Dr Roger Sweetman

School of Business

Lecturer

School of Business Building
28
(01) 474 7572

Biography

Roger Sweetman lectures in Information systems. His principal teaching interests are around project and portfolio management, the role of technology is business and social media. His research focuses on complexity in Software Project Portfolio Management and he is associated with the LERO research centre. His research  draws on complexity theory to improve the day to day management of portfolios of IS projects. He has extensive public and private sector experience. He initially worked as a software design engineer with a number of ambitious companies in the IT storage and processor design sectors. He then joined  the Department of Marine as a project scientist, providing storage solutions for the Irish National Seabed Survey. Before coommencing is doctoral research he worked for 5 years in the Research Accounts Office of NUI Galway. He is also a qualified accountant and holds an MBA from NUI Galway

Research Interests

Roger’s research is primarily focused on the application of complex adaptive systems theory to identify effective practices to manage portfolios of information systems projects in highly dynamic environments. His research has been published in leading journals such as PMJ and he has presented his work at a series of conferences including the International Conference on Information Systems and the 9th International Research Workshop  on IT Project Management among others. He has been on the organising committee for the International Workshop on Large-scale Agile Development from 2014 to 2016.

Roger works with public and private sector organisations to help them align their project and portfolio management practices and controls to the complexity of their environment

Book Chapters

  Year Publication
2017 'Agility in IS methods'
Conboy, K., Dennehy, D., Sweetman, R., Cullina E., and Morgan, L. (2017) 'Agility in IS methods' In: Routledge Companion on Management Information Systems. USA: Routledge. [Details]
2013 'A Portfolio Approach to Cloud Computing'
Roger Sweetman (2013) 'A Portfolio Approach to Cloud Computing' In: Trevor Clohessy (eds). Proceedings of the 1st IAIS Workshop on Cloud Computing Research. Galway: Hewlett Packard. [Details]

Peer Reviewed Journals

  Year Publication
2018 'Portfolios of Agile Projects: A Complex Adaptive Systems’ Agent Perspective'
Roger Sweetman, Kieran Conboy (2018) 'Portfolios of Agile Projects: A Complex Adaptive Systems’ Agent Perspective'. Project Management Journal, 49 (6):1-21 [DOI] [Details]
2016 'Software Startups - A Research Agenda'
Michael Unterkalmsteiner, Pekka Abrahamsson, Xiao Feng Wang, Anh Nguyen-Duc, Syed Shah, Sohaib Shahid Bajwa, Guido H. Baltes, Kieran Conboy, Eoin Cullina, Denis Dennehy, Henry Edison, Carlos Fernandez-Sanchez, Juan Garbajosa, Tony Gorschek, Eriks Klotins, Laura Hokkanen, Fabio Kon, Ilaria Lunesu, Michele Marchesi, Lorraine Morgan, Markku Oivo, Christoph Selig, Pertti Seppanen, Roger Sweetman, Pasi Tyrvainen, Christina Ungerer, Agustin Yague (2016) 'Software Startups - A Research Agenda'. [Details]

Other Journals

  Year Publication
2017 'Managing Change in Dynamic Environments: Unlocking the Power of Complex Adaptive Systems'
Roger Sweetman, Kieran Conboy (2017) 'Managing Change in Dynamic Environments: Unlocking the Power of Complex Adaptive Systems' Cutter Business Technology Journal, 30 (12) . [Details]

Conference Publications

  Year Publication
2013 Exploring Control Tensions in IS Project Portfolio Management
Orla O'Dwyer, Roger Sweetman, Kieran Conboy (2013) Exploring Control Tensions in IS Project Portfolio Management International Conference on Information Systems Auckland, [Details]
2013 Exploring the Tensions between Software Project Portfolio Management and Agile Methods: A Research in Progress Paper
Sweetman, R. & Conboy, K. (2013) Exploring the Tensions between Software Project Portfolio Management and Agile Methods: A Research in Progress Paper Lean Enterprise Software and Systems Galway, [Details]

Conference Contributions

  Year Publication
2018 MOBTS.
Roger Sweetman (2018) MOBTS. [Oral Presentation], The Challenges of Using Multimedia Assignments to Assess Learning Outcomes on an Undergraduate Social Media Module, Maynooth University [Details]

Workshops

  Year Publication
2016 Complexity in Information Systems Project Portfolio Management: An Emergent Properties Perspective.
Sweetman, R. & Conboy, K. (2016) Complexity in Information Systems Project Portfolio Management: An Emergent Properties Perspective. Workshops [Details]
2015 Managing Emergence in Information Systems Project Portfolio Management: A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective.
Sweetman, R. Conboy., K. (2015) Managing Emergence in Information Systems Project Portfolio Management: A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective. Workshops [Details]
2014 Control in Software Project Portfolios: A Complex Adaptive Systems Approach.
Sweetman, R., O’Dwyer, O. & Conboy, K. (2014) Control in Software Project Portfolios: A Complex Adaptive Systems Approach. Workshops [Details]
2014 A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective on Self-Organization in IS Project Portfolios.
Sweetman, R., O’Dwyer, O. & Conboy, K (2014) A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective on Self-Organization in IS Project Portfolios. Workshops [Details]
2014 The Emergence of Self-Organization in IS Project Portfolios: A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective.
Sweetman, R., O’Dwyer, O. & Conboy, K. (2014) The Emergence of Self-Organization in IS Project Portfolios: A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective. Workshops [Details]

Honours and Awards

  Year Title Awarding Body
2003 Prize Winner 1st in World, Managing People ACCA
2003 First In Ireland, Information Systems ACCA
2012 All Ireland Strategy Champions MBAI

Professional Associations

  Association Function From / To
ACCA Fellow 01-SEP-06 /

Committees

  Committee Function From / To
LESS 2013 Organising Committee Local organiser /
XP Scientific Workshop of Scaling Agile Committee member /

Employment

  Employer Position From / To
Silaria Ltd Director of Quality 01-FEB-01 / 31-JAN-02
Raidtec Corporation Senior DVT Engineer 15-SEP-97 / 31-JAN-01
Geological Survey of Iireland Project Scientist 01-MAR-02 / 30-JUL-04
Riverside Financial Consultancy Accountant 01-SEP-04 / 31-JUL-07
National University of Ireland, Galway Research Accountant 01-SEP-07 / 31-JUL-12
National University of Ireland, Galway Doctoral Researcher 01-SEP-12 / 31-AUG-16

Education

  Year Institution Qualification Subject
1997 Trinity College Dublin BA (Hon) Physics Physics
2004 ACCA Accountant Accountancy
2011 National University of Ireland, Galway MBA Business

Languages

  Language Reading Writing Speaking
Irish Functional Functional Fluent

Outreach Activities

  Description

Assist them with the development of IT services

Reviews

  Journal Role
Information And Management Reviewer
Journal Of Software: Evolution And Process Reviewer

Teaching Interests

Roger is the academic director of the MSc IT-Enabled innovation. His teaching interests include Information Systems Project Management, Information Systems Technology, Social Media and Business Analytics. Before joining Maynooth University, he lectured at undergraduate and masters level in NUI Galway on information systems as a source of competitive advantage in business. He was also a regular guest lecturer at University of Limerick. 

Roger has an interactive style of teaching that helps students blend their experiential knowledge with the latest relevant industry practices and academic research.  

External Collaborators

  Name Role / Description Country
Lero, The Irish Centre for Software Research Research Centre IRELAND
National University of Ireland Galway Co-author IRELAND