| Information technology (IT) project failure (close to 71%) has become the norm despite adopting various IT methodologies; this failure rate is concerning to IT program and project managers. The purpose of this study was to identify knowledge management (KM) activities that might address, through an integrated KM framework, the causes for such failures. KM theories by Nonaka and Boisot form the basis of this work. The research questions in this qualitative case study with five project cases, implemented during 2007-2010, were designed to explore KM activities via five major variables affecting IT projects: scope, time, quality, money, and staff. Data were coded and themes generated from the data. The research participants included project managers and project leads from financial services industry in the USA. Results suggest knowledge flow was the major KM component lacking in the project teams and was included in the construction of the KM framework along with the rest of the building blocks. The research prescribes a system of metrics that allows project teams adopting the KM framework to assess its value. Results suggest that formal adoption of the KM framework would inculcate a knowledge culture in the project teams and in the organizations. The intent of the study was to affect positive social change through improving diffusion, dissemination and facilitation of knowledge. The implications for social change are improved and positive interactions among people leading to shift in mental models, which mend human behavior towards collaborative thinking and working style. |
