The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between systems development methodologies (SDMs) and the success of Information Technology (IT) projects. The study also seeks to find other critical success factors (CSFs) that influence IT projects success. What initiated this study, with reference to the literature review, is the apparent general view that IT project deliveries are still late, over budget, and unpredictable (Chow & Cao, 2008:961; The Standish Group, 2004). To some extent, the entire project fails before delivering an application. Hence this causes the need to investigate the employment of SDMs and their belief that SDMs improve quality in the development of IT projects and permit more flexible deployment to IT projects (Idea Group Publishing, 2006:13; Dyba et al., 2005:447; Mihailescu & Mihailescu, 2009:1). However, SDMs are still less popularly used (Siau & Tan, 2005:3132; Masrek I., 2008:137). The study provides insight into the relationship between SDMs and the IT projects. A survey using a questionnaire was carried out to obtain the data. The study employed a positivist paradigm and used a quantitative approach. A total of 132 questionnaires were returned from systems developers, IT project managers and team leaders from system development companies. It was found that there is a relationship between systems development methodologies (SDMs) and IT project success. Despite recognizing the benefits and advantages of using SDMs, some respondents disclosed that they were not inclined to employ SDMs and the popular reason was that their profile of development projects didn‟t require the use of SDMs. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the relationship. Consequently, the top ten CSFs were observed and it was found that “identifying potential risk” and “opportunity” were the most favourable factors. The study could have obtained richer and more insightful information regarding SDMs and critical success factors if more data had been collected. Future work should seek to determine the risks, challenges and problems associated with the adoption of SDMs. / MSc (Computer Science), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013

Complex projects often fail even when formal project management systems are in place. Project management processes and methodologies are well defined and described in academic and business literature. There is however less published research on the socio-cultural factors that are critical for project success. This study investigated whether project stakeholders view communication as one of the critical success factors for project success. Critical project success factors were identified from a literature study and ranked by 34 project stakeholders. The data was analysed using the Instant Priorities method and Analytical Hierarchical Process. A workshop on the use of communication within projects was observed. The results were translated into a project success factor model that explains the importance of communication in project success. Furthermore, a serious games based training tool is proposed. The aim of the training will be for participants to understand the communication preferences of themselves and the people they interact with in large projects. The proposed tool will require the participant to map typical stakeholder behavioural preferences. The well-known Marston DISC behavioural model is used as basis for understanding the behavioural preferences of different stakeholder groups. This research project supports the view that communication training across stakeholder groups should be used as a project risk mitigation tool. An increased understanding of the communication preferences of project stakeholders has the potential to shape a project culture that will stimulate teamwork combined with high levels of personal motivation as well as have the capacity to quickly identify and address project risks. / MSc (Computer Science), North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2014

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between systems development methodologies (SDMs) and the success of Information Technology (IT) projects. The study also seeks to find other critical success factors (CSFs) that influence IT projects success. What initiated this study, with reference to the literature review, is the apparent general view that IT project deliveries are still late, over budget, and unpredictable (Chow & Cao, 2008:961; The Standish Group, 2004). To some extent, the entire project fails before delivering an application. Hence this causes the need to investigate the employment of SDMs and their belief that SDMs improve quality in the development of IT projects and permit more flexible deployment to IT projects (Idea Group Publishing, 2006:13; Dyba et al., 2005:447; Mihailescu & Mihailescu, 2009:1). However, SDMs are still less popularly used (Siau & Tan, 2005:3132; Masrek I., 2008:137). The study provides insight into the relationship between SDMs and the IT projects. A survey using a questionnaire was carried out to obtain the data. The study employed a positivist paradigm and used a quantitative approach. A total of 132 questionnaires were returned from systems developers, IT project managers and team leaders from system development companies. It was found that there is a relationship between systems development methodologies (SDMs) and IT project success. Despite recognizing the benefits and advantages of using SDMs, some respondents disclosed that they were not inclined to employ SDMs and the popular reason was that their profile of development projects didn‟t require the use of SDMs. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the relationship. Consequently, the top ten CSFs were observed and it was found that “identifying potential risk” and “opportunity” were the most favourable factors. The study could have obtained richer and more insightful information regarding SDMs and critical success factors if more data had been collected. Future work should seek to determine the risks, challenges and problems associated with the adoption of SDMs. / MSc (Computer Science), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013

In this thesis success and failure of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementations through case studies of three Turkish organizations based on Critical Success Factors (CSFs) is investigated. The main purpose of this thesis is to reveal success and failure stories according to the effects of CSFs in ERP implementations. The case studies are composed of three Turkish organizations from different sectors. The data is gathered through active observations, analysis of project documents and interviews conducted with project managers who decided to implement ERP systems in their organizations, key users who involved in implementation projects, and consultants. All these projects are evaluated as success stories since most of the determined CSFs affected the implementation projects positively in these three organizations which have been using ERP system effectively for some period. Besides, the case studies show that there are problems about training, change management and legacy systems during projects and more attention should be paid on these issues during ERP implementation projects.

Low vision impacts on Quality of Life (QoL). Thus, low vision services are essential to enhance the QoL of people with functional low vision. However, of the estimated 70 out of the 124 million people with low vision who require services, approximately 5-10% has access to services. The demands for low vision services will continue to grow due to the emerging global trends in ageing populations and changes in the epidemiology of vision impairment. While critical data and information are available for other forms of vision impairment, there is a paucity of information on the distribution, needs, and priorities for improving low vision service delivery at the national, regional, and global levels. / This thesis addressed the problem by first developing and distributing a survey to Vision 2020 contacts, government, and non government organisations in 195 countries during 2006-2008 to assess the current situation of low vision services globally. The survey was first pilot tested leading to improvements in the length, layout, and content of its form. Specifically, the survey topics included: epidemiology, policies, human resources, service provision, barriers, equipment, and monitoring and evaluation. / The Classification Analysis and Regression Tree (CART), logistic regression methodology and grounded theory analysis were used to present the findings and identify the critical success factors of low vision service coverage. The qualitative component consisted of case studies in three countries (India, Ghana, and Cameroon) during November 2007 and 2008. A total of 101 interviews were carried out. The case studies provided an overview and historical perspective of services, effectiveness, cost, efficiency, acceptability, access, equity, sustainability, and ideal situations as recommended by interviewees. Qualitative findings from the case studies were produced with the assistance of the NVivo software. / The primary results are that the majority (80%) of countries have poor (≤10%) coverage. Key issues pertinent to the current situation of service coverage are: human resources (number and combination of disciplines), funding (sustainability and arrangements), type of services provided (comprehensive and multidisciplinary) and its locations (NGOs or government facilities), and the sociodemographic and economic barriers (costs, awareness, and rural areas) to accessing services. / The critical success factors found in this research are represented by the ‘FRAME’: Funding (sustainable source, public and private mix), Rehabilitation workers (e.g., adequate numbers of multidisciplinary personnel), Access to low vision devices, Multidisciplinary services; and External contextual influences in which low vision services operate in. The case studies identified seven major themes that further build on the FRAME: sustainability, governance, advocacy, human resources, access, awareness, and service delivery. / The conclusion of the thesis is that a global picture of the current situation of low vision services was acquired and it is now known which countries have poor (≤10%) and better (>10%) coverage. It also found the critical success factors that will assist the WHO Low Vision Working Group and Vision 2020 to improve the current models of service delivery, future planning, training curriculum development, and priorities setting. Specifically, these need to be achieved through three areas of action: human resources development, sustainability, and advocacy.

Low vision impacts on Quality of Life (QoL). Thus, low vision services are essential to enhance the QoL of people with functional low vision. However, of the estimated 70 out of the 124 million people with low vision who require services, approximately 5-10% has access to services. The demands for low vision services will continue to grow due to the emerging global trends in ageing populations and changes in the epidemiology of vision impairment. While critical data and information are available for other forms of vision impairment, there is a paucity of information on the distribution, needs, and priorities for improving low vision service delivery at the national, regional, and global levels. / This thesis addressed the problem by first developing and distributing a survey to Vision 2020 contacts, government, and non government organisations in 195 countries during 2006-2008 to assess the current situation of low vision services globally. The survey was first pilot tested leading to improvements in the length, layout, and content of its form. Specifically, the survey topics included: epidemiology, policies, human resources, service provision, barriers, equipment, and monitoring and evaluation. / The Classification Analysis and Regression Tree (CART), logistic regression methodology and grounded theory analysis were used to present the findings and identify the critical success factors of low vision service coverage. The qualitative component consisted of case studies in three countries (India, Ghana, and Cameroon) during November 2007 and 2008. A total of 101 interviews were carried out. The case studies provided an overview and historical perspective of services, effectiveness, cost, efficiency, acceptability, access, equity, sustainability, and ideal situations as recommended by interviewees. Qualitative findings from the case studies were produced with the assistance of the NVivo software. / The primary results are that the majority (80%) of countries have poor (≤10%) coverage. Key issues pertinent to the current situation of service coverage are: human resources (number and combination of disciplines), funding (sustainability and arrangements), type of services provided (comprehensive and multidisciplinary) and its locations (NGOs or government facilities), and the sociodemographic and economic barriers (costs, awareness, and rural areas) to accessing services. / The critical success factors found in this research are represented by the ‘FRAME’: Funding (sustainable source, public and private mix), Rehabilitation workers (e.g., adequate numbers of multidisciplinary personnel), Access to low vision devices, Multidisciplinary services; and External contextual influences in which low vision services operate in. The case studies identified seven major themes that further build on the FRAME: sustainability, governance, advocacy, human resources, access, awareness, and service delivery. / The conclusion of the thesis is that a global picture of the current situation of low vision services was acquired and it is now known which countries have poor (≤10%) and better (>10%) coverage. It also found the critical success factors that will assist the WHO Low Vision Working Group and Vision 2020 to improve the current models of service delivery, future planning, training curriculum development, and priorities setting. Specifically, these need to be achieved through three areas of action: human resources development, sustainability, and advocacy.

Este trabalho apresenta uma proposta de diagnóstico e análise da implantação de projetos Seis Sigma em empresas que operam em ambientes de negócio dinâmicos. Estas empresas desenvolvem produtos com alta complexidade tecnológica e demanda variável, o que requer constantes alterações e adaptações no ambiente produtivo. Por consequência, o Sistema de Gestão da Qualidade e seus programas também devem ser capazes de adaptarem-se a essas mudanças. Sendo assim, o objetivo principal desta dissertação é estabelecer diretrizes de melhoria no programa Seis Sigma, propondo um modelo de reavaliação para sedimentar este programa como parte da cultura de solução de problemas em uma empresa do setor de equipamentos para o agronegócio. Esta pesquisa foi desdobrada em dois artigos; no primeiro, foram estabelecidas premissas baseadas numa revisão preliminar da literatura, seguida de um diagnóstico dos principais fatores críticos de sucesso para consecução do programa Seis Sigma. Com estas informações, os resultados do diagnóstico foram compilados em categorias de problemas e comparados com as soluções apresentadas na literatura, tornando possível o estabelecimento das diretrizes de melhoria nos projetos Seis Sigma para o caso selecionado. No segundo artigo, foi realizada uma análise da literatura a respeito da implementação de projetos Seis Sigma, de projetos tradicionais e do gerenciamento ágil de projetos. Em seguida, foram identificados os principais problemas dos projetos Seis Sigma encontrados no estudo de caso. Com base nas soluções encontradas na literatura, foi possível definir um modelo de revisão da implementação de projetos Seis Sigma, para a empresa em estudo, visando minimizar ou eliminar os problemas encontrados. / This paper presents a proposal of diagnostic and evaluation for an implementation analysis of Six Sigma projects in companies included in a dynamic business environment. These companies develop high technological complexity and variable demand products, which requires constant operations and production changes and adaptations. Consequently the Quality Management System and its programs should be also capable to adapt to those changes. Thus, the main objective of this dissertation is to establish improvement guidelines on Six Sigma program by proposing a reevaluation model to settle this program as part of the problem resolution culture in an agribusiness equipment company. The study is deployed in two articles. The first article establish guidelines based on a preliminary literature review, followed by a diagnostic about the main critical success factors to implement Six Sigma programs in a selected case. With this information, the diagnostic results were compiled in problems categories and compared with literature available solutions, making it possible to establish guidelines to improve Six Sigma projects for the selected case. The second article presents a literature analysis about the implementation of Six Sigma projects, traditional projects and Agile projects management. After that, the Six Sigma main problems found in the case study were identified. Based on solutions found in the literature, it was possible to define a Six Sigma project analysis and implementation model for this case, in order to minimize or eliminate the identified problems.

ABSTRACT Aim: From its inception to its expansion nationally and internationally, the management of a restaurant franchise concept uses various critical success factors to overcome the barriers that they encounter throughout their different growth phases. This study aims to find out what the CSFs are for Swedish restaurant franchisors of different sizes, what barriers they encounter and what their solutions to these problems are. Method: This is a qualitative study. An initial study was performed by open-ended interviews with the CEOs of the Swedish Franchisor organization and the CEO of the Swedish Franchisee organization. Thereafter, ten semi-structured telephone interviews were held with the upper management at Swedish restaurant franchisor companies. Saturation was achieved after 6-8 interviews and the data was analyzed thematically. Results & Conclusions: Small franchisors focus on concept development, finding capital and finding franchisees. Two of the smaller franchisors used crowdfunding to finance their expansion. Larger franchisors focus on standardization, improving their quality and on brand building. The conclusion is that there are significant differences in the CSFs for small and large franchisors. Suggestions for future research: This study is limited in scope and limited in time. For future research, we would recommend a longitudinal study of several newborn franchise systems, to study them over several years and to see which CSFs are more important at different growth stages. Another research approach could be to rank the CSFs by using a quantitative method and work with a larger sample frame of franchisors. Or to study our fastest growing respondent. Contribution of the thesis: The main contribution to literature is that small franchisors focus on selecting the right franchisees and locations, large franchisors focus on developing the concept and on standardization. The main managerial implication is that franchisors of all sizes need to take a broad perspective and plan for different expansion phases. Keywords: Franchising, Franchisee, Franchisor, Critical Success Factors, CSFs, Restaurant Chain, Fast-Food chain, life cycle, expansion, barriers. / This is a study of what the most important tasks are to successfully expand ten franchised restaurant chains in Sweden. These tasks have been studied in various industries and are commonly referred to as "Critical Success Factors." It is interesting to study these tasks since the upper management in any company and industry need to be aware of what the most important tasks are for their company, as well as the need of measuring these tasks. The result of the study was that restaurant franchisors seem to have different CSFs depending on their size. Small franchisors focus more on, e.g., concept development, whereas large franchisors focus more on, e.g., standardization. The managerial implication is that managers in expanding franchise systems need to be aware that the CSFs change over time.

Submitted by Tatiana Lima (tatianasl@ufba.br) on 2017-02-07T17:57:00Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva, Cassio Francisco da.pdf: 1827403 bytes, checksum: 90bd10995e33ed9fe493d332ad8909df (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Tatiana Lima (tatianasl@ufba.br) on 2017-02-07T18:30:58Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva, Cassio Francisco da.pdf: 1827403 bytes, checksum: 90bd10995e33ed9fe493d332ad8909df (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-02-07T18:30:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva, Cassio Francisco da.pdf: 1827403 bytes, checksum: 90bd10995e33ed9fe493d332ad8909df (MD5) / De natureza qualitativa e caráter exploratório-descritivo, a pesquisa busca conhecer como devem ser gerenciados os fatores críticos de sucesso para implantação de um Sistema Integrado de Gestão na UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DO VALE DO SÃO FRANCISCO. Para isso, percebeu-se a importância de se conhecer os principais fatores críticos de sucesso para a implantação de um sistema integrado de gestão; além de tornar conhecidos os atores, especialmente os gestores envolvidos no processo de implantação e os cenários envolvidos no processo. Ademais, a identificação dos fatores que estão sendo atendidos e também os que não estão sendo atendidos, contribuiu para o alcance do objetivo geral. Dessa forma, buscou-se entender como os gestores envolvidos na implantação devem gerenciar os fatores críticos de sucesso para que a Univasf possa reunir condições para a implantação do SIG. Para isso, um estudo de caso, com auxílio da bibliografia, foi utilizado, dividindo-se essa pesquisa em quatro etapas: 1: identificar os principais requisitos para a implantação de um SIG; 2: avaliar o quanto esses requisitos estão sendo atendidos pela gestão atual da Univasf; 3: identificar quais os aspectos críticos na gestão da Univasf que dificultam/inibem o atendimento dos requisitos não atendidos; e 4: especificar soluções para lidar com os aspectos críticos identificados, de modo que a Univasf possa reunir as condições para implantação do seu SIG. Como principal resultado, percebeu-se que, além de confirmar a interrelação entre os fatores críticos de sucesso, o nível de atenção despendida, pelos gestores, a esses fatores é fundamental para o sucesso na implantação do SIG. / Qualitative and exploratory and descriptive, the research seeks to understand how they should be managed the critical success factors for implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning in the Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco. For this, he realized the importance of knowing the main critical success factors for the implementation of an enterprise resource planning; in addition to making known the actors, especially the managers involved in the implementation process and the scenarios involved. Additionally, identify which of these factors are being met and those who are not being met contributed to the achievement of the overall objective. Thus, we sought to understand how the managers involved in the implementation should they managed the critical success factors for the UNIVASF to meet conditions for the implementation of ERP. For this, a case study, with the help of the literature was used, this research is divided into four stages: 1: identify the main requirements for the implementation of a ERP; 2: assess how these requirements are being met by the current management of UNIVASF; 3: identify the critical aspects in the management of UNIVASF that hinder / inhibit the fulfillment of requirements not met; and 4: Specify solutions to address the identified critical aspects, so that UNIVASF can meet the conditions for deployment of your ERP. The main result, it was noticed that, in addition to confirming the interrelation between the critical success factors, the level of attention given by the managers of these factors is critical to the successful implementation of ERP.

As pequenas empresas vêm ganhando destaque no contexto econômico brasileiro dado o importante papel que desempenham. Dentre estas empresas, destacam-se as pequenas empresas de base tecnológica (PEBTs), as quais são caracterizadas por focalizar a estratégia competitiva na inovação, participar ativamente das mudanças tecnológicas e atuar como fornecedores em diferentes cadeias produtivas. O processo de desenvolvimento de produtos (PDP) representa o conjunto de atividades pela qual as informações sobre o mercado são transformadas em requisitos de produto. É um processo complexo e com um elevado grau de incertezas. Grande parte da literatura sobre o tema está relacionada com o contexto das grandes empresas, entretanto, uma série de particularidades torna a realidade das pequenas empresas bastante diferente. Sendo assim, o objetivo deste trabalho é explorar as particularidades do PDP das PEBTs. Foi conduzido um levantamento dos fatores críticos de sucesso de PEBTs através de uma pesquisa qualitativa. Na sequência, foi realizado um mapeamento de artigos publicados em periódicos internacionais, entre os anos de 2002 e 2011, sobre a velocidade do PDP. Por fim, foi efetuado um estudo quantitativo para identificar associações entre as melhores práticas de gestão e os problemas mais frequentes encontrado no PDP destas empresas. / Small businesses are gaining prominence in the brazilian economic context given the important role they play. Among these firms, there are the small high technology companies, which are characterized by the competitive strategy focused on innovation, by the actively participation in technological changes and as suppliers in different production chains. The new product development (NPD) is a set of activities in which information about the market are transformed into product requirements. It is a complex process with a high degree of uncertainty. Most part of the literature on the topic is related to the large companies context, however, a variety of particularities makes the reality of small firms quite different. Therefore, the aim of this work is to explore the particularities of the NPD small high technology firms. It was conducted a survey of critical success factors through qualitative research. Further, a research mapping the articles published in international journals, between the years of 2002 and 2011, about the speed of the NPD. Finally, a quantitative study was conducted to identify associations between best management practices and most common problems found in the NPD of these companies.