Discussion Board Questions

1. "Managing Projects and Requirements Gathering"

Please respond to the following:

· According to Roberts, the industry deems only 25% of technology projects successful. Analyze why this statistic is so low. Suggest strategies that an IT department could use in order to increase the success rate of projects. Give your opinion on whether the structure of the PMO contributes to this statistic. Justify your response.

· Imagine that you are a senior business analyst with a multinational corporation. Examine the process of requirements gathering discussed in Chapter 9 of the Roberts text. Suggest your strategy for gathering requirements from across divisional lines. Determine at least two obstacles that you may encounter, and propose one method for overcoming each. Provide a rationale for your response.

2. "Methodology Mind-Set and Management Processes"

Please respond to the following:

· According to Kerzner, "The importance of a good methodology cannot be understated." In your own words, examine the significance of this statement as it relates to integrative information technology solutions within an organization. Provide one example of an integrative information technology solution to justify your response.

· As a Chief Information Officer (CIO) for a large organization, compare and contrast three of the five main management processes described in Chapter 5 of Kerzner's text. Suggest one strategy to apply the business value of each selected management process to your current or future organization.

3. "Vendor Relationships and Marketing IT's Value"

Please respond to the following:

•Many organizations use information technology vendors to develop company solutions. Determine at least three challenges associated with using vendors. Analyze the relationship between competitive advantage and vendor relationship management overall.

•Specify at least three approaches for marketing IT's value. Propose method for implementing each approach within an organization. Provide one example of each approach to support your answer.

4. "Social Organizations and Core Competencies"

Please respond to the following:

Investigate the importance of effective change leadership in relation to an organization's adoption of social media initiatives. Next, suggest two ethical issues that a CIO may encounter when implementing social media initiatives. Propose strategy for addressing each identified issue. Provide a rationale for your response.

Select three of the twelve core competencies for IT professionals from Chapter 14 of the Roberts text. Rank each one according to its importance for IT professionals to possess in order to develop their careers and compete in the job market. Justify your ranking.

5. "Cultural Change and Project Sponsorship"

Please respond to the following:

Examine the primary reasons why project management causes a cultural change and the impact of that change on integrative information technology. Support your response with at least one example of a cultural change that project management can cause.

The literature affirms that project sponsorship is a major component for the successful completion of projects. Select an organization where you would aspire to serve as a CIO. Explore the role of a project sponsor, and highlight the significant reasons why such a position is pivotal to your organization's success. Provide a rationale for your response.

6. "Project Management Best Practices and Recognizing Project Migraines"

Please respond to the following:

As a newly minted CIO, you have been hired to join a company without a history of project best practices. Suggest strategy and process for your Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to develop standards for your organization that is without any such organizational project history. Justify the main reasons why your suggestion would be effective.

Reflect upon Kerzner's "Sources of Smaller Migraines" from Chapter 2. Select three issues from the list. Then, specify the reasons why these issues are more critical to control than the others. Justify your response.

7. "Project Evaluation and Microsoft Solutions Framework (MSF)"

Please respond to the following:

Analyze the relationship between a Feasibility Study and a Cost-Benefit Analysis. Investigate the main reasons why both of these evaluations must tie to the organizational strategic plan. Suggest two issues that an organization may face if these evaluations are not tied to its strategic plan. Provide a rationale for your response.

Review the MSF utilized by Microsoft Corporation in Chapter 15 of Kerzner's text. Give your opinion as to the degree to which the MSF is versatile. Speculate on whether or not other companies could use MSF, and examine why or why not.