Identifying software project risks in Nigeria: an international comparative study

  • Authors:

  • Anja Mursu;Kalle Lyytinen;H. A. Soriyan;Mikko Korpela

  • Affiliations:

  • Department of Computer Science University of Kuopio, PO Box 1627, 70211 Kuopio, Finland;Department of Information Systems, The Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH;Department of Computer Science and Engineering Obafemi Awolowo University, Ilelfe, Nigeria;HIS R&D Unit, Computing Centre, University of Kuopio, Finland

  • Venue:
  • European Journal of Information Systems
  • Year:
  • 2003

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Abstract

We report a study where software project risk factors were solicited in Nigeria. The study repeats a research design, which has been used in a Delphi study in the U.S., Finland, and Hong Kong to rank software development risks. The study produces a rank-order list of software risk factors and compares results with the earlier study, showing significant differences. Obtained rankings signal the importance of the infrastructure related and socio-economic software risks in developing countries like Nigeria. This demonstrates the importance of understanding the broader socio-economic context in identifying and managing software risks. The study also shows that some risks in Nigeria are located on a different scale. The choice of contingent mitigation strategies of project managers play a less important role, because the risks are so deeply engrained with the poor quality of basic infrastructure services.