This Exercise Begins With Information For An IT Consu 287492

This exercise begins with information for an IT consultant business st

This exercise begins with information for an IT Consultant Business Startup. Working in Microsoft Project, you will create the task list, including summary tasks and their sub-tasks, create links between tasks and their predecessors, add resources, and make changes to the original plan. Each student is required to submit their own, unique Project file.

A. Enter the tasks, including the specified duration, specified predecessors, and specified resources from the HW9Data file. Make the start date of the project: July 1, 2016.

B. Your business, in charge of the IT Consultant Business Startup, will be observing a week holiday for the week of the 4th of July and for the week of Labor Day. Be sure to enter the working exceptions for these holidays through the working time of the project, not through individual tasks or resources. After you make your corrections, identify the original finish date for the entire project. Save the baseline at this point.

C. Your CEO feels the cost for the project is excessive. Due to other projects planned, the CEO has asked for you to reduce the total cost for the project. The target budget for this operation is $55,000. Think carefully about the duration of the tasks and the resources required to make the project a success. Document the changes (ID number, task name, duration change, resource change, etc.) you plan on making to get the project under $55,000. Justify why you made the changes you did. Identify the new final cost of the project. For your written response to B and C, submit a Word document. Remember to make your changes in response to C in the project.

Paper For Above instruction

The management of IT consulting businesses often involves careful project planning, resource allocation, cost management, and schedule adjustments. Analyzing the provided project data and properly utilizing project management tools like Microsoft Project is essential for successful project execution. This paper details the process of creating a project plan, incorporating holidays, adjusting costs, and documenting strategic modifications to meet budget constraints while maintaining project integrity.

Initially, the project begins with developing a comprehensive task list. These tasks include both main tasks and subtasks, structured logically using summary tasks to reflect a typical IT consulting startup. Based on the HW9Data file, each task's duration, predecessors, and resource assignments are entered meticulously in Microsoft Project. This structured approach ensures clarity in the project timeline, dependencies, and resource allocation, setting a solid foundation for effective project execution.

Setting the start date to July 1, 2016, aligns the project timeline with a realistic schedule. As part of this initial setup, holiday exceptions for the weeks of July 4th and Labor Day are incorporated into the project’s working calendar. These holidays are managed as non-working days within Microsoft Project's calendar options, ensuring that the project schedule automatically accounts for these breaks without manually adjusting individual tasks. This practice maintains an accurate project timeline and prevents schedule shifts caused by holidays.

Once the task list and working calendar are configured, the project’s baseline is saved. This baseline serves as a reference point against which future modifications and performance tracking are measured. The initial baseline captures the planned start and finish dates, costs, and resource allocations, providing a snapshot of the original project plan prior to any adjustments.

Recognizing the importance of cost control, the project manager must now reevaluate the project budget. The initial cost estimates exceed the target budget of $55,000. To align costs with this constraint, strategic changes are necessary. These may include reducing task durations, reallocating or downsizing resources, or modifying resource assignments to lower overall expenses. Each change is carefully justified based on its impact on project scope, schedule, and cost. For instance, trimming non-essential tasks or substituting less expensive resources might significantly reduce costs without jeopardizing critical objectives.

Documenting these modifications involves recording the task ID, name, and specific changes made—such as duration adjustments or resource reassignments. The rationale behind each change ensures transparency and justifies the decision-making process, demonstrating how these modifications help achieve the target budget while maintaining project quality and deadlines.

Finally, after implementing the cost reductions, the updated project plan is reviewed to determine the new final cost. This figure confirms whether the project now aligns with financial constraints. The resulting plan, including the revised schedule and resource allocations, provides a realistic pathway to project completion within the specified budget.

References

  • Kerzner, H. (2017). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
  • PMI. (2017). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide). Project Management Institute.
  • Larson, E. W., & Gray, C. F. (2018). Project Management: The Managerial Process. McGraw-Hill Education.
  • Heldman, K. (2018). PMP: Project Management Professional Exam Study Guide. Sybex.
  • Marchewka, J. (2018). Information Technology Project Management. Wiley.
  • Stevenson, W. J. (2015). Operations Management. McGraw-Hill Education.
  • Marshall, C., & Rossman, G. B. (2016). Designed for Learning: A Guide to Teaching in the Field of Education. Sage Publications.
  • Schwalbe, K. (2018). Information Technology Project Management. Cengage Learning.
  • Hult, G. T. (2018). Global Marketing. Pearson Education.
  • Harrison, F., & Lock, D. (2017). Advanced Project Management: A Structured Approach. Gower Publishing.

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