Steering and governance of an IT project : which profiles should be involved?

More and more projects are done using agile or iterative methods from the development phase. Teams communicate regularly with each other and it is not uncommon to work simultaneously. This method is part of a logic of continuous improvement. The steering committee, like other committees, plays a key role in the governance of an IT project and in monitoring the progress of the project. As with any project, IT project management involves both the provider and the client. The service provider includes project teams that participate in each phase of the deployment.

How is an IT project organized?

An IT project involves a wide range of technical experts who will be involved throughout the implementation phases. Project management or project portfolio management requires a certain amount of organization, all the more so if the nature of the project is complex and there are a large number of players involved. The project manager will thus have to set a framework from the start in order to gain efficiency and flexibility. A management method such as project governance must meet these requirements.

An IT project is generally divided into 5 stages, whatever the method (V-cycle, Agile, etc.):

• defining the customer’s needs,
• architecture and design,
• development,
• testing or acceptance
• production launch.

How is an IT project organized?

Project governance is a management method that determines the role and responsibilities of each member of a project team. More generally, this notion refers to project management, at both strategic and operational levels. The better this governance mode is defined in advance, the more successful the project will be.

What are the profiles of the project teams?

Specialists in their respective fields – management, development, information systems administration, network security, etc. – are involved at every stage.

The technical-functional project manager

Project managers are the keystone of project management, which involves defining customer requirements, making adjustments, managing teams and so on. Project managers are involved in resource management and need to have a good understanding of governance.

In fact, they are the ones who choose to implement project governance-type management. This requires a clear definition of roles upstream. In this way, project teams are aligned with the repository, and corrective measures are easier to apply.

Project managers have a broad IT culture, both in terms of technical skills (programming, coding, applications) and market knowledge. With their broad IT knowledge, they bring a useful vision to the project. Throughout the process, they ensure that the project teams remain motivated and, therefore, efficient.

The technical architect (or IT architect)

The technical or IT architect is the designer of the interface (application, site, etc.). He imagines the tools needed to deploy the platform (cloud, Azure, AWS). With the help of the project manager, he validates the most suitable solution for the client according to performance and practicality criteria and according to the budget.

The developers

The developers’ mission is to create optimal interfaces for the client’s users. A seasoned developer (2 to 3 years experience) usually coordinates the development stage. He can be accompanied by junior developers who will do the coding to show their technical abilities. The more complex the project is, the more it is essential to call upon experienced developers. More and more, IT projects are part of a continuous improvement dynamic, and developers are proposing simplified mock-ups to get their work validated more quickly by the customer.

Performance testers

The performance testers bring a useful outside perspective to the project. This is why they can be found both at the customer’s and the provider’s premises.

Security engineers

Security engineers will test the platform’s resistance by performing penetration tests. Having hacker profiles, they thwart potential cyberattacks and prevent security breaches for organizations. They are also a source of proposals concerning the security tools to be used and accompany their deployment.

DevOps

DevOps (a contraction of the terms “development” and “operations”), intervenes in each phase of the project. In concrete terms, he sets up and configures the platform. To do this, he has a double competence in development and system administration. This versatile profile is perfect for agile projects, as it saves valuable time.

DevOps touches on several professions:

• It provisions and configures environments and platforms.
• It carries out upstream platform tests.
• It checks production conformity.
• It deploys the application.
• It sets up Continuous Integration / Continuous Delivery factories or chains.

As a true “five-legged sheep”, DevOps is legitimate for making strategic decisions.

Conclusion

For complex projects that require a quick response, the agile method – called iterative – simplifies the steps. Indeed, the teams work together and the deadlines are shortened. By gaining in pragmatism, the service provider is also closer to the needs of the client. Making decisions becomes easier for the project manager. As for project governance, it is completely complementary to the agile method. By using these two methods, the project manager gains agility when making decisions.

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