The results of a new survey conducted by ESI International report that satisfaction
with project management and business analysis software tools met or exceeded expectations for only 10.5 percent of respondents.

Respondents were representative of federal, state and local government agencies as well as numerous commercial industries including aerospace/defense, financial services, IT, insurance, manufacturing, pharmaceutical and healthcare.

When asked to describe their organization’s level of satisfaction with project management or business analysis software, including project and portfolio management and service-oriented architecture related software, they had purchased:

o Only 9.3 percent responded that the software had met all of their requirements and expectations and 1.2 percent responded that the software had exceeded their requirements

o 23.5 percent said the software met some of their requirements and expectations.

o 34 percent said the software met most of their requirements and expectations.

o 16 percent weren’t sure.

According to Forrester’s 2007 annual Project & Portfolio Management report, “End-user organizations seeking improved project and portfolio management should primarily spend effort identifying needed changes in roles, skills and processes before exploring which tools can best support – and enhance – PPM capabilities.”

When asked by ESI what they thought would improve their level of satisfaction with the software and make it more effective in meeting their organizational requirements and goals:

o 71 percent responded integrated training that shows how accepted project management and business analysis concepts and best practices make the software more valuable.

o This was almost double the percentage of respondents (36.6%) who chose the next most cited response, specific software training on how to use the tool.

“In the critical integration of people-process-tools, too often software purchases lead a change effort, when it is an organization’s people and the development of their skills that
should be at the forefront,” said Sean McDonald, Director of Strategic Alliances, ESI.

“These responses further validate ESI’s approach in customizing learning programs to a client’s environment, including working with their software providers to drive peak
performance by their people and the software they use.”

The survey findings do not indicate project management and business analysis software is deficient, but rather that too often, the maturity of the organization and the skill level of its people are not effectively aligned for the tools to deliver their maximum ROI. “As is often the case with software purchases, the features and functions don’t mean much without an
understanding of how they work within the skill sets they are designed to support,” said McDonald.

Survey Methodology
This online survey was conducted in April 2008. Responses were received from 270 U.S.- based senior managers and executives in functions including IT, operations, product management and administration. Not all 270 respondents answered every question.