Assignment 4 Mobile App Part 1: Work Breakdown Structure

Assignment 4 Mobile App Part 1 Work Breakdown Structure

Imagine that you work as the project manager for an IT department. Your organization has recently approved the development of a mobile application. As the project manager, you will manage the development of the project. The project will include user experience (UX) design by a consultant, graphic design by a team of two contracted designers, and in-house application development by a team of three (3) programmers and a database developer.

Write a one to two (1-2) page summary document in which you: Summarize the project requirements and other assumptions (i.e., budget, human resources, workload, environmental dependencies, etc.). Define a work breakdown structure and describe the methodology behind constructing one.

Paper For Above instruction

The development of a mobile application within an organizational setting demands careful planning, resource allocation, and structured project management methodology. As the project manager, it is essential to define clear project requirements and assumptions, as well as construct a comprehensive Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) to facilitate effective project execution.

Project Requirements and Assumptions

The primary requirement for this project is to develop a functional and user-friendly mobile application that meets the organization's strategic goals and user needs. The scope encompasses UX design, graphic design, application development, and database integration. The UX design process will be facilitated by a professional consultant to ensure user-centric design principles are applied. The visual aspects of the app will be crafted by two contracted graphic designers, focusing on interface aesthetics and branding consistency.

The development team comprises three programmers responsible for coding the application's functionalities, and a database developer tasked with creating and managing backend data operations. The project budget has been allocated sufficiently for hiring external consultants (for UX), contracted designers, and in-house personnel, while also accounting for miscellaneous expenses such as software tools and testing devices.

Assumptions for this project include a dedicated project team with relevant expertise, a clear understanding of deliverables, and specified deadlines aligned with organizational goals. Environmental dependencies cover access to necessary hardware, development environments, and stakeholder engagement during phases of testing and feedback. The project is expected to follow a traditional waterfall or iterative development methodology, with defined milestones and deliverables, to ensure timely completion.

Constructing the Work Breakdown Structure and Methodology

The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a hierarchical decomposition of the total scope of work to accomplish project objectives and create deliverables. The methodology for constructing a WBS involves identifying major project phases, breaking them into manageable work packages, and defining specific tasks within each package. This process begins with aligning project milestones with project management processes as outlined in the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®).

For this mobile app project, the first step was to identify five main tasks corresponding to each of the PMBOK® process areas: Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring & Controlling, and Closing. These main tasks include activities such as project initiation, detailed planning, development execution, testing and quality assurance, and project closure or deployment. Each main task was further subdivided into multiple detailed line items or work packages, totaling at least 30 items, to ensure comprehensive coverage of all necessary activities.

The WBS code was assigned to each task for easy identification and traceability, adhering to standard coding conventions. Duration estimates for each task were based on resource availability, task complexity, and interdependencies, culminating in a total project duration that aligned with organizational and stakeholder expectations. Using project management tools like Microsoft Project or open-source equivalents facilitated visual organization and timeline management of the project tasks.

In essence, the WBS serves as a project roadmap, guiding project execution and control by clearly delineating responsibilities and timelines, thereby enhancing overall project performance and likelihood of success.

References

  • PMI. (2017). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) (6th ed.). Project Management Institute.
  • Kerzner, H. (2017). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling (12th ed.). Wiley.
  • Schwalbe, K. (2018). Information Technology Project Management (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.
  • Heldman, K. (2018). Project Management JumpStart (4th ed.). Wiley.
  • Verzuh, E. (2015). The Fast Forward MBA in Project Management (5th ed.). Wiley.
  • Larson, E. W., & Gray, C. F. (2014). Project Management: The Managerial Process (6th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
  • Meredith, J. R., & Shafer, S. M. (2017). Project Management: A Strategic Approach (8th ed.). Wiley.
  • Ralph, R., & Wand, M. (2018). Developing a Work Breakdown Structure: Techniques and Methods. Journal of Project Management.
  • Heldman, K. (2020). PMP Exam Practice Test and Study Guide. Wiley.
  • Jack, S. (2019). Effective Work Breakdown Structures for Project Success. International Journal of Project Management.

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