Research Essay: Improving Our Approach to Internet and SOA Projects

In the late 1990s, the internet boom required new techniques and practices from project management that were more overtly agile and (perceived as being) outside of the realm of traditional methodologies. At the time, and to this day to a large extent, traditional methodologies had been the single recognised toolset available to a project manager: and then only really addressing the ‘harder’ disciplines required of project managers. During the internet boom project management methodologies (such as PRINCE2, APMP) were apparently, and in some cases deliberately, ditched in favour of the JFDI (Just Do It) approach to delivering websites and, perhaps more importantly, business objectives (because for the first time, new technology permitted instant delivery). In reality the swing from one extreme to the other merely served to demonstrate a truism known to project managers but never clearly articulated: that the ‘hard’ methods alone were ReseaRch essay Improving our Approach to Internet and SoA Projects