Preface
Welcome to Enterprise IT Projects: Messing Up Optional. This handbook, Project Foundation, reshapes the delivery of large and complex IT projects by combining technical expertise with creative approaches to established industry standards. It provides practical guidance for addressing common challenges in enterprise IT environments.
Project Foundation establishes three core principles for effective enterprise IT project delivery:
- People: Successful projects start with defined entry criteria for specialist roles based on qualifications, skills, and experience. This approach builds a culture of integrity and accountability, where performance is assessed against delivered outputs for consistent quality.
- Process: Structured frameworks, processes, roles, responsibilities, and deliverables enable reliable project delivery. These elements are tailored to suit specific project types to achieve successful outcomes.
- Technology: Project tools serve as enablers that support frameworks and processes. They supplement, rather than replace, technical and discipline-specific skills within the project team.
Project Foundation introduces the Project Assurance Manager to uphold quality standards throughout the project phases. This role provides dedicated oversight, addressing the common issue of deprioritising quality assurance when project managers face conflicts between time and cost constraints. While the Project Management Office (PMO) conducts health checks, its role is limited due to a lack of direct, hands-on involvement. The Project Assurance Manager offers active, embedded oversight for impartial quality monitoring beyond the traditional responsibilities of the project manager and PMO.
Project Foundation promotes a proactive approach to IT project delivery by streamlining complex processes, enhancing team capabilities, and aligning objectives with measurable outcomes—making ‘messing up’ optional.
