Learn to initiate, develop, and implement effective, user-pleasing software projects on time and within budget. Here is your chance to learn software project management from a host of successful IS managers as well as three of the leading authors in the field. This one-of-a-kind handbook integrates topics that have historically been treated separately and establishes a strategic framework for project initiation, justification, and executive sponsorship. It defines the role of the project manager within the context of the organization and examines such issues as: realistic planning, why projects fail or succeed, proactive management, aligning IS and business requirements, project communication, assessing team members, and the effective use of JADs. Entertaining anecdotes and case studies document both successful and unsuccessful projects, and the responses of more than 60 top-notch IS managers to a detailed management survey supplement the extensive conclusions made by the authors. This indispensable guide: Explains the roles of key players involved in the systems development process Outlines a checklist of factors to consider when initiating a project Offers a method of measuring project success or failure Examines common avoidable reasons for project failure Introduces Interactive Project Development Methodology (IPDM) Provides a basic tutorial for using Microsoft Project 4 to help manage projects successfully Can be applied to any phase of the systems development life cycle and to both in-house and outsourced projects