Problem 1. Is Sue's problem one of scheduling or one of execution? In other words, does she have a problem with creating a schedule, or does she have a problem with executing it (or both)?
Problem 2. Given your answer above, how will that change her strategy for getting the project back on track? What is your recommendation?
Problem 3. Sue might be tempted to "crash" or "fast track" the project to get it back on track. Given your answers above, do you see a problem with this? How might this acerbate the problem?
Problem 4. With respect to the loss of one of Sue's key developers, how can the team come together to make up for the loss? Given that people leave projects, what steps could Sue have taken proactively to minimize the effects of this kind of loss?
The paper should be 3 to 4 pages long in the following format.
1. Title page, in APA format
2. Introduction: Paragraph summary of the key points of the case study
3. Problem Statement: Paragraph summary of the key issues, as you see them
4. Analysis: Detailed analysis of the case study and issues
5. Resolution: Your suggested resolution to the issues and why
6. Conclusion: Paragraph summary of your analysis and resolution
7. References: List of references, including the case study.
Case Scenario:
Sue Johnson was the project manager for a consulting company contracted to provide a new online registration system at a local college. This system had to be operational by
• May 1 so students could use it to register for the fall semester. Iler company's contract had a stiff penalty clause if the system was not ready by then, and Sue and her team would get nice bonuses for doing a good job on this project and meeting the schedule. Sue knew that it was her responsibility to meet the schedule and manage scope, cost, and quality expectations. She and her team developed a detailed schedule and network diagram to help organize the project.
Developing the schedule turned out to be the easy part; keeping the project on track was more difficult. Managing personnel issues and resolving schedule conflicts were two of the bigger challenges. Many of the college's employees took unplanned vacations and missed or rescheduled project review meetings. These changes made it difficult for the project team to follow the planned schedule for the system because the team had to have customer sign-off at various stages of the systems development life cycle. One senior programmer on Sue's project team quit, and she knew it would take extra time for a new person to get up to speed. It was still early in the project, but Sue knew they were falling behind. What could she do to meet the operational date of May 1?