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ABET Assessment
Using Project Management Methods in the Creation of an Effective IT Project Plan
The Problem:
Assume that you are working for a large accounting firm. You are in the Human Resources
Division and you have just been given the responsibility to manage an IT project to install a new
system to process everything related to your company’s payroll, payroll tax records, and vacation
and health benefits. The system maintains records on insurance, state and federal taxes, social
security, and the like – everything that you would find on a typical pay stub. You pay
employees both hourly wages and annual salaries. The system is called PAYMASTER.
As part of your work you have decided to develop an outline of your planning process using the
structure of a knowledge areas/process groups matrix as a basis for your outline’s first two
levels. Then you want to prepare a 2000 word summary of the plan. The following information
is designed to take you through that work. In your response you will be providing either sample
or full answers, depending on the nature of the planning element that you are describing. In
many cases you will need to invent a number of the specifics as you develop your plan – just use
a little imagination because there are literally thousands of elements that would go into an actual
plan or system.
Where specificity is required you will need to invent it. For example, in your written plan it is
inappropriate to say something like “update the scope statement.” However, “Modify the scope
statement to reflect new tax codes for PAYMASTER” is acceptable and correct (sorry, you may
not use this example as part of your response.)
Prepare a single document as your response. The first part of your document is your outline and
the second part is your written plan.
First, Your Complete Outline:
Begin this section with the title: “PAYMASTER Project Plan Outline,” and outline your plan
from beginning to end. Your outline must have four levels. Remember, you are preparing an
outline of how you would go about planning the implementation of the PAYMASTER payroll
and associated records system using the knowledge areas/process groups matrix as a basis for
your outline’s first two levels.
1. Level-one like this – level-one activities should have sufficient weight to carry your plan.
There must be a separate level-one activity for each major element of your plan – that is,
each should be a MAJOR element in your plan.
1.1. Level-two like this – these are sub-topics for your major elements. Notice that proper
outline structure requires at least two level-two items for each level-one item. More
might be needed, depending on topic at hand.
1.1.1. Level-three like this – sub-topics for your level-two items. At this level you are
providing specific details for your level-two items. Notice also, just as for leveltwo: “… that proper structure requires at least two level-three items for each leveltwo item. More might be needed, depending on topic at hand.”
1.1.1.1.
Level-four like this – sub-topics for your level-three items. At this level
you are providing specific example of the details in level-three. Notice also,
just as for level-three: “… that proper structure requires at least two level-four
items for each level-three item. More might be needed, depending on the topic
at hand.”
1.1.1.2.
Another level-four
1.1.2. Another level-three
1.1.2.1.
Level-four
1.1.2.2.
Level-four
1.2. Another level-two, level-three, level-four
1.3. Etc. if needed
2. Level-one again, etc.etc. etc. etc.
Of importance – outlines do not contain paragraphs. The idea of an outline is to organize your
thoughts, and it must be complete at the top two levels. The MORE time that you spend building
an outline the BETTER your thought process, organization and content, and the EASIER it is to
do the next part of the exam.
Second, Your Written Plan:
Now begin the main body of your work. Write 2000 words describing your plan. 2000 words is
about eight pages, double spaced, 12 point font, normal margins. For your written plan the
standard is, as always, full sentences – nouns and verbs, and professional composition. Bullets,
lists, IM texting replies, bad spelling, punctuation, capitalization, or grammar is simply not
responsive to the task at hand.
CAUTION: recall that almost all of the major topics in the course received a roughly equal
emphasis. Reflect this emphasis in your paper, both in the length of your sections and in content.
For example, where we did charts or tables, include specific examples, applicable to your plan.
Of importance – these examples need NOT be complete, simply of sufficient detail to
communicate your understanding. In the real world, for example, you would develop a very
detailed WBS. For your paper it will be sufficient to develop only a few lines, as examples that
expand on your outline for that particular section of your paper. Detail, correct construction and
content are important.
Begin this work on a separate page, with the title “PAYMASTER Project Plan”. Include
headings and sub-headings that relate directly to your outline – they actually replicate the outline
itself. Here is the format for the headings in your plan.
Your level-one headings — italicized, bold, and underlined: Discus what this element of the
plan is about, why it is important, and provide specific comment on how it applies in the
PAYMASTER project. Place a blank line before each level-one heading.
Your level-two headings — bold, and underlined: Here, discuss what this element is about in
the context of the PAYMASTER project – that is, how it applies to your plan. Mention of some
specifics, to become level-three elements, can be provided here if you wish.
Your level-three heading — italicized and underlined: Since level-three elements are specifics,
expand on your level-two comments. Be specific – how do these examples apply to
PAYMASTER?
Your level-four headings — underlined: Since level-four elements are examples, expand on your
level-three comments. Be specific – how do these examples apply to PAYMASTER?
In many cases you should accomplish this by developing specific content – a chart or a sample
WBS, for example.
Your writing should be of sufficient detail to prove that you understand project management -its principles, practices, and tools, and that you understand and have thought carefully about your
outline above.
Recall the admonishment in the opening paragraphs about specificity (the “update the scope
statement” example). OF CENTRAL AND CRITICAL IMPORTANCE: YOUR WRITING
MUST BE SPECIFIC TO PAYMASTER. Vague discussions using terms limited to those in the
text will be deemed inadequate. Discussions based on the text, but which engage specific
elements of PAYMASTER (elements that you invent as you develop your content) are required
to confirm that you actually understand the meaning of the material in the text. You must have
solutions to the problem, not generally describe some project planning activities.
Finally, observe that there is no way that 2000 words will be adequate for a project plan in the
real world. The point of this exam is to cause you to cover the points involved in managing a
project and to summarize those points. While your level-one and level-two outline must be
complete, your actual plan will be incomplete because of length restrictions. But it must be
reasonably developed with respect to the contents of the course. That is, your level-one and
level-two elements should be comprehensive, and your level-three and level-four items of
sufficient detail to demonstrate what each level-one and level-two element in your summary is
about, and how it applies to PAYMASTER.
Additional Requirements:
The assignment should be submitted as a single file, while you should name the file starting
with your last name, following this approach: “Ramim.docx”
You must include a title page as the first page of the assignment that includes: title of the
assignment, your name, school’s name, course number, professor’s name, and due date.
Late submission will be accepted until Tuesday midnight (48 hrs following the due time)
following the Sunday due date and will carry 20% late penalty. No assignments will be accepted
after the end of the late submission period (Tuesday midnight – 48hrs following the due time).
RUBRIC: The paper will be graded on a 100 point scale. One-third of your score will be based
the outline and two-thirds will be based on your written plan, but notice that an inadequate
outline will surely yield an inadequate plan. It should also be apparent, from specifications above
that your adherence to the structural requirements for your documents will play a meaningful
part in my analysis of your work. For the outline one-third of the score will be for a correct and
complete set of level-one and level-two activities, one-third for appropriate and accurate levelthree activities, and one third for meaningful level-four activities. These formulas will then be
applied to your written plan, but with the additional requirement of relevancy and specificity
applicable to PAYMASTER. Critical elements include the detail and evidence that you provide
to prove that you understand the concepts. In any case up to 15% will be deducted for either
structural or English errors, or up to 30% for both.
…
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