Word count 3500 (For Task 1—2000 and Task 3–1500)

Outcome 1: Understand project management principles

Outcome 2: Be able to manage a project’s human resources

Outcome 3: Be able to apply project processes and procedures

Xerxus, a luxury brands retailer operating in the Middle East and Asian, with annual revenue of 5,000,000 AED, plan to implement Salesforce, a best of breed sales management system. Current sales processes are very manual and paper based, whereas Salesforce can be accessed via the internet on most common mobile devices or tablets. Xerxus has 55 sales staff, 10 country sales managers and 2 regional sales managers who record the sales on paper forms and then call the sales into the head office in Dubai. The project is being sponsored by the Sales Director who wants to automate the sales process, increase annual sales by 5%, reduce costs by 25,000 per year, improve sales staff productivity, and gain better visibility on sales person performance. The plan is to roll out in phases, based on country, with all users in each country going live at the same time. The Salesforce software costs $52 per user per month. Costs for an external company who specialise in Salesforce implementations are expected to be 25,000 AED for each country roll out. The system will be standalone and does not need to integrate with any other software. The Sales Director has told Bob, the project manager, he would like to go live in the first country before the sales conference which is four months away. The project team will consist of some Xerxus employees and some staff from the Salesforce integrator.

Submission: 16th October

L01 – Understand project management principles

1.1 – describe the background and principles of project management; 1.2 – appraise the viability of projects, developing success/failure criteria; 1.3 – explain the principles behind project management systems and procedures; 1.4 – explain the key elements involved in terminating projects and conducting post-project appraisal

Answer the following key questions in writing.

• Describe the key principles of project management in the above project.

• Assess and explain the viability of this project.

• What would be the success and failure criteria’s for this project?

• What key project management processes will you use to manage this project?

• What would be the key elements involved in terminating the project?

To achieve M1: Apply relevant theories and techniques to find appropriate solutions to the problems you identify during the project planning exercise

To achieve D1: Use critical reflection to evaluate own work and justify valid conclusions  

Submission: 24th October

L02- Be able to manage a project’s human resources

2.1 – identify the most appropriate organisational structure, roles and responsibilities of participants within a project; 2.2 – control and co-ordinate a project; 2.3 – assess project leadership requirements and qualities; 2.4- plan and specify human resources and requirements for a project

For the given scenario, prepare a group presentation that will detail the following.

• The most appropriate organizational structure, and the roles and responsibilities of the team members to make the project effective, efficient and economical. The target is to go live on the specified date within budget.

• Controls required to manage this project.

• As a project leader, what leadership qualities would Bob need to have or develop?

• Based on the project requirement and timelines, specify the human resources requirements for this project.

To achieve M2: Justify the selection of methods, techniques and sources you have used

To achieve D2: A substantial project has been planned, managed and organised

Task 3– Written assignment (3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4)

Submission: 30th October

L03 – Be able to apply project processes and procedures

3.1 – prepare project plans and establish the project organization; 3.2 – apply project scheduling, estimating and cost control techniques; 3.3 – analyse the methods used to measure project performance; 3.4 – explain project change control procedures evaluate the completed project.

For the given scenario, prepare a group presentation that will detail the following:

• Prepare a project plan for the project taking into consideration the project organization and its complexities

• Prepare a project schedule and estimates which will include sections of a statement of work. Incorporate the cost control techniques that you will use in order to manage the budget.

• What methods would you use to measure the project’s performance?

• One of the key stakeholders of the project has brought in a significant change (i.e., creation of several new reports and dashboard) that will impact the project cost and timeline. Detail how you will manage this request.

• In order to close this project, what activities will you carry out?

To achieve M3: Present and communicate appropriate findings using graphic representation tools and techniques

To achieve D3: Demonstrate convergent, lateral and creative thinking during project planning

All pass criteria achieved = Pass

All pass criteria plus all merit criteria achieved = Merit

All pass criteria plus all merit criteria plus all distinction criteria achieved = Distinction

Task Criteria Assessment Due Date

1 1.1, – 1.4, M1, D1 Report 15 October

2 2.1- 2.4, M2, D2 Presentation 20 October

3 3.1- 3.4, M3, D3 Presentation 31 October

Please remember to present your reports in a professional format, using technical language and respect the submission date.

• Follow the report style (Arial font, size 12, with 1.5 spacing, black colon) with appropriate title page, page numbers, Titles & sub-titles, Introduction, Conclusion, Bibliography;

• Turn-It-In certificate and cover sheet is mandatory otherwise the assignments will not be graded.

• For the group presentation, please ensure that each group member submits a copy of the presentation.

• Sources of information and references are not included in your word count.