Web-Project-Management-Best-Practice-Guidelines

Web Project Management
The practices behind successful web projects

E-consultancy, May 2007

Lead author: Sonia Kay
Contributing Editors: Craig Hanna and Chris Lake

Copyright © E-consultancy.com ltd 2006 1

Table of contents

1. Executive Summary ..........................................................................3
1.1. Research aims ........................................................................................................... 3
1.2. Top 10 key findings and recomendations ................................................................ 3

2. Introduction ..................................................................................... 7
2.1. About this report ....................................................................................................... 7
2.2. Who is this report for? .............................................................................................. 7
2.3. About E-consultancy ................................................................................................ 8
2.4. What is Web Project Management? ......................................................................... 9

3. Research aim .................................................................................. 11

4. Methodology ................................................................................... 12
4.1. Sample ..................................................................................................................... 12
4.2. Questions ................................................................................................................. 12
4.3. Analysis .................................................................................................................... 14

5. Findings and Recommendations ..................................................... 15
5.1. The differences between web projects and other projects ..................................... 15
5.2. Biggest challenges facing web project managers .................................................... 16
5.3. Key drivers of success .............................................................................................. 18
5.4. A few words about agencies and consultancies ......................................................27
5.5. Building the right environment for success ............................................................ 31
5.6. Using the right methods and processes ................................................................. 48
5.7. Small projects need structure too ...........................................................................67
5.8. The essential project managers toolkit ................................................................... 71

6. Helpful resources ........................................................................... 72

7. References ...................................................................................... 72

8. Appendix 1 - The state of the nation................................................. 73
8.1. Quantitative research highlights .............................................................................73
8.2. Quantitative research results in full ........................................................................74

9. Appendix 2 – Interview Script ......................................................... 81

10. Appendix 3 – Questions used in online survey ............................... 82

11. Appendix 4 – Example of in-house adaptation of Prince ................ 88


1. Executive Summary

1.1. Research aims

The purpose of this research is to fill the information gap around web project management
by learning from the experiences of organisations who are already out there managing web
projects.

We’ve put this report together on the back of a combination of in-depth interviews and
quantitative research.

Specifically this research will…

• Discover what makes some organisations and projects more successful at web
projects than others;

• Show what methodologies, tools and techniques are working, and which one’s aren’t;

• Help you evaluate your own situation and work out the best approach to move
forward.

1.2. Top 10 key findings and recomendations

1. Nearly half of all respondents do not have a structured approach to
managing their web projects.

Nearly half of all respondents (45.5%) do not have a structured approach to managing their
web projects. This rises to 67% in the retail industry. This can add up to bad news.

Companies without a structured approach are the least likely to achieve their project
goals, least likely to deliver customer satisfaction, are least able to deal with change during
the course of the project and are less likely to achieve deadlines, meet budgets and deliver
positive ROI.

Lack of processes and skills can mean that…

• Teams don’t have visibility of the progress of the project and its’ associated risks and
issues;

• There isn’t a consistent vision of what the team are trying to deliver;

• Estimation of the resources and effort required for the project involved is either poor
or non-existent;

• Projects are planned in isolation from the rest of the business and are consequently
poorly supported.


2. Budgets and deadlines are difficult to control

Nearly 58% of respondents say that their projects always achieve their goals, and yet only
21% of them say they always achieve deadlines.

Only 39% always achieve budget and a positive ROI.

In fact over 8% of respondents never meet their project deadlines and nearly 6% never
deliver their projects within budget. Ouch.

3. Web projects are integrated with the rest of the business less than half of the
time, and customer satisfaction is hard to achieve

Fewer than half (46%) of respondents work to an annual plan that is aligned with their
overall business strategy and only 56% say that they share common goals with the rest of the
business.

Whilst nearly 80% say they involve the end customer in gathering requirements for their
projects, and 72% involve the customer in testing, only half consistently achieve customer
satisfaction with their projects.

4. Teams know that their requirements will change during the course of the
project but yet they struggle to deal with it when it actually happens

Nearly 88% of respondents say that they set their requirements knowing that they are
flexible to change during the course of the project, yet half of organisations say that
changing requirements during the course of their projects is one of the biggest challenges
they face.

5. Excellent project management is considered crucial to project success, but
project management methods are not valued, and many organisations don’t
use qualified project managers.

Good communications and excellent project management are considered to be the two most
important factors in determining the success of a web project.

However, 22% of projects are managed by members of the marketing or commercial team
rather than a qualified project manager.

Knowledge of specific project management methods is considered to be the least important
skill in managing web projects.


6. Web projects are different from other projects

E-consultancy’s research identifies that web projects are different from other projects
because of their need to be responsive to…

• changing customer requirements and market conditions,
• the breadth of people and skills involved,
• the raft of stakeholders,
• frequently tight or fixed deadlines,
• a degree of uncertainty,
• and the need for interaction with real customers.

Therefore web projects require a project management approach that helps
with…

• Evolving requirements;
• Putting focus on the end customer;
• Collaboration between different skill sets;
• Managing stakeholder expectations.

7. Successful organisations have a structured approach to projects, and know
how to apply a range of project management methods which can be tailored to
the circumstances

The most successful organisations are able to tailor their approach to the specific
circumstances of the project and the organisation they are in, typically using a combination
of agile and traditional project management methods.

8. Successful organisations think strategically but deliver tactically

Companies with a more evolved approach to e-commerce embrace flexibility and the ability
to deliver iterative, tactical change, because they are operating in highly competitive
environments (and as such they need to be able to respond to the rapidly-evolving needs of
the customer).

Despite this flexible approach, every project is aligned with the strategy of the overall
business, providing consistent direction.


9. In successful organisations collaboration is built into the process from the
very top of the organisation down.

The culture and organisational structure of successful companies support effective
collaboration between IT, E-commerce, Marketing and Management through;

• Shared goals;
• Sponsorship for projects at a senior level of the organisation;
• Cross-functional steering groups who prioritise resource and provide guidance.

10. Excellent project management is as much about managing the environment
as it is about managing the process

Successful organisations recognise the importance of having a dedicated project manager. A
good project manager brings excellent communication and people skills, managing the
environment around the project rather than just following a set of text book processes.

1.3. Creating a model which is predictive of success

A maturity model has been defined to help organisations to benchmark their web project
management prowess against other organisations.

It identifies three key groups…

1. Early experimenters – Web not part of business strategy, little/no project
management structure or skills

2. Frustrated visionaries – Projects aligned to business strategy, project
management style not suited to web

3. Slick professionals – Web projects supported fully by whole company,
sophisticated project management

The model is based on a series of behaviours and practices that the research has shown to
have the most significant impact on a company’s ability to deliver successful projects.


2. Introduction

2.1. About this report

This report describes the methodology and findings of a significant piece of research
conducted into web project management. It makes a number of recommendations
regarding web project management best practice on the basis of these findings, and the
experiences of those who have kindly agreed to take part. It also draws on the writing of well
respected authorities in the fields of project management, software development and web
project management.

The research was carried out in two main phases:

Phase 1 focused on in-depth interviews to identify the characteristics and practices
of successful web projects, and the main barriers to success.

Phase 2 was designed to validate the findings of the first phase of research and allow
quantitative measurement of the typical success rate of web projects using an online
questionnaire.

The interview discussion guide and a copy of the online survey are both published in full in
the Appendices of this report.

2.2. Who is this report for?

This report is aimed at anyone involved in commissioning or delivering web
projects within their organisation, or on the behalf of a client organisation.

The bulk of the report deals with the infrastructure, culture, practices and processes
required to deliver medium to large web and e-commerce projects, although there are also
specific findings and guidance relating to the delivery of smaller projects.

The aim of the report is to enable those involved with web projects to identify the challenges
that are specific to them, and identify best practices and approaches that will help
them overcome these challenges and improve their chances of success on future projects.

It is important to note that this report does not recommend a specific approach or set of
processes as a ‘silver bullet’ to resolve all web project management challenges. Rather, our
aim is to provide the reader with the framework and information to help them determine for
themselves what their future practices should be.

We hope it proves useful to you. We love receiving feedback, comments and, all being
well, your testimonials. Send word to chris@e-consultancy.com.


2.3. About E-consultancy

E-consultancy is an award-winning UK-based publisher of best practice internet
marketing reports, research and how-to guides, to help educate business people and
marketers about the internet and e-commerce.

Founded in 1999, the company has grown to more than 52,000 registered users and
operates a paid-subscription model. Subscribers pay from as a little as £149 per year to
access exclusive and highly practical content.

E-consultancy also provides a range of public and in-house training programmes, such as
seminars and workshops. It trained more than 3,000 internet professionals in 2006 and
runs bespoke training programmes for well-known blue chips and SMEs.

More than 100 exclusive E-consultancy events are lined up for 2007, including roundtables
and monthly Supplier Showcases, which remain highly popular.

Based on this research E-consultancy is running a programme of training seminars specific
to Web Project Management.

Upcoming dates for these courses are…

Manchester 25th April, 2007
Manchester 4th July, 2007
London 10th July, 2007
London 13th September, 2007
Manchester 25th September 2007
London 20th November, 2007
Manchester 22nd November, 2007

If you are interested in attending any of these sessions please email viv@e-consultancy.com,
or see our website’s training channel for more detail.

E-consultancy also held a roundtable forum of E-commerce managers and project managers
to discuss the findings of this research, the outputs of which can be found on our website.


2.4. What is Web Project Management?

What is a project?

In ‘A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge’ (PMBOK Guide) a project is
defined as:

“A temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product, service or result”

What is significant about this definition is that it distinguishes projects from the everyday
work of running of a business. Projects run alongside business as usual operations and
typically deliver a change that needs to be integrated back into the business, at the
completion of the project.

What is Project Management?

“Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools
and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements”
(PMBOK, 2005)

Sometimes carried out by a professional project manager, at other times project
management is an activity carried out by another member of the project team. You don’t
necessarily have to be a project manager to manage projects.

There are a few universal truths for any project which are reflected in every Project
Management methodology:

1. There is always a customer, the project is always being delivered for someone;
2. There is always a project team, no matter how big or small;
3. There should always be a goal, otherwise why are you doing the project?
4. It ultimately comes down to managing the iron triangle…

Cost Quality

Time
The iron triangle represents the three key elements of a project: cost, quality and time.
Altering one of these variables will impact the other two. For instance, if you need to reduce
the time to complete a project you will either have to risk reduced quality, or pay more
money to ensure the same quality in less time.



The fundamentals of project management are the same, whatever the project, but there are
a number of challenges inherent to web projects which often prevent teams from
delivering their projects on time, on budget and to the satisfaction of their internal and
external customers. These challenges are outlined in more detail in section 5.1.

In the experience of the participants of this research there is no single approach that is a
perfect fit for web projects.

Many organisations have embarked on journeys of experimentation and adaptation to arrive
at processes that work for them. It is from documenting these experiences that we have been
able to build a new body of knowledge that supports the notion of web project management
as a separate activity.

At its most basic level Web Project Management is about creating the right
environment for the delivery of web projects. One with the following characteristics:

• Just enough structure to help rather than hinder progress;
• The flexibility to work with evolving requirements;
• Focus on and involvement of the end customer;
• Effective collaboration between different skill sets and departments;
• Manages the expectations of multiple stakeholders;
• Enables rapid deployment of priority features.


3. Research aim

E-consultancy felt that there was a big gap for this sort of research, and so we decided to do
something about it. We are experienced in web project management, having created,
launched and operated many websites for ourselves and for third parties. Indeed, a
thorough revamp of the E-consultancy website has just begun, a project anticipated to take a
year before it comes to fruition.

Moreover, this research was undertaken in response to a growing need for guidance on
web project management best practice from people working at the sharp end of the internet
industry.

As ever, our guidance is based on practical experience rather than theoretical knowledge of
managing web projects. People say that this is where E-consultancy really stands out from
the crowd, and we hope this guide will prove to be a valuable addition to the existing
research available on at www.e-consultancy.com/research.

Specifically this research aims to…

• Discover what makes some organisations and projects more successful at web
projects than others;
• Show what methodologies, tools and techniques are working, and which one’s aren’t;
• Help subscribers evaluate their own situation and work out the best approach for
them.

Our research is not intended as a training manual for any specific project management
method or process, but we think it articulates the ideal environment for managing web
projects.

It also provides an insight into some of the wide range of project management techniques
available.


4. Methodology

4.1. Sample

Phase 1 of the research comprised of 18 depth interviews with representatives from
different organisations, across a wide range of industries including travel, financial services,
telecommunications, retail and agency. The respondents were chosen because they are
responsible for either commissioning or managing web projects within their organisation.

The purpose of this first phase was to identify the characteristics and practices of successful
web projects, and identify the main barriers to success.

Interviews were conducted with senior representatives from the respective internet teams at
the likes of: MyTravel, Sony Ericsson, Sony Business Services, Axa-PPP, Alliance and
Leicester, BSI, First Choice, Framfab, Henderson Global Investors, Lloyds, Code, O2,
Opodo, P&O and Signet.

Phase 2 was designed to validate the findings of the first phase of research and allow
quantitative measurement of the typical success rate of web projects, and the maturity of UK
organisations in their approach to web projects. This phase was conducted via an online
survey to the E-consultancy newsletter subscriber base. The survey was completed by 633
individuals (about 5% of our newsletter readers).

4.2. Questions

In order to satisfy the aims of the research it was necessary to evaluate what skills and
resources are necessary to run web projects and also how projects are influenced by and
interact with the wider organisation.

In order to do this we borrowed a strategic framework already seen in E-consultancy’s in-
depth study: ‘Managing an E-commerce team: Integrating digital marketing into your
organisation’.

The structure for his study was based on a strategic framework devised by McKinsey
Consultants – The 7S strategic framework. In it each “S” represents a key issue that needs to
be addressed. We have applied this framework equally effectively to the practice of
managing Web projects, and it has been used in this research to highlight the key issues that
need to be managed in order for a company to deliver its projects with a degree of success.

This framework formed a backdrop for the first phase of qualitative research, which then
defined the quantitative survey which was used in phase two. The interview discussion guide
and a copy of the online survey are both published in full in the Appendices of this report.


Element of 7S Application to Web Project Key issues
model Management

Strategy Annual planning approach, aligning Being part of organisation wide planning
projects with organisational and process
marketing strategy, gaining appropriate
budget and resource, delivering value Effective prioritisation of web projects to
align with business goals – roadmapping

Being part of a programme of work

In-built flexibility to adapt to fast moving
environment

Digital strategy as collaboration between
IT / Marketing / Digital / Commercial

Structure Modification of organisational structure Cross-functional steering and cross-
to support digital projects functional teams

Common goals and targets

Integration between IT / Marketing / Mgt

Where does project/programme mgt
function sit?

Accountability

Systems Development of specific processes, Adoption of structured approach to PM.
procedures and information systems to
support digital projects Approach communicated and used by
whole team/organisation

Approach is fit for purpose – speed,
quality, flexibility, scale

Visibility of the project – timescales,
issues, resource

Effective process for gathering and
refining requirements

Role of customer / end user in the process

Choosing the right supporting software

Effective resource estimation and
allocation

Staff Breakdown of staff in terms of Senior level sponsorship
background and characteristics,
location, insource/outsource, part-time Diversity of backgrounds, skills and
vs. dedicated understanding of web technology

Dedicated PM function vs. managing
projects as a part-time task

IT Project Manager vs. Commercial
Project manager

Style The way key managers behave in Shared ownership and decision making
achieving the organisational goals, and vs. working in competing silos
the cultural style of the organisation as a
whole Organisational culture main driver of


process/method

Techniques to nurture collaboration
across functions

Co-location

Fear of permanent beta

Skills Distinctive capabilities of key staff Breadth of skills required across the
project

Project management skills, training and
experience

PM balance between technical,
commercial and people skills

Experience of working in web projects

Availability of expert technical resource

Ability to evolve and embrace new
technology

Super-ordinate goals The guiding concepts of the organisation Improving the effectiveness of cross-
which are part of shared values and functional teams through education and
culture involvement in the process. Give the
organisation understanding so they can
embrace the potential of the web channel

4.3. Analysis

The Clicktools analysis tool was used extensively in the quantitative phase of the research
and enabled responses to be cross-tabulated and filtered. For example;

• Cross referencing specific attributes and practices against their impact on success
• Analysing the relationship between project management method and
o Success
o Culture
o Challenges
o Practices
o Requirements gathering
o Nature of deadlines
• Cross referencing culture against success
• Filtering to establish the impact on success of the predictive model
• Filtering the model behaviours to quantify the volume of respondents at each stage of
the model


5. Findings and Recommendations

5.1. The differences between web projects and other projects

The interviews conducted in the early stages of this research supported the view that web
projects have challenges of their own which set them apart from other kinds of projects.

Web projects draw on a huge range of people and skills – Marketing, commercial,
design, usability, accessibility, information architecture, programming, database
development, application development, integration with legacy systems, back office support
and fulfilment. It’s not enough for each area to own one chunk of the project and then put it
into a black box for someone else to integrate. Multi-discipline teams need to work
together to define whole solutions that maximise the technology’s’ potential to fulfil the
customers’ needs.

Because of this diversity of interests, most web projects also tend to attract a huge array of
stakeholders and hangers on. It’s also fair to say that in some organisations, web is still
perceived as ‘quick and easy’ so project managers have to manage varied and unrealistic
expectations.

Web development tends to be an iterative process. Enhancing functionality through
smaller, more frequent releases is the most effective way to keep up with the fast pace
of change in consumer habits and technology. Plus the volume of data available on how
customers interact with your website makes it impossible these days not to find ways to
continuously improve conversion or loyalty.

Hand in hand with a fast paced, competitive environment and demanding customers comes
fixed deadlines, primarily driven by product launches and advertising campaigns.

Many projects are made more complicated by the need to integrate cutting edge
applications with legacy systems, which typically means that there are lots of
unknowns.

The requirements of a web project are often less defined at the outset, partly because it is
difficult to second guess how the audience is going to interact with a three dimensional
customer experience. It’s not uncommon for requirements to be refined as part of the
design process, and prototyping is sometimes used to aid this.

The web channel represents your company’s window to the outside world, so if your projects
go wrong the evidence is there for all your customers to see and experience in the form
of poor usability, confusing navigation, frustratingly slow page downloads, underwhelming
content, impossible to complete transactions and error messages.

Key Finding

Take the time to ensure that you and other key stakeholders understand the unique challenges
inherent with web projects. This will help manage unrealistic expectations from the business.


5.2. Biggest challenges facing web project managers

All our research participants were asked to identify the top three challenges they faced
in delivering web projects. Their responses served to highlight the fact that a huge number
of organisations are struggling with challenges that are inherent to the nature of web
projects! Elements of their environment and / or processes are inadequate for the
tasks they are being asked to carry out.

Resoundingly, the biggest challenge facing web project managers is changing requirements
during the course of the project. This is a defining feature of web projects, and can’t be
avoided unless organisations are prepared to go back to producing brochure-ware and stop
striving for meaningful customer interaction.

Chart 1 – Biggest challenges in managing web projects
60

50
50

40
% of respondents

33
31
30 27 27
23.5

19
20
16 15 14

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Most frequent challenges

(n=527)

Ironically most organisations, 87.67% according to our survey, set their requirements
knowing that they need to be flexible to change. The fact that 50% still consider this to be
one of the biggest challenges in their projects simply highlights the fact that they are
unprepared for change when it needs to happen, or when it happens anyway.

All project management methodologies will state that they have a mechanism for dealing
with change within the project. But organisations need to understand that there is a world of
difference between managing change as an exception to the project, and embracing change
as part of the process.

“Our problem was that the environment was constantly changing – you start off in
waterfall with a big scope and then during the journey there would be continuous re-
scoping because of unforeseen changes. So by the time you deliver it’s different to what you
set off with and the business is disappointed”.

The next most significant challenges are the unrealistic expectations of the business and
failure of the business to provide adequate input at the right time. Once again, this is
probably symptomatic of one of the major challenges of web projects.

The fact that there are a myriad of stakeholders and skill sets involved in web projects,
means that managing the appropriate level of involvement from all parties can be a
phenomenal communications task.
•
Key Finding

The results from the questionnaire serve to reinforce the view that web projects require a project management
approach that helps with:

• Evolving requirements
• Putting focus on the end customer
• Collaboration between different skill sets
• Managing stakeholder expectations


5.3. Key drivers of success

During the interview stage of this research it became clear that organisations that are
successful in delivering web projects share similar behaviours. We can see that success is not
driven by the size of the organisation, which specific methodology they used or even the
team structure.

Instead, the key to running successful web projects appears to be nothing more that a
collaborative and communicative culture, supported by structured practices
and processes that are appropriate to the individual project and the organisation.

The most successful organisations had these attributes in common:

Statements of a mature organisation
• Think strategically but deliver tactically
• Projects aligned with business strategy
• Sponsorship at senior level of the organisation
• Cross-functional steering to prioritise resource and provide guidance
• Collaboration between IT, Marketing and Management
• Shared goals
• Structured approach to projects, which is appropriate to the needs of the business.
This often means using different approaches for different kinds of projects.
• Driven by business/customer needs
• Dedicated project management resource
• Flexibility to respond to change
• Focus on the requirements that deliver the greatest benefit

For the purposes of statistical analysis and producing a predictive model, these statements
were translated into specific practices which were then incorporated into the quantitative
study:

• Flexibility in requirements
• Involvement of the end user in defining requirements
• Having a Project Manager
• Having a structured approach to managing web projects
• Highly collaborative culture
• Highly communicative culture
• An annual plan that is aligned with the overall business strategy
• Shared goals with the rest of the business
• A business wide approach to prioritising resource
• Cross-functional steering
• Senior sponsors for projects

A final influence, less easily quantified, was whether an organisation was able to
demonstrate using different approaches for different kinds of projects.

Key Finding

Delivering a successful project is as much about managing the environment as it is about managing
the process.

Most of us do some of the right things

The model will demonstrate that it is a combination of practices that drive significant
improvements in the success rates of projects. But some behaviours are more
important than others, and the good news is that UK businesses are already doing a lot
of the right things.

The table below shows the percentage of respondents already demonstrating the behaviours
and practices that are critical to success. The practices that have the most tangible impact on
success are marked with stars.

Chart 2 – Percentage of respondents who demonstrate key success factors
Multiple approaches 17.1

Cross-functional steering 28.9

Business wide prioritisation 34.9

Snr Sponsors 38.4

Align with business strategy 38.4

Shared goals 46.6

Highly communicative 49.8

Structured approach 54.2

High collaboration 54.5

Have a PM 55.5

User drives requirements 66.2

Flexible requirement 75.2

Baseline 100.0

0.0 20.0
Percentage of respondents
40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0

Key finding (n = 631)

Some factors have a larger, clearer influence on the likely success of a project. The top four factors are:
§ creating a highly collaborative environment
§ having a structured approach
§ aligning projects with business strategy
§ business wide prioritisation of resource.


A model for successful Web Project Management
The quantitative study enabled data relating to over 600 companies to be mapped onto a
maturity model, to establish whether these key behaviours were truly predictive of success.

Each success factor was input according to how widespread its’ practice is i.e. the most
commonly followed behaviours first, with the least common and arguably more
sophisticated practices at the end of the model, as illustrated in the table above.

Mature organisations are more successful

By looking at a combination of which key success factors had been adopted by a company,
and the perception of success they had achieved against the following criteria, we were able
to demonstrate a clear link between the adoption of best practice (via the critical
success factors) and the increased success of a project.

How would you rate the success of your projects on the following criteria?
Never Sometimes Always
Achieves goals
Meets deadlines

Meets budget
Customer satisfaction

Involvement of the end user
Embraces flexibility during development
Delivers ROI

Without doubt some elements of the model are more significant than others in driving
success, but no single attribute guarantees success on its own. The model represents, at a
high level, an ideal blend of company culture, organisational structure, skills and practices.

The most successful organisations do all or many of these things. The following charts show
how different facets of the model impact some of the success criteria.


Score out of 3 Score out of 3

2

1.9
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6
2.45
2.55
2.65
2.75
2.85

2.4
2.5
2.6
2.7
2.8
2.9

Baseline
Baseline

Flexible requirements Flexible requirements

Customer at Customer at
requirements gathering requirements gathering

Copyright © E-consultancy.com ltd 2006
Have a PM Have a PM

Collaboration Collaboration

Structured approach Structured approach

Communicative

Adoption of Model
Adoption of Model

Communicative

Shared goals Shared goals

Align with bus strategy Align with bus strategy

Snr Sponsors
Chart 4 - They are more likely to meet deadlines

Snr Sponsors

Business wide Business wide
prioritisation prioritisation

Cross functional Cross functional
steering steering
Chart 3 - Companies further up the model = more likely to achieve their goals.

(n = 631)
(n = 631)

21

Chart 5 - They are better at staying within budget
2.7

2.65

2.6

2.55

2.5
Score out of 3

2.45

2.4

2.35

2.3

2.25 Adoption of Model
2.2

2.15

Align with bus strategy
Have a PM

Business wide
Baseline

Collaboration

Structured approach

Shared goals

Snr Sponsors

Cross functional
requirements gathering
Flexible requirements

Communicative

prioritisation

steering
Customer at

(n = 631)

Chart 6 - They are better at dealing with change in the project.
2.75

2.7

2.65

2.6

2.55
Score out of 3

2.5

2.45

2.4

2.35 Adoption of Model
2.3

2.25
Align with bus strategy
Have a PM

Business wide
Baseline

Collaboration

Structured approach

Shared goals

Snr Sponsors

Cross functional
requirements gathering
Flexible requirements

Communicative

prioritisation

steering
Customer at

(n = 631)

Key finding

It’s possible to apply a model that is predictive of success. Respondents at the top of the model scored
themselves as 92.38% successful, versus the average which was 79.76%.


The model applied

Discussions with client and agency organisations suggested that there are three main
categories to describe an organisations’ maturity in delivering web projects. The survey
data enabled the size of these groups to be quantified.

Chart 7 – Shows where the biggest improvements in success occur and the
location of the three main groupings in terms of their adoption of the model

Early Frustrated Slick
Experimenter Visionaries Professionals
83% 14.2% 2.8%

120.0
Involves end user Meets deadlines
100.0
Achieves goals
% of respondents

80.0 Meets Budgets

60.0
Customer satisfaction Flexibility in dev
40.0
Delivers ROI

20.0
Adoption of model

0.0
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Although success rates consistently improve the further along the model you go, each of the
markers on the diagram above serve to illustrate the point at which the most considerable
improvements occur.

Key finding

Although some elements of the model are more significant than others in driving success no single
attribute guarantees success on its own. Organisations should strive to adopt as many of the success
criteria as possible in order to deliver value and ROI.


Early Experimenters

Early experimenters tend to be relatively new to delivering web projects. The web
channel is typically seen as a tactical tool rather than a channel that is integrated into
the overall strategic plan of the business.

This can be problematic. It can mean that e-commerce initiatives operate in a vacuum
and the opportunities and benefits are not fully realised by the wider organisation.

On the one hand this means that the project team will typically have a lot of
empowerment (while things are going well), but at times the lack of support from a
senior sponsor can be to the detriment of the project. A particular challenge can be
getting and keeping the right resources for the job.

This mode is typified by a lack of formal process, or having to operate with processes
that aren’t always suited to web projects. There will usually be some organisational tools
such as work schedules, project updates and team meetings but these are often applied
in an ad hoc manner. The knock-on effects of a lack of structured approach are discussed
more fully later in this document.

There is unlikely to be a full-time project manager in place, although IT project
managers may get involved where there is integration with legacy systems. Projects are
completed purely as a result of the sheer determination of the individuals within the
project team. Nothing more.

Working in this mode can be maintained for a while, but typically issues can occur
when:

• projects increase in their size or complexity
• web gets a higher profile in the business
• more stakeholders come out of the woodwork
• there are more projects and/or fewer resources available
• key team members leave

Key Finding

Web projects need to be part of an overall business strategy. When this isn’t the case the project team
operate in a vacuum without the appropriate tools and techniques to make their projects a success.
The business case for appropriate resource is doomed to fail because the project is not contributing to
the priority objectives of the business.


Frustrated Visionaries

Frustrated Visionaries tend to deliver their projects against an annual plan and
objectives which are aligned with the overall strategy of the business. They tend to have
more formal structures and processes in place including cross-functional steering
groups to prioritise projects and resources. In these circumstances web projects have
visibility at a senior level in the company.

Although there is a defined process for delivering projects there are still some common
complaints:

• IT and marketing don’t collaborate enough
• Web projects sometimes disappear into an IT black-box and don’t always do what
they’re supposed to when they come out the other side
• Projects take too long to deliver
• The business can’t be as responsive to customers and the competition as it needs
to be
• Projects get derailed by changing or misunderstood requirements

Legacy systems and laborious processes are perceived as the biggest barrier to achieving
the organisations’ online vision. What these organisations lack is the flexibility to cope
with the demands of the market and ambitions of the company. They usually manage to
deliver one or two large web projects a year, but want to be able to deliver enhancements
in a more frequent and iterative way.

“We have two big problems. It’s too long from getting an idea
to delivery and stemming from that is that the process
involves far too many people, too many personalities”

Typically these companies will work within a Prince framework or a home grown
waterfall process.

In their favour, the communicative and collaborative nature of the team means that
they’re usually well aware of their problems and are trying to resolve them. They actively
research new methods and tools.

Key Finding

The vast majority of organisations that are struggling to deliver their web projects do so because they
are persisting with a methodology that is inappropriate for their needs. A more flexible approach,
using tools that are applicable to the task at hand, should be considered. This often means
considering more agile project management methodologies.


Slick Professionals

Slick Professionals bring sophisticated expertise to managing web projects, and are
likely to have clear processes (usually multiple methods) for managing projects which
are characteristically more collaborative, user focused, iterative and flexible to change.

These organisations are typically in highly competitive industries where customer
expectations are high. They will deploy multiple changes during the course of the year,
which are largely driven by customer research and marketing deadlines. The IT
department is perceived as (and perceives itself as) as a key service provider.

Agile methodologies are often adopted here because of:
• quick starts,
• ability to prioritise key requirements,
• quick delivery of tangible outputs,
• their ability to ensure participation of IT, commercial and marketing,
• the fact that risks and the impact of problems or mistakes are minimised.

More traditional approaches such as Waterfall are still used where appropriate e.g.
where there is less uncertainty, requirements are fixed and the there is less need for
innovation.

Key Finding

To be able to respond to a competitive market the most successful organisations adopt project
methodologies that are appropriate to their environment; flexible, collaborative, with quick start ups
and incremental delivery.


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