Overview
The final project for this course is divided into two parts. The first part is the creation of an Initial Schedule and Budget Report.
Project managers play an important role in helping to complete successful projects. Often, they are responsible for tasks such as defining the project goal(s), identifying the tasks necessary to achieve the goal, evaluating project resources, and determining budgets and schedules. Project managers must then keep projects on time, on budget, and within scope and problem solve when this does not happen.
This course focuses on resource estimating and scheduling. In the first part of this project, you will analyze the case study, A&D High Tech (A): Managing Projects for Success (located in the Harvard Business Review area of the course), which includes a scenario along with a work breakdown structure and other pertinent project requirements. You will write a report assessing the company’s resources and then develop a high-level budget and schedule for the project discussed in the case study.
Note: The case studies for this project regularly reference the use of MS Project. While MS Project is a software tool that is often used for project management, the focus of this course is to understand the process, not this particular tool. As such, you will not be using MS Project to complete the milestones and your final project. Suggested templates needed to complete the critical elements of the final project are listed in the Project Management Plan Template.
The following templates are provided for you in order to complete the final project:
• This template will be used throughout the final project. This template will guide you step-by-step from Milestone One through your final submission. All other templates can be accessed through this main template.
• You will use this template in Milestone One to identify the role of each stakeholder in your project.
• You will use this template in Milestone One to describe the tasks and sub-tasks that will fulfill each of the project deliverables.
• You will use this template in Milestone One to align resources to each of the sub-tasks you described. Justify your reasoning for your alignment decisions.
• You will use this template in Milestone Two to identify likely sources of risk for the project. Make sure to consider the project scope, budget, and time.
• You will use this template in Milestone Two to ensure the costs identified in your budget align with the deliverables.
• You will use this template in the final submission of your project to create a schedule for the project using your task time estimates and the dependencies you identified.
Final Project Part I is divided into two milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Three and Four. The final Initial Schedule and Budget Report will be submitted in Module Six.
In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:
• Assess resource estimating and scheduling requirements for their impact on the scope, schedule, and budget of projects
• Determine appropriate resource allocation solutions for projects by assessing the resources for their availability and alignment with project tasks and sub-tasks
• Recommend strategies to minimize the project risk by analyzing scheduling constraints and project requirements
• Develop project schedules that illustrate resource estimating and agile scheduling implementation for supporting and improving sustainable operations
Prompt
Initial Schedule and Budget Report: Use the A&D High Tech (A): Managing Projects for Success case study to write a report in which you identify the scope and schedule of the project, describe the tasks necessary to complete the project, align resources to the tasks, and address sources of risk. To complete your work, you will utilize the Project Management Plan Template provided, as well as the other templates as specified.
Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:
I. Project Overview
A. Roles and Responsibilities: Identify the project leader and the other stakeholders involved in the project. What are the responsibilities of the stakeholders involved?
B. Scope and Schedule: What is the project scope? Identify the key deliverables that are part of the project scope. When does the project need to be completed? Describe the timeline for the project.
II. Tasks
A. Description: Describe the tasks and sub-tasks that will fulfill each of the project deliverables. What impact do the tasks and sub-tasks have on the project schedule?
B. Time: Analyze the time estimates for task completion. How do the task time estimates impact the project schedule?
C. Dependencies: Identify dependencies between tasks. In other words, which tasks must be finished before other tasks can be started?
III. Resources
A. Alignment: Align resources to each of the sub-tasks you described. Justify your alignment. In other words, why does the company need the resource types to complete the sub-tasks?
B. Evaluation: Evaluate the company’s resources. Does the company have the resources available to support the project? Are there any areas where the necessary resources may not be available to complete the sub-tasks?
IV. Risk
A. Sources: Identify likely sources of risk for the project. Make sure to consider the project scope, budget, and time.
B. Strategies: Determine risk mitigation strategies for the areas you identified. What strategies could you recommend to minimize the impact of the risks you identified?
V. Budget: Develop an initial high-level budget based on the individual costs of the project deliverables. In other words, ensure the costs identified in your budget align with the deliverables.
VI. Schedule: Create a schedule for the project using your task time estimates and the dependencies you identified.
Milestones
Each milestone builds off of the prior one. Final Project Part I will be delivered as a compounding document over the course of the below three milestones.
Milestone One: Project Introduction, Overview, Tasks, and Resources (Sections I, II, and III)
In Module Three, you will write an introduction for your project management plan and submit sections I through III of the critical elements above using the Project Management Plan Template provided. This work will cover the project overview, tasks, and resources (sections I, II, and III). This milestone is graded with the Milestone One Rubric.
Milestone Two: Risk and Budget (Sections IV and V)
In Module Four, you will submit the risk and budget sections (IV and V) of the Project Management Plan Template provided. This milestone is graded with the Milestone Two Rubric.
Part I Final Submission: Initial Schedule and Budget Report
In Module Six, you will complete the schedule (section VI) and submit the completed Initial Schedule and Budget Report. You will submit a Project Management Plan fully completed. It should be a complete, polished artifact containing all of the critical elements of the final product. You should also update work completed throughout the first two milestones to reflect the incorporation of feedback gained throughout the course. This milestone will be graded using the Final Project Part I Rubric.
Final Project Part I Rubric
Guidelines for Submission: Your Initial Schedule and Budget Report will be submitted using the Project Management Plan Template along with additional required templates and spreadsheets. Any outside references should be cited in APA format, but are not required.
Critical Elements Exemplary (100%) Proficient (85%) Needs Improvement (55%) Not Evident (0%) Value
Project Overview:
Roles and
Responsibilities
Meets “Proficient” criteria and description demonstrates nuanced understanding of roles and responsibilities of project stakeholders Identifies project leader and other stakeholders and clearly describes stakeholder responsibilities Identifies project leader and other stakeholders and describes stakeholder responsibilities but description lacks clarity or detail Does not identify project leader and stakeholders and does not describe stakeholder responsibilities 9
Project Overview:
Scope and Schedule
Meets “Proficient” criteria and description demonstrates nuanced understanding of project deliverables and timeline Identifies key deliverables that are part of project scope and clearly describes project timeline Identifies key deliverables that are part of project scope and describes project timeline but description lacks clarity or detail Does not identify key deliverables that are part of project scope and does not describe project timeline 9
Tasks: Description
Meets “Proficient” criteria and description is exceptionally clear and detailed Accurately describes tasks, subtasks, and impact on schedule Describes tasks, sub-tasks, and impact on schedule, but description is cursory or inaccurate Does not describe tasks, subtasks, and impact on schedule 9
Tasks: Time
Meets “Proficient” criteria and analysis shows nuanced insight into relationship between tasks and amount of time necessary
for completion Accurately analyzes time estimates for task completion in detail Analyzes time estimates for task completion, but analysis has gaps in accuracy or detail Does not analyze time estimates for task completion 9
Tasks: Dependencies
Meets “Proficient” criteria and identified dependencies demonstrate exceptional understanding of tasks to be completed Identifies logical, accurate dependencies between tasks Identifies dependencies between tasks but with gaps in logic or
accuracy Does not identify dependencies between tasks 9
Resources: Alignment
Meets “Proficient” criteria and alignment shows a keen understanding of the relationship between resources and sub-tasks Accurately aligns resources to sub-tasks and justifies alignment Aligns resources to sub-tasks, and justifies alignment, but alignment is inaccurate Does not align resources to subtasks or justify alignment 9
Resources: Evaluation
Meets “Proficient” criteria and evaluation is exceptionally clear and detailed Comprehensively evaluates availability of company’s resources Evaluates availability of
company’s resources, but evaluation lacks clarity or detail Does not evaluate availability of company’s resources 9
Risk: Sources
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
identification of sources of risk demonstrates keen
understanding of project and resources Accurately identifies sources of risk for project with respect to project scope, budget, and time Identifies sources of risk for project but with gaps in accuracy or without considering scope, budget, or time Does not identify sources of risk for project 9
Risk: Strategies
Meets “Proficient” criteria and strategies demonstrate insight into effect of risk on project Determines appropriate risk mitigation strategies to minimize impact of risk Determines risk mitigation strategies but strategies are not appropriate or do not minimize impact of risk Does not determine risk mitigation strategies 9
Budget
Meets “Proficient” criteria and budget is highly detailed, logical, and accurate Develops initial, high-level budget accurately based on costs of project deliverables and ensures costs are aligned to deliverables Develops initial, high-level budget but budget is not based on costs of project deliverables; does not ensure costs are aligned to deliverables, or is inaccurate Does not develop initial, highlevel budget 8
Schedule
Meets “Proficient” criteria and schedule is exceptionally detailed, logical, and accurate Creates logical, accurate project schedule based on time estimates and dependencies Creates project schedule but schedule is not based on time estimates and dependencies or has gaps in logic or accuracy Does not create project schedule based on time estimates and dependencies 7
Articulation of Response Submission is free of errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, and organization and is presented in a professional and easy-to-read format Submission has no major errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization Submission has major errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization that negatively impact readability and articulation of main ideas Submission has critical errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization that prevent understanding of ideas 4
Earned Total 100%
