Managing customer relationship management projects: The case of a large French telecommunications company

Customer relationship management (CRM) implementation projects reflect a growing conceptual shift from the traditional engineering view of projects. Such projects are complex and risky because they call for both organisational and technological changes. This requires effective project management across various phases of the implementation process. However, few empirical researches have dealt with these project management issues. The aim of this research is to investigate how a “project team” manages CRM implementation projects successfully, across the different phases of the implementation process. We conducted an in-depth case study of the “Firm-Clients Branch” of a large telecommunications company in France. The findings show that, to manage CRM implementation projects successfully, an integrated and balanced approach is required. This involves appropriate system selection, effective process re-engineering and further development of organizational structures. We highlight the need for a “technochange approach” to achieve successful organisational transition and effective CRM implementation. The study reveals that the project team plays a central role throughout the implementation phases. Furthermore the effectiveness of technochange depends on project team performance, technology efficiency and close coordination with stakeholders.     

Project planning practices based on enterprise resource planning systems in small and medium enterprises — A case study from the Republic of Macedonia

This paper examines whether Macedonian SMEs plan for the implementation of ERP projects and studies the effect of project planning practices on project success. Four project planning measures were taken into consideration: business case development, scope planning, baseline plan development and risk planning along with three measures of project success; customer satisfaction, perceived quality of the project and success of the implementation process. The study was based on a survey that was conducted on 30 SMEs in the Republic of Macedonia. Data dimensionality was reduced through factor analysis and relationships between the two sets of variables were analyzed by correlation and regression analyses. The findings demonstrated that Macedonian SMEs implemented general project planning practices, even though they did not consider the planning process as a separate phase of the ERP implementation. However, they did not use any particular project planning tools, such as the Gantt chart or WBS. Of the project planning practices that were surveyed, the most practiced were the development of a business case, project scope and baseline plan. The least practiced were risk planning practices. Considering the success of the ERP implementations, this study demonstrated that most of the companies' representatives perceive this undertaking as successful in terms of client satisfaction and perceived quality measures. A higher percentage of respondents found their ERP implementations unsuccessful in terms of implementation process measures, when compared to the previous two success parameters.     

Implementation of project strategy to improve new product development performance

Poor project strategy is one of the major causes of project failure. However, many projects do not adequately develop strategy leading to a poor basis in subsequent phases. Thus, implementation of project strategy is critical to the success of any project. The primary purpose of this study was to validate a model for assessing the relationships among implementation of project strategy, new product development (NPD) project outcomes, and market performance. The analyses suggest that implementation of differentiation, operational, and quality strategies may improve NPD project outcomes. The research results also imply that improvement in NPD project outcomes may enhance market performance, while it helps accomplish the market share and sales goals.     

Synthesis of a Model for Life-Cycle Project Management

The focus of this article is on life-cycle objective–based project management models in general. The model has been designed (1) to facilitate employment of life-cycle objective–based project management approaches and (2) to support concurrent engineering and construction, thus promoting greater integration of total processes under which projects are proposed and implemented. In order to synthesize the functions designed in the model, we undertook a detailed case study of a large capital project. This case study has been documented in separate articles; only the results of the study will be presented in this article. While this field research shed light on the actual needs and requirements, the design of the functions was approached from first principles. They incorporate the basic shift from the traditional objectives of cost, time, and quality to life-cycle objective functions, such as return on investment, facility operability, and life-cycle integration. This article describes the fundamental philosophy and framework for the development of life-cycle project management in general and contrasts this with the traditional project management models.     

Designing and implementing a career path for project managers

Many project managers do not feel adequately respected and compensated for their work. They often see their role as a temporary one and focus more on their advancement in traditional leadership career paths. Although a lot has been done with respect to qualification and certification programs for project managers, the special role of motivation and retention of project managers has not extensively been researched in the past. Moreover, human resource management has neglected career possibilities and career design for project managers so far. Consequently, our research builds on different streams of research from human resource management, project management, and motivational theory to identify the key ingredients for a project managers' career path. A qualitative study with 20 companies that have already implemented a project managers' career path has been conducted. The findings of this research are used to derive key success factors for the design and implementation of a project managers' career path.     

对“城市综合体”项目质量监督管理工作的探讨

近年来,各地不断开工建设的大量“城市综合体”项目,普遍具有项目关注程度高、工程规模大、业态复杂、施工难度大、各工种穿插作业、分包单位多、工期紧等特点,对工程质量的监督管理工作提出了更高的要求。通过对“城市综合体”项目特征的研究分析,结合青岛市质量监督管理要求,从实际出发,以落实工程建设强制性标准、保障工程质量有效受控、杜绝工程质量通病为切入点,针对“城市综合体”项目质量监管过程中的突出问题,总结经验、研究方法、查找不足,在一定范围内对“城市综合体”项目的质量监管进行了探讨。     

Measuring the efficiency of project control using fictitious and empirical project data

Dynamic scheduling refers to the integration of three important phases in the life cycle of a project: baseline scheduling, schedule risk analysis and project control. In this paper, the efficiency of controlling a project is measured and evaluated using a Monte-Carlo simulation study on fictitious and empirical project data. In the study, the construction of a project baseline schedule acts as a point-of-reference for the schedule risk analysis and project control phases. The sensitivity information obtained by the schedule risk analyses (SRA) and the earned value management (EVM) information obtained during project control serve as early warning control parameters that trigger corrective actions to bring projects back on track in case of problems. The focus in this paper lies on the time performance of a project, and not on the prediction and controlling of the project costs.     

The effects of project uncertainty and risk management on IS development project performance: A vendor perspective

The structural contingency perspective has been widely used in information systems development (ISD) project risk management research. This paper develops an integrative model to explore the moderating effects of uncertainty on the relationship between risk management and IS development project performance from a vendor perspective, rather than the client perspective that is mainly employed in the literature. A survey-based research design is used to collect data to test the proposed model. The results reveal that project uncertainty can moderate the effects of project planning and control on process performance and the effects of user participation on product performance. More specifically, the results indicate that project planning and control makes a greater contribution to process performance when there is a low level of inherent uncertainty and that user participation makes a greater contribution to product performance when there is a high level of inherent uncertainty. The results of this study contribute to a more acute understanding of the contingency approach to ISD project risk management.     

基于 DEA 的 BIM-IPD 项目利益协同系统研究

综合项目交付（IPD）由于其相对传统交付模式的优势正得到愈加广泛的应用。建筑信息模型（BIM）的工程数据存取、分享功能与 IPD 模式高度匹配,能有效提升项目表现。但不成熟的利益分配机制却阻碍了 BIM-IPD 的推行。因此,本文在分析当前 IPD 工作模式的基础上,充分考虑项目表现指标及 BIM 应用水平,利用数据包络算法（DEA）,计算参与方投入产出效率,作为收益分配主要依据,提出了 BIM-IPD 项目的利益协同系统框架,为未来 IPD 项目的合同拟定提供了参考     

Project benefit management: Setting effective target benefits

Target benefits such as “reduced operational costs” are project goals that can contribute to the long-term improvement of organizational performance following project completion. Setting effective target benefits is critical because it supports project investment decisions, clear project management direction, and thereby enhanced project and organizational performance. Based on goal setting theory, we present three studies to develop and validate a scale to measure effective target benefits. The proposed scale is comprised of three dimensions - specificity (e.g., specific target values), attainability (e.g., the capacity to realize the target benefits), and comprehensiveness (e.g., reflect the views of key stakeholders). This scale can be used by senior managers to assess proposed projects' target benefits, contributing to more informed project investment decision-making and the subsequent benefit management process. Theoretically, it can also be used as an instrument to facilitate theory development in the fields of project benefit management, strategy implementation, and organizational performance.     

A conceptual model for project management of exploration and production in the oil and gas industry: The case of a Brazilian company

The objective of this study was to obtain a better understanding of factors that influence Exploration and Production (E&P) project management success and corporate financial performance. The study follows structural equation modeling (SEM) methodology to achieve greater understanding of the intricate network of relationships between variables involved in E&P project management. A comprehensive theoretical framework was needed to formulate the conceptual basis of research. Observation of the real world and practical experiences were also important. To that end, we conducted a case study in a large Brazilian oil company. Field research was essential because of the lack of similar studies in the oil and gas sector. The model developed is a theoretical construct known as a structural and measurement model (set of latent variables, observed variables and hypotheses, depicted in a path diagram). This model contributes significantly to the company because it is a global representation of the main factors for improving E&P project management. However, the findings should be interpreted with caution because adjustment and validation of the theoretical model were not performed.     

基于灰色 Verhulst 和EVM 模型的项目进度—成本绩效预测研究

传统挣值管理以进度和成本绩效指数为基础进行完工成本预测,在项目实施的早期其预测值与实际数据会存在较大偏差。因此,项目实施的早期,项目管理团队应侧重对进度和成本绩效趋势进行短期预测。在介绍挣值管理和灰色Verhulst 模型的基础上,提出采用Verhulst 模型对项目的实际成本和挣值进行预测,并计算进度和成本偏差,通过比较借此发现进度和成本绩效的发展趋势。最后结合具体案例详细介绍了建立灰色Verhulst 模型以及利用此模型进行预测的步骤。案例表明该方法是可行和有效的。     

Multi-criteria performance analysis for decision making in project management

This study is focused on decision support in the context of product and service development projects. Decision support requires the capacity to characterize the current state of the project (performance evaluation) and the decision-maker's point of view. However, the different projects’ stakeholders do not have the same needs in terms of performance evaluation to support their decision-making processes. Furthermore, in some cases controlling project performance using the elementary components of the Iron Triangle (Cost, Time and Quality) alone seems inefficient. This paper proposes a new multi-dimensional Project Performance Measurement System that would enable managers to deal with the volume of data. The proposition integrates the only character of each project (tasks, objectives, decision-makers personality and competences), several good practices in terms of universal project management dimensions on the one hand, and in terms of performance analysis on the other hand. Then, we show how an aggregation tool called MACBETH is used to analyze the performance measures according to project managers’ own performance interests. A case study illustrates the proposed system.     

Technological invention to product innovation: A project management approach

The optimal allocation of resources at the firm level to transform emergent technological invention into commercially successful products depends on the effective assessment and selection of projects. This study develops a multidisciplinary model for differentiating, prioritizing, and selecting investment in technological projects within an organization’s portfolio. Approaches from project portfolio and strategic technology management are integrated to explore how a particular product within a diverse project portfolio may be prioritized and developed. Our results suggest that the application of the suggested model to a portfolio of biotechnology projects may enhance the assessment of internal capabilities and external competitiveness, thereby providing a basis for firms to prioritize and preferentially allocate scarce resources within a portfolio of heterogeneous technologies.     

Improving project forecast accuracy by integrating earned value management with exponential smoothing and reference class forecasting

In this paper, the earned value management (EVM) project control methodology is integrated with the exponential smoothing forecasting approach. This results in an extension of the known EVM and earned schedule (ES) cost and time forecasting formulas. A clear correspondence between the established approaches and the newly introduced method – called the XSM – is identified, which could facilitate future implementation. More specifically, only one smoothing parameter is needed to calculate the enhanced EVM performance factor. Moreover, this parameter can be dynamically adjusted during project progress based on information of past performance and/or anticipated management actions. Additionally, the reference class forecasting (RCF) technique can be incorporated into the XSM. Results from 23 real-life projects show that, for both time and cost forecasting, the XSM exhibits a considerable overall performance improvement with respect to the most accurate project forecasting methods identified by previous research, especially when incorporating the RCF concept.     

THE INTEGRATED CATC HMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN IN NEW ZEALAND AND THE ENLIGHTENMENT TO CHINA’S PRACTICE

China’s current catchment planning often focuses on formulating overall strategies for flood control and water resource distribution from a perspective of water conservancy. Usually, such plans are developed at large scales, covering a huge territory. However, city-scaled analyses, technical strategies, or roadmaps responding to issues of urban flooding, water pollution, etc. are less integrated into the current catchment planning; there is also an absence of comprehensive management methods for medium- or small-scaled urban water bodies. Combing with a case study on integrated catchment management plans (ICMP) for the Hamilton City, New Zealand, this paper reviews and summarizes the idea, role, objectives, key sections, and implementation of ICMPs in New Zealand, including a series of core tasks ranging from the trans-administrative catchment management mechanism, comprehensive and operational objectives and the technical system to the integration with long-term urban planning and Resource Consent requirements. In view of the status quo and major problems in China's comprehensive management of urban water systems, as well as the gaps in the existing formulation and implementation of catchment planning, especially the absence of integrated planning methods for medium- or smallscaled catchments that have a more direct and stronger relation with urban development, New Zealand’s experience in ICMP preparation and implementation reflects a paradigm significance.     

Project managers and career models: An exploratory comparative study

Prior research has paid little attention to the careers and career models of project managers. This is troublesome for at least two reasons. First, project managers are becoming an increasingly important category of managers and today they constitute a major part of many organizations' leadership capability. Second, traditional literature on careers generally does not address project-based careers as a specific case in point, although this kind of career is unique in the sense that it is based on temporary assignments and lack of formal positions. The research presented in this paper identifies and explains patterns of similarities and differences among applied career models in ten large, mature project-intensive firms in Sweden. The paper identifies a number of factors that seem to be critical for the design of career models for project managers, including the number of levels, the complexity of assignments, and the degree of formal requirements. The paper also outlines two archetypes of career models applied by the firms under study: the competence strategy model and the talent management model.     

浅谈净水厂改造工程的项目管理

净水厂改造项目不仅拥有一般工程项目的工程管理过程及要求,还具有其自身的特点。其项目的管理在充分运用工程项目管理的知识、技能、手段和方法的基础上,还应抓住项目自身特点,结合现场实际情况,实施工程项目的组织和管理。本文结合工程案例介绍了净水厂改造项目的特点及其项目的管理。     

Project governance mechanisms and the performance of software development projects: Moderating role of requirements risk

Over the years, practitioners and academicians have been perplexed by low efficiency and poor performance in IT projects. Previous studies have uncovered a variety of critical factors, including effective project governance mechanisms that can trigger project performance and curb opportunism. However, an obvious question that emerges is how effective these governance mechanisms are at improving the performance of an IT organization and software development project in the presence of risk factors. Hence, the overarching objective of the current study is the development of a moderation model to investigate the effectiveness of these governance mechanisms in the presence of requirements risk. This paper follows a positivist research philosophy where a quantitative deductive approach has been used to collect the data of 318 respondents from 175 software development firms based in Pakistan. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) through SmartPLS 3 have been used to analyze the hypotheses. The results of the study indicate that contractual and relational governances significantly influence project performance and are useful in reducing opportunism. Moreover, there is evidence that the presence of requirements risk tends to negatively moderate the influence of contractual and relational governances on project performance. The findings will help not only Pakistan's software firms, but also those in developing countries that want to improve performance through effective project governance and risk management.     

Competing management approaches in large engineering projects: The Dutch RandstadRail project

The management of large engineering projects is often a combination of the focus on planning and control, and the ambition to be flexible given the complexity and uncertainties that characterises these kinds of projects. However, control and flexibility impose contradictory requirements upon the management of these projects. The literature on project management reflects this contradiction. Some authors underline that projects require firm planning and control, thus downplaying the role of flexibility. Others emphasise that projects require flexibility and responsiveness, thus moving away from rigid planning and control. In this contribution, we suggest that in practice project managers acknowledge the weakness of both extremes and therefore strive to combine the two. Moreover, we argue that project success is at risk when project managers do not succeed in meeting the requirements of control and flexibility. To be able to investigate how these competing requirements are dealt with in practice, a framework is developed. The usefulness of the framework is explored by applying the framework to the large engineering project Randstadrail—a light rail project in The Netherlands.