The article The Triple Constraints: A Valid Set of Criteria to Measure IS-Project Success? written by Koen Milis is centered on the concept of the triple constraints and its significance for ICT projects. The triple constraints involve time, cost, and specification (Milis 1). However, it should be stated that sometimes the notions “accomplishment” and “loss” can be interpreted differently. The particular type of the experience was created to analyze the way team members of the project view success, proving that there are a lot of things that may affect the outcome.
At the beginning of the article, the author claims that managers need to have all the information about the project and be aware of the success criteria to accomplish all the goals and aims that were set in the beginning. There are three fundamental definitions that the triple constraints, namely time, cost, and specification (Milis 1). Their combination is significantly essential for the accomplishment of the project.
The author states that in case the project was completed after the deadline, or there were some difficulties with the budget the project is believed to be failed. However, the definition of the failure and success are more complex. Every member of the team can view the accomplishment in a different way. Everyone has a personal point of view and has some criteria to determine whether the project has positive or negative consequences (Milis 1).
Then the author of the article moves on to describing the research design. Milis notes that the quantitative method was used to collect and analyze data from the experiment. The group of people, who took part in the experiment, had to measure the success of the project according to the information given by the analysts (Milis 3). The experiment had three levels.
During the first level, the participants received some criteria for success and were asked to take them into account while analyzing the projects; during the next step the members of the experiment were given the information concerning twenty-five projects and the description of how the criteria were fulfilled or not. During the last phase of the test, the experts were chosen, and they were divided into four groups, namely managers, project team members (benefactors), project team members (no benefactors), and users (Milis 4). Their task was to analyze the project according to the description and to evaluate the progress made.
After making an accent on all the peculiarities of the experiment, the author draws reader’s attention to the data analysis. Milis provides the reader with all the necessary information presented in the form of tables. The results show that it is impossible to create a set of criteria that can be applied to all the members involved in the project. People, who belong to various groups, evaluate the success of the project differently. Moreover, the author states that the principle of the triple constraints is not always seen as the primary criteria. Consequently, the fulfillment of the triple constraints does not guarantee the successful outcome of the project. Such criteria as the commercial success and punctuality are viewed as the major ones that can impact the opinion of all the team members (Milis 11).
According to the research, the most meaningful criteria for the users are considered to be the following: “user happiness”, “on time”, and “financial or commercial success” (Milis 12). The issue of satisfaction the user’s interests is believed to be important for the project team members (no benefactors) (Milis 12). Such criteria as “within budget” and “on time” are also relevant and, according to Milis, has the same significance as the accomplishment of the long-term goals (Milis 12). The differences in the perception of the criteria and the vision of the project may cause the outcome and become a reason for the failure.
The researcher draws the reader’s attention to the fact that seven criteria chosen for the experiment were limited. However, the further analysis needs to be supported, and the number of participants should be extended as it will provide more information concerning the issue of evaluating project’s success by different stakeholders (Milis 14).
At the end of the article, the author draws the conclusion and gives suggestions for the further research. According to Milis, every project manager should choose team members depending on the primary goals that need to be achieved. Managers should also take into account the difference between criteria and evaluation of them. It should be stated that specifications are significant to be made, for the outcome to be successful.
It is to make an accent that the information in the article is organized in a logical manner and documented appropriately. The generalizations are well supported with examples, tables, and figures. It should be pointed out that the author supports his ideas by providing the reader with the needed information, analyzes the results in a very detailed way, uses examples, and collects data for the reader to understand the main concern of the article better.
Work Cited
Milis, Koen. The Triple Constraints: A Valid Set of Criteria to Measure IS-Project Success?. 2008. Web.