Detection of early warning signals for overruns in IS projects: linguistic analysis of business case language

2020 | European Journal of Information Systems | Citations: 10

Authors: Benschop, Nick; Hilhorst, Cokky A. R.; Nuijten, Arno L. P.; Keil, Mark

Abstract: Many Information Systems (IS) projects fail to be completed within budget and on ... Expand

Abstract: Many Information Systems (IS) projects fail to be completed within budget and on schedule. A contributing factor is the so-called planning fallacy in which people tend to underestimate the resources required to complete a project. In this paper, we propose that signals of the planning fallacy can be detected in a project's business case. We investigated whether language usage in business cases can serve as an early warning signal for overruns in IS projects. Drawing on two theoretical perspectives – the Linguistic Category Model (LCM) and Construal Level Theory (CLT) – two sets of rival hypotheses were tested concerning the relationship between project overruns and whether the language usage in a business case is abstract or concrete. A linguistic analysis of the business cases of large IS projects in the Netherlands suggests that concrete language usage in the business case is associated with bigger budget and schedule overruns. For researchers, our study contributes to the existing literature on the importance of language usage. For practitioners, our study provides an early warning indicator for overruns. Collapse

Topics: IT project project management decision making database system IT project management

Methods: chi squared test linguistic analysis statistical hypothesis test mixed method descriptive statistic

Theories: planning fallacy linguistic category model construal level theory

A THRESHOLD FOR A Q-SORTING METHODOLOGY FOR COMPUTER-ADAPTIVE SURVEYS

2017 | European Conference On Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Sabbaghan, Sahar; Gardner, Lesley

Abstract: Computer-Adaptive Surveys (CAS) are multi-dimensional instruments where question ... Expand

Abstract: Computer-Adaptive Surveys (CAS) are multi-dimensional instruments where questions asked of respondents depend on the previous questions asked. Due to the complexity of CAS, little work has been done on developing methods for validating their content and construct validity. We have created a new q-sorting technique where the hierarchies that independent raters develop are transformed into a quantitative form, and that quantitative form is tested to determine the inter-rater reliability of the individual branches in the hierarchy. The hierarchies are then successively transformed to test if they branch in the same way. The objective of this paper is to identify suitable measures and a “good enough” threshold for demonstrating the similarity of two CAS trees. To find suitable measures, we perform a set of bootstrap simulations to measure how various statistics change as a hypothetical CAS deviates from a “true” version. We find that the 3 measures of association, Goodman and Kruskal’s Lambda, Cohen’s Kappa, and Goodman and Kruskal’s Gamma together provide information useful for assessing construct validity in CAS. In future work we are interested in both finding a “good enough” threshold(s) for assessing the overall similarity between tree hierarchies and diagnosing causes of disagreements between the tree hierarchies. Collapse

Topics: service quality

Methods: survey descriptive statistic simulation qualitative coding grounded theory

Analyzing Ordinal Data for Group Representation

2000 | Group Decision and Negotiation | Citations: 0

Authors: Chang, Way C.W.; Chu, Po-Young; Ding, Cherng G.; Wu, Soushan

Abstract: With n individuals ranking m objects, the exhaustive comparison approach, propos ... Expand

Abstract: With n individuals ranking m objects, the exhaustive comparison approach, proposed in this paper, produces a list of order vectors sorted by the relative number of concordant pairs. The exhaustive comparison approach compares all possible order vectors instead of "an" optimal order vector to help the data analyst to consider "practical" solutions rather than a "desired" solution. An overall concordant order ratio is proposed to measure "how well" each order vector may represent the ranking structure of an ordinal data set. And the marginal concordant ratio evaluating the goodness of fit of each object in each order vector is also proposed in this paper. Comparisons among some popular ranking methods are discussed in this article. An empirical survey data regarding how travellers considered various factors for choosing travelling locations are used to illustrate the proposed method and calculations. Collapse

Methods: descriptive statistic survey simulation

Analytical Support to Negotiations: An Empirical Assessment

1997 | Group Decision and Negotiation | Citations: 0

Authors: Spector, Bertram I.

Abstract: Twenty-three cases of international negotiation are analyzed and compared to bet ... Expand

Abstract: Twenty-three cases of international negotiation are analyzed and compared to better understand the role of analytical and informational tools in supporting practical negotiators. For each case, data were gathered through interviews with Austrian diplomats on the type and amount of analytical support provided, associated bureaucratic support, and problems encountered, along with a host of key factors about the case itself-the issues, situation, strategies, process, structures, and outcomes. These data were coded and analyzed statistically. It was found that most analytical support is qualitative in nature and can be categorized as information organizing tools, comparison methods and creativity techniques; economic negotiations, in particular, tended to be supported more by quantitative methods, including forecasting and statistical models. Analytical support is particularly important to understand own and other side positions and strategies and to bolster complex negotiations that require issue packaging. A generational gap between senior and mid-level diplomats emerged: junior practitioners expressed a greater interest in analytical support tools. In general, the application of analytical support was perceived positively among practitioners and was correlated with the achievement of treaties and comprehensive solutions. These findings suggest that there needs to be greater investment in developing and providing practical analytical support to negotiators, more supporting infrastructure to facilitate the use of these techniques, and increased training opportunities. Collapse

Topics: analytical information system

Methods: qualitative interview cross sectional research descriptive statistic personal interview