Course Project

 

This Course Project gives you the opportunity to practice by planning a project, from the onset with a project charter to an established project schedule and related artifacts. This Course Project will make the course content come alive through application of the principles from the textbook, course materials, and discussions. Each week, you will have Course Project assignments that will be related to the TCO(s) aligned to that particular week.

Week	Deliverables	Total Points	% Alignment
Week 1	Review Course Project Review MS Project tutorials Create Project Charter (20 points)	20 points	8%
Week 2	Create Scope Statement (20 points) WBS (20 points)	40 points	16%
Week 3	Create project schedule and align resources in MS Project (35 points) Answer essay questions (20 points)	55 points	22%
Week 4	Updated MS Project with project cost (15 points) Answer essay questions (30 points)	45 points	18%
Week 5	Create Risk Matrix and Response Plans (20 points)	20 points	8%
Week 6	Create Communication Plan and Discuss (15 points) Create Meeting Agenda for Progress Meeting (15 points)	30 points	12%
Week 7	Discuss Organizational Structures (20 points) Write a self reflection essay (20 points)	40 points	16%
Total

 

For this project you may choose one that is of interest to you, or you may choose to begin planning for your project. When selecting a project, avoid picking one that is either too big or too small. For example, do not decide to build a new stadium for your local sports team (too big) or to plant your summer garden (too small). Select a project that you can relate to and have some experience with. Projects may vary from a few hundred thousand dollars to a few million dollars. Projects should last somewhere between six months and two years. To ensure you are on the right track, be sure to get your instructor’s permission before writing a project charter.

 

Course Project: Week 3

 

Congratulations! You have just completed the project charter, scope statement, and WBS. Now that you know what needs to be done, as the Project Manager, you are now ready to begin planning your project.

This week, you will have two deliverables to complete for the project.

• Using MS Project, create a project schedule and align resources – 35 points
• Analyze project schedule and resource allocation: two essay questions – 20 points

Please provide these two deliverables (MS Project file and MS Word document) to the Week 3 Dropbox. Please refer to the course Syllabus for your due date.

To help guide you through these deliverables, please follow the three step process below.

Project Schedule Instructions

The following steps should be followed when setting up your Course Project with Microsoft Project 2010:

1. Set the basic project information
   • Open MS Project 2010
   • Click on the File button (top left), select save as and enter the file name as (your name) cp1. For example: SmithJanecp1.mpp
   • Click on the Project tab and select Project Information. In the Project Information dialogue box, set the start date of your project.
   • Leave other dates as is. Click on OK.
2. Set basic Gantt chart format (use also for tracking Gantt chart view)
   • Right click on the mouse in the gray area of the Gantt chart on the right side of the screen where the dates in month and days are for the menu and select Timescale.
   • In the Timescale dialogue box:
     • Select the Middle Tier tab set Units to Quarters
     • Select the Bottom Tier tab set Units to Months
   • Click on OK.
3. Setup the default task units to weeks
   • Click the File tab, and then click Options.
   • In the Project Options dialog box, click Schedule.
   • Under Scheduling options in this project, set the following:
     • New tasks created select Auto Scheduled
     • Duration is enetered in select Weeks
     • Default task type select Fixed Duration
   • Click OK to close the dialog box.
4. Set up the Resource Sheet.

   Once you have set the defaults, we are ready to move on. If you have not done so already, you need to create the project’s work packages and activities from the Project’s WBS. Once this is done, insert your project name, deliverables, work packages, and activities in the column Task Name in MS Project.

   • Enter the task durations in the Duration Column.
   • Enter the predecessor(s) for each task in the predecessors column. If there is no duration or predecessor listed, leave the column blank. Note: If you do not see the Predecessors Column, move the vertical line between the Entry Form and the Gantt Chart to the right to reveal the column. Click on the line and drag to move it. Columns can be expanded or contracted individually to accommodate information the same way column width is adjusted in MS Excel.

Analyze your Schedule and Network Diagram

To see the network diagram, click on View, then select Network Diagram. Activities on the Critical Path are outlined in red, while non-critical path activities are outlined in blue. You will need this information to answer the essay question in Step 3.

Resource Allocation and Assignment Instructions

Once you have the WBS created in MS Projects, you need to assign resources to each activity. Remember only assign resources to activities, not other items on the WBS. Before you can do this, you need to create a resources sheet in MS Projects. To create a Resource sheet, click on View, Resource Sheet. Enter the Resource name, whether it is a human resource, a cost, or a material. Once this is finished, one can tied these resources to individual activities. Don’t worry about costs, as that is next week’s work.

To assign your resources to the aligned tasks in MS Project, follow the steps below:

Assign Hourly Resources and costs to the tasks that you have already entered.

Analyze your Resource Allocation and Assignments

There are several methods to check for over-allocated resources:

You will need this information to answer the essay question in Step 3.

Answer the Following Essay Questions

Now that your project schedule has been created and your resources have been allocated, please analyze your results and answer the following essay questions. In your analysis, be sure to identify the critical path and relate any time reduction opportunities to specific activities in the WBS.

Essay Question #1: Now that you have created a WBS and resource loaded schedule in MS Projects, what is your critical path? Does this critical path make sense? Do your predecessors make sense? How accurate are your durations? What could be done to improve the accuracy of your durations?

Essay Question #2: Are there any resources over-allocated? If yes, during which month(s) and what are some ways this might be addressed? Do not simply lower the percentage allocated to an over-allocated activity.

Using your own words, I am looking for a two to three page essay report that addresses the essay questions above. Remember, the report must be to a level of clarity and depth that would be readily understood by the executive management; in other words do not repeat the questions, avoid a simple Yes or No answer. Do support your analysis with both in-text citation and references from the textbook, PMBOK® Guide or other juried sources. Include a cover sheet and a reference page. Use APA style format, double-space, one inch margins, Times New Roman, and 12 point font size.

 

Course Project: Week 4

 

Now that your project schedule has been created and your resources have been loaded, let’s take a closer look at the cost of the project.

This week, you will have two deliverables.

• Enter project cost information into MS Project—15 points
• Answer two essay questions (see Step 3 below)—30 points

Please provide these two deliverables (MS Project file and MS Word document) to the Week 4 Dropbox. Please refer to the course Syllabus for your due date.

To help guide you through these deliverables, please follow the three-step process below.

Most projects have fixed costs to account for. These are such things as mortgages and other costs that do not change with production. Fixed costs need to be accounted for in projects. If your project has fixed costs, follow the following steps.

Resource Fixed Cost List Instructions Microsoft Project 2010

The following steps should be followed when setting up your project fixed costs with Microsoft Project:

Variable Resource List

Most projects have variable costs. These are costs that change with the amount of work being done. These are commonly seen as dollar per hour costs. Most of your resources will be dollar per hour costs. Follow the steps below to enter this data.

Resource Variable Cost List Instructions for Microsoft 2010

Using this information, go back into the Resource Sheet to update the hourly rate for each resource.

• Click on the View tab. Click on the Resource Sheet icon under the Resource Views section. The resource sheet icon is the middle icon on the right of this view with two heads. Check to make sure the Type field is Work and enter the dollar amount above for the hourly rate for each resource in the Std. Rate column.
• To access various reports with cost and other information select Reports under the Project tab.

Resource Variable Cost List Instructions for Microsoft 2007

Using this information, go back into the Resource Sheet to update the hourly rate for each resource.

Answer the Following Essay Questions

Now that your project schedule has been created, your resources have been loaded, and your resource costs have been allocated, please analyze your results and answer the following questions.

After you enter all of your resources, answer the following questions.

Formulate the above responses into a two- to three-page essay report. Remember, the report must be to a level of clarity and depth that would be readily understood by the executive management. Do support your analysis with both in-text citation and references from the textbook, PMBOK® Guide, or other juried sources. Include a cover sheet and a reference page. Use APA style format, double-space, one-inch margins, Times New Roman, and 12-point font size.