October 2002
Volume 18
Number 7
Evaluating and Prioritizing ITS Projects
Diane Barbour, Rochester Institute of Technology
The framework for planning and carrying out information technology projects has not yet become a fixture in higher education management. CIOs still need to build that structure on their campuses to create the conditions for successful projects.
The memory of disappointing outcomes and flawed processes too often hangs over new IT projects. But from those same experiences the role of CIO has come into its own. Colleges and universities have realized that they need someone who is able to frame and shape the full context for thinking about IT. In the past, too many stakeholders were overlooked in project planning or were allowed to stand and let the IT people go it alone.
The CIO has the responsibility to take the viewpoint of the whole enterprise, to envision and establish the models for good process in IT decision-making. The conditions for success cannot be left to chance but instead have to be built carefully. Like an architect, the CIO has to devise the methods, models, and plans to make something solid from a proposed design. TW
Why do we need a process for evaluating and prioritizing IT projects?
There are four reasons to develop a prioritization/decision model for
evaluating IT projects and initiatives.
First, technology-spending trends are changing. With the current weak economy, organizations are taking a closer look at technology spending. After many years of continued growth, spending on technology has reached a plateau. For this reason more organizations are closely examining how, when and why they make technology investments.
Second, the years of major spending to build infrastructure and install major ERP systems are behind us. Now that the infrastructure is in place the focus has turned to using that infrastructure to advance the organization’s mission.
Third, organizations have learned some hard lessons from installing
costly ERP systems. They now know how important it is to manage expectations and to plan for cultural change as well as technology change.
Finally, organizations (particularly in higher ed) can no longer compete solely on infrastructure (e.g. most wired, most wireless). Students expect the appropriate infrastructure and access to be there for them. In order to remain competitive we now need to become more creative about how we add value using the infrastructure that already exists.
What are the specific objectives related to developing an
evaluation/prioritization model?
In the past not all members of the university community felt included in
IT decisions. Many feel that their needs have not always been adequately
identified and addressed. In addition to recognizing and including all the
needs, we need a methodology for determining relative priorities regarding
which systems and strategic initiatives to address first and why.
Some specific objectives related to developing a prioritization and decision model include:
• to make sure the IT organization is fairly and objectively considering the needs of all university stakeholders;
• to make sure that IT projects and initiatives, and the resources needed to accomplish them, fully support the goals, mission, and current strategic initiatives of the university;
• to better understand the non-technical factors, including environmental and cultural, that might impact the success of an IT project;
• to identify and understand competitive pressures and special or urgent needs;
• to ensure that the IT staff has the necessary technical skills and infrastructure to successfully complete a project;
• to make sure that the university is making a sound investment in the right technology at the right time;
• to make efficient and effective use of scarce IT resources; and
• to document how, why, and under what circumstances, technology decisions were made.
What are the elements of an evaluation and prioritization model?
Alignment with Mission – To what degree will the project or
initiative support the university’s basic mission and goals? Does the IT
initiative support a current university strategic initiative?
Cultural Readiness – Is the campus prepared for this initiative? What cultural factors need to be considered or prepared for before IT pursues this project? To what degree will the system or initiative be enabled or blocked by a cultural factor?
IT Readiness – The degree of IT readiness can be either an enabler or a barrier. Does the IT organization have the necessary skill sets to ensure the project’s success? If not, what corrective actions need to be taken before we begin this project?
Sequence – Is there some other project or other preparation that needs to happen before we pursue this particular project? Are all the necessary technical elements in place? Should this system or initiative be advanced or delayed due to sequencing issues?
Urgency – Is there some special need or potential competitive advantage that would make this initiative a high priority? Are there benefits to advancing or delaying this system or initiative?
Once developed, how is the model used?
A subset of the model builders is asked to participate in a scoring
group. This group will determine the relative weights to assign to each
criterion. They will also learn how to score pending IT initiatives.
This scoring process will routinely take place once or twice per year. It will also be activated for urgent or special need initiatives. In addition, measures and sensors will be developed for each initiative.
Measures are the statistics and reports that describe the degree to which each factor is satisfied by the investment. Sensors are the sources of data that support the measures. For example, market share, satisfaction ratings and alignment with current strategies would be measures. Market reports, focus groups and leadership committee review are examples of sensors.
The model will be reviewed and updated annually with criterion and weights adjusted if needed. Special initiatives announced during the President’s annual address will be added into the model. The scoring group members will remain as a team for a minimum of two years.
A project initiation form is being developed to capture input for the model. This form is designed to be filled out and submitted by both ITS and non-ITS faculty, staff and students.
Faculty members often attend a conference or visit another campus and see a unique system or technology that might benefit their university. Similarly, staff members attend conferences and often come away with ideas (or lessons learned) to share. Students often suggest a new technology initiative. There needs to be a mechanism in place to routinely capture that information.
Once projects and initiatives are aligned with mission, have no barriers due to cultural or IT readiness issues, are of sufficient urgency and are not dependent on infrastructure that is not available are identified, financial factors are considered.
These factors will include the total cost to implement (which would include any cost to overcome cultural or IT readiness issues) and, where feasible, a cost vs. benefit and ROI calculation.
This evaluation and prioritization process is the first step in the IT Project Lifecycle Methodology. The IT organization also needs a plan to design and implement a project assessment process.
The assessment process should attempt to compare the benefits of a project or initiative to the original objectives. The assessment process should also serve to identify other criteria that might need to be considered to ensure a project’s success.
Diane Barbour is Chief Information Officer at the Rochester Institute of Technology.
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