Building project management tools and techniques capacity to drive Information and Communications Technology projects in the Department of Social Development, South Africa

Abstract

The study investigates the importance of project management tools and techniques (PMTTs) in the success of information communication technology (ICT) projects in the Department of Social Development (DSD) in South Africa. It identifies the challenges of using PMTTs in ICT projects and suggests ways to effectively incorporate PMTTs in ICT project success. The non-probability purposive sampling method was used to identify 16 officials and stakeholders in ICT project management, whose responses to were thematically analysed. The study found that the most-used PMTTs for delivering ICT projects were the Agile project management methodology, collaboration tools like email systems and the Microsoft Teams platform, work breakdown structures, project dashboards, the Waterfall model, the Scrum framework, and cost-benefit analysis. Using PMTTs in project execution has many benefits, including increased project success probability, enhanced project predictability, boosted stakeholder confidence, heightened efficiency, improved communication, and the formalisation of the project methodology. The study identified a range of implementation challenges, including a lack of enforcement or inadequate implementation of the tools, a dearth of general expertise in the usage of specialised tools, misalignment of departmental and ICT strategies, lack of stakeholder participation, non-adherence to project governance, lack of continued training, inconsistencies with reporting, resource incapacitation, poor planning, and changes in scope by business users. To bolster PMTTs’ capacity to drive ICT projects in the DSD, the study recommends enforcing the use of all PMTTs, recruiting and retaining talent, involving all stakeholders, providing advanced training to all users (including management and not just ICT officials), and strengthening ICT governance.