سیستم های اطلاعات مدیریت پروژه :مطالعه تجربی تأثیرآنها بر مدیران پروژه و موفقیت پروژه

Project management information systems (PMIS) usually acquired by organizations as software packages are meant to provide managers with the decision-making support needed in planning, organizing, and controlling projects. However, the actual contribution of PMIS to project success or performance is still unknown. The purpose of this study is to empirically assess the quality of the PMIS presently used in organizations and to examine their impact on project managers and project performance, based on a PMIS success model. This model is composed of five constructs: the quality of the PMIS, the quality of the PMIS information output, the use of the PMIS, the individual impacts of the PMIS and the impacts of the PMIS on project success. Analysis of questionnaire data obtained from 39 project managers confirms the significant contribution of PMIS to successful project management. Improvements in effectiveness and efficiency in managerial tasks were observed here in terms of better project planning, scheduling, monitoring, and control. Improvements were also observed in terms of timelier decision-making. Advantages obtained from PMIS use are not limited to individual performance but also include project performance. These systems were found to have direct impacts on project success, as they contribute to improving budget control and meeting project deadlines as well as fulfilling technical specifications.

Globalization and the internationalization of markets have increased competitive pressures on business enterprises. This has led companies to engage in projects that are critical to their performance, if not their survival. These projects, common in industries such as engineering services, information technology, construction, and pharmaceutical have one thing in common: they need to be managed, that is, they need to be planned, staffed, organized, monitored, controlled, and evaluated [1]. In order to succeed, companies must deliver projects on time and within budget, and meet specifications while managing project risk. While large amounts of time and resources are dedicated to selecting and designing projects, it remains of paramount importance that projects be adequately managed in organizations if they are to achieve their performance objectives. In this regard, what are we to think of the management of the Athens Olympic Games, first estimated at a cost of 3 billion €, that finally ended costing 12 billion € [2]? Of the Canadian Arms Registry, an information system first estimated at “no more than 2 million dollars a year” in 1995, that finally cost close to one billion $ (CAN) 10 years later [3]? Or of the 275% cost overrun in Boston’s Big Dig (Central Artery/Tunnel Project), totaling 11 billion $ (US) as of 2006 [4]? Thus, “project management remains a highly problematical endeavour” [5]. In the information technology (IT) industry, Gartner Research estimates that 75% of large IT projects managed with the support of a project management information system (PMIS) will succeed, while 75% of projects without such support will fail [6]. Using PMIS to manage projects, while not sufficient to insure project success, has thus become a necessity. Project management, which has long been considered an important characteristic of successful companies [7], is more than ever necessary to efficiently and effectively manage these projects and to support project managers in their decision-making. As powerful project management software has been developed and diffused in all types of organizations, be they large or small, private or public, they are meant to make a significant contribution to project management. Similar to other information systems (IS), a successful PMIS should have individual impacts in terms of satisfied users and effective use. But a successful PMIS should also have organizational impacts, that is, impacts on project success in terms of respecting budget, schedule, and specifications. While PMIS are increasingly used by project managers in all types of industry, not much is known on the characteristics of these systems that contribute to project success. Thus the purpose of this study is first, to empirically assess the quality of the PMIS presently used in organizations and second, to examine their impact on project managers and project performance.

The research aim of this study was to determine the actual impacts of IT-based project management information systems upon project managers and project performance. More specifically, one objective was to identify the main determinants of PMIS and determine the extent to which these systems assist project managers in terms of increased efficiency, productivity and efficiency. Another objective was to get a better understanding of the contribution of these systems to the success of projects. Following the conclusions of previous research that PMIS success models should continue to be validated and challenged, the results of this research show that the use of a project management information system is in fact advantageous to project managers. Improvements in effectiveness and efficiency in managerial tasks were observed here in terms of better project planning, scheduling, monitoring, and control. Improvements in productivity were also observed in terms of timelier decision-making. Advantages obtained from PMIS use are not limited to individual performance but also include project performance. These systems were found to have direct impacts on project success, as they contribute to improving budget control and meeting project deadlines as well as fulfilling technical specifications. One can therefore conclude that PMIS make a significant contribution to project success and should continue to be the object of project management research.