Assessment- Project Initiation
TASK
Various tasks as outlined below after the case background.
Case Background
Coastline Systems Consulting is a small solutions provider company located in Destin, Florida. The staff of seven IT technicians, designers, systems analysts, and programmers provides a range of networking, computer hardware, and software solutions to area businesses. Coastline works with clients to analyze their business needs. They then provide a packaged solution that often combines custom-built hardware, purchased software, and custom programming. In addition to the seven technicians, Coastline has one receptionist/bookkeeper.
As a small organization, Coastline is an informal, -shirt-sleeve- environment. Everyone is on a first-name basis, even with Peter Charles, the president.
Organization Structure
Coastline Systems Consulting
Information Systems Facilities
PCs o Each technician works uses a Dell notebook:
o Pentium III class machines with 128 MB RAM, 10-20 GB hard drives o Pentium 4 class machines with 512 MB RAM, 30-50 GB hard drives o The bookkeeper/receptionist has a Dell Optiplex desktop running a Pentium 4, 256MB RAM, and an 80 GB hard drive: o Operating systems - MS Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000 Professional, or Windows XP Professional o Tools - MS Office XP suite plus other software depending on use o Internet Browser - Internet Explorer (version 6 or higher) o Various inkjet and laser printers Servers o Dell PowerEdge Server o 512 megabytes of RAM, 40 GB RAID-5 hard drive storage o Operating system - MS Windows 2000 Server o Providing DHCP, Security, and Internet Access, and Database Management (SQL Server 2000) o Dell PowerApp Appliance Servers o Providing Web hosting o Operating system - Windows 2000 Server with IIS Networking o The company headquarters is equipped with wireless networking so notebooks can roam throughout the building. Notebooks also have integrated Ethernet NICs and modems so they can connect to the Internet at home and at clients places of business.
The Problem
The IT technicians are drowning in a sea or work and work for clients is not being done in an optimum manner. Clients call and e-mail both to the general office and to individual consultants whenever they have any kind of hardware or software problem. Consultants manage the requests that come directly to them. Kathy Grey, the receptionist/bookkeeper, passes on requests that come through the general office. If the problem is complex it may require multiple trips, and the technician has to keep track of what he or she has done to try to fix the problem. Sometimes a second technician has to be dispatched, necessitating communication concerning the previous work.
The president, Peter Charles, wants to develop a system that is both more responsive to clients and helpful to technicians. He would like to see a system that allows clients to directly enter their service requests. The system would track the status of each request along with the hours spent for billing purposes. Mr Charles also wants the system to be able to generate statistics and reports so he can pursue continuous improvement in this area.
Task 1: SWOT ANALSIS-
Conduct SWOT analysis giving 5 points each for S, W,O,T as per descriptions below to help project managers.
Task 2: Prepare Project Charter as per below template-
Template for Project Charter
Basic details including: Title of the project, Name and email of the Project Manager (yourself), Duration of the project, and High level budget
Project Objectives
o Clear, concise reasoning for why the project is being performed o Clear, concise definition of what the project's activities will entail o Brief description of primary deliverable(s)
o Clear description of the project's benefits to the organisation
o Recognition and description of any limits that the project will not cover and address
Acceptance Criteria o Identification of specific factors against which the project can be compared to determine success/failure
o Identification of specific deliverables not only for class, but for the project as a whole
o Agency-specific deliverables o Inclusion of due dates for the deliverables
o Clear identification of milestone and milestone exit points o Factors should include a specific metrical comparison
Assumptions and Constraints
o Any assumptions made during the course of the project o List of constraints that entail the limitations that are required to be addressed
Stakeholder List o Complete list of stakeholders including the sponsor, PM, executive members and few important members that are required to contribute to high level decisions
Lessons Learned
o Identification of pitfalls to be avoided, based on the student's past experience o Evidence of thought as to what can and cannot affect the project in terms of how the project will run Charter Sign off
Task 3: Prepare Communications Plan as per the template given-
Communication Plan Template
Plan purpose- A brief description of why and how the plan was developed, and an overview of the overall team communication philosophy. Also states types of communications planned, for lateral, downward, and upward communication.
Identification of stakeholders - The "who" in the project that requires information, (i.e. team members, project sponsor, class professor, etc.) and also the responsible parties to receive and/or communicate information.
Information to be shared - The "what" in terms of project information communication. Describes types of information that the team uses to communicate amongst its own team members, and also to the agency sponsor and the class professor.
Frequency of information exchange - The "when" describes how often communications will be held (i.e. daily, weekly, monthly, as needed, etc.)
Location of information exchange - The "where" states the location of the meeting or other interactions
Purpose of communication - The "why" description assures that communications are held effectively.
Mechanism for communication - The "how" describes the media for communication (i.e. physical meeting, email, phone, message group, etc.)
Change management - Description on how the team will handle changes in the project, whether it is in terms of project scope, schedule, or resources. This includes how the team plans to communicate changes as well as how the team plans to make decisions about changes.
Meeting agenda - Gives a brief overview of what the team plans to accomplish in each of its meetings, how it documents goals and objectives for meetings, and defines and assigns actions for the team to accomplish project objectives.
RATIONALE
This assessment task covers first five topics and has been designed to ensure that you are engaging with the subject content on a regular basis. More specifically it seeks to assess your ability to:
o Identify the responsibilities of a Project manager when participating in a real world project;
o Define the role of management in projects, particularly from the view point of the practitioner as a member of the project team;
o Apply project management skills, methods, techniques and tools to a real world problem typical of a project manager;
o Explain areas of knowledge relevant to project management; and o Discuss the many problems facing the project manager and to note the -best practices- being utilised in order to produce effective, efficient and quality projects on time and within budget
SWOT Analysis
o Strengths - what the organization currently has the capability to do well.
o Weaknesses - areas in which the organization is not competitive.
o Opportunities - possible things a project team can do for additional success.
o Threats - areas where outside competition may limit effectiveness.
o Each of these provides insight into the possible choices of projects as well as how to structure each to capitalize on strengths and opportunities and to avoid or overcome weaknesses and threats.