Reference no: EM133908751

Project Overview

Introduction
The goal of this Course Project is for you to learn how to create a project management plan in MS Project and how to effectively use the cost and schedule tools in MS Project to successfully manage project costs and schedule.

Guidelines
The Course Project is divided into several parts covering the following components.
Project Proposal
Project Overview Report
Stakeholder Communication
Scope Statement
Detailed Resource Loaded Baseline WBS and Schedule
RACI Chart
Network Diagram
Preliminary Scope and Budget Balancing
Resource Leveling
Balancing Scope and Budget Discussion
Earned Value Analysis
Project Status Communication
Final Course Project Summary
Access the guidelines for each week by selecting the link in the milestone listing for details and instructions on how to complete and submit each weekly Course Project assignment. Get Assignment Help from World's Trusted Writing Service Provider.

Project Proposal

Project Proposal Select a project topic that contains sufficient details to demonstrate your understanding of the course concepts. Here are some ideas for project topics.
Making a blockbuster big budget movie
Planning a destination family reunion for 150 people
Starting a socially conscious charitable foundation
Designing a planned community
Planning a trip around the world
Planning a presidential campaign
Starting a new magazine
Your own choice of topic for a project must be similar in size, scope, and complexity to the seven ideas listed above
Create the Project Proposal with the information in the Project Proposal Sample document (e.g., concept, timeline, budget, benefits, action request) requested. The Project Proposal Sample document is available in the Project Resources and Naming Conventions section.
Submit the Project Proposal in a two-page Word document. 40
Project Overview Report Download Microsoft Project from the Student Resource Center.
Using MS Project, create a first-level work breakdown structure also known as your to-do list, including your major deliverable milestones and your preliminary tasks. They can be summarized in no less than 10 rows or lines. For tasks that are related, you may also want to indent some of your preliminary tasks, like in the following example. To indent, select the task and then Task>Indent Task. Once you indent, you will see that the preceding task will turn to bold, which is also called a summary task. (This is not a complete WBS; therefore, you do not drill down into the smallest activities with 40+ rows or lines, which will be addressed in Part 2.)

Build the reports by navigating to Report>Dashboards>Project Overview.
Submit the Project Overview Report as a screenshot pasted into your Project Proposal file. 40
Stakeholder Communication Draft an email message as a Word document addressed to the project team. Your message should provide a high-level overview of key elements of your selected project topic: objectives, cost, duration, success measurements, and so forth. (This is about briefing your Project Proposal and MS Project work into one page.)

Course Project Part 2 (Due Week 2)

Component Deliverable Tasks PointsScope Statement Create the project scope statement, which is an extended version of your project proposal. It primarily aims to clarify two aspects of the project-setting the acceptance criteria so you can have a smooth closure at the end of the project and rules and regulations to decrease the ambiguity in the team while managing the project. For your convenience, the Project Scope Statement Sample document is available in the Project Resources and Naming Conventions section.Submit the scope statement in a one- to two-page Word document. 40Detailed Resource Loaded Baseline WBS and Schedule This is the part to extend the preliminary tasks (approximately 10 lines) you had in Part 1. Using your scope statement, input your work packages into MS Project. The WBS should be created in MS Project, following standard indent and hanging indent practices used in WBS creation. The WBS and schedule must have proper grouping, indenting, and coding for approximately 25 to 40 line items. Review the Project Sample in the Project Resources and Naming Conventions section for an example of a well-developed work breakdown structureCreate the WBS column. Hover on the Task Name column and right-click for the drop-down menu so you can select Insert Column, and then type in WBS manually and select the WBS to have your outline numbers.Review your duration. (Hint: Please remember, do not touch the bold task. Manage the content of the bold, also known as summary tasks, because those tasks are aggregated automatically.)Review your predecessors. This is to mimic the conditional tasks we have in real-life. As seen in the following screenshot, if you put the number 4 as a predecessor for line 5, line 5 cannot start before line 4 finishes first.

Create the critical path by selecting Gantt Chart Format>Critical Tasks. This is to know which tasks of yours (usually color coded in red bars on the Gantt Chart) are more critical (that means zero free or slack time) so you can be more cautious (with contingency plans) about them.
Baseline Resource Plan
Define your resources by selecting Resource>Team Planner>Resource Sheet. You do not fill each cell. Some are being used as-is. You may want to work on the blue zone. Also, 100% means one person, 200% means two people, so forth. Once you are done, you may want to go back by selecting on Team Planner>Gantt Chart.

Assign your resources task by task. Hover on the task (not summary task, which are the bold ones) and right-click to select Assign Resources. Then review the units. You will see the cost will be populated automatically. Then select Assign or just close the window.

RACI Chart Develop a RACI matrix, responsibility assignment matrix, for the project according to the description in Section 10: Tools and Techniques and illustrated in Figure 10-18 of the Process Groups: A Practice Guide. You should show at least five members of the core project team in your RACI matrix.