
are practiced and the individual responses did not deviate from the mean.
According to Table 4.7 which is intended to show the practice of project risk management
in the project office, it can be clearly seen that the mean of each factors and average mean of
the factors become above standard. This implies that, the project office has a practice of
project risk management according to the respondents. As the project coordinator and
manager replied in the interview that early warning signs of problems are responded in time
when it occurred.
.
36
Table 4.8: Project Integration Management Practice
Factors
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
S.D.
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Table 4.8 shown that factors of Project Integration management mean score range between
3.65 up to 3.84 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.65 up to .78 which shows that the listed
factors are practiced and the individual responses did not deviate much from the mean.
Table 4.8 illustrates that most of the respondents agreed and on almost all of the factors of
project integration management practice in the project which has a mean value of 3.74
which is above standard. However, 14(22.2%) respondents put themselves in a neutral
positon and 4 respondents disagreed that project plan was developed by taking the results of
other planning processes. 7 and 9 respondents have no idea about whether project work was
managed, monitored and controlled and 4 and 6 respondents are disagreed with it. In terms
of coordination of project activities 19(30.2%) respondents are neutral and 4 respondents are
disagree with it.
37
Table 4.9: Project Stakeholders Management Practice
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
Factors
S.D.
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Table 4.9 shown that factors of Project Stakeholder management mean score range between
3.43 up to 4.00 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.74 up to 0.85 which shows that the listed
factors are practiced.
As the above table shows, all the factors under stakeholders’ management have a mean
value from 3.43 to 4.00. This result shows the project office has a good practice regarding
the project stakeholder management. The document reviews as well as the interview
conducted indicate similar results regarding the practice and confirmed that all the
stakeholders were identified and communication between them was effective, and all the
stakeholders were engaged as there was a monthly meeting between stakeholders to assure
clear communication and mutual understanding.
38
.Table 4.10 Project Human Resource Management Practice
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
Factors
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Project roles,
responsibilities and 2 42.
1 1.6 14 22.2 16 25.4 5 7.9 63 100 2.67 .97
required skill were 7 9
identified
Organizational chart 3.30 .90
1 25.
and position 3 4.8 29 46.0 15 23.8
6 4
0 0 63 100
descriptions were clear
Availability and 2.24 .89
3 57. 15.
assigning human 1 1.6 6 9.5 10 15.9
6 1
10
9
63 100
resource
Project team was 4 11. 2.17 .81
1 1.6 6 9.5 3 4.8 73 7 63 100
developed 6 1
Project team was 3 55. 14. 2.27 .87
1 1.6 5 7.9 13 20.6 9 63 100
managed and controlled 5 6 3
Average 2.53 0.89
Source: (Survey result and own computation2019)
Table 4.10 depicted that factors of Project Human Resource management mean score range
between 2.17 up to 3.30 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.81 up to 0.97 which shows that
not all the listed factors are practiced except organizational chart and position descriptions
were clear which has the mean score 3.3 above the standard.
Table 4.10 which is focused on the project human resource management shows an average
mean of the factors 2.53 which indicates the project office was not in a good position except
that Organizational chart and position descriptions were clear according to most
respondents. As the result indicated roles, responsibilities and required skill were not
identified. There is also a gap in getting the needed human resource assignment to work on
the project and developing, managing and controlling of project teams.
39
Table 4.11: Project Communication Management Practice
Factors
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
S.D
N % N % N % N % N % N %
The information and
communication needed 5 7.9 41 65.1 16 25.4 1 1.6 0 0 63 100 3.79 .59
for the project were
determined
Making needed
3 4.8 38 60.3 19 30.2 3 4.8 0 0 63 100 3.65 .65
information available to
project stakeholders
Collecting and
disseminating 2 3.2 42 66.7 16 25.4 3 4.8 0 0 63 100 3.68 .62
performance
information
Generating, gathering,
and disseminating
1 3.2 41 65.1 15 23.8 5 7.9 0 0 63 100 3.63 .68
information to
formalize phase or
project completion
Control communication 5 7.9 32 50.8 21 33.3 5 7.9 0 0 63 100 3.59 .75
Table 4.11 shown that factors of Project Communication management mean score range
between 3.59 up to 3.79 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.59 up to 0.75 which shows that
the listed factors are practiced.
Most of the respondents as shown on Table 4.11, put themselves on agree and strongly
agree scale of response for the questions raised on the factors of the project communication
management. This was also supported by the interview held with the project coordinator
explained that the communication was focused on reporting results of activities rather than
only having two way communications.
40
Table 4.12: Project Procurement Management Practice
Factors
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Neutral
Agree
Agree
mean
Total
S.D.
N % N % N % N % N % N %
Resources needed for .82
8 12.7 36 57.1 14 22.2 4 6.3 1 1.6 63 100 3.73
the project were
Determined
Requirements of the .83
8 12.7 36 57.1 12 19 7 11.1 0 0 63 100 3.71
project materials was
documented
Potential sources were 8 12.7 40 63.5 9 14.3 6 9.5 0 0 63 100 3.79 .78
identified
Appropriate quotations, .85
14 22.2 30 47.6 16 25.4 2 3.2 1 1.6 63 100 3.86
bid, offers or proposal
were obtained
Choosing from among 11 17.5 37 58.7 11 17.5 3 4.8 1 1.6 63 100 3.86 .82
potential sellers
The relationship with 10 15.9 32 50.8 17 27 3 4.8 1 1.6 63 100 3.75 .84
the seller was managed
Contract was completed 8 12.7 35 55.6 13 20.6 6 9.5 1 1.6 63 100 3.68 .87
and settled properly
Average 3.76 .83
Table 4.12 shown that factors of Project Procurement management mean score range
between 3.68 up to 3.86 with the standard deviation (SD) 0.78 up to 0.87 which shows that
the listed factors are practiced.
As can be seen in the above table, almost all of the factors under project procurement
management practice show a positive response from the respondents with average mean
value of 3.76. This result implies that attention was given to project procurement
management during the implementation of the project. However some respondents are
disagreed that not all the mentioned factors are practiced in project procurements
managements.
41
CHAPTER FIVE
This chapter outlines the summaries of the findings, conclusions derived from the analysis
and the recommendations that can help to improve the practice of CBE’s IT Project
Management.
Concerning the challenges of the project, it can be generalized that the challenges of the
project are both internal and external. Of the internal challenges, the projects time, cost
and quality gap ranks the first; and from the external challenges of the project
environment took the first place.
In response to training access in the organization, the trainings provided by the bank are
not related to Project Management and not all respondents know that there is a training
access even though the schedule for the training was not regular. Likewise, the analysis
of respondents’ service period implies, most of the respondents have not been involved
in the projects which shows they don’t have much project work experience.
The findings of the analysis for the project scope management shows that WBS was not
created as good as it was supposed to be and there is still a gap since not all respondents
agree with that WBS created.
The findings of the analysis for the project time management show that activity
definition, activity sequencing, activity duration estimation, schedule development and
schedule control are not done as it should be.
The response of the respondents on the intent to know if there was a project human
resource management, it has been clearly seen that except the organizational chart and
position descriptions all the other factors have a gap. As the result indicated roles,
responsibilities and required skill were not identified. There is also a gap in getting the
needed human resource assignment to work on the project and developing, managing
and controlling of project teams.
42
Through the analysis made on project quality, cost, risk, integration, stakeholders,
communication, and procurement management, the mean value of the response of
respondents are above the standard average which shows the project office has a good
practice regarding the project management. However some respondents are still
disagreed that not all the mentioned factors are practiced in project managements.
5.2 CONCLUSIONS
Although CBE has a separate division for practicing project management, the findings of
the analysis shows that the project office has a poor practice for project scope, time and
human resource management. Their mean score shows that below the standard which needs
to be given a great attention to improve management of the projects.
The other project management knowledge areas have found to be with in and above the
standard according to the analysis result. However, it does not mean that they don’t need
improvement on the areas and some respondents are still disagreed that not all the
mentioned factors in the project knowledge areas are practiced in project management
office. It also has been understood that, the practice of project management knowledge areas
in line with project process groups would have helped the project to be more effective.
5.3 RECOMMENDATION
The major objective of the study was to assess the project management practices of IT
projects in CBE based on the ten projects management areas and in order to improve the
practice of project management knowledge and to minimize the problem of the gap between
the actual theory and implementation of the project, the following possible
recommendations are provided.
The trainings provided by the bank should be related to Project Management in order
to develop the team performance since professional development and training courses
can fast track the development of the competencies required to deliver successful
projects. Trainings should be given in a regular basis and in a continuous monitoring of
performance in related with the trainings.
43
A project, by definition, has an official end date. In order to meet this date, every
project needs a schedule. And every project manager needs to manage their own time
and the team’s time to ensure that the schedule is met. The first thing CBE should do is
Plan schedule management. Before any other steps completed, it should be planned
and manage the schedule. Once time management plan sated, the steps should be
followed. Those are Define activities, Sequence activities, Estimate resources, Estimate
durations, Develop the project schedule and Control the schedule. In additions,
progress should to be reviewed and updated on a regular basis so it can be compared
with actual work completed against the plan. This allows seeing that if there are areas
falling behind schedule. One method for doing this is completing progress reviews
with the team and holding frequent status report meetings.
Any project has a challenge it can be internal or external or both. In order to have
smooth flow of the project activities, the teams and the stakeholders who are part of the
projects, first should define and prepare project scope management, which incorporates
definition of plan scope management, requirement and scope definition, creating WBS
and methods to control changes to the project scope. Therefore, Once PMO have its
time management plan, it should start identifying and defining all of its project
activities. Often WBS is used to help define activities and tasks within a project and
major milestones should also be determined.
Since the human resource system is an important part of the project, it should be given
more attention by the bank. Human Resources in Project Management should focus on
Project Team recruitment, organization and management until the end of a given
project. Its role should starts from defining core competencies which are going to be
needed, to team building and motivation. Since the link between Human Resource
Management and Project Management is strategic. Both of them are useful for CBE
competitiveness. Human Resources are the key of every work done within a project as
they represent people. Project Management is measured by the different project
success that can represent benefit, innovation or any improvement. It appears that
project success require success in team project management, which is the HR function.
Therefore, CBE should take the main processes into account: selecting, training and
managing.
44
All the project practices which seem to be implemented in the project need to follow
the formal procedures of project management to have the best result..
Project management practice of CBE can be rated as good according to the response
obtained. But still the CBE’s e-PMO success would have been the best if there was an
extensive practice of all the project knowledge areas by participating and including all
employees of e-PMO. In general, with the dynamic environment and the IT project
nature, CBE still need to implement the ten project management knowledge areas
defined by PMBOK as a guideline.
45
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iii
APPENDIX A:
This questionnaire is conducted to collect data for a research on: Assessing Effectiveness of
Project Management Practices in case of CBE IT Projects. The information is going to be
used as a primary data for this research believing that your frank and genuine responses will
contribute vastly to the quality of the findings of this study. The researcher would like to ask
you to kindly complete this questionnaire, as truthfully as possible as the responses you
provide will be kept confidential and will be used only for the study under consideration.
Thank you in advance for taking part in this endeavor.
Kind Regards
Meriem Nasser
Mobile: +251911610475
Email:[email protected]
iv
General Direction
Your name(optional|) _____________________________
Put“X” mark or circle your choice;
If you cannot get any satisfying choice among the given alternatives, you can write
your answer, in the space provided for the option;
For the open ended items, give brief answer in the space provided.
Part I: Demographic characteristics and general background of the respondents
1. Sex:
Male [ ] -1 Female [ ] -2
2. 2. Age:
Below 30 [ ]-1 31-40 [ ] -2 41-50 [ ]-3 above 50 [ ]-4
3. 3. Educational Level
PHD [ ] -1 MA/MSc [ ] -2 BA/BSc [ ] -3
If other, please specify________________________________________________-4
4. Field of Specialization (The field you have studied)__________________________
5. Position in the organization:
Project Coordinator [ ]-1 Project manager [ ]-2
Project Member [ ]-3 Support Staff [ ]-4 or other_________________-5
6. Service period in the project work (in year)________________________
v
External
Organizational culture [ ]-1
Government [ ]-2
Environment [ ]-3
3. Is there a project management training access in the organization? (GI3)
Yes [ ] -1 No [ ]-2
4. If your answer on Question number (3) is yes, how often? (GI4)
Monthly [ ]-1 Quarterly [ ]-2 Semi-annually [ ]-3 Yearly [ ]-4 Once [ ]-5
5. Have you taken trainings related to Project Management provided by the bank? (GI5)
a. Yes -1 b. No -2
If yes, please specify the type of training you received -3
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
6. Have you ever been involved in project management or project teams prior to your
current assignment (it can also be in another organization)? (GI6)
a. Yes b. No
If yes, please specify the type of company and project you were involved with _____
____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
7. What is the status of your project in terms of success(GI7)
Very successful [ ]-1 Successful [ ] -2 fairly Successful [ ]-3 Not Successful [ ]-4
Part III: Questions related to the ten Knowledge Areas of Project Management
according to PMBOK
Based on your experience in the IT projects, please feedback to what extent do you think the
following factors listed under each project management knowledge areas are important to
the effectiveness of the project.
(5=Strongly Agree, 4= Agree, 3= Neutral, 2= Disagree, 1= Strongly Disagree)
vi
3 WBS was created (WBS (Work Breakdown
Structure is a key project deliverable that organizes
the team's work into manageable sections) (Scope3)
4 Scope was verified (formalizing acceptance of the
project scope) (Scope4)
5 Changes to the project scope was controlled(Scope5)
II. Project Time Management-(Time)
1 Time/schedule management plan was developed(Time1)
2 Activities were defined(Time2)
3 Activities were sequenced(Time3)
4 Duration of activities were estimated(Time4)
5 Changes to the project schedule was controlled(Time5)
III. Project Quality Management-(Quality)
1 Quality standards of the project were identified (Quality-1)
2 Quality standards of the project were reviewed(Quality-2)
3 Project performance were evaluated on regular basis (Quality3)
4 Results were monitored to check if they comply with the quality
standards identified (Quality-4)
IV. Project Cost Management (Cost)
1 The quantity of the necessary resources were determined (Cost-1)
2 Cost plan was well-defined (Cost-2)
3 The project cost was estimated (Cost-3)
4 The required budget was determined (Cost-4)
5 Changes to the project budget was controlled(Cost-5)
V. Project Risk Management (Risk)
1 Risk management plan was developed-(Risk-1)
2 Risks were identified and registered(Risk-2)
3 Risks were prioritized and their implication on the project was
estimated(Risk-3)
4 Risk response plan was developed(Risk-4)
5 The identified risks were monitored and controlled(Risk-5)
VI. Project Integration Management (Integration)
1 Project plan was developed by taking the results of other planning
processes and putting them into consistent document. (Integration-
1)
2 Project work was managed(Integration-2)
3 Project work was monitored and controlled(Integration-3)
4 There was effective coordination of project activities (Integration-
vii
4)
VII. Project Stakeholder Management (Stakeholder)
1 Project stakeholders were identified (Stakeholder -1)
2 Stakeholder management plan was defined (Stakeholder -2)
3 There was effective communication between project
stakeholders(Stakeholder -3)
4 Stakeholders engagement was controlled(Stakeholder -4)
5 Project progress was reviewed frequently with the
customer(Stakeholder -5)
VIII. Project Human Resource Management (Human Resource)
1 Project roles, responsibilities and required skill were
identified(Human Resource-1)
2 Organizational chart and position descriptions were clear(Human
Resource-2)
3 Availability and assigning human resource(Human Resource-3)
4 Project team was developed(Human Resource-4)
5 Project team was managed and controlled(Human Resource5)
IX. Project Communication Management (Communication)
1 The information and communication needed for the project were
determined(Communication-1)
2 Making needed information available to project
stakeholders(Communication-2)
3 Collecting and disseminating performance
information(Communication-3)
4 Generating, gathering, and disseminating information to formalize
phase or project completion(Communication-4)
5 Control communication(Communication-5)
X. Project Procurement Management Factors (Procurement)
1 Resources needed for the project were Determined(Procurement-1)
2 Requirements of the project materials was documented
(Procurement-2)
3 Potential sources were identified(Procurement-3)
4 Appropriate quotations, bid, offers or proposal were obtained
(Procurement-4)
5 Choosing from among potential sellers(Procurement-5)
6 The relationship with the seller was managed(Procurement-6)
7 Contract was completed and settled properly(Procurement-7)
viii
If you have opinion for other factors, please describe;
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
ix
Addis Ababa University
College of Business and Economics
School of Commerce
Master of Project Management Program
Kind Regards
Meriem Nasser
Mobile: +251911610475
Email:[email protected]
x
1. Were the project requirements (scope), constraints and specific schedule dates clearly
identified and communicated to all stakeholders?
2. Do roles and responsibilities, clearly communicated to all team and stakeholders?
3. Did the project take longer than planned?
If yes, what kind of related costs does the project incur?
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
If no, how did you manage
it?_____________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
4. Did the final cost of the project exceed the initial budget?
5. If your answer for question number (2) is no, how did you manage it?
_______________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
6. Was there a project scope change during the execution phase?
7. Were the time schedule, budget and quality of the deliverables monitored closely
throughout the project’s life-cycle? And how?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
8. Did you notice early warning signs of problems that occurred in the project, and did you
responded in time?
9. Did the final deliverables of the project satisfy the needs or requirements of all
stakeholders?
xi
APPENDIX B:
Reliability Test Tables
Reliability test table for the overall questions based on the ten project management
knowledge areas
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.788 .796 6
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
xii
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.820 .826 5
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.880 .885 5
xiii
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.880 .884 4
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
xiv
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.921 .925 5
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.867 .867 5
xv
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.864 .866 4
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
xvi
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.807 .810 5
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.914 .914 5
xvii
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 0
Total 63 100.0
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.882 .884 5
Reliability
N %
a
Excluded 0 .0
Total 63 100.0
xviii
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.906 .906 7
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach's
Alpha Based on
Cronbach's Standardized
Alpha Items N of Items
.938 .939 50
Item Statistics
Mean Std. Deviation N
Plan scope management was defined (As a basis for future project 3.7778 .75015 63
decisions.)
Requirements were clearly defined from the beginning 3.7302 .78712 63
WBS was created (WBS (Work Breakdown Structure is a key project 3.6032 .79392 63
deliverable that organizes the team's work into manageable sections)
Scope was verified (formalizing acceptance of the project scope) 3.7302 .70038 63
Changes to the project scope was controlled 3.3651 .92111 63
Time/schedule management plan was developed 2.2698 .74501 63
Activities were defined 2.2063 .62627 63
Activities were sequenced 3.0000 1.04727 63
Duration of activities were estimated 2.3016 .73254 63
xix
Changes to the project schedule was controlled 2.2381 .61472 63
Quality standards of the project were identified 3.5238 .80035 63
Quality standards of the project were reviewed 3.4603 .79971 63
Project performance were evaluated on regular basis 3.4444 .94660 63
Results were monitored to check if they comply with the quality 3.5079 .87755 63
standards identified
The quantity of the necessary resources were determined 3.5556 .79874 63
Cost plan was well-defined 3.5714 .89288 63
The project cost was estimated 3.7302 .78712 63
The required budget was determined 3.6349 .84818 63
Changes to the project budget was controlled 3.4762 .96482 63
Risk management plan was developed 3.4444 .77829 63
Risks were identified and registered 3.4444 .71341 63
Risks were prioritized and their implication on the project was estimated 3.4127 .79585 63
Risk response plan was developed 3.4444 .73568 63
The identified risks were monitored and controlled 3.2381 .75593 63
Project plan was developed by taking the results of other planning 3.7460 .71771 63
processes and putting them into consistent document.
Project work was managed 3.8413 .65270 63
Project work was monitored and controlled 3.7302 .78712 63
There was effective coordination of project activities 3.6508 .78614 63
Project stakeholders were identified 4.0000 .74053 63
Stakeholder management plan was defined 3.7302 .82709 63
There was effective communication between project stakeholders 3.6984 .81587 63
Stakeholders engagement was controlled 3.5079 .78026 63
Project progress was reviewed frequently with the customer 3.6032 .85269 63
Project roles, responsibilities and required skill were identified 2.6667 .96720 63
Organizational chart and position descriptions were clear 3.3016 .90936 63
Availability and assigning human resource 2.2381 .89288 63
Project team was developed 2.1746 .81398 63
Project team was managed and controlled 2.2698 .86521 63
The information and communication needed for the project were 3.79 .59 63
determined
Making needed information available to project stakeholders 3.65 .65 63
xx
Generating, gathering, and disseminating information to formalize phase 3.63 .68 63
or project completion
Control communication 3.59 .75 63
Scale Statistics
Mean Variance Std. Deviation N of Items
163.3810 408.465 20.21053 50
xxi