Student: Dimitris Pistiolis
Year: 2023
Affiliation: National Technical University of Athens/Athens University of Economics and Business (Athens MBA)
Level: Postgraduate
Thesis written in English
In the last few years, we have seen the effort of most public and private sector organizations to proceed rapidly with the digital transformation of their basic services with the goal to maintain a relationship of trust with their end users. In this transformation journey, it is critical to provide high-quality digital communication channels. Due to this, all organizations, regardless of industry, become digital organizations at their core and adopt new technologies that allow the creation of optimal digital experiences.
The adoption of new technology has to coexist with the productive, uninterrupted operation of the applications and must not present malfunctions to the end user. The management of digital transformation projects is therefore particularly critical and is a subject for several research groups worldwide. This diploma thesis focuses on a subset of digital transformation projects related to the migration of infrastructure and applications to the cloud, with reference to the case-study of a central banking application. More specifically, the creation of a project plan template is examined, considering best practices in the field of information systems, as well as known risks related to the actions required for the successful completion of the project.
The Thesis research began by conducting an internet search and literature review on cloud migration project management and its associated risks. Then, data was collected through interviews with four IT executives from a Greek banking organization who were responsible for designing and implementing two such projects within the last three years. The key takeaways from the interviews were categorized based on the phases of the project to which they pertained: Design, Testing, and Implementation. By combining this information with the literature review, a hybrid waterfall-agile, flow-based plan was developed for effective project management.
Ultimate goal of this Thesis is to serve as a guide for both public and private organizations in their digital transformation efforts, as well as provide a foundation for future research on infrastructure and application migration projects with more detailed task and risk mapping.
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