Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Curtis, & Chrissis, 1995). CMM provided a much needed thrust to the area of
software quality and software development metrics and induced other industries
to build similar frameworks and models to guide their design and development
activities (Stage Gate, PACE, ISO 9000, etc.). Along the same lines, the focus on
project management has led to the development and adoption of practices related
to task coordination, scheduling, and resource management of product development
projects. Sophisticated project management models have enabled firms to manage
aggregate project portfolios and to implement cross-project resource management
strategies based on real-time project data (Cooper & Kleinschmidt, 2001). They also
support complex workflow management and coordination of dispersed task groups
in real time.
Different types of IT tools have been deployed to support both project and pro-
cess management. Broadly these tools have been referred to as product life cycle
management (PLM) tools (Teresko, 2004). These IT tools support process man-
agement by either prescribing a comprehensive process model or enable firms to
adopt a flexible process framework to configure their own unique process model
(Elliott, Gill, & Nelson, 2001; Nahass, 2001). The IT support also extends to cross-
enterprise process specification and management as well as integration with other
organizational and supply chain processes (Joglekar & Yassine, 2002). Many of
these tools offer sophisticated project management features including virtual com-
mand center (or dashboard) that provides access to all project information through
a common interface and integrate project management with the firm's process
management. Furthermore, the Internet, intelligent agents, and other emerging tech-
nologies facilitate enhanced online visibility of project data, automated task and
resource monitoring, and control. These systems also facilitate sophisticated cross-
project knowledge management critical for implementing enterprise-wide product
platform and portfolio management strategies.
As noted previously, there have been a number of studies, particularly in the last 5
years or so, on how IT applications can support project and process management in
product development contexts. However, as newer types of IT applications emerge
in these areas, newer issues related to their deployment and adoption also emerge
and thereby indicate the need to maintain the research focus on these IT applications.
1.4.2 Emerging Areas of IT-PD Research
Most product development projects generate an extensive amount of information
and knowledge. Techniques to support data and information sharing with multiple
entities in a network-centric or collaborative innovation environment have assumed
critical importance in recent years. Moving away from traditional product data man-
agement (PDM) and product information management (PIM) systems and standards
(e.g., the ISO-STEP), the newer IT-based systems and tools are designed to support
a wider variety of knowledge capture and sharing methods. They incorporate emerg-
ing data standards, database, and visualization technologies that can handle different
types of information (including graphics, audio, and video). They also attempt to
Search WWH ::
Custom Search