On the Road to Digital Transformation: A Literature Review of IT Program Management

Abstract

Program management continues to gain traction as an approach to managing the development and implementation of advanced information technology (IT). The guidance and structure provided by program principles and processes enhance an organization’s ability to achieve the benefits of a large-scale IT deployment. However, realizing the benefits of contemporary IT to support organizational strategy is proving problematic. In this study, we conduct a conceptual and critical review of the IT program management literature to determine the current research in achieving success and develop frameworks that encourage coordinated studies to address further benefits from IT programs with differing strategic purposes.

The Entwinement of Project and Information Technology Research Editorial

“…As IT deployments grow in complexity and address organizational strategy head-on, studies encourage the introduction of program management practices (from project management to program management). The investigation of program management for IT deployments is still in the early stages (Wu et al, 2023). The significance of goals captured most of our attention, leading to consider the structuring of global and subordinate goals over the program and project levels and seek consonance at a higher level (Chang et al, 2014; Chang et al, 2019).…”

“…A good deal of my colleagues’ and my work has roamed across many topics, theories, levels, and practices but I’ll focus on those related to major project research themes. One of the articles in this issue provides an excellent overview of the topics covered by influential researchers (Wu et al, 2023), but I’ll take a deeper dive.…”

Factors of success in the change management process of IT programs

“…According to the generally accepted definition, program may be understood as a whole as a collection of projects that are inextricably linked together (Al-Zwainy and Al-Marsomi, 2023), have a common goal (Frederiksen et al ., 2021), interact in a planned way to achieve benefits (Fernandes and O’Sullivan, 2021) and are controlled by the program's administration (Trzeciak, 2022) in order to achieve a single or group of strategic goals (Miterev et al ., 2020). Whereas, IT programs are considered as being “structured to meet goals established by top management regarding the use of technology” (Jiang et al ., 2014), and “typically encompass a coordinated set of interrelated IT projects” (Wu et al ., 2023).…”