6.2 What is the nature of International Development
Organisations as opposed to
traditional Organisations 51
6.3 What is the proposed framework for the selection and
management of
International Development Programmes and Projects 51
7. References 53
7.1 Referred Reports 57
7.2 Reports Not Used 58
8. Personal Reflection 60
Appendix 1 APPLICATION FOR ETHICAL APPROVAL OF A STUDY
INVOLVING
HUMAN PARTICIPANTS 62
Appendix 2 Dissertation Proposal 80
Appendix 3 Dissertation Log 87
Table of Figures
COOPER'S STRATEGIC PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK 9
ARCHER AND GHASEMZADEH FRAMEWORK FOR PORTFOLIO SELECTION 10
ENGLUND AND GRAHAM FRAMEWORK FOR PORTFOLIO SELECTION 12
PROPOSED ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE 44
PROPOSED WEIGHTED SCORING MODEL 46
PROPOSED FRAMEWORK FOR PROGRAMME SELECTION AND MANAGEMENT
48
PHASES 1 AND 2 OF THE PROPOSED FRAMEWORK 49
PHASES 3 AND 4 OF THE PROPOSED FRAMEWORK 50
Table of Tables
DFID CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANISATIONS FUNDING (2014) 35
SUMMATIVE TABLE OF THE ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 40
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1. Introduction
1.1 Background
Implementing Strategic Objectives through projects has been the
aim of many organisations (Gardiner, 2005; Englund & Graham, 1999; and
Srivannaboon & Milosevic, 2006) but many of the projects being implemented
have little or no significant tie to the strategic objectives they are meant to
be supporting (Englund & Graham, 1999). Selecting the right mix of projects
is therefore one of the most important task in project-based organisations to
ensure the achievement of their strategic objectives within their constrained
resources and capabilities. Several tools and techniques which aim to help
organisations select projects for their portfolios are available with each tool
and technique having both advantages and disadvantages. Organisations therefore
have a wide range of methods they can choose from in order to make their
project selection process more effective. However, the adoption of any of these
tools and techniques requires the development of a comprehensible framework
that will support the organisation's portfolio selection. The importance of
project selection in project-based organisations is widely recognised but as it
was observed by Dye and Pennypacker (2000); a clear and formal project
selection and prioritisation process is too often lacking thus leading many
researchers and practitioners to develop their own project selection frameworks
integrated with tools and techniques (Archer & Ghasemzadeh, 1999; Englund
& Graham, 1999; and Cooper et al., 2001).
International Development Organisations are project-based
organisations whose goals are in line with the United Nations Millennium
Development Goals and range from ending poverty to halting the spread of HIV
and Aids. International
Development Projects differ from other projects because of the
environment in which they are implemented (Ika et al., 2010) with complexity,
resistance to change, competing stakeholders' agenda and the contradictory
expectations of the different parties involved in the implementation of such
projects (Crawford and Bryce, 2003; Diallo and Thuillier, 2005) being the
factors that that have an impact on the successful implementation of such
projects. The sole nature of International Development Projects in comparison
to the traditional sector in which Project Management tools and techniques are
used resulted in International Development
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Projects not getting enough attention in literature
(Themistocleous and Wearne, 2000; Diallo and Thuillier, 2004) hence there is no
clear universal framework that be used when selecting and implementing these
types of projects.
1.2 Research Question
This dissertation aims to answer the following question:
«How can programmes and projects be selected and managed
in an International Development Organisation to ensure the successful
implementation of its strategy?»
1.3 Aims and Objectives of the Dissertation
This dissertation aims to highlight how some the principles of
Project Portfolio Management can be applied when implementing international
development projects. After working for two years in an International
Development Organisation in East Africa, I came to the realisation that our
biggest challenge was the selection of the right mix of projects that were in
line with our three strategic pillars: Access to Markets, Competitive
Enhancement and Access to Finance. The only way through which we could make it
possible for the different organisations working with us to benefit from our
support (both technical and financial) was through the implementation of
projects. The projects were brought to us by the local organisations and the
only tool we used to rank and prioritize these projects was a Balanced
Scorecard which in our case only measured the managerial capabilities of the
local organisations; in other words we used it to judge whether or not the
given organisation was able to manage the project's budget and if there was a
person within the organisation capable of ensuring the successful
implementation of the project. The tool we used to select and prioritize
projects did not guarantee that the selected project would be completed within
the agreed time, scope, and budget nor that the project deliverables would be
in line with our strategic objectives. This led me to conclude that our
selection process was not effective enough and its lack of effectiveness had a
direct impact on the way the projects were implemented and their successful
completion. The importance of project portfolio selection and management, how
proper portfolio management leads to the successful implementation of corporate
strategies and how project portfolio management principles and processes can be
applied when selecting and managing International Development Projects will be
discussed throughout this dissertation. The objectives of this dissertation
are:
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- to understand how project portfolio selections can applied
within an organisation
- to understand the nature of International Development
Organisations as
opposed to traditional project-based organisations, and
- to propose a framework for the selection and management of
programmes
and projects in International Development Organisations
1.4 Research Scope
The focus of this dissertation is the selection and management of
International Development projects with the aim of developing a framework that
can be used by International Development Organisations worldwide. Project
management and Project Portfolio Management have been accepted by both
academics and practitioners as being respectively about «doing the project
right» and «doing the right project» (Cooke-Davies, 2002; &
PMI, 2004, 2006), it is therefore important for International Development
Organisations to be able to select the right mix of projects and manage them
accordingly in order to achieve their strategic objectives.
Turner (1994) observed that Western-oriented tools and techniques
of project management can not a be applied in non-western countries because of
the different cultural differences hence both the project selection and
management tools and techniques used have to consider these cultural
differences.
This dissertation will review the Project Portfolio Management
literature with an emphasis on the different tools, techniques and frameworks
it proposes and the impact they have on the successful implementation of
corporate strategies. A review of literature on of International Development
organisations will also be conducted to understand both the nature of this type
of organisation, some of the critical success factors for development projects,
and some of the challenges faced when implementing these projects.
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