Multicriteria Methodology for KPI Identification in

Outsourced Projects

Edilson Giffhorn1, Leonardo Ensslin1, Sandra Rolim Ensslin1, William Barbosa

Vianna1
1
Santa Catarina Federal University – Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC)

This study depicts research conducted in a telecommunications company located in the

south of Brazil. A multicriteria performance evaluation model was adopted to create a
support instrument for a project manager in the process of identifying and monitoring
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in order to assure representation of the necessary
and sufficient dimensions of strategic corporate objectives according to their system of
values.
In the studied company, data communication projects were conducted by outsourced
companies. This characteristic leads the project manager to essentially play the role of
contract manager, as project scope activities are conducted through the simultaneous
action of various companies. The concomitant action of companies in projects led to
conflicts of interest and priorities as each outsourced company sought to favour their
own interests. Consequently, the contracting company becomes vulnerable to a drop in
productivity, delays, rework, endangerment of the company image in relation to clients,
and success of the project.
The theoretical research context covers the need to develop a structured process
customized to the needs of the project manager that identify, measure and integrate the
KPIs to the context of outsourced projects in order to allow higher alignment between
strategic objectives of the involved companies.
In order to act in this context, the selected intervention methodology was Multricriteria
Decision Aid – Constructivist (MCDA-C), which enables and qualifies the decision
maker (project manager) to: explain and measure preference values; consider
personalized values over generic values adopted in other successful cases; understand
consequences of his/her decisions regarding strategic objectives; expand context
knowledge provided by the process to identify enhancement opportunities.
Research was conducted using a Case Study and carried an exploratory nature, leading
to non-prescriptivist results.
Semi-structured interviews with project managers and document analysis were used to
build the multicriteria methodology model.
Results highlight the following: (i) Identification of key criteria that evaluate
performance of companies that conduct outsourced projects; (ii) Construction of
cardinal scales that measure criteria; (iii) Outlining of outsourced company impact
profile; (iv) Integration of scales allowing an overall vision of the degree of alignment
of each company with the strategic objectives; (v) Generation of potential actions to
provide understanding of impact that the local actions have on each evaluation criteria.

23rd IPMA World Congress, International Project Management Association, 15 - 17 june, 2009, Helsinki -
Finland
Work contributions showed the following: evidence of the need of a structured and
transparent process that identifies KPIs; demonstration of the potential of the MCDA-C
methodology for the construction of a performance evaluation model that observes the
project manager’s system of values to identify the KPIs that will evaluate companies
that conduct outsourced projects, to provide higher strategic alignment between all
involved companies.

23rd IPMA World Congress, International Project Management Association, 15 - 17 june, 2009, Helsinki -
Finland