Abstract
This paper presents the results of an investigation that provides insights on the challenges
encountered when implementing project scope management in telecommunication projects in Somaliland. Prior to the questionnaire design, a detailed literature review was carried out to identify 11 possible factors that affecting the adoption of project scope management practices in telecommunication projects. A total of 75 structured questionnaires were administered to obtain the opinions of the stakeholders in the Somaliland telecommunication industry, regarding the identified challenges. SPSS Statistics Software and Microsoft Excel Packages was then used to analyze the collected data. This was achieved by computing the Cronbach’s Alpha, mean values and Relative Importance Index (RII), respectively, for reliability check and ranking purposes.
The results from the analysis indicate that poor communication/miscommunication (RII = 0.694), scope creep (RII = 0.651), unrealistic timeline (RII = 0.643) and unsettled technical uncertainties (RII = 0.605) are the four most ranked challenges associated with the implementation of project scope management in the telecommunication industry, respectively. The implications of the results obtained from this study are also discussed before providing recommendations on the appropriate scope management procedures required to manage the identified key challenges when executing future telecommunication projects.
Keywords: Application of Scope Management, Project Management, Challenges hindering
Project Scope Management Practices, Telecommunication Projects, Somaliland
Introduction
In recent years, successful project managers are aware that a careful scope control is vital to time and cost delivery of projects (Charvat, 2003). Consequently, they now pay adequate attention to project scope management (Dexter, 2010; Frame, 2003). This is because, it has been established in prior work that the failure to appropriately define or productively manage the scope of a project would lead to total project breakdown, late delivery or over budget (Chua, Kog, & Loh, 1999; Keivanpour, Kadi, & Mascle, 2015; Khan, 2006; Nath & Momin, 2014). Furthermore, with vast competitiveness in the telecommunication industry, project managers are now faced with the task of successfully executing assigned projects based on a well-defined project scope that can help accomplish the overall project goals and objectives (Khan, 2006).
This implies that the success or failure of projects, particularly in the telecommunication industry, is dependent on how productive the scope management is. In addition, scope management ensures that a project’s scope is accurately defined and mapped, and enables project managers to allocate the proper labor and costs necessary to complete the project.
pmwj91-Mar2020-Fashina-Abdilahi-Fakunle-scope-management-1
