IT Project Failures

January 5th, 2009

Five strategies for 2009 IT gold

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 7:34 am

Categories: Vendor relationships, IT issues, Project strategy, CIO issues, Cultural issues

Tags: Information Technology, Strategy, Management, Michael Krigsman

Let’s talk about running successful IT projects in 2009. This discussion is more important than ever, because IT problems remain common, with some estimates suggesting 68% of projects fail. Despite staggering odds, follow these five strategies to reach the IT pot of gold.

1. Meet business needs. Every IT project must accomplish a business goal or risk becoming a wasteful boondoggle. Poor communication between business and technology groups complicates this simple concept inside many organizations. If the business side routinely criticizes your IT team, get together and ask them for guidance. While isolation brings failure, discussion is a true harbinger of success. Conversation with the business is the right place to begin an IT improvement program for 2009.

2. Innovate. Conversations with the business should help both sides work together with greater creativity and flexibility. Adaptability is fundamental to survival, especially in tough economic times, so being ready to accept change is prerequisite for success. Although listening carefully to user requirements is the first step, being self-critical as an organization is also necessary. Great things happen when IT embraces a culture of continuous change and improvement.

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December 30th, 2008

Select Comfort: home-grown IT failure

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 1:04 pm

Categories: Vendor relationships, Project failures, IT issues, CIO issues, SAP, Oracle

Tags: Oracle Corp., Implementation, Information Technology, SAP AG, Select Comfort, 10-k, Company, Strategy, Enterprise Software, Management

Sleep Number bed and mattress retailer, Select Comfort, has abandoned its SAP implementation mid-stream, raising serious questions about the company’s present and historical IT strategy. Select Comfort has not blamed SAP or any other third-party vendor for its problems.

According to Select Comfort’s December 16, 2008 press release:

Actions being taken include a workforce reduction of approximately 120 positions within headquarters, or approximately 22 percent of the corporate workforce, which includes general and administrative and customer service positions. In addition, the company will immediately cease all activities associated with the implementation of SAP-based IT applications.

The company’s 2006 SEC 10-k filing describes reasons behind the SAP implementation:

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December 29th, 2008

CIO strategy: 10 qualities of IT greatness

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 9:53 am

Categories: IT issues, CIO issues

Tags: CIO, Information Technology, Successful IT Group, Paul M. Ingevaldson, Strategy, Management, Michael Krigsman

Successful IT groups are resilient, flexible, and highly responsive to organizational business needs. For many CIOs, this goal appears elusive and completely disconnected from the daily grind of servers, users, downtime, and help desks. Despite the difficulty, CIO success depends on connecting the chaotic, often crisis-driven, IT environment to high-level strategic and business priorities that matter to the broader organization.

Linking a tactical IT culture rooted in reaction and response to broader strategic goals is a worthy, if difficult, challenge, which requires understanding the areas of intersection between IT and the business. Despite the obstacles, IT must cross this bridge without disrupting its own operational ability to deliver projects on-time and within budget while still achieving planned scope. To be sure, this balancing act requires careful and delicate choreography!

Paul M. Ingevaldson spent 40 years in IT, most recently as CIO of international retailer, Ace Hardware. His recent column in Computer World caught my attention because it presents ten qualities of IT departments that have successfully bridged the strategic gap.

I spoke with Paul and asked him to explain the list:

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December 25th, 2008

A reader’s ZDNet holiday poem

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 5:46 am

Categories: Blog annoucements

Tags: Poem, Blog, Blogger, Blogging, Internet, Michael Krigsman

ZDNet reader, MGP2, posted this original poem, called “Tis the day before Christmas,” in a Talkback. For the entire ZDNet gang, I want to thank him and all our readers. Hope you’re enjoying the holidays!

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December 24th, 2008

IT failure and holiday cheer

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 6:13 am

Categories: Cultural issues

Tags: Holiday, Information Technology, Strategy, Management, Michael Krigsman

For many, end of year holidays are a time to reflect on the past and think about the future. It’s therefore a perfect moment to remember something about failed IT projects: they’re always a potential source of inspiration to improve the future.

Rather than thinking about negative topics today, Christmas Eve, a time with special significance to many, let’s focus on a positive message. Have a wonderful day today, full of holiday cheer and enjoyment.

• Related: A reader’s ZDNet holiday poem

[Photo by Michael Krigsman]

December 23rd, 2008

IT ethics and the recession

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 7:34 am

Categories: IT issues, Security and privacy, Research and statistics

Tags: Recession, Information Technology, Ethics, Worker, Business Ethics, Leadership, Management, Michael Krigsman

With a major recession in full-swing, someone had to come up with a survey covering the ethics of office workers in three countries. The punch line: a large percentage of folks surveyed would steal confidential company data in the event of layoff rumors. The results are fairly ugly, painting a negative picture of ethics in the workplace.

Security firm, Cyber-Ark, conducted the survey, called The Global Recession and its Effect on Work Ethics. The company interviewed 600 workers in the US, UK, and the Netherlands.

When asked how far respondents would go to keep their job, 15 percent of Americans said they would consider blackmailing their boss! At first, I thought this was a joke, but it appears to be serious after all.

Unfortunately, the answers are not a positive reflection upon my fellow citizens:

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December 22nd, 2008

CIO strategic competencies for 2009

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 1:10 pm

Categories: Interview, IT issues, CIO issues, Research and statistics, Cultural issues

Tags: CIO, Information Technology, Center For CIO Leadership, Center, Strategy, Leadership, Management, Michael Krigsman

The Center for CIO Leadership has released research measuring CIO skills in four areas linked to enterprise strategy and leadership. The study, called The CIO Profession: Leaders of Change, Drivers of Innovation, collected data from 270 CIOs regarding these competencies:

• Leadership
• Business Strategy and Process
• Innovation and Growth
• Organization and Talent Management.

The Center’s Executive Director, Harvey Koeppel, a former Citigroup CIO, summarized the study’s findings during an interview with me last week:

CIOs are evolving into enterprise leaders, helping develop the strategic plan while driving innovation and growth. To accomplish this goal, speaking the right language and creating the right metrics are critical. Although operational benchmarks, such as availability and uptime, are important, CIOs must go beyond them.

I asked Harvey to discuss implications related to IT failure and success:

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December 19th, 2008

UK Transportation Department IT failure: ‘Stupendous incompetence’

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 8:37 am

Categories: Project failures, Government projects, Project management, IT issues, CIO issues, Financial impact, SAP, Politics, Cultural issues

Tags: Project, Performance, Information Technology, Mr., IBM Corp., Department For Transport, Shared Service Center, Performance Management, Strategy, Project Management

The UK House of Commons attacked the Department for Transportation (DfT) for gross mismanagement of a shared services IT project. In a rather extraordinary comment, Edward Leigh MP, Chairman of the Committee of Public Accounts for the UK House of Commons, said:

The DfT planned and implemented its shared corporate services project with stupendous incompetence. This is one of the worst cases of project management seen by this Committee.

The DfT initially estimated the program would save £57 million ($85m) over ten years. Current forecasts show that program will result in a net loss £81 million ($121m). A House of Commons analysis concluded:

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December 17th, 2008

Univ. of Wisconsin CIO discusses IT failure [podcast]

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 9:54 am

Categories: Interview, IT issues, Project strategy, CIO issues, Podcast

Tags: Podcast, Information Technology, Strategy, Management, Michael Krigsman

Properly understanding IT failure requires looking inside the relationship between IT and business groups in an organization. Ideally, these groups should create business strategies using technology as the support for shared business goals.

However, many organizations fall short in this area and remain saddled with turf battles, internecine wars, and Machiavellian plots. Needless to say, such environments are not conducive to IT success.

With that backdrop, I enjoyed speaking with Bruce Maas, Chief Information Officer at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where he leads information technology strategic planning for the campus and is responsible for directing University Information Technology Services (www.uits.uwm.edu). Bruce once served as Project Manager for the PeopleSoft Student Administration implementation, successfully meeting all major milestones on time, within scope, and a half million dollars under budget.

Bruce and I met on Twitter and we’ve had numerous discussions about the relationship between IT failure and poor requirements planning. If you care about the CIO perspective on IT failure (and you should care), listen to this podcast. You’ll gain insight into a CIO’s view on creating better projects.

On the roots of failed IT projects:

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December 16th, 2008

LA school district and Deloitte in $18m failure settlement

Posted by Michael Krigsman @ 7:11 am

Categories: Project failures, Government projects, IT issues, CIO issues, Consulting, End-user impact, SAP

Tags: Deloitte LLP, Settlement, Payroll, IT Devil, Payroll Solutions, Operational Accounting, Finance, Michael Krigsman

Implementation consulting firm, Deloitte, will pay the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) $8.25m and forgo $10m in unpaid invoices to settle a long-standing dispute over payroll problems arising during an SAP implementation. The agreement comes almost two years after severe payroll issues caused upheaval among teachers in the district.

• Related: Turnaround strategy for Los Angeles school district payroll failure

According to the Los Angeles Times:

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