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Mismanaging a Technology Project: The Case of ABC Inc. John H. Benamati and Ram Pakath Idea Group Publishing Mismanaging a Technology Project 1 IDEA GROUP PUBLISHING 1331 E. Chocolate Avenue, Hershey PA 17033-1117, USA Tel: 717/533-8845; Fax 717/533-8661; URL-http://www.idea-group.com #IT5565 g n i h s i l b u P p u o r G a e d I t h g i r y Cop g n i h s i l b u P p u o r G a e d I t h g i r y p o C g n i h s i l b u Executive Summary P up o r G a e d I t h g i r y p g o n i C h s i l b u P up o r G a e d I t h g i r y Background p o C Mismanaging a Technology Project: The Case of ABC Inc. John H. Benamati University of Kentucky Ram Pakath University of Kentucky John Benamati is an independent information technology consultant. His research investigates the effects of rapidly changing IT on the management of information from an IT providers’ perspective. Previously, Mr. Benamati was an information systems professional for over 12 years and has held positions in internal IS organizations, IT technical marketing, and IT consulting and services. Dr. Ram Pakath is an Associate Professor of Decision Science and Information Systems at the University of Kentucky. His current research focuses on hybrid and adaptive problem processors and multimedia systems. Dr. Pakath’s work has appeared in such forums as Decision Sciences, Decision Support Systems, European Journal of Operational Research, IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, Information and Management, and Information Systems Research. He is author of the book Computerized Support Systems for Business: A Concise Introduction (Copley) and an Associate Editor of Decision Support Systems. A common misconception is that technology can solve problems. Very often, the people and processes involved have significant impacts on the success or failure of a particular piece of technology in addressing a problem. This case is a classic example of how not to manage a technology project. It describes how a client, a vendor, and a sub-vendor exercised poor judgment in dealing with one another in applying client-server technology to a project of mammoth proportions. In the end, there were no real winners and the project, which came close to abortion, is now progressing to a slow finish, many valuable months and dollars behind what were originally estimated. One learns that it is not merely enough getting a customer “involved” in a project from the very beginning. Learning who the key players are, engendering and fostering a feeling of mutual trust and commitment to the end result (i.e., a successful project-development partnership), educating the customer about technology and process re-engineering possibilities, exercising adequate authority and control, and, perhaps, iterative, multivendor-based project design and implementation are all critical elements of a successful technology venture. This case is based on reality. We have, however, changed the identities of the parties involved and other key information to preserve anonymity. The organization of interest is the State Health Services Department of a state located in the southern region of the United States. The department was formed in the early 1900s. From a 10-person, Copyright © Idea Group Publishing. Copying without written permission of Idea Group Publishing is prohibited. 2 Benamati/Pakath 1-office startup, located in the capitol, the organization grew over the years into a large conglomerate with 125 sub-organizations. Each sub-unit is a County Health Department, located in and serving one of the 125 counties in the state. Today, the entire operation involves 5,500 employees of whom about 900 are doctors. The organization seeks to provide affordable health care to any and all residents in the state. While it does not deny health ca