Project Plan
OZ UNIVERSITY RIS INTEGRATION PROJECT
The Plan Rationale
The importance derived from the plan of Odessa Mobile Technology project is that it gives definition of the project. One goal that is required of the project team is that of getting the project done at the right time and achieving the required quality.
The following is defined by the plan of the project:
- Project purpose
- The goals and aims of the project and business
- possibility and the prospect
- The task and roles
- Hypothesis and constriction
- The approach of the supervision of the project
- The regulations for the project
- Project budget
- Project timeline
- The theoretical proposal of the latest technology
- The record information/ Existing options
Research Publications Information Systems (RIS) is used for storing data on current research by organizations and people. It helps to improve the quality of research produced.
Several Universities in Australia are currently using the RIS system. The system is also used at researchers, students, research groups, faculties and at University levels in Australia. Oz University is also considering implementing the RIS.
RIS is an innermost location used to keep a record of the history and recent activities of research in the Institution. The RIS captures information about publications and stores them in the system. It allows for the entering of the details and an attached copy of research publications. The RIS provides for automatic updating of the researcher’s web profile. It gives the users an instantaneous review of the past and the recent projects under research and enables the user to also have an instantaneous contrast of the projects.
Several vendors can provide the RIS services to the University. However, the vendor should be one who understands the current information system of the university like the Web Objects, which is a software development firm that is very familiar with the University’s Information Technology environment and applications.
Strategies to use if project falls behind the schedule
If the project starts to lag behind, there will be the need to apply strategies to make it work again.
1. One strategy that I will apply is communication. I will make sure that I communicate with the client (the sponsor) the team members and look for ways in which the project can be delivered with quality. I will not hide my head in the sand and hope that things will work out on their own.
2. Another strategy I will use is to prioritize. I understand that there are three variables to a project. The three variables are time, quality and cost. At this point, the time variable has already slipped and I will have to look for the most important variable apart from time. I will then have to discuss with the sponsor if time is really critical or quality and cost (Haynes, 2003). If time is very important, then I will have to compromise the quality and the cost. This will be after discussion with the project sponsors if the quality is compromised, the cost will have to be reduced to compensate for this. The same case will apply for the other two variables (Martin, 2002).
3. Consequences
I will analyze the effect that this project getting more time than other projects on the other projects. If the consequences are higher, then the time may be moved.
Initial assessment of the project
Risk
Risk Level
L/M/H
Likelihood of Event
Mitigation Strategy
Project Size
Person Hours
H: Over 20,000
7
Engage a project manager, get a consultant.
Estimated Project Schedule
H: Over 12 months
7
Make a project timeline
Peak team size
H: Over 15 members
5
There should be a continnuous communication and frequent meetings.
Number of Interfaces to Existing Systems Affected
H: Over 3
6
Develop interface control document immediately
Project Definition
Shallow knowledge for users
M: Knowledgeable of user area only
5
Assigned Project Manager(s) to assess global implications
Available documentation clouds establishment of baseline
M: More than 75% complete/current
6
Balance of information to be gathered by consultant
Project Scope Creep
L: Scope generally defined, subject to revision
1
Scope intially defined in project plan, reviewed monthly by three groups (Project Manager and Steering Committee) to prevent undetected scope creep
Project deliverable by vendor not definite
L: Well defined
3
Included in project plan, subject to amendment
Vendor Project Deliverables
M: Estimated, not clearly defined
2
Included in project plan, subject to amendment
The estimate of the cost not clear
L: Thoroughly predicted by industry experts using proven practices to 15% margin of error
3
Included in project plan, subject to amendment as new details regarding project scope are revealed
Time projections not clear and not well defined
M: Timeline assumes no derailment
4
The timeline should bne reviewed on a monthly basis (Project Manager and Steering Committee) to take care of uncertainties
Number of Team Members Unknowledgeable of Business
L: Team well versed in business operations impacted by technology
2
Project Manager and consultant to identify knowledge gaps and provide training, as necessary
Project Leadership
The presence of the steering committee
L: Have been identified and found to be enthusiastic
2
Get feedbakc so that support is assured
Lack of commitment Level/Attitude of Management
L: Understands value & supports project
1
Get feedbakc so that support is assured
Absence of Commitment Level/Attitude of Users
L: Understands value & supports project
1
Get feedbakc so that support is assured
Absence of Mid-Management Commitment
L: Most understand value & support project
1
Get feedbakc so that support is assured
Project Staffing
Project Team Availability
M: Dispersed teams makes them highly unlikely to be available
4
There should be continoues review of the project by all levels of management.
Physical Location of Team prevents effective management
M: Team is dispersed among several sites
8
Use of Intranet project website, comprehensive Communications Plan
The Sharing of Work amongst project teams creates a pitiable working association
M: Some have worked together before
6
Comprehensive Communications Plan
Weak User Participation on Project Team
L: Users are part-time team members
3
User Group Participants coordinated by full time employee
Project Management
Procurement
Methodology Used foreign to team
L: Procurement Methodology familiar to team
4
N/A
Change Management Procedures undefined
L: Well-defined
2
N/A
Quality Management Procedures unclear
L: Well-defined and accepted
1
N/A
Software Vendor
Number of Times Team Has Done Prior Work with Vendor Creates Foreign Relationship
H: Never
2
A comprehensive vendor evaluation and selection process (incorporated into Project Plan) will be employed to predict and define the relationship between the department and the vendor
Team’s Lack of Knowledge of Package
M: Conceptual understanding
4
Comprehensive vendor evaluation and selection process incorporated into Project Plan will assist the team in better understanding the package offering(s)
Poor Functional Match of Package to Initial System Requirements
L: Minimal customization required
1
Although a package has not yet been selected, the Consultant has compared the initial requirements with available functionality and determined that a functional match to the initial requirements is very likely. Vendor selection will be based, in part, on how well the proposed application matches defined functional specifications.
Involvement of the team in Selection of the package Impacts Success of Implementation
L: High involvement in selection
4
Comprehensive vendor evaluation and selection process incorporated into Project Plan
Milestones
The milestones that are expected in the project will include the following:
i. Initial steering committee meeting.
This will be a meeting that will be used to get the requirements and the expectations of the project by eth project sponsors. This is a very important meeting for the whole project, as it will define the requirements and the expectations of the project. This will make it clear between the implementers and the sponsors what is expected of each (Lock, 2007).
ii. Project plan documentation
The project implementers will be required to submit a completed project plan to the implementers so that the sponsors get to know what they will expect.
iii. Get all the requirements
This phase will be achieved after the implementation team have assessed the current system and get the requirements that will be expected in the new system.
iv. System analysis
The phase will deal with ensuring that the system that will be integrated at the university will meet all the research needs. The current process of research will first be looked into and then the requirements will be got from this (Murch, 2001).
v. Procurement process
After the requirements are analyzed and got, the procurement process starts. There are various vendors for the software. The software will be procured from the vendors (Young-Hoon, 2005).
vi. Selecting the vendor
This will involve assessing the various provisions of the various vendors. This will help to get the best vendor, which will get optimal performance.
vii. Perform a pilot test
This will entail having a pilot system with the chosen vendor. The phase is expected to get snap view of the offering that the new system will give. It will also help to assess and evaluate the system to get to know if the requirements have been met (Ireland, 2006).
viii. Installing the RIS system
If the pilot test is successful, the new system will be installed. After the vendor is got, the system will be installed. This will be done by the technical staff of the vendor company and will be helped by the IT staff of Oz University.
ix. Test the system
The test process will take place after the system has been installed. This will serve to ensure that the system will work as required.
x. Training
The training will be done by the vendors. All researchers will be trained on how to use the system. The technical staff will also be trained on how to manage the system.
xi. System implementation
It is after the whole process has been successfully implemented that the system can be implemented (Harrison, & Lock, 2004).
The subsequent symbolize key project milestones, with expected achievement dates:
Quality standards
The standards that are expected to be met are stipulated below:
i. The system should be easy to use. This will mean that the system should be in a position to navigate easily and that the novices should find it easy to learn.
ii. The system should serve many users at once. There are times where the system will be used by many people at once. This will require that the system will be in a position to stand the access times that the researchers will be performing.
iii. The system should have help system that will be easy to follow. This will help the users to get basic tasks instead of relying on the technical staff to solve the issues that they have. There should also be the provision of manuals that will be used by users in times of difficulty.
iv. The system should have Web 2.0 capability. This means that the system should be accessed from any place using the Web capability.
v. The system should have different levels of management. The staff should be able to access the system and have their own interface. The students likewise and the technical staff should have the capability of managing the system from any level. There should be various management
APPROVALS
Sign-off Sheet
I have read the above Project Plan and will abide by its terms and conditions and pledge my full commitment and support for the Project Plan.
References
Cleland, D, & Ireland, L. (2006). Project management: Strategic design and implementation. NY: McGraw-Hill Professional.
Harrison, D., & Lock, J. (2004). Advanced project management: a structured approach. Illinois: Gower Publishing, Ltd.
Haynes, M. (2003). Project management: Practical tools for success. NY: Cengage Learning.
Ireland, L. (2006). Project Management. Columbia: McGraw-Hill Professional.
Joseph P. (2003). PMP Project Management Professional Study Guide. Columbia: McGraw-Hill Professional.
Kerzner, H. (2009). Project management: A systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling, London: John Wiley and Sons.
Lock, D. (2007). Project management. CA: Gower Publishing.
Martin, S. (2002). Project Management Pathways. London: Association for Project Management. APM Publishing Limited.
Murch, R. (2001). Project management: Best practices for IT professionals. London: Prentice Hall PTR.
Young-Hoon Kwak (2005). A brief history of Project Management: The story of managing projects. Vol. 2.
