Project Governance

Violeta Aslanova

Master's thesis

Abstract:

The rapid technological progress, which has led to inevitable dependence of enterprises on Information Technologies (IT), has put organizations under the constraints to achieve their business objectives by complying with the external regulations. Therefore, to successfully manage Information Communication Technology (ICT) projects, a proper Project Governance (PG) culture should be adopted which refers to a set of policies and processes for projects delivery. However, to ensure the alignment of ICT projects with the enterprise business needs as well as to guarantee project value delivery, only PG culture is not enough, but the IT Governance (ITG) components should also be implemented as the umbrella for the enterprise’s approach towards IT project management success. For many years, ICT projects success was assessed by time, cost and quality indicators. However, in the era of PG and ITG, the project success definition goes far beyond these metrics. The literature review discussed in the thesis indicates that the companies with effective PG have a better performance and value delivery. The main purpose of this research is to find the answer on the question “What can be done to improve the Project Governance?” within the sample organizational business unit by identification and analysis of the main ITG and PG factors that influence project management process. The obtained findings will be used to find a suitable framework to help to improve the PG with the focus on the ITG and PG key aspects.The research first explains the core concepts of ITG and PG and provides the most relevant standards and frameworks. The benefits and challenges of the best practices are described to highlight their different objectives. Then, the case study is performed in a sample department and a holistic method of ITG and PG main aspects evaluation is applied. The main deliverable of this approach is the analysis of the relationship between the current issues in project management activities and the level of adoption of ITG and PG aspects. Based on the results, the intention is to find the best way to improve the PG within the chosen department.After the PG and ITG main aspects are evaluated and the research findings are analyzed, the most suitable framework is chosen with the consideration of the department’s environment and business context. COBIT 5 framework is recommended to be applied at the highest level of PG to improve the project management activities. This decision was made because COBIT 5 is based on the IT process model and can be tailored to individual needs of the chosen department. Finally, the BAI01 Manage Programmes and Projects process implementation is conducted, intended to improve the ITG and PG aspects and the overall project management process within the sample business unit.

Abstract:

The rapid technological progress, which has led to inevitable dependence of enterprises on Information Technologies (IT), has put organizations under the constraints to achieve their business objectives by complying with the external regulations. Therefore, to successfully manage Information Communication Technology (ICT) projects, a proper Project Governance (PG) culture should be adopted which refers to a set of policies and processes for projects delivery. However, to ensure the alignment of ICT projects with the enterprise business needs as well as to guarantee project value delivery, only PG culture is not enough, but the IT Governance (ITG) components should also be implemented as the umbrella for the enterprise’s approach towards IT project management success. For many years, ICT projects success was assessed by time, cost and quality indicators. However, in the era of PG and ITG, the project success definition goes far beyond these metrics. The literature review discussed in the thesis indicates that the companies with effective PG have a better performance and value delivery. The main purpose of this research is to find the answer on the question “What can be done to improve the Project Governance?” within the sample organizational business unit by identification and analysis of the main ITG and PG factors that influence project management process. The obtained findings will be used to find a suitable framework to help to improve the PG with the focus on the ITG and PG key aspects.The research first explains the core concepts of ITG and PG and provides the most relevant standards and frameworks. The benefits and challenges of the best practices are described to highlight their different objectives. Then, the case study is performed in a sample department and a holistic method of ITG and PG main aspects evaluation is applied. The main deliverable of this approach is the analysis of the relationship between the current issues in project management activities and the level of adoption of ITG and PG aspects. Based on the results, the intention is to find the best way to improve the PG within the chosen department.After the PG and ITG main aspects are evaluated and the research findings are analyzed, the most suitable framework is chosen with the consideration of the department’s environment and business context. COBIT 5 framework is recommended to be applied at the highest level of PG to improve the project management activities. This decision was made because COBIT 5 is based on the IT process model and can be tailored to individual needs of the chosen department. Finally, the BAI01 Manage Programmes and Projects process implementation is conducted, intended to improve the ITG and PG aspects and the overall project management process within the sample business unit.

Keywords

Project governance, Project management, Performance Measurement, Value Delivery, Resource Management, Strategic Alignment, Risk Management, Portfolio Management, IT governance, Stakeholder Management, COBIT 5

Keywords

Risk Management, Portfolio Management, Resource Management, Project governance, IT Governance, Project Management, COBIT 5, Stakeholder Management, Strategic Alignment, Performance Measurement, Value Delivery

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 7. 7. 2017

Thesis defence

• Date of defence: 11. 6. 2018
• Supervisor: Vlasta Svatá
• Reader: Václav Oškrdal

Vysoká škola ekonomická v Praze

Master programme / field:
Aplikovaná informatika / Information Systems Management