Research Paper on "IT Project Management Metrics"

Research Paper 5 pages (1325 words) Sources: 5

[EXCERPT] . . . .

It Project Management

Project Metrics

Project managers rely on performance indicators to gauge the progress of their activities. These metrics are essential for measuring the quality of performance and tracking the impact of variances. Every aspect of a work environment can be analyzed and broken down into statistical data. They are also one of the primary tools used to review progress with stakeholders and determine required goals. The effectiveness of process improvement initiatives and efficiency changes can be detected by analyzing key performance indicators.

The first challenge project managers face is selecting the best performance indicators to measure. This varies widely based on the particulars of the organization and the projects involved. For instance, in a call-center environment, performance indicators for agents may include call time, customer satisfaction and accuracy of transfers. In most scenarios, a framework of indicators is established with weights based on importance. This allows managers to quickly see trends in overall scorecards as well as drilling down into specific teams or individual measurements.

Single value indicators measure goals that will improve the organization. The performance being measured should be within the control of the organization. For example, a hospital may select a single quality management issue such as intravenous infections as the single value indicator. Measurements should be taken regularly, although the frequency may vary depending on its relevance. For the above example, measurements would likely be taken weekly and reported for this time period. In addition, the indicator should have a clearly defined purpose and be easily understood. This is key to an effective presentation once the data is in analytical form to ensure that the analyst's data is understood and proper applications can be utilized.

Once measurements have been gathered and recorded over a substantial time period, further analysis can be done based on trends in the data. Historical performance indicators will exhibit trends that result from variances. Certain types of variance such as seasonal cycles may be readily identifiable. This is especially true with indicators that involve sales. On the other hand, variances caused by unexpected circumstances such as shortages or staffing changes may be much more difficult to control. When analyzing long-term trends, it is helpful to have a background in graphical trend analysis so as to properly identify the optimal programing function for forecasting.

One industry that relies heavily on such indicators is call centers. Whether it is a form of support, customer service, or even outbound sales, there are several aspects of operations that are both simple to measure and meaningful to the productivity of the business. Inbound call centers use their historical call volume along with variances such as the number of recent new customers to forecast how many calls they will receive each day. This data is in turn used for staffing purposes. Contracts typically specify margins for call wait time vs. abandoned calls. In other words, their must be enough staff answering calls to prevent long hold times despite fluctuations in call volume, but at the same time, not have too many staff sitting around waiting for calls when the volume slows.

Similarly, the performance of call centers is measured in many ways to rate the efficiency and quality. For example, average call times, hold times, and transfer times can all be tracked to ensure calls are being handled efficiently. The quality of the calls can be measured by grading of random samples of calls against call center standards. Surveys are also very common to gauge the satisfaction level that resulted from the interaction.

All of this data is beneficial for the management team in several ways. First, realistic goals can be set in each performance indicator for employees to work towards. Second, the historical data can be used to help forecast trends in performance before it becomes a serious issue. In addition, performance metrics provide an effective indicator of outstanding employees which can be used when selecting applicants for special projects or promotions.

Microsoft Project was one of… READ MORE

How to Reference "IT Project Management Metrics" Research Paper in a Bibliography

Related Research Papers:

Project Management Human Resource Training Research Paper

Project Management

Human Resource Training in Project Management

The case analysis presented in Workplace learning to improve it project management (Damare, 2008) of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental… read more

Research Paper 3 pages (967 words) Sources: 5 Topic: Management / Organizations

---

Project Management Essay

A good project priority system supports the management efforts and develops a culture in which every member of the organization contributes to the goals of the organization (Gray, & Larson,… read more

Essay 6 pages (2018 words) Sources: 2 Topic: Management / Organizations

---

Project Management Strategies Used for the Sydney Research Paper

Project Management Strategies Used for the Sydney Harbour Tunnel

This study examines the project management strategies that were used for the construction and administration of the Sydney Harbour Tunnel. The… read more

Research Paper 10 pages (2745 words) Sources: 20 Topic: Management / Organizations

---

Project Management Current Events Article Review

He focused on items such as (Ellis, 2014):

Was the right version of the template being used?

Had the version number been updated?

Had the guidance text been removed?

Was… read more

Article Review 2 pages (642 words) Sources: 2 Topic: Management / Organizations

---

Project Management Practices of the Navy Marine Intranet Case Study

Project Management Practices of the Navy Marine Intranet Project

Phase II Deliverable

The Navy-Marine Corps Intranet (NMCI) initially included the strategic vision of unifying enterprise voice, video and data integration… read more

Case Study 8 pages (2187 words) Sources: 3 Style: APA Topic: Management / Organizations

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>