Hardware Replacement Project Case Study

Hardware Replacement Project Steve Smithers

How do the five major variables of project management—scope, time, cost, quality, and risk—relate to this scenario?
Time – This would be the amount of time required to complete the project. Typically it is broken down into the time required to complete the components of the project. This is then broken down into the time required to complete each task contributing to the completion of the project
Cost - Cost will typically be determined by the consultant or contractors hourly rate multiplied by an estimated time to complete the project on time or if it is late.
Quality - The amount of time put into individual tasks determines the overall quality of the project. Some tasks may require
a given amount of time to complete, but if more time is given the project can be completed exceptionally. Over the course of a large project, quality can have a major impact on time and cost.
Scope - The overall objective of what the project is supposed to accomplish, and a specific description of what the end result should be or accomplish.
Risk - Potential points of failure.
Most risks or potential failures can be overcome or resolved, given enough time and resources.
Three of these variables can be given by external or internal customers. The value(s) of the remaining variable are then set by project management, ideally based on solid estimation techniques. The final values have to be agreed upon in a negotiation process between project management and the customer. Usually, the values in terms of time, cost, quality and scope are contracted.
To keep control over the project from the beginning of the project all the way to its natural conclusion, a project manager uses a number of techniques: project planning, earned value, risk management, scheduling and process improvement.
What considerations must be applied when selecting projects that deliver the best business
value?
Use of the Best Value process depends upon the project, the selection criteria used for the project, and the decision factors that are used when a project is considered for implementation. If a company determines that the best value would be beneficial, the evaluation criteria upon which the proposal will be assessed should also align with the project goals. The process of selecting projects for the best value is linked with the process of selection parameters and evaluation. Any project can use a best value selection, but the project’s complexity, specialization, quality requirements and opportunities for innovation, and procurement risk will determine whether a best value selection process is appropriate, The company’s project goals and performance measures must be taken in to consideration in the decision. A good example would be the company’s past experience and performance evaluation. While significant project benefits may be gained through time, cost and quality savings and enhancements, companies should consider whether to use a best value methodology. This could generate additional cost in the form if higher costs then it are worth. Each project must be reviewed on a case by case basis.

What factors that influence project risk? What strategies would you recommend for minimizing this project’s risks?
Whether it's small or large, complex or simple, every project has risk.
As a manager it is there responsibility to do the best to minimize the risk in projects, but to minimize it as soon as possible. Some of the factors would be project size, project structure, and the level of technical expertise of the information systems staff and project team. The first step in managing the risk of a project is to review the situation. By identifying all of the risks that you think are possible in the project. The review should include factors for the project such as resource changes, failures, and sponsor availability. All of the external factors such as a change in company direction or a change of technology direction. Most of all it should include the things that are new in the project. If the project is working with a new technology, new development methodology, or even if there are new team members, these need to be listed as potential risks to the project. The purpose of the review phase isn't to classify the risk or identify its importance. The goal is to collect all the risks. Once there is a complete list of potential risks, it’s time to evaluate them. Each risk should be evaluated based both on its probability and the impact that it would cause if it happens. The loss of a key team member may not have any affect. However, the impact to the project could be great if the team member plays a key role in the project. The other factor to evaluate when looking at a risk is its
duration. How long that it can have a potential impact on the project. For instance, the loss of a team member who is an expert in an area early in the project is a risk because their input is still needed. However, later in the project they may not have much input and therefore aren't a risk if they leave. The risk of a functional analyst leaving is greatest in the initial phases of the project when they are intensively interacting with the customer. Later on in the project, the loss of the functional analyst has a smaller potential impact for the project.
Once the risks have been listed you can go through the list and identify which risks are controllable, which risks are things that can be rearranged, and which risks must be accepted. For instance, the risk of losing key personnel can be changed by providing incentives to the rest of the department or even just monitoring their performance more closely. Technical risks can be controlled by moving them forward in the project so that they are taken care of immediately. In general, the fastest way to reduce the overall risk for a project is to tackle the controllable risks early in the project. The more quickly that you are able to find the risk associated with an item the more quickly the risk is no longer a risk. Focusing on controllable risks won't completely eliminate risk but it will cut it down. The next step is to develop strategies for those risks that are uncontrollable. Completion bonuses are way that organizations compensate the risk for the people participating that will leave or have to leave before, and after the project is ready. Not every mitigation strategy needs to involve money. Simply getting a verbal, personal commitment to finish the project is often enough to further reduce the probability that a person will leave during the project.