Project management report: outsourcing projects assignment

The Internet Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft Word Other Resources IB96G0: Management of Information Technology lecture notes and handouts for week 2 and 3 The University of Warwick Library. Other Public and academic libraries Reading material from IB96G0: Management of Information Technology . Lecturer: Dr. Julia Kotlarsky PMP Study Guide References Chansler, Philip A, Swamidass, Paul M. , and Cammann, Cortlandt. 2003. “ Self-Managing Work Teams: An Empirical Study of Group Cohesiveness in “ Natural Work Groups” at a Harley-Davidson Motor Company Plant”. Small Group Research, 34: 1 (February): 101-120. Manz, Charles C. and Sims, Henry P.

Jr. 1993. Businesses Without Bosses. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Roles and Responsibilitie Project Manager •Promoting effective teamwork and solving conflicts •Ensuring milestones and deadlines are achieved •Assessing the risks throughout the project •Preparation and administration of project plan and project schedules. Project Deliverers •Selecting suppliers (based on academic sources) •Description of bid and deliverables to the supplier •Evaluation of supplier selection •Communicating and exchanging drafts with the coder •Completing the project Presenters •Write product specification. •Brief description of the processes The received deliverables from supplier •Demonstrate that informed decisions were made •Lessons learnt •Preparation of presentation Observers and Writers •Covering the topics from the presenters •Monitoring and noting down the project progress •Identifying the activities and resources •Observing good/bad teamwork and how they were dealt with •Justifying ALL decisions made •Showing that ‘ informed decisions’ were made (see assignment brief) •Backing-up statements with academic references Team Constraints At the G7 we recognize the effect of constraining factors on team performance both on individual level and as a team.

We shall encourage open discussion of individual constraints and continue to brainstorm to capture team constraints. We shall channel some effort at resolving these constraints to minimize or eliminate their effect on project quality, speed or productivity of members and team. Below is a list of identified initial constraints and team solutions. Scheduling Constraints • All members of G7 are full time graduate students and are attending classes. They also have commitments as regards other class assignments and projects as well as extra-curricular activities. Some members work part-time. Proposed Solutions The G7 group members shall compare schedules and agree upon the time and number of meetings. • Members shall take individual responsibiliies as much as possible without compromising the team efforts. • Team members shall utilize email and phones for communication in addition to physical meetings. The Project Manager shall provide the list of group members’ phone numbers and email contact. Constraint: Dispersed Residential Locations • Three group members live in town thus putting constraints on meeting time. Proposed Solutions • We shall fix meeting time to accommodate those living off campus. Constraint: Differing Levels of Internet Access Most of our members have home internet access and can be reached by email. However, one member does not have access to the internet where he lives and so will not be able to assess group email messages outside school hours. Proposed Solutions • The team member without home access shall check his email on a daily basis at school during the week. He shall to expedite the resolution of this situation as he has promised. • The Project Manager shall ensure that the member without home email access is informed of group activities during weekends and holidays by the use of telephone until his Internet service is restored.

Constraint: Differing Work Styles • At G7 we recognize the cultural and education diversity of our group members. We take into cognizance the fact that work styles differ between members. We shall seek to harness this diversity to our advantage Proposed Solutions • Each group member shall seek to recognize, understand and appreciate the diversity in work pattern and think of ways by which such can be put to good use. • Members shall be assigned tasks based on exhibited working style. Budget: The budget for this project is a fixed sum of $40. 00( Forty US Dollars).

This amount shall cover all expenses incurred during the course of the project. We shall spend nothing more than $35 (Thirty Five Dollars) to procure the website and $5 (Five Dollars) is budgeted to offset the cost of transaction. Project Schedule: IDNameStartFinishResponsibility 1Decide on the project17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group 2? Ask members for suggestions17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group 3? Review suggestions for feasibility17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group 4? Chose project type17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group 5? Project Chosen17-Oct-0817-Oct-08 6Organise Project17-Oct-0828-Oct-08 7? Assign roles17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group 8? Define timelines17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group ? Asses Risk17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group 10? Propose risk mitigation steps17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Group 11? Monitor Risks17-Oct-0828-Oct-08Odudu 12Write Project Plan17-Oct-0818-Oct-08 13? Research Project Plan17-Oct-0817-Oct-08Odudu 14? Prepare Draft17-Oct-0818-Oct-08Odudu 15? Present Draft to Group for Review18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Odudu 16? Incorporate changes18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Odudu 17? Project Plan Completed18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Odudu 18Monitor, Optimize and Update Plan Schedule 18-Oct-0828-Oct-08Odudu 19Write work specification17-Oct-0818-Oct-08 20? Research on project and specification17-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 21?

Review specification for completeness18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Group 22? Finalise specification18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 23? Specification Ready18-Oct-0818-Oct-08 24Write Bid documents18-Oct-0818-Oct-08 25? Research the content of RFP18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 26? Prepare draft document18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 27? Present document to the group for review18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 28? Review bid documents18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Group 29? Finalise bid document18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 30? Bid Document Ready18-Oct-0818-Oct-08 1Write Content of Website18-Oct-0820-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 32? Research and Decide on Website Details18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 33? Write Text for Web pages18-Oct-0819-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 34? Present to Group for Review20-Oct-0820-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 35? Effect Agreed Changes20-Oct-0820-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 36? Web Content Ready20-Oct-0820-Oct-08 37Contract Stage18-Oct-0820-Oct-08 38? Research possible websites18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 39? Present choices to group18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 40? Decide on site(s) to use18-Oct-0818-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 41? Account Set-up18-Oct-0819-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 42?

Post the bid on the site(s)19-Oct-0819-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 43? Check for received bids18-Oct-0820-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 44? Evaluate bids20-Oct-0820-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 45? Select Supplier20-Oct-0820-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 46? Formalise contract and Agree on Terms20-Oct-0820-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 47? Contract Awarded20-Oct-0820-Oct-08 48Monitor Work Progress20-Oct-0823-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 49Completed Work Received24-Oct-0824-Oct-08Adonis/Xin/Shubin/Hari 50Write Report18-Oct-0827-Oct-08 51? Research project report writing18-Oct-0820-Oct-08Mayank/Bee/Shruti 52?

Collate required information18-Oct-0825-Oct-08Mayank/Bee/Shruti 53? Put the report together25-Oct-0827-Oct-08Mayank/Bee/Shruti 54? Present draft to group27-Oct-0827-Oct-08Mayank/Bee/Shruti 55? Draft Review and comments27-Oct-0827-Oct-08Group 56? Implement agreed changes and comment in final report27-Oct-0827-Oct-08Mayank/Bee/Shruti 57? Report Completed27-Oct-0827-Oct-08 58Prepare Presentation18-Oct-0828-Oct-08 59? Research presentation18-Oct-0826-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 60? Collate required information18-Oct-0826-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 61? Put together the presentation26-Oct-0828-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 62?

Present draft to group28-Oct-0828-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 63? Draft Review and comments28-Oct-0828-Oct-08Group 64? Implement agreed changes and comment in Presentation28-Oct-0828-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 65? Rehearse presentation28-Oct-0828-Oct-08Vince/Zoe 66? Presentation Ready28-Oct-0828-Oct-08 67Collate Deliverables28-Oct-0828-Oct-08Odudu 68Email Deliverables28-Oct-0828-Oct-08Odudu 69Final Presentation30-Oct-0830-Oct-08Vince/Zoe/Odudu 70Project Completed30-Oct-0830-Oct-08 Project Controls: Consequences for Breach of Ground Rules The following steps shall be taken to address instances where members break the ground rules. Phase One

The member shall be encouraged to follow the ground rules more closely. Phase Two The offending team member will be approached by the entire team and confronted about their breach of ground rules. Together the team will discuss reasons why the breach occurred and ways to prevent it from happening again. Phase Three The offending team member will be confronted by the entire team and told that their behaviour is unacceptable. They will be stripped of their responsibilities, consequently receiving a poor peer assessment. Change Management Plan. Any deliberate change that will impact project scope, plan, schedule and roduct specification after the project has been baselined shall be reviewed by the Project Manager to determine the scale of the impact. Such changes will then be tabled before the group in the presence of not less then 70% of the members. Changes shall be evaluated to assess the impact on project schedule, deadlines, quality and project deliverables. Based on this impact analysis, the group shall, by consensus, decide if such change shall be incorporated or not. If the impact on the project is such as to have drastic impact on the project outcome, then it shall be communicated to the Project Sponsor who shall have the say .

Quality Management Plan: The procurement team shall liase with Supplier on regular basis to ensure that the supplier understands the project specification. The team shall also be responsible for testing of final product against initial specification to ensure good quality and signing off on the quality of product at the end of the project. Risk Management Plan Risk Assessment: The initial effort at risk assessment is geared towards finding out identifiable risks at the start of the project and suggesting steps to mitigate them. However, risks will be continuously monitored and addressed throughout the life of the project.

The list of risks is dynamic and the Project Manager is responsible for its maintenance. Initial Project Risk Assessment RiskRisk Level L/M/HLikelihood of EventMitigation Strategy Project Size Person HoursH: Over 236hrsCertaintyAssigned Project Manager, comprehensive project management approach and communications plan Estimated Project ScheduleH: Less than 2 Weeks. CertaintyCreated comprehensive project timeline and frequent review Team Size at PeakH: 10 membersCertaintyComprehensive communications plan, frequent meetings, tight project management oversight Project Definition

Availability of information affects setting of baselineM: So much information available LikelyBalance of information to be gathered by group Project Scope CreepL: Scope well defined. Likely Scope initially defined and baselined in project plan, to be frequently reviewed by Project Manager and Group to prevent undetected scope creep Deliverables unclearL: Well definedUnlikelyIncluded in project plan Supplier Project DeliverablesL: Clearly definedSomewhat likelyAssign team to liase with supplier and keep communication open to ensure that supplier understands the deliverables.

Unrealistic Cost Estimates L: Project scaled to fit the available budgetUnlikelyScaled to fit available budget. Project Manager to strictly monitor project activities. Unrealistic Time Estimates M: Timeline assumes no derailmentSomewhat likelyPlan to give slack to allow group deal with slips. Assign team to liase with supplier and keep communication open. Number of Team Members Unknowledgeable of Business L: Team well versed in business operations impacted by technology UnlikelyProject Manager to identify knowledge gaps and provide training, as necessary. Project roles to be assigned based member’s strength

Project Leadership Absence of Project Sponsor’s supportL: Commitment secured from SponsorUnlikelyFrequently seek feedback to ensure continued support Absence of Commitment Level/Attitude of Project Manager L: Identified, committed and very enthusiasticUnlikelyN/A Project Staffing Project Team AvailabilityM: Prior commitment may make some members not available when needed. Somewhat likelyProject Manager to identify any impacts caused by unavailability. Assign more than one person per task and encourage participation so if a team member is not available, another can continue.

Physical Location of Team prevents effective managementM: Group members live in different residences and some off campus. One doesn’t have Internet at home. LikelyCommunications Plan Project poor working relationshipM: Group has worked together before. Somewhat likelyCommunications Plan. Ground rules. Project Management Procurement Methodology Used foreign to teamH: Outsourcing is new to the teamLikelyReview of reading material and lecture notes for MIT&O. More research into outsourcing processes. Change Management Procedures undefinedL: Well-definedUnlikelyChange Management Plan

Quality Management Procedures unclearL: Well-defined and acceptedUnlikelyQuality Management Plan Supplier Number of Times G7 Has Done Prior Work with Vendor Creates Foreign RelationshipH: NeverCertaintyA thorough vendor evaluation and selection process. Team’s Lack of Knowledge of Vendors offeringM: Conceptual understandingSomewhat likelyEvaluation of supplier previous jobs and rating by customers will help the team understand what supplier offers. Poor Functional Match of product to Initial SpecificationL: Specification is simple and comprehensive.

Somewhat likely Assign team to work with supplier during the development process to ensure specifications are met. . Communication Plan: This communication plan shall remain active for the life of the project and shall serve as a guide for use by the Project Manager and the Project Team in communicating within the project group. It shall also guide communication between the project group and Project Sponsor, Suppliers and other stakeholders. Means of Communication: The following means are available and shall be used: 1. Group Meetings: The group shall hold regular meetings as shall be communicated by the Project Manager.

Meeting notices shall be sent 24 hours in advance via email for regular meetings and by text and phone calls for emergency meetings. In the meetings regular meetings the agenda shall include project status report, risk and constraints review, team reports, project near term outlook, etc. The exact content of each agenda shall be determined by the Project Manager and communicated in each meeting notice. 2. Email: These shall be used to communicate meeting notices, circulate documents, communicate with supplier, send apologies for meetings and communicate with Project Sponsor etc.

The fallback option for these shall be the other means of communications 3. Facebook Group: The group space on facebook® will serve as another rallying point for posting questions, views and answers. This space is primarily for intra-group discussions. 4. Phone calls and Text: This is primarily to be used for convening emergency meetings or as need arises. The Project Manager shall have a list of the every team member’s phone contact and shall display same for other members of the group. Communication Ethics:

The following shall serve as a general guide for communication with parties involved in the project: 1. The language of communication (verbal and written) shall be polite and professional. 2. All official communication to suppliers shall be reviewed by the group 3. All communication with the Project Sponsor shall be reviewed by the group 4. Written documents and hard copy contracts shall bare the official logo of the group and shall be signed. 5. All email to stakeholders shall be from the Group’s email address.