You Just Presented The Software Development Plan To The CIO

You Just Presented The Software Development Plan To The Cio With All O

You just presented the software development plan to the CIO with all of the notes and suggestions incorporated from the previous weeks, for final approval. The CIO has reviewed your software development project plan and found that several components were missing. Your task is to use the financial management software project as your base and prepare a report that describes how each of the following will be used to manage the software development effort. Scheduling & Tracking Progress Dependencies between tasks Gantt charts with WBS and Milestones Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) Critical Path Method (CPM) Configuration management Risk management. You prepared a risk assessment and human resources plan in the previous week.

Based on your previous report and after reviewing the project plan, the CIO has identified several concerns. The CIO has asked you to conduct research on project budgeting and estimation tools. You have been asked to incorporate project estimates techniques using PERT, Analogous, and Delphi into the software development plan. Make sure you also could include a discussion on Metrics as part of the project deliverable. Also, you will be submitting the overall plan, known as the Key Assignment Draft in the upcoming Discussion Board for a peer review.

Please make sure your overall plan includes the items mentioned above and these items: a company name, identify a software application/software development project, determine which software development method you would use and justify your recommendation. Provide an outline of the software development project plan based on the development method you selected. Also include project oversight considerations such as risk management, scheduling, budget, and configuration management. The CIO has also informed you that you must select a software development methodology for the company's proposed financial management system. Please choose from the following methodologies and create a software development plan: Traditional (Waterfall, Incremental, Spiral, etc.), Agile (Scrum, Crystal, Adaptive, Feature-driven, DSDM, etc.), or Extreme Programming (XP). You will use the software development model that you selected as the basis for your assignments for the remaining weeks of the course.

The initial business requirements for the financial management system are outlined below. The new system should be an end-to-end enterprise financial management solution designed to meet the needs of the most complex, multinational organizations. The ERP solution should be comprised of a robust set of applications that support all aspects of financial business activities, including:

  • Financial and management accounting: Core accounting and reporting capabilities with scalability to support large multinational companies, including fixed asset, accrual, bank, cash journal, inventory, tax accounting, general ledger, accounts receivable and payable, fast close functions, financial statements, parallel valuations.
  • Financial supply chain management: Applications to streamline receivables and collections, reduce operating costs, improve cash flow, and reduce days’ sales outstanding.

Paper For Above instruction

The development of a robust financial management system (FMS) for multinational corporations necessitates meticulous planning, precise execution, and comprehensive oversight. To ensure successful delivery, integrating effective project management methodologies and tools is crucial. This paper outlines how scheduling, tracking progress, dependencies, and various estimation techniques will facilitate successful management of the software development effort, using a company-developed enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution as a case study. It also discusses the choice of development methodology, project planning, and oversight considerations such as risk, budget, and configuration management.

Company and Project Overview

The organization selected for this project is GlobalFinance Inc., a multinational corporation specializing in financial services. The project involves developing an enterprise financial management system that supports complex financial activities across various jurisdictions. The system aims to integrate accounting, supply chain management, and reporting functionalities into a seamless ERP solution tailored for large, multinational enterprises.

Chosen Software Development Methodology

Given the scope, complexity, and need for adaptability in the project, Agile methodology, specifically Scrum, has been selected. Scrum provides iterative development cycles, frequent stakeholder feedback, and flexibility to adapt to changing requirements, which are essential for complex financial systems. This approach enables continuous integration and testing, reducing risks associated with lengthy development cycles typical of traditional methods.

Project Planning and Management Tools

The project management will leverage several tools to ensure successful oversight and delivery:

  • Scheduling & Tracking Progress: The project will use Gantt charts integrated with the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) to visualize task durations, milestones, and dependencies, providing clarity on progress and deadlines.
  • Dependencies Between Tasks: Critical dependencies, especially between core financial modules and supply chain components, will be mapped to identify bottlenecks and streamline workflow.
  • Gantt Charts with WBS and Milestones: These visuals will facilitate monitoring of deliverables at each stage, ensuring alignment with project timelines.
  • Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT): PERT will be used to estimate task durations more accurately by accounting for optimistic, pessimistic, and most likely estimates, helping to refine project schedules.
  • Critical Path Method (CPM): CPM will identify critical tasks that directly impact overall project duration, allowing focused resource allocation to prevent delays.
  • Configuration Management: Version control systems will maintain consistency of project artifacts, enabling rollback and change tracking.
  • Risk Management: Continual risk assessment frameworks will identify potential project threats, with mitigation plans to address these issues proactively.

Estimation Techniques and Metrics

Accurate budgeting relies on various estimation techniques:

  • PERT: Utilized to determine a probabilistic estimate of task durations, especially useful for high-uncertainty activities like integrating complex financial modules.
  • Analogous Estimation: Leveraging historical data from similar projects to estimate timeframes and costs, facilitating quick preliminary assessments.
  • Delphi Technique: Gathering expert consensus through iterative surveys to refine estimates, reducing bias and increasing accuracy.

Metrics such as defect density, velocity, and schedule variance will be tracked continuously to measure project health, guide decision-making, and ensure quality standards are maintained throughout development.

Budgeting and Cost Estimation

Budget estimates incorporate the findings from the above techniques, providing a probabilistic range of costs. Contingency buffers will be integrated based on risk analysis outcomes, ensuring financial flexibility to address unforeseen issues. Regular financial reviews will compare actual expenditures to estimates, enabling corrective actions if deviations occur.

Configuration and Quality Assurance

Configuration management will utilize tools like Git for version control and automated build systems for consistent deployment. Quality assurance will involve automated testing suites, code reviews, and compliance checks to ensure that system releases meet specified standards and regulations related to financial data security and privacy.

Conclusion

Developing an enterprise financial management system for multinational organizations demands a rigorous and adaptive project management approach. By applying project management tools such as Gantt charts, CPM, PERT, and rigorous risk management, the project can be closely monitored and controlled. Incorporating estimation techniques like PERT, Analogous, and Delphi enhances budgeting accuracy, while metrics ensure ongoing quality assurance. Choosing Agile Scrum as the development methodology allows flexibility, stakeholder engagement, and iterative progress, aligning with the complex needs of global financial operations. Through comprehensive planning and meticulous oversight, the project aims to deliver a robust, scalable, and compliant financial management system tailored to the needs of multinational corporations, ultimately improving operational efficiency and financial accuracy.

References

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