The role of monitoring and shirking in information systems project management

Agency theory offers a foundation for explaining the impact of project monitoring on project success. This study applied agency theory to survey 428 information systems project managers concerning their project monitoring, shirking by systems developers, and project success. Greater project monitoring via planning and meetings predicted less shirking, while greater monitoring via responsibilities and comparison did not. Less shirking via poor focus predicted increased project success, while less shirking via loafing did not. These findings have implications for project managers and project management researchers.