Information Technology Project Management of the New College of Education Facility at Western Kentucky University

• Main Author: Roberts, Christopher Lee
• Format: Others
• Published: TopSCHOLAR® 2014
• Subjects: Ransdell Hall; Information Technology; Project Management; Internetworking (Telecommunication); Architectural Technology; Computer Sciences; Construction Engineering; Cultural Resource Management and Policy Analysis; Interior Architecture
• Online Access: http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1362; http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2365&context=theses

Information Technology (IT) Project Management methodologies are numerous, often varying from organization to organization, and sometimes from project to project within the same organization. Although project type and scope can be a powerful indicator of what methodologies may work best for a given project, choosing which methodology to use can be daunting for project teams. At times, even after due diligence has been practiced to identify the management options available for a given project, there may not be a perfect fit. At such times, or when a formal methodology does not exist in an organization or project management office, the best approach for a project may be to utilize a collective of “best practices,” instead of a concrete methodology. When tasked with the IT Project Management of the new Gary Ransdell Hall on WKU’s main campus, the IT Project Manager (PM) did not have a tried-and-true methodology to use for managing the project. As a result, the IT PM and project team chose to research best practices, as reflected in the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), to formulate a project plan that would maximize efficiency while protecting the triple constraints. Early in this paper, the author outlines assumptions, constraints, and risks that faced the IT team throughout the project cycle. Afterwards, the resulting methods and procedures used to manage the IT scope for the project are discussed, with figures included for reference. Next, a brief project summary is included to summarize the results of the project, with performance and scope metrics and limited end-user feedback. Finally, the lessons learned section outlines changes that have been implemented since project completion, as part of a continuous improvement effort by the WKU IT Division.