IT'S A TRADITION—if three years is sufficient to set a pattern—for my January column to be a report on the exhibits at PMI's Annual Seminars & Symposium. This has provided an opportunity to report on some of the newer vendors and products appearing at the conference as well as to discern some of the more apparent trends in the industry.
The 1998 Seminars & Symposium, while bringing more exhibitors than ever into the show, failed to provide any strong indications of where the industry is going. For certain, there were several new vendors and several new concepts for tools for the project manager. But there was a strong showing by the old-timers of the traditional offerings with miscellaneous enhancements.
Project management software is entering a transition period, as the industry experiments with better ways to reach and serve the vast variety of its users.
My gut feeling is that we are entering a transition period—a period in which the industry is experimenting with ways to better reach and serve the vast variety of individuals involved with project management. The industry is paying more attention to people as well as projects, and to how these people communicate project information. It is recognizing that there is a growing multiproject, multiuser environment. It acknowledges that the involved personnel are diverse in their interests and scattered in their locations.
Of key interest to many of us is the role that web-based technology will play in the next generation of project management tools. Will all new software be designed to sit on this technology? Or will the web-based functions only be part of these packages? Will Java drive out Windows? Or will they be partners in the solutions? We can acknowledge that 100 percent local computing is a thing of the past. But can it be replaced by 100 percent web-based computing?
Harvey A. Levine, principal, The Project Knowledge Group, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., provides training and consulting services to users and developers of project management software. He is also a past chairman of the Project Management Institute. Send your comments to [email protected].
The Expo floor of PMI's 1998 Seminars & Symposium was buzzing with activity, as a record number of vendors vied for the attention of conference goers. The trade show portion of PMI's annual event has become a primary showcase for project management products; many companies now debut new releases at the show.
Certainly there are visible trends toward versatile client/server solutions, with support for multiple modes of remote computing. There are also new offerings utilizing total web methods. But there are many questions to be answered. For instance, at what point does the widespread access to and utilization of these multiproject, multiuser databases reduce the control of the contents and calculations so as to fatally endanger its integrity? Might we be moving from the problems of too limited access, as in the file-locking products of the past decade, to problems of controlling unlimited access? Some recent experiments in designing tools that decentralize the management of the project management data have failed to meet with success. While we acknowledge that free and rapid communication between project stakeholders is a key element to project success, this must take place within an environment of enlightened leadership, clear responsibility for the system and its data, and in the hands of qualified project managers with project management tool expertise.
As usual, we are interested in reader opinions on the ramblings in this column. You are invited to respond via letters or e-mail to PM Network. What do you see as the key advantages or dangers to the various platforms, such as stand-alone, file-locking systems; client/server systems residing on SQL databases; total web-based systems, etc.? What do you see for the future?
As Seen at PMI ’98
I can't provide a briefing on everything exhibited at PMI ’98, because other PMI obligations limited my time on the exhibit hall floor. The regulars were there—most with limited enhancements to their already successful software offerings. I made certain to stop at some of the newer vendors to see what they were bringing to the market. Here are a few of the significant newcomers.
Oracle Projects. When the No. 2 software vendor in the world decides to exhibit at our Seminars & Symposium, I guess it helps to validate just how vital the field of project management has become. Oracle Applications for Projects didn't just exhibit, they backed their move into project management (and their support for PMI) by sponsoring the Tuesday night reception at the Convention Center.
Oracle's investment at Long Beach follows their development of Oracle Projects, which I wrote about at length in the April ’98 PM Network. Oracle is one of four ERP vendors that have developed “Projects” modules (PeopleSoft, SAP and Baan are the others), but was the only one of them to exhibit at PMI. Oracle has also been more aggressive in promoting this important bridge between projects and accounting data, and in cementing relationships with leading project management software vendors. I wrote extensively on the topic of PMS/ERP integration during the past year (see April and October 1998 PM Networks), so will just mention here that the integration of PM and ERP software, as supported by Oracle Projects, is one of the significant trends of this year. More on this later.
Eagle Ray Software Systems. There were at least four totally new faces at the exhibit, with fresh, new products that caught my interest. Eagle Ray used the PMI conference to unveil ER Project 1000—they call it “The Total Project Management Solution.” While it certainly is an assertive claim, one would have trouble challenging it. While we know that a “total project management solution” comprises more than just tools, ER Project 1000 is one of the most complete sets of project management tools that I have seen. Unbridled by the weight of old code, they have developed a fresh, comprehensive tool set aimed at the IT/IS application area.
ER Project 1000 is built around three primary modules: ER Methodology Manager, ER Project Manager, and ER Project Satellite. ERMM provides tools and support for methods and estimating. ERPM provides tools and support for traditional project scheduling and control, as well as support for risk management and issues tracking (which are missing from most other offerings). ERPS provides both Windows and Java components for timesheets and remote communication. ER Project 1000 is a client/server system, supporting Oracle, SQLServer and Interbase. I was able to obtain a pre-release working edition of ER
The industry is paying more attention to people as well as projects, and to how these people communicate project information.
Project 1000 and found it to be robust, with a refreshing user interface, and as complete as claimed.
InventX, Inc. We should expect to see several new web-based products, such as Project Ensemble, from InventX. Another new company, InventX has written Project Ensemble in “100 percent pure Java” (purer than Ivory, I guess). As in ER Project 1000, Project Ensemble goes beyond the usual components of a project management package by adding support for change management, issues management, estimating (based on the COCOMO model) and risk.
A lot of attention is given to project communication, as one would expect with a web-based application. I was only able to see a short demo, and have not had a chance to test this or any of the other web-based products, so would be interested to know how well they hold up under large-scale usage.
Toshiba. Yes, I was also surprised to see this hardware vendor at the show. But here they were, offering Workload Arranger. Toshiba was here looking for U.S. outlets and advertising the product as follows: Workload Arranger: add-on software for Microsoft Project, has automatic resource assignment and time scheduling functionality. You need decide ONLY who can do what.When and who will be decided by Workload Arranger.
I stopped by this booth just as the exhibit hall was closing and didn't get a chance to watch Workload Arranger work its magic. You can download an evaluation version at http://www2.toshiba.co.jp/wla/.
One problem with this product, as it currently stands, is that it does not yet work with Microsoft Project 98, which would really be essential for effective project management. The developers say that a Project 98 version is planned, and solicited feedback from the people who stopped by so that the next release can better match the needs of the market. So … not quite ready for prime time … but an interesting concept. Toshiba's attendance at PMI ’98 points out a valuable benefit of exhibiting. They were able to bring their development out of the laboratory and expose it to the realities of practicing project managers. They received valuable feedback as a result.
Glovia International. Glovia is another new exhibitor (but not a new vendor) to come out of the ERP-type providers. Glovia Project is aimed at the Engineer-to-Order (ETO) segment of manufacturing. They have positioned Glovia Projects as an easy-to-use ERP system, with integrated project accounting, targeted to mid-market (not Fortune 500) manufacturing-oriented companies.
The Glovia system, they claim, is a natural extension of earlier MRP developments and contains a subsystem called Projects Requirements Planning (PRP). The PRP creates the linkage of items planned to a project task.
Software Productivity Research. Far from being a new vendor, this established information technology firm, led by industry expert (and a PM Network Contributing Editor) Capers Jones, exhibited at PMI for the first time. SPR announced the release of SPR KnowledgePlan, a Windows-based estimation and planning tool for software projects.
The attendance of firms emphasizing tools for the IS/IT application area grows each year. Joining SPR and Eagle Ray at Long Beach among the (mostly repeat) industry providers were ABT, Angel Group, Changepoint, C/S Solutions, PlanView, Platinum Technology, QSM Associates, and Work Management Solutions.
Trends
I would be reluctant to firmly predict any trends from these limited observations. But combined with my continuing survey of the industry and networking with the other industry watchers, I can provide a few assessments about where some of the action will be in 1999.
Major attention will be given to web-based applications. These will take many shapes, from total Java applications, to the browser as a hub to a set of functions, to things that look like browsers, to mixed applications with web-based components. We will still be looking for validation of this environment for total project management, but we can be certain that there will be some kind of role for it.
The IT/IS application will be a favorite target for serious project management software vendors. Offerings will be improved, both in degree of attention to people-oriented elements (resource allocation and resource scheduling) and to extended functions both for process (methods, estimating) and project management.
New vendors will continue to throw their hat in the ring, while existing vendors strive to maintain position. This will lead to some mergers and acquisitions, some external marketing agreements, and probably a few dropouts.
The new vendors will have the advantage of starting with a clean slate, utilizing the latest languages and technology. But they will have to break into a market of established providers. Those that can couple a solid technical product with an equally solid marketing strategy, backed by adequate technical and sales support, will challenge today's established leaders.
Existing leading vendors will have the unenviable task of updating their currently successful software to keep up with the changing technology. However, their strong user base and track record will allow most of them to maintain their position in the market, if they can keep their products fresh.
Partnering will gain in popularity, with many high-end vendors developing standards, APIs and gateways to facilitate the integration of project management software with other management tools. Enterprise-level clients will seek best-of-breed solutions. This will lead them to select products from multiple vendors, making the availability of interface products of increasing importance.
The trend toward multivendor, integrated solutions will push standard, open databases to be used by all project management software vendors wishing to ride the wave.
Additional attempts will be made to address issues in resource management and to provide tools to facilitate the efficient utilization of shared resources for multiple projects, by resource managers. While the need in this area is significant, it remains to be seen what solutions will be forthcoming and which will be accepted in the market.
Bits and Pieces
First of all, my apologies to all of those valued exhibitors that I have not been able to mention in this report. Space and time limitations prevent me from covering all but a few items.
Also, my personal thanks to Primavera for providing the CD-ROM of the Proceedings of PMI ’98. It has allowed me to review some of the papers from presentations that I didn't have time to attend in Long Beach. The CD-ROMs of the past four years of symposia are an essential part of my project management library.
I was interested in seeing a few products that are using the project management database as a jumping off point to other project information. This is something that I felt should have been possible for some time now. For instance, being able to click on an icon in a task field and then able to open a related document (Scitor's Project Scheduler 7). Or publishing a table of related specifications, work products or documents and being able to launch any of these with a mouse click (Eagle Ray's ER Project 1000).
IN ADDITION TO providers of tools for the project manager, the exhibit hall was again host to providers of consulting and educational services. In fact, this group outnumbered the software exhibitors. Perhaps this is the best validation of the message that I repeat as often as I can: The use of project management tools can only be successful and effective in an environment of knowledgeable people, and a formal, accepted and supported management process.
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