Evaluating the benefits of systematic project management in large public sector projects

After an external audit of top-priority projects, the Federal Office for Equipment, Information Technology, and In-Support of the German Armed Forces decided to implement a new project management (PM) system. The new PM system implies major changes in the organization and management of projects and thus affects a large number of stakeholders. We designed a formative evaluation to understand the adequacy and acceptance of the new PM system and to elicit stakeholders' feedback in order to improve the new PM system and the related transfer strategy prior to rollout. The evaluation also aims at deriving recommendations for increasing the acceptance of the PM system as well as identifying key performance indicators to allow continuous evaluation of the PM system. We chose to perform a multiple-case study in which a sample of stakeholders will try some components of the new PM system and provide feedback on their adequacy. We will also perform interviews and use observations and focus groups to systematically elicit stakeholders' insights regarding the acceptance of the new PM system and the related transfer strategy.