An approach for analysis and understanding of the software Project actuality

Abstract

Nowadays studies confirm that changes continue to occur in project management in both the practitioner and research fields. Organizations increasingly use projects and project management discipline to achieve business objectives but results often fall short of goals. Although project management has become a core business process for many organizations at strategic and operational level, there is still much to understand about project actuality in software development organizations. Besides, much is written about how to manage projects, but too little on what really happens in Project Actuality. Project Actuality debut in the Rethinking Project Management (RPM) agenda in 2006 aiming at understanding what really happens at project context. This research intends to understand, explain and explore this phenomenon. In order to understand the challenges faced by software project nowadays, we have to go beyond the triple constant (effort, cost and scope), its processes and technology. In pursuance of project management we must understand team’s context, routine, problems, organizational culture, the entire project actuality phenomenon. Traditional theories used to understand and explain the world of management make different assumptions about actuality, scientific knowledge, ethics, values and context. This research’s main objective is to create an approach to investigate, observe and analyze software project actuality and to support team reflection and project rethinking, and by using the approach, unveil the findings of six small software development organizations. The finding will give visibility on project actuality in six organizations, its projects and teams. Even though the findings are context dependent, some causes, effects, disturbance factors can help the understanding of this sector and assist researches and practitioners to see new ways of thinking project management. In order to achieve that goal, an Exploratory Review (ER) and a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) were conducted on project actuality. Based on the knowledge acquired on the ER and SLR, an approach was defined and refined enabling us to observe, analyze and understand project actuality and its contexts. Six case studies using the approach were conducted in order to refine the approach and to explain the critical issues surrounding the actuality in software projects management in micro and small organizations. Action research helped the team to engage on reflection and action, in order to evolve as project and organization based on the project actuality observed.