Identifying Key Leadership Characteristicsof IT Project Leaders

摘要

Finding a strong project leader with effective management skills is critical to the successful implementation of informationsystems. Experience tells us that IT project leaders with superior leadership skills are able to take into account the uniquechallenges of managing technical employees. Yet, the key characteristics of leaders of technology projects are not wellunderstood.If these leadership characteristics can be defined, then it will be possible to select qualified IT project leadersand to secure the success of large-scale systems projects. The objective of this study is to contrast the leadershipcharacteristics of project managers of successful vs. unsuccessful IT projects. These leadership behaviors will be measuredusing The Leadership Practices Inventory (Kouzes and Posner, 1999), which provides an individualized leadership profilefor each respondent using a self-assessment and an observer assessment.