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Module 4 - Case Project Planning, Scheduling, Budgeting, Control, And Maintenance

Research Paper Instructions:

This Module's Case is about the processes involved in planning, scheduling, budgeting IT projects, and stakeholder’s accountability. There are some fairly well-established rules and procedures to serve as guidelines here. Here are two short online presentations that give a fairly useful overview:
Gurmin, S. (2010). Effective project management. online presentation, ISSUU. Part 1 Retrieved from http://issuu(dot)com/shaun-gurmin/docs/effective_project_management_presentation_01; Part 2 from http://issuu(dot)com/shaun-gurmin/docs/effective_project_management_part_2
Here’s a good basic treatment of resource allocation issues:
Drinkwater, A. (2011) Proper methods for resource planning. Retrieved from http://blog(dot)projectconnections(dot)com/project_practitioners/2011/02/proper-methods-for-resource-planning.html
It's also important to keep in mind that all project decisions operate in an environment with some degree of uncertainty and/or risk; keeping risks (or unanticipated consequences) to a minimum is very important, because your stakeholders do NOT like surprises. Consider this good advice:
Bart, J. (2011). 10 Golden rules of project risk management. ProjectSmart.Retrieved from http://www(dot)projectsmart(dot)co(dot)uk/10-golden-rules-of-project-risk-management.html
Now we come to the interesting part. Here is a summary of a case of planning and scheduling in the construction industry. As you read through it, you’ll recognize many of the issues encountered in the descriptions of IT project planning.
CEIM Reporter. (2011, March 8). Owner’s project schedule management for high rise office building projects: A case study of scheduling. Professional Project Management Education. Retrieved from http://professionalprojectmanagement(dot)blogspot(dot)com/2011/03/owners-project-schedule-management-for.html.
In addition, the optional readings expand on many of the central points; you may also want to do some independent Internet-based research of your own to clarify any issues that concern you.
For accountability management, it is about the advice that we're given by the literature and the practice wisdom about how we should maintain relationships with the project's "stakeholders" and others to whom the project must report.
One of the more systematic articles would be:
Barron, M. & Barron, A. (2011, April 5). Project stakeholders. The Project Management Hut. Retrieved from http://www(dot)pmhut(dot)com/project-stakeholders-2.
Consider also the use of various accountability maintenance processes:
http://projectcontrolsonline(dot)com/Home/DefinitionandImportance
fProjectControls.aspx
Ten Step. (n.d.). Monitor and control the project. Retrieved from http://www(dot)tensteppm(dot)com/pv/4.0PMonitorCtrlProj.html
Gunlach, M. (2009, June 30). Understanding how project monitoring and controlling integrates to other processes. Bright Hub. Retrieved from http://www(dot)brighthub(dot)com/office/project-management/articles/40904.aspx
Your task for Question 2 below is to assemble some propositions about how and when accountability for project operations and results can and should be determined. There is no shortage of advice, in these sources and elsewhere; some are likely to be better supported by the literature and the evidence than others. Obviously, as noted below, this will obligate you to actually be able to present such evidence in an academically respectable manner. You will need to consider what accountability is, to whom it is owed, what sorts of things project managers are accountable for, and the relative costs and benefits of various degrees of accountability.
Case Assignment
When you have read through the articles and related material, please compose a 6- to 8-page critical analysis paper on the topics:
Issues and conclusions regarding project planning, scheduling, and risk management from the construction case that also apply to information technology projects.
Discuss and recommend how to maintain effective accountability in project management.
You’ll want to draw not only on what you have in the sources from this module, but from the preceding modules as well.
Assignment Expectations
Your paper should be short (6-8 pages, not including cover sheet and references) and to the point. It is to be structured in the following manner.
You are expected to:
Begin this paper by stating your recommendations for accountability maintenance clearly and concisely
Citing appropriate sources, present the reasons why you take this position. Be sure to make the most effective case you can.
Then present the best evidence you can, again citing appropriate sources, against your position—that is, establish what counterarguments can be made to your original position.
Finally, review your original position in light of the counterarguments, showing how they are inadequate to rebut your original statement.
By the end of your paper, you should be able to unequivocally re-affirm your original position.
You will be particularly assessed on:
Your ability to see what the module is all about and to structure your paper accordingly.
Your informed commentary and analysis—simply repeating what your sources say does not constitute an adequate paper.
Your ability to apply the professional language and terminology of systems planning correctly and in context; you are expected to be familiar with this language and use it appropriately.
Your effective and appropriate use of in-text citations to the assigned readings and other source material to support your arguments. Refer to the Purdue University APA formatting and style guide (see Module 1 required readings) for the proper formats.

Research Paper Sample Content Preview:

Module 4 Project Planning
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Project management entails all the technical and scientific efforts put in place in the course of a project, to ensure that it is completed on time. It, therefore, means that punctuality and predetermination of the required resources is a significant segment of project management. For the success of any project, certain tenets form the basis of the procedure. The definition, sequencing, resource estimating and time evaluating of the activity in question, form the first four processes that are mutually interacting and vital for the project. The remaining two are scheduled development and finally schedule control. These last two, constitute schedule management and form one of the most critical procedures of project management. The selected case study has been chosen in an elaborate manner, highlighting all the facets of project management, from planning to risk management, in an attempt to draw out parallels between the construction and IT industries (Bart, 2011).
In both sectors, it is important to note that each project has its unique nature. As a result, each should be handled differently, using the required levels of expertise; even though the rules and regulations for each might be the same. There is a need to avoid rigidity during the application of this regulation since it will only result in too much bureaucracy that typically tends to drag the project behind schedule. The personnel employed to perform any task in each project should be well trained and conversant with the given jobs.
Having the right team or staff is crucial to the goals of the project and the project manager. The kind of staff carrying out the project will be decisive in the success or even completion of the project. The project managers too, need to be qualified in the discharge of the set responsibilities. As a result, vetting of such personnel needs to be mandatory and should use aspects such as prior work experience and academic qualifications. Previous work experience should look at whether the manager had done projects that are somehow similar to the one at hand, or whether they are related in one way or another. It should be noted that not everyone who is qualified on paper, can make a competent project manager.
Successful completion of such previous projects should also be another evaluation of prior work experience. This is also the same case for the staff, whose competence can be evaluated during the initial hiring or recruitment process, and then they can be polished through subsequent training and seminars in the course of the project. Fruitful and satisfactory project completion calls for a manager who has inside-out knowledge of every component that makes up the project. It needs an individual who can win the trust of the team while also have excellent interpersonal skills.
A competent project manager needs to have a clear picture of the task ahead, way before the actual work begins. For example, by using the work breakdown structures, the functions can be known beforehand. The initial project master plan would then help in the design and structure of the tasks laid out by the WBS. The next step is the manager employing logical thinking. In this case, prioriti...
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