Knowledge Sharing Tools for IT Project Management

2013

More and more organizations are changing their way of managing projects, switching from a traditional and controlled to a more flexible bottom-up paradigm, where collaboration and knowledge sharing between internal and external project members are critical factors. In addition, the role of technology is increasing in the context of project management due to greater challenges in today's technology-enabled work environment, where technology tools are habitually used for collaboration, communication, and deployment of project management practices The purpose of this thesis is to identify and analyze current requirements of project management in project-based organizations regarding collaboration and knowledge management, as well as the impact of these requirements in use by practitioners on improving the management of projects. The research design and methodology were supported by main research questions. In order to collect the evidence to answer the questions a comparative case study approach was selected, which included several project-based organizations in Finland belonging mainly to the IT industry. In addition, the evolution and roadmap of a project management information system was presented and analyzed. The findings reveal the influence of collaboration and knowledge management to be incorporated in the management of projects through the use of socio-collaborative tools. An integrative project management framework combining these tools is presented.

Knowledge management is the process of capturing, sharing, developing, and using the knowledge efficiently. Knowledge sharing as one of the important parts of the knowledge management system means that an individual, team, and the organization share the knowledge with other members in the form of activities through the various ways. On the other hand, a project team is a team whose members usually belongs to different departments and are assigned to join the same project. In a project team, knowledge sharing is very important because it provides a link between the member and the project team by sharing knowledge to reduce cost and increase the performance. However, despite the importance of the knowledge sharing mechanisms and techniques in the project teams, to the best of our knowledge, the comprehensive and systematic research and study about the antecedents and backgrounds of knowledge sharing mechanisms between project teams is rare. Therefore, the main aim of this paper is to provide the comprehensive and detailed review of the state-of-the-art knowledge sharing mechanisms in the project team as well as directions for future research. Also, this paper presents a systematic literature review (SLR) on the knowledge sharing mechanisms in project teams up to the end of 2015. We identified 71 papers, which are reduced to 28 primary studies through our paper selection process. By providing the state-of-the-art information and the challenges issues, this survey will directly support academics, researchers and practicing professionals in their understanding of developments in knowledge sharing mechanisms and techniques in project teams.

Knowledge and Process Management, 2018

Funding information CNPq; CAPES Because knowledge sharing (KS) can leverage project results, this paper aims to analyze the relationship between KS and the project management process groups (PMPGs). This qualitative research, conducted in large information technology (IT) companies, consists of two phases: (a) an exploratory phase, based on content analysis of nine interviews and documents; and (b) a case study phase based on two cases, where data collected from six interviews and documents were analyzed using content analysis. The research facilitated the identification of the knowledge types involved in each process group as well as opportunities to influence knowledge conversion, thus enabling enhancement of the results obtained from KS in the organization. Furthermore, we identified opportunities to share interproject knowledge that can avoid rework, optimize time, and reduce costs. The study's findings will allow managers to define opportunities for KS in organizations, by identifying when knowledge is being stored and so facilitating the retrieval process. Identifying how employees share knowledge also provides an opportunity to stimulate and inhibit certain behaviors and so create control mechanisms to enhance knowledge management. Lastly, resource allocation is facilitated by identifying the IT necessary to support KS in project teams and which stakeholders are required for each process group. This research combines two different domains by focusing on the means by which KS can leverage results in project management. It also proposes a new, empirically tested, relationship for KS and PMPG, as well as expanding our understanding of the influence KS has on project management.

1. If you were in Tim's shoes, what feelings do you think you would experi ence? 2. What questions would you have? 3. What might help reduce your anxiety and uncertainty as an inexperienced project manager? 4. Where do you begin a new project? THE SOFTWARE CRISIS Table 1.1 Summary of the CHAOS Study Results Average Original Features Cost of Average Average and Company Develop-Cost Schedule Functions Successful Challenged Impaired Size ment Overruns Overrun Included Projects a Projects b Projects c Large $

The potential importance of managing knowledge for competitive advantage has been widely discussed according to Nonaka and Takeuchi (1995), with the sharing and application of knowledge being widely identified in recent years as key sources of sustained competitive advantage (Hall & Sapsed 2005, p57). While Alavi and Leidner (2001, p216) agree that much theory already exists on knowledge management, they argue that little empirical work has been undertaken and hence there are large gaps in the body of knowledge in this area. Bresnen, Edelman, Newell, Scarbrough, and Swan (2003) further suggest that only recently has attention been specifically directed towards managing knowledge in project environments. Evidence of poor IT project success continues to be provided by many researchers even though today's corporations recognize that to be successful, they need to understand modern project management techniques (Schwalbe 2002, p2). With Kotnour (2000) finding that project performanc...

This paper aims to present the innovative Project Management approach of a large Italian ICT services organization. Such approach heavily leverages on knowledge in order to implement an Experience Factory, mainly devoted to gathering, improving and disseminating project management knowledge, not just lessons learned, at all levels of the organization. All project management aspects, such as processes, best practices, risks, project profiles, metrics, issues, politics, WBS, software products, lessons learned, quality criteria, decision criteria, and the sort, are properly organized in a knowledge base, in order to allow effective on-line support and maximum reuse of knowledge and artifacts. The Experience Factory infrastructure integrates the knowledge base with a project management environment supporting all project roles. Role-specific workbenches are available to support and guide on demand the users in the execution of the activities related to their roles. This is accomplished by means of workflows and other specific knowledge derived by the knowledge base. The approach is basically under control of the Project Support Office which, among other things, looks after its basic infrastructure and the proper knowledge organization and exploitation. As experience is gathered and new knowledge is available, a specific role in the project office, e.g. the knowledge engineer, improves the knowledge base as appropriate.

2017

Project Management is a field of management dealing with using available knowledge, skills, tools and technology to fill needs and expectations of projects principles. The main goal of this article is to show how knowledge management powered by AI can be used in projects, why it is so important nowadays and how it can impact on the projects effectiveness in a positive way. In the first part of the paper the author focuses on definition and division of knowledge. The second part relates to project management basics. The last one focuses on role of knowledge management in projects.

Case Studies in …, 2005

AMCIS 2010 Proceedings, 2010

∗University of Technology, CBarclay@utech.edu.jm †Virginia Commonwealth University, KMOsei@vcu.edu This paper is posted at AIS Electronic Library (AISeL). http://aisel.aisnet.org /amcis2010/452 ... An Exploration of KM Practices in IT Projects

Effective and efficient Project Management is vital for future prosperity and driving sustainable economic growth. Properly delivered projects underpin the nation's economic prosperity, providing both primary and secondary benefits to industry and the public.