Influencing Factors in the Conception Phase of IS Projects - Lessons from a Case Study

While scholars have dedicated great effort to investigating influencing factors in (IS) projects in general, considerably less attention has been paid to factors specific to individual project phases. Especially in projects that follow the traditional sequential approach, changes in later project stages are more expensive than those in early stages. It is therefore particularly important to steer the project in the right direction from the very start. We explore factors that are most important in the conception phase of internal, sequential IS projects. Conducting a single-case, multi-method, exploratory case study at a medium-sized IS service provider in Germany, we gain in-depth insights into the influencing factors in the conception phase of IS projects conducted in that organization. The concrete approach taken in the conception phase at the case organization and nine most important influencing factors are presented and discussed.