![interpret the data in MS Project and how to make it “useful” for you
and your stakeholders.
In this case study you will be given a scenario and asked to load the
project information into Microsoft Project. However, the purpose of
this case study is bigger than just properly loading the Microsoft
Project file. This case study requires you to interpret the MS Project
results and incorporate the issues and results in your communication
with key stakeholders. Your output of this case study explores the
“softer” side of project management, including how to communicate
your results to your key stakeholders in a clear and concise manner
and to include MS Project views directly in the document to illustrate
your points for your reader.
[NOTE: Please read carefully and plan ahead.Get am early start on
this important assignment. It constitutes 20% of your entire grade for
the course. It is very important that you understand that while the case
study is broken into three sections, you will not be submitting your
answer to each section separately, and you will not receive feedback
from your instructor after each section. Rather, you will work through
and submit your responses to all of the sections at one time--in a
single MS Word document.] Also, take time to practice capturing
images from the MS Project reports and pasting them as graphics into
your single Word document (!!!) so that you submit just one self-
contained document that contains everything your "manager" needs to
know. Background
NutroBalance produces a line of weight loss supplements and
nutritional snacks. A couple of years ago it introduced Ultra, a weight
loss supplement geared primarily towards men who lift weights and
do cardiovascular exercises. The Ultra pills have been a big success.
Part of NutroBalance’s strategic goals is to build off of that success
by formulating the Ultra pills to target other segments of the work-out
population. NutroBalance’s board of directors has decided to invest in
a pill called UltraMAX geared toward women who also lift weights
and do cardiovascular exercises. Since the core of the product has
already been produced, the project to introduce UltraMAX to the
work-out world really boils down to seeing if UltraMAX produces as
good of results in women as Ultra does in men.](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/proj587-190725064336/85/Proj-587-Education-Organization-snaptutorial-com-11-320.jpg)
Proj 587 Education Organization / snaptutorial.com
- 1. PROJ 587 Advanced Program Management Course Project For more classes visit www.snaptutorial.com Course Project: Portfolio Management Plan Your Professor will determine whether the Course Project is an individual or team assignment. If the project is completed as a team, your professor will assign teams promptly. (Watch for an announcement.) Objectives | Project Deliverables | Schedule and Grading Rubric | Paper Guidelines | Best Practices Objective The project for this course is a portfolio management plan for a company of your choice. You may use your own employer or a public company you can research to provide necessary details. To get started, you need to know the company's strategic plan and strategic capacity plan. Project Deliverables Your portfolio management plan should include the content below. Organization's strategic plan Organization's strategic capacity plan Portfolio management process Project selection criteria Program management plan Plan to Identify and resolve possible areas/sources of conflict related to cost, schedule, or quality Change management plan: Develop a plan to manage organizational and cultural change and conflict that may occur due to project/program/portfolio implementation. Resource utilization plan: Analyze and plan resource utilization to achieve maximum/optimal capacity utilization. Schedule and Grading Rubric
- 2. Week 2: Outline due (ungraded but required) Week 4: Draft is due in class Week 4 Week 7: Final portfolio management plan Week 8: Presentation Grading Rubrics for Draft and Paper Category Points Description (draft outlines these sections—9 points each) Draft 45 Organization Strategic Plan Organization Strategic Capacity Plan Flow Chart of Portfolio Process Outline of Project Selection Criteria Program Management Plan Category Points % Description Organization’s strategic plan 20 8% Overall mission, long-term goals, and principal methods for attaining those goals for the organization Organization’s strategic capacity plan 20 8% How organization matches resource requirements with available resources Portfolio management process 20 8% Overview of the entire PPM process Project selection criteria 20 8% Addresses both qualitative and quantitative criteria for selection Program management plan 20
- 3. 8% Overall plan for how projects in the program will be managed (especially Quality, Scope, and Schedule) Plan to Identify and resolve possible areas/sources of conflict related to cost, schedule, or quality 20 8% You you’ll ensure that your stakeholders will be “on the same page” regarding priorities of cost/schedule/quality among the projects in the portfolio. Change Management Plan: Develop a plan to manage organizational and cultural change and conflict that may occur due to project/program/ portfolio implementation 20 8% NOTE: This is not a scope change management plan but a plan for promoting, communicating, and gaining acceptance of PMO, PPM within the organization. Resource Utilization Plan: 20 8% Analyze and plan resource utilization to achieve maximum /optimal capacity utilization Content Total 160 64% Contains All Project Portfolio Management Plan Deliverables Documentation and Formatting 40 16% Follows APA guidelines for citing sources. Paper may be in a professional business format, using good design and attractive formatting. Use of tables, graphics, charts, and other PM communication elements are encourage. Paper MUST be in a single MS Word document! Organization and Cohesiveness 40
- 4. 16% Good flow and clear presentation of the 8 required content Deliverables. Editing 10 4% Corrections made as suggested in the first draft and appropriate peer reviewed changes made Total 250 100% A quality paper will meet or exceed all of the above requirements. Grading Rubrics for Presentation Category Points % Description Flow 50 20% All parts of the presentation flow seamlessly from one presenter to the next. Participation 50 20% All members of the team present equally. Professionalism 50 20% Handouts, PowerPoint, participation, and so on are presented or conducted in an appropriate and professional manner. Includes actions of team members when not presenting. Time Limit 50 20% The presentation is within the 5–10-minute time limit. Grammar
- 5. 50 20% All participants and materials use proper grammar. Total 100 100% The presentation will meet or exceed the above guidelines Paper Guidelines Papers must be 10 to 15 pages in length (this would be roughly one page per area included in the report), double-spaced, and in 10-point font. They must include a cover page, table of contents, introduction, report body, summary or conclusion, and works cited. Even though this is not a scientific-type writing assignment, and is mostly creative in nature, references are still very important. At least six authoritative outside references are required (anonymous authors or web pages are not acceptable). These should be listed on the last page, titled "Works Cited." Appropriate citations are required (in APA format). All DeVry University policies are in effect, including the plagiarism policy. Papers are due during Week 7 of this course. Any questions about this paper may be discussed in the weekly Q & A discussion topic. This paper is worth 250 total points, plus 30 points for the rough draft, and will be graded on the quality of the research topic, quality of paper information, use of citations, grammar, and sentence structure (see grading rubrics). Best Practices Below are best practices in preparing this paper. Cover page: Include who you prepared the paper for, who prepared it, and the date. Table of contents: List the main ideas and sections of the paper and the pages where they are located. Illustrations should be included separately. Introduction:Use a header on your paper. This will indicate that you are introducing the paper. The purpose of an introduction or opening is to introduce the subject and why the subject is important; preview the main ideas and the order in which they will be covered; and establish the tone of the document. Include in the introduction a reason for the audience to read the paper. Also, include an overview of what you will cover and the importance of the material. (This should include or
- 6. introduce the questions you are asked to answer in each assignment.) Body of the report: Use a header with the name of the project. An example is, "The Development of Hotel X: A World-Class Resort." Proceed to break out the main ideas: State the main ideas and the major points of each idea, and provide evidence. Show some type of division, such as separate, labeled sections; separate groups of paragraphs; or headers. Include the information you found during your research and investigation. Summary and conclusion: Summarizing is similar to paraphrasing but presents the gist of the material in fewer words than the original. An effective summary identifies the main ideas and the major support points from the body of the report; minor details are left out. Summarize the benefits of the ideas and how they affect the subject. Work cited: Use the citation format specified in the Syllabus. Additional hints on preparing the best possible project are below. Apply a three-step process to writing: plan, write, and complete. Prepare an outline of the research paper before going forward. Complete a first draft and then go back to edit, evaluate, and make any changes required. Use visual communication to further clarify and support the written part of the report. Examples include graphs, diagrams, photographs, flowcharts, maps, drawings, animation, video clips, pictograms, tables, and Gantt charts. ******************************************************** ********* PROJ 587 Final Exam For more classes visit www.snaptutorial.com PROJ 587 Final Exam ******************************************************** *********
- 7. PROJ 587 Week 3 Quiz For more classes visit www.snaptutorial.com Question : (TCO A) You work for Holt consulting company, which has been asked to recommend organizational improvements for CDC Software Company. You have been assigned to present PPM. Your boss has informed you that CDC Software Company knows nothing about PPM and you will need to cover the items below in your presentation. • What is a PPM? • Compare PPM, PgM, and Project level • Benefits of each (PPM, PgM, and Project) • Why should CDC Software Company implement a PPM? 2. Question : (TCO B) In project orientation it is important to determine both the project needs from the project’s perspective and from the organization’s perspective. From the project’s perspective, the main areas of concern are project scoping, project programming, and project autonomy. In your own words, explain what is meant by project autonomy. 3. Question : (TCO C) The program management life cycle was developed to not only ensure successful realization of organizational/program strategies but also to create a process to plan, identify, and resolve specific cost, schedule, or quality problems associated with the program. The five phases of the program life cycle are formulation, organization, deployment, appraisal, and dissolution. In your own words, describe the appraisal phase and how it aids in planning,
- 8. identifying, and resolving specific cost, schedule, or quality problems associated with the program. 4. Question : (TCO C) The following acronyms are used when working with project budget or schedule: PV, AC, EV, & BAC. Define these acronyms, explain how they are calculated, and how they are used to measure or explain the projects budget and schedule. ******************************************************** ********* PROJ 587 Week 5 Case Study THiS Corporation For more classes visit www.snaptutorial.com This is a two part assignment. Part 1 First, develop project selection criteria and a high level process for applying the criteria and managing the portfolio. The criteria should be consistent with the business environment for the industry, consistent with your company's overall mission/strategies, and consistent with the mission and strategies of your strategic business unit. You are proposing a process, not individual projects. The deliverable for Part 1 is a written proposal for the project selection criteria and a high level description of a proposed portfolio management process. You may also be expected to make an informal presentation of the report in class. The proposal should be in the form of a memorandum to your Vice President (your instructor) outlining your proposal. The memorandum should be no more than 10 pages, including any figures and tables. It
- 9. should be double-spaced, 10 or 12 point font with one-inch margins. This is a summary for an executive, so be concise, to the point, and leave out the fluff. If you don't need 10 pages to document your proposal fully, I am sure that your Vice President will be happy with less as long as it is complete. Using appropriate grammar, spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure will be part of your grade. The actual proposal should include the following: 1. A description of the proposed portfolio process. You are explaining it to the executives. 2. The reasons it was selected (tie to strategies as appropriate.) 3. A description of the proposed selection criteria. How will the process be applied in your SBU? 4. The method for applying the selection criteria, and the justification for both. How are you going to score the projects and evaluate the scores? Hints for a Successful Part 1: This is not a complete project proposal or even a complete status report. You are making a specific proposal to management of a “Project Portfolio Evaluation and Selection Process”. All reports and memos to executives should include an executive summary at the beginning. This one is no exception. The discussion of the organization should be limited to how the SBU organization supports projects and the PPM process. It is not necessary to discuss the total company. Pay attention to the specifics requested in the deliverables. Do NOT make your memo a list of questions and answers. That is not the way a business memo is written. It is easy to select a process that is presented in a reference but you must propose one that works for your SBU. When you think you are finished put yourself in the role of someone who was not working on the solution and read your presentation. You can assume you know the basics of PPM. · Does your presentation provide a good description of the process and how it will be applied? · Are there obvious questions that it raises that are not answered?
- 10. This is not a classroom assignment, it is a business memo. Also it is not a research report and you are not trying to demonstrate your academic expertise and how well you are read. Part 2 In Part 1 of the project, the new Vice President (your instructor) of your Strategic Business Unit had asked you to create a portfolio management process and project selection criteria for use by the SBU. It is now time to apply this process in selecting this year’s projects for your portfolio. In the annual budget cycle, your SBU was allocated $24 million dollars of funding uniformly spread over the next year for your portfolio. This means you have $6 million dollars to spend any given quarter. You may select any of the below projects to be included in your portfolio, but you cannot spend more than the allotted dollars allocated to your SBU. Your task is to select those projects, using your selection criteria, that most benefit the overall company without exceeding you quarterly budget of $6 million dollars. You must also lay out a plan for what quarter your selected projects will start in. ******************************************************** ********* PROJ 587 Week 5 Case Study For more classes visit www.snaptutorial.com Purpose The purpose of this case study is to get you used to incorporating Microsoft Project charts and reports directly into your project’s progress reports. By now you should be able to work through the mechanics of loading tasks, predecessors, resources, and costs into MS Project. But the real challenge facing project managers is how to
- 11. interpret the data in MS Project and how to make it “useful” for you and your stakeholders. In this case study you will be given a scenario and asked to load the project information into Microsoft Project. However, the purpose of this case study is bigger than just properly loading the Microsoft Project file. This case study requires you to interpret the MS Project results and incorporate the issues and results in your communication with key stakeholders. Your output of this case study explores the “softer” side of project management, including how to communicate your results to your key stakeholders in a clear and concise manner and to include MS Project views directly in the document to illustrate your points for your reader. [NOTE: Please read carefully and plan ahead.Get am early start on this important assignment. It constitutes 20% of your entire grade for the course. It is very important that you understand that while the case study is broken into three sections, you will not be submitting your answer to each section separately, and you will not receive feedback from your instructor after each section. Rather, you will work through and submit your responses to all of the sections at one time--in a single MS Word document.] Also, take time to practice capturing images from the MS Project reports and pasting them as graphics into your single Word document (!!!) so that you submit just one self- contained document that contains everything your "manager" needs to know. Background NutroBalance produces a line of weight loss supplements and nutritional snacks. A couple of years ago it introduced Ultra, a weight loss supplement geared primarily towards men who lift weights and do cardiovascular exercises. The Ultra pills have been a big success. Part of NutroBalance’s strategic goals is to build off of that success by formulating the Ultra pills to target other segments of the work-out population. NutroBalance’s board of directors has decided to invest in a pill called UltraMAX geared toward women who also lift weights and do cardiovascular exercises. Since the core of the product has already been produced, the project to introduce UltraMAX to the work-out world really boils down to seeing if UltraMAX produces as good of results in women as Ultra does in men.
- 12. You have been chosen to be the project manager of this weight-loss drug study. The board of directors has fast-tracked this project and have given you 175 WORKING days (NOT calendar days) to identify your target consumers, have them test the product, and then analyze and report on the results. Your project (i.e., Task #1) will commence on January 30, 2012. (NOTE: This 2012 date MUST be the start date for your project in this Case Study!) You have been given a team of four individuals: Leontyne, an analyst who is new to NutroBalance but who can help you recruit and screen test subjects Tristan, a senior level analyst who has conducted drug studies for NutroBalance before Rinaldo, an IT programmer Norma, a statistician who is highly competent at analyzing and interpreting results. ******************************************************** ********* PROJ 587 Week 6 Quiz For more classes visit www.snaptutorial.com Question : (TCO D) As a project manager, dealing with conflict is part of the job. There are many sources of conflict; one source that is often overlooked is the manager. Based on the Week 4 reading and lecture, what major ways do people deal with conflict? Share a personal experience of conflict and how you dealt with the situation. 2. Question : (TCO E) In order to have a high-performance team you must first recognize the qualities of a high-performance team. Describe at least five qualities of a high-performance team and then what can be done to develop those qualities in a team.
- 13. 3. Question : (TCO F) The PMI Code of Ethics is made up of four areas: responsibility, honesty, respect, and fairness. Discuss the area of respect and what it means for you, the project manager. 4. Question : (TCO F) Value management (VM) is the application of value methodologies with the purpose of improving organizational effectiveness. Value management is made up of five subprocesses: sensemaking, ideation, elaboration, choice, and mastery. In your own words, explain what mastery is and how it is used in VM.X ******************************************************** ********* PROJ 587 Week 7 Team Assignment Course Project For more classes visit www.snaptutorial.com PROJ 587 Week 7 Team Assignment Course Project *****************************************************************