IST 302 Ch 2 Quiz 2

What are some effects of globalization on IT projects? How must teams adapt to succeed with global projects?

has created a "flat" world where everyone is connected and the "playing field" is level for many more participants.16 Lower trade and political barriers and the digital revolution have made it possible to interact almost instantaneously with billions of other people across the planet, Communications: Because people work in different time zones, speak different languages, Trust is an important issue for all teams, especially when they are global teams. Common work practices: It is important to align work processes and develop a modus operandi with which everyone agrees and is comfortable Tools: IT plays a vital role in globalization, especially in enhancing communications and work practices.

waterfall life cycle model

has well-defined, linear stages of systems analy- sis, design, construction, testing, and support. This life cycle model assumes that requirements will remain stable after they are defined.

What is a project deliverable?

is a product or service, such as a technical report, a training session, a piece of hardware, or a segment of software code, produced or provided as part of a project.

organizational culture

is a set of shared assumptions, values, and behaviors that characterize the functioning of an organization

A functional organizational structure

is the hierarchy most people think of when picturing an organizational chart.

Scrum

is the leading agile development method for com- pleting projects with a complex, innovative scope of work.

prototyping life cycle model

is used for developing software prototypes to clarify user requirements for operational software.

matrix organizational structure

represents the middle ground between functional and project structures. Personnel often report both to a functional manager and to one or more project managers.

What are the four frames of organizations?

structural, human resources, political, and symbolic

Conflict tolerance

the degree to which employees are encouraged to air conflicts and criticisms openly.

Member identity

the degree to which employees identify with the organization as a whole rather than with their type of job or profession

Means-ends orientation

the degree to which management focuses on outcomes rather than on techniques and processes used to achieve results

People focus

the degree to which management's decisions take into account the effect of outcomes on people within the organization

Control

the degree to which rules, policies, and direct supervision are used to oversee and control employee behavior.

Open-systems focus

the degree to which the organization monitors and responds to changes in the external environment

Unit integration

the degree to which units or departments within an organization are encouraged to coordinate with each other

group emphasis

the degree to which work activities are organized around groups or teams, rather than individuals

sprint planning

the team pulls a small chunk from the top of that wish list, a sprint backlog, and decides how to implement those pieces. The team has a certain amount of time, a sprint, to complete its work— usually two to four weeks—but meets each day to assess its progress

RAD life cycle model

uses an approach in which developers work with an evolving prototype. This life cycle model also requires heavy user involve- ment and helps produce systems quickly without sacrificing quality.

spiral life cycle model

was developed based on refinements of the water- fall model as applied to large government software projects. It recognizes the fact that most software is developed using an iterative or spiral approach rather than a linear approach.

A systems development life cycle (SDLC) is broader than any single project. What are some various SDLCs and how would they change your approach to getting things done?

waterfall life cycle model spiral life cycle model prototyping life cycle model RAD life cycle model

What are the four items valued in the Manifesto of Agile Software Development?

• Individuals and interactions over processes and tools • Working software over comprehensive documentation • Customer collaboration over contract negotiation • Responding to change over following a plan

Technology

• Should the tablets be based on Apple, Microsoft, Android, or another system? • What applications will be required? • What will the hardware specifications be? • How will the tablets affect various networks and speed? • Will more power cords be required in the classroom?

Business

• What will the tablet project cost the college? • What will it cost students? • What will support costs be? • What will the impact be on enrollments?

Organization

• Will the tablet project affect all students, just traditional students, or only certain majors? • How will the project affect students who already have tablets or laptops? • Who will develop special applications or books for the tablets? • Who will train students, faculty, and staff?

What are the four phases of a project's lifecycle? Which phase requires the most resources? Which requires the least?

A project life cycle is a collection of project phases. The generic life cycle to include the following four phases: 1. Starting the project 2. Organizing and preparing 3. Carrying out the work 4. Finishing the project' In early phases of a project life cycle, resource needs are usually lowest and the level of uncertainty is highest. During the middle phases of a project life cycle, the certainty of completing the project improves as it continues, and as more information is known about the project requirements and objectives. Also, more resources are usually needed than during the initial or final phase.

Political frame:

Coalitions composed of varied individuals and interest groups. Conflict and power are key issues.

Describe cons for virtual teams

Isolating team members who may not adjust well to working in a virtual environment • Increasing the potential for communications problems because team mem- bers cannot use body language or other nonverbal communications to under- stand each other and build relationships and trust • Reducing the ability for team members to network and transfer information informally • Increasing the dependence on technology to accomplish work

Describe the pros for virtual teams

Lowering costs because many virtual workers do not require office space or support beyond their home offices • Providing more expertise and flexibility or increasing competitiveness and responsiveness by having team members across the globe working any time of day or night • Improving the balance between work and life for team members by eliminat- ing fixed office hours and the need to travel to work

How can company politics contribute to a failed project?

Many IT professionals become captivated with the technology and day-to-day problem solving involved in working with information systems. They tend to become frustrated with many of the "people problems" or politics involved in most organiza- tions. In addition, many IT professionals ignore important business questions, such as "Does it make financial sense to pursue this new technology?" or "Should the company develop this software in-house or purchase it off the shelf?"

10 characteristics of organizational culture:

Member identity, group emphasis, people focus, unit integration, control, risk tolerance, reward criteria, conflict tolerance, means-ends orientation, open-systems focus

Why Systems Approach relates to IT project Management

Organizations are also systems, with people in various roles working together to design, develop, deliver, and sell various products and services.

Human resources frame:

Providing harmony between needs of the organization and needs of people

Structural frame:

Roles and responsibilities, coordination, and control. Organizational charts help describe this frame

How can an organization use outsourcing to their advantage?

Some organizations remain competitive by using outsourcing to their advantage. Many organizations have found ways to reduce costs by outsourcing, even though the practice can be unpopular in their home countries. For example, outsourcing was an important topic in the 2012 U.S. Republican presidential debates, as candidates discussed why Apple hires half a million low-paid workers in the Far East to assemble its products.

What role does a project champion play for a project? Why is this important?

Some projects have a senior manager called a champion who acts as a key advocate for a project. The sponsor can serve as the champion, but often another manager can more successfully take on this role. Its important because typically without it, they will fail

Which one do you think is the easiest to understand/deal with? Which one do you think is the most difficult?

Symbolic Political

Symbolic frame:

Symbols and meanings related to events. Culture, language, traditions, and image are all parts of this frame.

Record Criteria

The degree to which employees are encouraged to be aggres- sive, innovative, and risk seeking.

Risk Tolerance

The degree, amount, or volume of risk that an organization or individual will withstand.

How can organizational standards help new project managers?

Top manage- ment must support the development of these standards and guidelines, and encourage or even enforce their use. For example, an organization might require all potential project information to be reported in a standard format to make project portfolio management decisions. If a proj- ect manager does not submit a potential project in the proper format, it could be rejected.

What can project managers do to improve their chance of success?

Using a more holistic approach helps project managers integrate business and organizational issues into their planning. It also helps them look at projects as a series of interrelated phases. When you integrate business and organizational issues into project management planning and look at projects as a series of interrelated phases, you do a better job of ensuring project success.

The book states that IT projects are diverse. What type of diversity do they reference?

a wide diversity of hardware types can be involved—personal computers, mainframe computers, network equipment, kiosks, laptops, tablets, or smartphones. The nature of software development projects is even more diverse than hardware-oriented projects.

project organizational structure

also is hierarchical, but instead of functional man- agers or vice presidents reporting to the CEO, program managers report to the CEO. Their staffs have a variety of skills needed to complete the projects within their programs.

What role do periodic management reviews of projects play? What primary decision is made with each review?

are very important for keeping projects on track and determining if they should be continued, redirected, or terminated. By break- ing projects into phases, top management can make sure that the projects are still com- patible with other needs of the organization.

The three spheres of systems management?

business, organization, technology

Systems Approach

emerged in the 1950s to describe a holistic and analytical approach to solving complex problems that includes using a systems philosophy, systems analysis, and systems management.

What are the three most common organizational structures used by companies? Which structures have you worked in?

functional, project, matrix