Page 334 - Global Project Management Handbook

SUCCESS FACTORS IN VIRTUAL GLOBAL SOFTWARE PROJECTS 16-21

Some organizations use the mechanism of project sponsors from the executive ranks
in the case of strategically important projects or middle-management ranks if the project
is not of top importance. In both cases, the project sponsor acts as the project advocate,
removing higher obstacles to the project and helping to solve problems that the project
manager alone cannot resolve. To fully use the sponsor’s capacity, the VGS team should
identify what information the project sponsor needs and when and make sure that the
information flows smoothly. If the sponsor does not exist, the VGS team should identify
who in the executive ranks is willing to act as the project champion and do all it takes to
make that approach function.
CSF16: Use the Available Resources Effectively. Another enabling factor for the
organization that executes VGS projects is the effective use of human resources. One
executive noted, “It is very easy for the remote teams to feel unimportant and left
out.” The VGS project team needs to expend extra effort to prevent this from happen-
ing. Some of the best practices are (1) senior team members spending time with teams
on all sites, (2) recognition of the work done by all sites, and (3) enforcing team cohe-
sion through team-building activities.
Especially when different sites are not parts of the same organization, alignment of
goals and roles becomes very important. If the ultimate objectives of different sites are
naturally in alignment with what is expected of them within the context of the VGS proj-
ect, it has a positive impact on the effectiveness of the site.
Another important factor for increasing the effectiveness of the team is training.
One project manager reported, “We made sure that everybody was up to speed on the
development environment that we were going to use, and that made a big difference.”

Process

Two interdependent tactical factors (see Fig. 16.3) support the strategic success factor of
process. The first one—building a relatively standard but flexible and customized project
management process—is essentially a roadmap for all VGS projects on how to create a
predictable process but retain flexibility in situations where the projects are unique. Such
a standard but flexible process drives the second tactical factor—planning for and control
of the project and its software product.

CSF17 CSF18

CSF17: Build a Relatively Standard But Flexible and Customized Project Management
Process. Project management process is a sequence of project activities that culmi-
nates in project deliverables. In successful VGS projects, the project management
process is a delivery mechanism for project strategy (Kerzner, 2000), including sever-
al elements:

● Project life-cycle phases
● Managerial and technical activities
● Deliverables
● Milestones