Effect of Honesty as an Ethical Value on Software Project Performance: A Grounded Theory Approach

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 92-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shradha Padhi ◽  
Sumita Mishra

For successful project outcomes to organizations and clients alike, project managers (PMs) need to make ethical decisions and yet balance the interests of all stakeholders involved. Hence, honest communication among project stakeholders is essential as a countermeasure to this paradox. Honesty is one of the core ethical values propagated by the Project Management Institute (PMI), USA. Our study aimed to gain an endogenous perspective on honesty vis-à-vis its reification by PMI in its effect on software project performance. Empirical data were collected through in-depth interviews from 83 Indian PMs in one of the prominent Indian software consulting organizations. Grounded theory was utilized to analyze the data obtained. Our results validate the importance of honesty on software project performance, the need for trust among stakeholders in maintaining honesty, importance of Indian culture in understanding honesty and ensuing ethical challenges faced by PMs. Our results bear implications to extant research on honesty in projects with specific reference to the Indian software context. They are important for PMI professionals as they provide a culture-specific perspective to honesty and the scope for ideation on how to inculcate and sustain honesty in project management in India.

Author(s):  
Arun Kumar Sangaiah ◽  
Vipul Jain

The prediction and estimation software risks ahead have been key predictor for evaluating project performance. Discriminating risk is vital in software project management phase, where risk and performance has been closely inter-related to each other. This chapter aims at hybridization of fuzzy multi-criteria decision making approaches for building an assessment framework that can be used to evaluate risk in the context of software project performance in following dimensions: 1) user, 2) requirements, 3) project complexity, 4) planning and control, 5) team, and 6) organizational environment. For measuring the risk for effectiveness of project performance, we have integrated Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision Making (FMCDM) and Fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) approaches. Moreover the fusion of FMCDM and TOPSIS has not been adequately investigated in the exiting studies.


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 338-352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seth Porter

Purpose This paper analyzes project and portfolio management within a major research library, while it was undergoing a complete physical renovation and reinvention of programs and services. This is a complex, almost 100-million-dollar undertaking that implemented a project management (PM) methodology known as portfolio management. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the implementation and management of this process and provide a brief overview on project and portfolio management as a discipline. Additionally, it provides strengths and weaknesses as well as recommendations when implementing PM. Design/methodology/approach The analysis uses a qualitative research methodology case study with a theoretical foundation of inductive grounded theory. The case study is based primarily on seven interviews of project managers who are involved with the project. It also uses document analysis to assist in triangulating the findings and provide a contextual overview of a complex process. A number of themes emerged into overall categories and findings. Findings The key takeaways were the perceived strengths and weaknesses of the process. The strengths were improved communication and transparency, improved organization and documentation and formal decision-making process and resource allocation. The weaknesses were the hammer and the nail problem, the tools and paperwork, rigidity and the lack of agility within the process. This study also describes the process in detail and gives recommendations for improving the methods implemented in similar circumstances. Originality/value This paper analyzes strategic management concepts from an empirical grounded theory approach and real-world perspective with key recommendations.


2009 ◽  
pp. 2247-2261
Author(s):  
James Jiang ◽  
Gary Klein ◽  
Phil Beck ◽  
Eric T.G. Wang

To improve the performance of software projects, a number of practices are encouraged that serve to control certain risks in the development process, including a lack of essential skills and knowledge related to the application domain and system development process. A potential mediating variable between the lack of skill risk and project performance is the ability of an organization to acquire the essential domain knowledge and technology skills through learning, specifically organizational technology learning. However, the same lack of knowledge that hinders good project performance may also inhibit learning. This study examines the relationship between information system personnel skills and domain knowledge, organizational technology learning, and software project performance with a sample of professional software developers. Indications are that the relationship between information systems (IS) personnel skills and project performance is partially mediated by organizational technology learning.


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