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Identifying software project risks in Nigeria: an International Comparative Study

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European Journal of Information Systems

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.

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Acknowledgements

This research was funded by the Academy of Finland through the INDEHELA-Methods project.

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Correspondence to Anja Mursu.

Appendix 1

Appendix 1

Combined list of risk factors is given. Table a1

Table 6 Table a1

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Mursu, A., Lyytinen, K., Soriyan, H. et al. Identifying software project risks in Nigeria: an International Comparative Study. Eur J Inf Syst 12, 182–194 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.ejis.3000462

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