Deck 14: Project Management, business Value, and Managing Change

Question 1

With proper management,a systems development project takes longer to complete and most often exceeds the allocated budget.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The information systems steering committee is composed of information systems managers and end-user managers responsible for overseeing several specific information systems projects.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

A project is a planned series of related activities for achieving a specific business objective.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

As a member of senior management,the CIO is responsible for strategic level IS planning and for ensuring that all IS plans,systems,and operations support the organization's overall strategy.

Question 5

The critical success factors approach argues that an organization's information requirements are determined by a small number of critical success factors (CSFs)of managers.

Question 6

Companies typically are presented with very few projects for solving problems and improving performance.

Question 7

Between 30 and 40 percent of all software projects are "runaway" projects that far exceed original schedule and budget projections.

Question 8

The project team is supervised by a project management group composed of information systems managers and end-user managers responsible for overseeing several specific information systems projects.

Question 9

The MIS steering committee sets policy and priorities for the IS department,including approving budgets for major projects and hearing progress reports on those major projects.

Question 10

At the apex of this structure is the corporate strategic planning group and the information system steering committee.

Question 11

Between 30 and 40 percent of all software projects are "runaway" projects that far exceed original schedule and budget projections.

Question 12

Again,like every other department,the IS department should conduct periodic planning at all levels.

Question 13

An information systems plan contains a statement of corporate goals and specifies how information technology will support the attainment of those goals.

Question 14

In nearly every organization,information systems projects take much less time and money to implement than originally anticipated,or the completed system does not work properly.

Question 15

An information system project's scope is directly related to its business requirements.

Question 16

The development of a new system must be carefully managed and orchestrated,and the way a project is executed is likely to be the least important factor influencing its outcome.

Question 17

The critical success factors approach argues that an organization's information requirements are determined by a small number of critical success factors (CSFs)of managers.

Question 18

The user interface is the part of the system with which programmers interact.

Question 19

Project management refers to the application of knowledge,skills,tools,and techniques to achieve specific targets within specified budget and time constraints.

Question 20

Information systems project costs do not include the cost of hardware,software,and work space.

Question 21

Real options pricing models use the concept of options valuation borrowed from the financial industry.

Question 22

More timely information is a tangible benefit of information systems.

Question 23

User concerns and designer concerns are usually the same at the beginning of the project but may diverge later as the system is built.

Question 24

Counterimplementation refers to a deliberate strategy to thwart the implementation of an information system or an innovation in an organization.

Question 25

Transaction and clerical systems that displace labour and save space typically produce more measurable,tangible benefits than management information systems.

Question 26

The relationship between users and information systems specialists has traditionally been a problem area for information systems implementation efforts.

Question 27

A Gantt chart graphically depicts project tasks and their interrelationships.

Question 28

The larger the systems project,the more risk the project runs in terms of being completed on time,within budget,and according to project requirements.

Question 29

The systems analyst is the catalyst for the entire change process and is responsible for making sure that everyone involved accepts the changes created by a new system.

Question 30

If an intended benefit of an IT project is improved decision making,managers should develop a set of metrics to quantify the value of an improved decision.

Question 31

The goal of sociotechnical design is to create systems with better user interfaces and contribute to fewer health issues.

Question 32

A benefit of using TCO analysis to evaluate an information technology investment is that it is able to incorporate intangible and "soft" factors such as benefits and complexity costs.

Question 33

Acquisition plans,milestones and timing and organizational realignment are all part of the Management Strategy section of an information systems plan.

Question 34

The design of jobs,health issues,and the end-user interface of information systems are all considerations in the field of ergonomics.

Question 35

Current situation,current business organization and changing environments are all part of the Strategic Business Plan Rationale section of an information systems plan.

Question 36

Intangible benefits cannot be immediately quantified but may lead to quantifiable gains in the long run.

Question 37

Overview of plan contents,current business organization and future organization,and key business processes,are all part of the Purpose of the Plan section of an Information systems plan.

Question 38

Many information systems projects succeed because organizations incorrectly assess their business value or because firms fail to manage the organizational change surrounding the introduction of new technology.

Question 39

Mandatory use of a system is one effective way of overcoming user resistance to an information system.

Question 40

Scoring models are used most commonly to support decisions rather than as the final arbiters of system selection.

Question 41

Companies should not examine their portfolio of projects in terms of potential benefits and likely risks.

Question 42

Pets Inc is putting in a new ERP system.This is a very large project for them by many measures,including dollars spent,the size of the implementation staff,the time allocated for implementation,and the number of organizational units affected.This is an example of the level of project risk being influenced by ________.

A)project scope
B)experience with technology
C)project structure
D)project size

Question 43

The principle method used in CSF analysis is to

A)inventory all of the organization's information systems projects and assets and assign risk levels.
B)perform a weighted comparison of the criteria used to evaluate a system.
C)survey a large sample of managers on their objectives,decision-making process,and uses and needs for data and information.
D)interview a small number of top managers to identify their goals and criteria for achieving success.

Question 44

New system projects and new infrastructure capabilities required are all part of the New Developments section of an information systems plan.

Question 45

A CSF approach to establishing an enterprise's information requirements is especially suitable for

A)distinguishing between individual and organizational objectives.
B)identifying the key entities and attributes of the organization's data.
C)understanding how organizational units define critical data.
D)the development of DSSs and ESSs.

Question 46

At the top of the management structure for information systems projects in a large company is

A)project management.
B)the CIO.
C)the corporate strategic planning group.
D)the IS steering committee.

Question 47

The central method used in a portfolio analysis is to

A)inventory all of the organization's information systems projects and assets.
B)perform a weighted comparison of the criteria used to evaluate a system.
C)survey a large sample of managers on their objectives,decision-making process,and uses and needs for data and information.
D)interview a small number of top managers to identify their goals and criteria for achieving success.

Question 48

Requirements,potential savings,and financing are all part of the Budget Requirements section of an information systems plan.

Question 49

Anticipated difficulties in implementation and Progress reports are all part of the Implementation Plan section of an information systems plan.

Question 50

The FCS method focuses organizational attention on how information should be handled.

Question 51

In CSF analysis,it is important to

A)interview as many employees from different levels of the company as possible.
B)create a broad inquiry into the various types of information used in the company.
C)distinguish between organizational and individual CSFs.
D)identify operational managers that can accurately portray the day-to-day information needs of the firm.

Question 52

Sweet Candy Inc is putting in a new ERP system.This system implementation is more highly structured than others.Their requirements are clear and straightforward so outputs and processes can be easily defined.Users know exactly what they want and what the system should do;there is almost no possibility of the users changing their minds.This is an example of the level of project risk being influenced by ________.

A)project scope
B)experience with technology
C)project structure
D)project size

Question 53

The major variables in project management are

A)scope,time,cost,and performance.
B)scope,time,cost,quality,and risk.
C)time,cost,quality,performance,and risk.
D)time,cost,scope,and performance.

Question 54

Oil Wells Inc is putting in a new ERP system.The firm's project team and the information system staff lack the required technical expertise.The team is unfamiliar with the hardware,system software,application software,and database management system proposed for the project.It is highly likely that the project will experience technical problems and take more time to complete because of the need to master new skills.This is an example of the level of project risk being influenced by ________.

A)project scope
B)experience with technology
C)project structure
D)project size

Question 55

The ________ is directly responsible for the individual systems project.

A)project management group
B)project team
C)IS steering committee
D)corporate strategic planning committee

Question 56

A road map indicating the direction of systems development,the rationale,the current systems,new developments to consider,the management strategy,the implementation plan,and the budget is called a(n)

A)project plan.
B)portfolio analysis.
C)information systems plan.
D)enterprise analysis.

Question 57

Major systems supporting business functions and processes,current infrastructure capabilities and difficulties meeting business requirements are all part of the Current Systems section of an information systems plan.

Question 58

The ________ committee sets policy and priorities for the IS department,including approving budgets for major projects and hearing progress reports on those major projects.

A)MIS driving
B)MIS steering
C)MIS direction
D)MIS investment

Question 59

The ________ consists of systems analysts,specialists from the relevant end-user business areas,application programmers,and perhaps database specialists.

A)project management group
B)project team
C)IS steering committee
D)corporate strategic planning committee

Question 60

The ________ reviews and approves plans for systems in all divisions.

A)project management group
B)project team
C)IS steering committee
D)corporate strategic planning committee

Question 61

To best evaluate,from a financial standpoint,an IT investment whose benefits cannot be firmly established in advance,you would use:

A)capital budgeting.
B)the real option pricing model.
C)a scoring model.
D)the net present value.

Question 62

The organizational activities working toward the adoption,management,and routinization of a new information system are called

A)production.
B)maintenance.
C)implementation.
D)acceptance.

Question 63

The central method used in a scoring model is to

A)inventory all of the organization's information systems projects and assets.
B)perform a weighted comparison of the criteria used to evaluate a system.
C)survey a large sample of managers on their objectives,decision-making process,and uses and needs for data and information.
D)interview a small number of top managers to identify their goals and criteria for achieving success.

Question 64

The project risk will rise if the project team and the IS staff lack

A)legacy applications as a starting point.
B)good equipment.
C)the required technical expertise.
D)financial studies and plans.

Question 65

One example of an implementation problem is

A)poor user interface.
B)inadequate user training.
C)project running over budget.
D)changes in job activities and responsibilities.

Question 66

Which method would you use is used to develop risk profiles for a firm's information system projects and assets?

A)information systems plan
B)scoring model
C)portfolio analysis
D)CSF

Question 67

Which of the following is NOT one of the activities of the systems analyst?

A)acting as a change agent
B)communication with users
C)mediating between competing interest groups
D)formulation of capital budgeting models

Question 68

According to your reading of the chapter,change management is a process that

A)should be addressed before a project is developed.
B)begins when a project is implemented.
C)is used primarily to mandate user acceptance.
D)must be addressed in all systems development.

Question 69

You have been hired by a pharmaceutical company to evaluate its inventory of systems and IT projects.Which types of projects would be best avoided?

A)any high risk projects
B)any low-benefit projects
C)all high-risk,low benefit projects
D)None,any project might be beneficial.

Question 70

The criteria used for evaluation in a scoring model are usually determined by

A)lengthy discussions among the decision-making group.
B)a CSF analysis.
C)the IS steering committee.
D)systems analysts.

Question 71

In using a portfolio analysis to determine which IT projects to pursue,you would

A)select the most low-risk projects from the inventory.
B)limit work to those projects with great rewards.
C)select only low-risk,high-reward projects.
D)balance high-risk,high reward projects with lower-risk projects.

Question 72

The worth of systems from a financial perspective essentially revolves around the issue of

A)CSFs.
B)adherence to information requirements.
C)asset utilization.
D)return on invested capital.

Question 73

When using a capital budgeting method in measuring the worth of an information system,which of the following related costs would you use to assess the cash inflow?

A)increased sales of products
B)hardware and software expenditures
C)labour expenditures
D)reduced costs in production and operation
E)both A and D

Question 74

The level of a project's risk is influenced primarily by

A)project size,project structure,and the level of technical expertise.
B)project cost,project scope,and the implementation plan.
C)project scope,project schedule,and project budget.
D)project size,project scope,and the level of technical expertise.

Question 75

ROPMs value information systems similar to stock options,in that

A)ROPMs can be bought and sold like stocks.
B)a company's worth can be evaluated by the worth of their ROPMs.
C)initial expenditures on IT projects are seen as creating the right to pursue and obtain benefits from the system at a later date.
D)expenditures and benefits from IT projects are seen as inflows and outflows of cash that can be treated themselves like options.

Question 76

In working with ROPMs and options valuation,a financial option is a(n)

A)obligation to purchase an asset at a later date at a fixed price.
B)obligation to either purchase or sell an asset at a later date at a strike price.
C)right to purchase an asset a later date at a strike price.
D)right to purchase or sell an asset a later date at a fixed price.

Question 77

________ are all intangible benefits of information systems.

A)Improved asset utilization,increased organizational learning,and improved operations
B)Reduced workforce,lower outside vendor costs,and increased productivity
C)Increased productivity,reduced workforce,and increased job satisfaction
D)Lower operational costs,improved resource control,and more information

Question 78

________ are all tangible benefits of information systems.

A)Improved asset utilization,increased organizational learning,and improved operations
B)Reduced workforce,lower outside vendor costs,and increased productivity
C)Increased productivity,reduced workforce,and increased job satisfaction
D)Lower operational costs,improved resource control,and more information

Question 79

The principal capital budgeting models for evaluating information technology projects are the payback method,the accounting rate of return on investment (ROI),the net present value,and the

A)future present value.
B)internal rate of return.
C)external rate of return.
D)ROPM.

Question 80

Which method is used to assign weights to various features of a system?

A)information systems plan
B)scoring model
C)portfolio analysis
D)CSF