ZIA Muhammad Azam, DBA

Chartered IT professional with diverse experience in IT portfolios, programs and projects. Since 2000, he has successfully led large enterprise-wide business transformation initiatives across Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia. He is currently Head of PMO at one of the largest energy companies in the world.

Azam will defend his Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) in Digital Business in March 2023, on the subject of “Conceptualizations of the Impact of Project Management Methodologies on IT Projects in the Government Sector” under the supervision of Professor Martin Cloutier, Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada.

Pr Martin Cloutier

A critical analysis of implementation success of project management systems in government IT projects departments

The focus of this study is to examine the relationship between PMMs and project outcomes in government IT projects that project managers establish as part of their conceptual representations. Hence, this thesis addresses a gap around the conceptualizations and perceptions of project managers regarding PMMs in IT projects in the government sector. The research question is: What are project managers’ representation and perceptions of the impact PMMs have on IT projects in government entities and, why? Hence, the objective of this study is to identify what project managers characterize as factors in PMMs’ impact on IT projects in government entities, and subsequently, compare them with factors found in the literature to analyze their differences. Furthermore, it also examines the main elements within PMMs that influence the delivery of IT projects as well as to provide an understanding of the relative importance and relative workability of PMMs based on PMs’ perceptions.

The research is based on group concept mapping (GCM), which is a mixed methods-based methodological approach, using semi-structured content coding and multivariable statistical methods. Twenty-three (23) semi-structured interviews were conducted which resulted in 337 ideas being captured and refined to a final list of 80 statements. Forty-four (44) participants individually sorted and rated these statements using GlobalMAX®, a GCM web-based portal. The resulting concept map shows nine clusters conceptualized by government IT project managers: Monitoring and Control; Managing Risks; Human Capabilities; Collaboration, Partnership, and Cooperation; Managing Change; Governance; Delivering Project Objectives; Managing Processes; and Project Manager’s Skills. A scale-based analysis of the clusters was conducted to establish their importance to a project’s performance and workability in a government IT project setting. A systematic literature search was conducted to establish the external validity of results. The clusters were reviewed from different perspectives considering the source of interviews and the existing literature.

The most notable contribution of the research is the identification of the cluster conceptualized by project managers called Project Manager’s Skills. This cluster from the concept map, based on its inherent statements, is neither a standard PMM process group, nor a knowledge area or a PMM element. This cluster is a unique finding and a key highlight of this study. The thesis concludes with impactful managerial recommendations articulated through a system dynamics-based influence diagram. The key managerial recommendations are summarized as follows,

– To invest in PMM automation tools for improving the delivery of value to businesses. There has been a noticeable mention of the use of PMM processes in government IT projects and automating PMM processes will provide an excellent opportunity for IT leaders to harvest the value of investments in IT projects through the systematic, repeatable, and structured processes of project management with software tools.
– To increase the effectiveness of IT project teams for improving current and future project performance. The human element of PMMs has been mentioned as a key element of these PMMs by the project managers involved in this study, and the element of collaboration, communication, and engagement of stakeholders has also been well recognized. These findings indicate the importance and high relevance of the need to increase the effectiveness of IT project teams in the government sector.
– To improve the monitoring and control mechanisms in IT projects. Because risk management revolves around maintaining control over the outcome of a project, it is a suitable platform to enhance a monitoring and control culture in an organization, since it relies on the retention of control over the project’s progress. To ensure that a project is completed on time, on budget, and within the scope it was given, it is essential to monitor and control the project.
– To managing change through project stakeholders’ collaboration and engagement. This implies the creation of a coalition of influential stakeholders early in the project planning process and to engage them in the inner workings of the project on a regular basis. A working group could be formed from the existing governance layer, which would provide direct support to the project manager.

The contribution of this thesis is to provide a deeper understanding of PMMs and how they affect IT project performance in the government sector and stand the potential to increasing stakeholder value.