Abstract: Software projects are failing for several decades due to multiple reasons. In this regard a lot of research has been done to investigate the reasons behind the failure. However, most of this research was executed in developed countries while under-developed and developing countries got little attention. The main objective of this study is to assess the impact of critical factors on the success of software projects for under-developed countries (like Pakistan), because enterprise environmental factors along with staff working habits, their experience and expertise level also have an impact on the success of a project. To accomplish this, a survey was conducted through the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB), and logistic regression enquiry was executed to measure the relationship between various factors affecting software. The results reflect that improper planning along with wrong cost and time estimation are positively and significantly associated with software failure. Based on the finding of the survey, a model is proposed for intelligent decision support system (IDSs). The proposed model keeps track of the previous knowledge and behavior in a well-structured manner that might be helpful for project managers in the estimation and decision-making process of upcoming software projects. This research adds new knowledge from an under-developed country which will open new dimensions for the IT industry and project manager working under similar circumstances.
