How many times have you heard of a manager within your organization or in the wider sphere of business who has risen swiftly through the ranks on the basis of his or her technical ability only to find that, once they reach the top, these abilities pale into insignificance in comparison with the...

Purpose – This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach – This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach – This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own...

Perhaps the best summary of how ICP and the Co‐op Group handled their joint project in 2000 can be taken from an internal memo from ICP’s development manager: “please be prepared for the s**t to hit the fan”. The Co‐operative Group, one of the largest retailers in the UK, and ICL,...

While time to market was the most critical measure of performance in product development throughout the 1990s, the recent economic downturn has caused a shift in priorities. Today, lowering product development costs is the key focus. To this end, companies are looking for ways to improve R&D and...

Making a video game these days is getting more and more like making a movie. So‐called blockbuster games are developed by large teams of programmers managed by “producers”, can take many years to come to market and generally cost major amounts of money to make. The rewards, however, can be...

On the face of it, there may not seem much in common with a World Bank project to increase the productivity of Nicaraguan farmers, and British financial institutions’ need to bring profitable new products and services on stream quickly. Or with a US office‐product company’s determination...

An extensive review of systems development practices during the late 1990s produced some alarming statistics. It suggested that up to 90 percent of all IT projects failed to meet their goals, while 80 percent were late and over‐budget, and 40 percent were abandoned. The value of IT investments...