IS/IT project failures: A review of the extant literature for deriving a taxonomy of failure factors

IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology

Volumn 402, Issue , 2013, Pages 73-88

  Dwivedi, Yogesh K ^a   Ravichandran, Karthik ^b   Williams, Michael D ^a   Miller, Siân ^a   Lal, Banita ^c   Antony, George V ^d   Kartik, Muktha ^e  

^a SWANSEA UNIVERSITY   (United Kingdom)

^b Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd   (India)

^c NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY   (United Kingdom)

^d Department of Physics   (India)

^e Mahindra Satyam   (India)

Author keywords

Failure; IS IT project; Literature review; Taxonomy of factors

Indexed keywords

COMPUTER SYSTEM RECOVERY; GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS; TANTALUM COMPOUNDS;

FAILURE CATEGORY; FAILURE FACTORS; FAILURE TYPES; LITERATURE REVIEWS; PROJECT FAILURES; PROJECT STAGES; SUCCESS FACTORS;

TAXONOMIES;

EID: 84988378772     PISSN: 18684238     EISSN: None     Source Type: Book Series    
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-38862-0_5     Document Type: Conference Paper

References (55)

1. Al-Ahmad, W., Al-Fagih, K., Khanfar, K., Alsamara, K., Abuleil, S., Abu-Salem, H.: A Taxonomy of an IT Project Failure: Root Causes. International Management Review 5(1), 93–104 (2009)
2. Atkinson, R.: Project management: cost, time and quality, two best guesses and a phenomenon, its time to accept other success criteria. International Journal of Project Management 17(6), 337–342 (1999)
3. Attarzadeh, I., Ow, S.H.: Project Management Practices: The Criteria for Success or Failure. Communications of the IBIMA 1, 234–241 (2008)
4. Avots, I.: Why Does Project Management Fail? California Management Review 12 (1), 77–82 (1969)
5. Belassi, W., Tukel, O.I.: A new framework for determining critical success/failure factors in projects. International Journal of Project Management 14(3), 141–151 (1996)
6. Beynon-Davies, P.: Information systems ‘failure’: the case of the London Ambulance Service’s Computer Aided Despatch project. European Journal of Information Systems 4, 171–184 (1995)
7. Bignell, V., Fortune, J.: Understanding Systems Failures. Manchester University Press, Manchester (1984)
8. Brown, A.D., Jones, M.R.: Doomed to Failure: Narratives of inevitability and conspiracy in a Failed IS Project. Organisation Studies 19(1), 73–88 (1998)
9. Camprieu, R., Desbiens, J., Feixue, Y.: ‘Cultural’ differences in project risk perception: An empirical comparison of China and Canada. International Journal of Project Management 25, 683–693 (2007)
10. Charette, R.N.: Why Software Fail (August 29, 2006), http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/print/1685 (retrieved July 02, 2012) from IEEE Spectrum
11. Chen, J., Xu, L., Whinston, A.: Managing Project Failure Risk Through Contingent Contracts in Procurement Auctions. Advance, 1–17 (2009)
12. Conboy, K.: Project Failure en Mass: A Study of Loose Budgetary Control in ISD Projects. Sprouts: Working Papers on Information Systems 8(40), 1–14 (2008)
13. Dalcher, D.: Understanding Stories of Information Systems Failures, Sweeden. Action in Language, Organisations and Information, pp. 221–236 (2003)
14. Dalcher, D., Drevin, L.: Learning from Information Systems failures by using narrative and ante-narrative methods. In: Proceedings of SAICSIT, UK, pp. 137–142 (2003)
15. Davis, G., Lee, A., Nickles, K., Chatterjee, S., Hartung, R., Wu, Y.: Diagnosis of an information system failure: a framework and interpretive process. Information and Management 23, 293–318 (1992)
16. Dickson, G.W., Senn, J.A., Cherv, N.L.: Research in Management Information Systems: The Minnesota Experiments. Management Science 23, 913–934 (1977)
17. Evans, M.W., Abela, A.M., Beltz, T.: Seven Characteristics of Dysfunctional Software Projects. The Journal of Defense Software Engineering, 16–20 (April 2002)
18. Ewusi-Mensah, K.: Software Development Failures: Anatomy of Abandoned Projects. The MIT Press, London (2003)
19. Flowers, S.: Software failure: management failure. John Wiley, Chichester (1996)
20. Field, J.: Passive or Proactive? Adults Learning 8(6), 160 (1997)
21. Gauld, R.: Public sector information system project failures: Lessons from a NewZealand hospital organization. Government Information Quarterly 24, 102–114 (2007)
22. Hartwick, J., Barki, H.: Explaining the role of user participation in information system use. Management Science 40(4), 440–465 (1994)
23. Heeks, R.: Health information systems: Failure, success and improvisation. International Journal of Medical Informatics 75, 125–137 (2006)
24. Hirschheim, R., Newman, M.: Information Systems and User Resistance: Theory and Practice. The Computer Journal 31(5), 398–408 (1988)
25. Hofstede, G.: Cultures and Organisations Software of the Mind. McGraw Hill Book Company, UK (1991)
26. Hofstede, G.: National Culture (April 2012) http://geert-hofstede.com (retrieved April 20, 2012), from Geert Hofstede
27. Irani, Z., Sharif, A., Love: Transforming failure into success through organisational learning: an analysis of a manufacturing information system. European Journal of Information Systems 10, 55–66 (2001)
28. Jiang, J.J., Klein, G., Balloun, J.: Perceptions of system development failures. Information and Software Technology 39, 933–937 (1998)
29. Johnson, J., Boucher, K.D., Connors, K., Robinson, J.: Collaboration: Development & Management Collaborating on Project Success February/March 2001
30. Jones, C.: Software Project Management Practices: Failure Versus Success. The Journal of Defense Software Engineering, 5–9 (October 2004)
31. Kappelman, L. A., McKeeman, R., & Zhang, L. (2008, Fall). Early Warning Signs Of IT Project Failure: The Dominant Dozen. Information Systems Management, 31-36.
32. Lyytinen, K.: Different Perspectives on Information Systems: Problems and Solutions. ACM Computing Surveys 19(1), 1–46 (1987)
33. Lyytinen, K., Hirschheim, R.: Information systems failures: a survey and classification of the empirical literature. Oxford Surveys in Information Technology 4(1), 257–309 (1987)
34. Lyytinen, K., Robey, D.: Learning Failures in Information Systems Development. Journal of Information Systems 9, 85–101 (1999)
35. Markus, M.: Power, politics, and MIS implementation. Communications of the ACM 26(6), 430–444 (1984)
36. Miller, J.: A total benefits strategy is a valuable approach in HR outsourcing. Employment Relations Today 34(4), 55–61 (2008)
37. Mitev, N.N.: More than a failure? The computerized reservation systems at French Railways. Information Technology &People 9(4), 8–19 (1996)
38. Morris, Hough, G.: The Anatomy of Major Projects. John Wiley and Sons, New York (1987)
39. Munns, A.K., Bjeirmi, B.F.: The role of project management in achieving project success. International Journal of Project Management 14(2), 81–87 (1996)
40. Nasir, M.H.N.M., Sahibuddin, S.: Addressing a critical success factor for software projects: A multi-round Delphi study of TSP. International Journal of Physical Sciences 6(5), 1213–1232 (2011)
41. Nelson, R.R.: IT Project Management: Infamous Failures, Classic Mistakes, and Best Pract ices. MIS Quarterly Executive 6(2), 67–78 (2007)
42. Newman, M., Sabherwal, R.: Determinants of Commitment to Information Systems Development: A Longitudinal Investigation. MIS Quarterly, 23–54 (March 1996)
43. Pinto, J.K., Mantel, J.S.: The Causes of Project Failure. IEEE Transactions On Engineering Management 37(4), 269–275 (1990)
44. Rees-Caldwell, K., Pinnington, A.H.: National culture differences in project management: Comparing British and Arab project managers’ perceptions of different planning areas. International Journal of Project Management 20, 1–16 (2012)
45. Sauer, C.: Why information systems fail: A case study approach. Alfred Waller, Oxfordshire (1993)
46. Sauer, C., Southon, G., Dampney, C.N.: Fit, failure, and the house of horrors: toward a configurational theory of is project failure. In: Proceedings of the Eighteenth International Conference on Information Systems, pp. 349–366. ICIS, Atlanta (1997)
47. Schmidt, R., Lyytinen, K., Keil, M., Cule, P.: Identifying Software Project Risks: An International Delphi Study. Journal of Management Information Systems 17(4), 5–36 (2001)
48. Shore, B., Cross, B.J.: Exploring the role of national culture in the management of largescale International Science Project. International Journal of Project Management 23, 55–64 (2005)
49. Standish Group Report. Chaos Report. Boston, Massachusetts, USA: Standish Group (July 01, 1995), http://www.standishgroup.com (retrieved)
50. Stewart, R.A., Mohamed, S.: Evaluating web-based project information management in construction: capturing the long-term value creation process. Automation in Construction 13(4), 469–479 (2004)
51. Thong, J.Y., Yap, C.-S., Raman, K.S.: Engagement of External Expertise in Information Systems Implementation. Journal of Management Information Systems 11(2), 209–231 (1994)
52. Tukel, O.I., Rom, W.O.: Analysis of the characteristics of projects in diverse industries. Journal of Operations Management 16, 43–61 (1998)
53. Verner, J., Sampson, J., Cerpa, N.: What factors lead to software project failure? In: Second International Conference on Research Challenges in Information Science, pp. 71–79. RCIS, Marrakech (2008)
54. Wallace, L., Keil, M., Rai, A.: Understanding software project risk: a cluster analysis. Information &Management 42, 115–125 (2004)
55. Yeo, K.: Critical failure factors in information system projects. International Journal of Project Management 20, 241–246 (2002)