Compare and contrast TPM and Agile methods, emphasizing the strengths and weaknesses of each.

Project Planning Class

CMGT/410

 

Assignment 1

Consider the following scenario:

You have been hired by a large company with branch offices around the country to assist with rollout of a new companywide compliance system.

While initially the focus was on implementation of the technology, it was found that success will require at least 10 hours of training over two days for all managers across the country on both the use of the new platform as well as a host of new compliance policies being introduced.

Of the options discussed, it was generally agreed that the training should be hands-on and conducted in-person at a central location. This will obviously require getting organizational buy-in as not all managers are going to be willing to commit to taking time out from their normal responsibilities just for some training.

In addition, such large scale centralized training has not been done before by this company; therefore, the CEO wants feedback from participants to evaluate the effectiveness of any training sessions.

As a result, your manager has given you the responsibility to develop an outline for a proposed project that would meet this upcoming need for arranging and conducting a two-day training session.

This scenario will continue throughout the first three weeks with all weeks being submitted along with the Week 3 assignment. You are expected to apply any feedback provided by the instructor to these finalized documents.

Submit a 2- to 3-page memo that includes the following:

• Names the project
• Briefly describes the project
• Identifies potential stakeholders directly or indirectly involved
• Specifies the overall objective and any outcomes for this project
• Details how success will be evaluated
• Highlights what is needed to ascertain the Measurable Organizational Value (MOV) of this project.

You will need to make some assumptions (it is even encouraged), but the assumptions must be documented.

 

Assignment 2

You have been tasked with the project of organizing a company offsite 2-day training session in which people are brought in from different parts of the country. This entails everything from preparation, accommodations, and facilities.

Create a Microsoft® Project file for the project that includes the following:

• Create a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) that includes all project tasks (hierarchically grouped) and durations.
• Establish task precedence relationships.
• Show milestones and deliverables.

 

Assignment 3

The project for the company offsite 2-day training session has been given a preliminary go-ahead. However, a budget needs to be submitted for approval.

Update the Microsoft® Project file submitted in Week Two by adding the following information:

• Identify resources (both personnel and material) needed for the project.
• Assign the resources to the project tasks.
• Estimate the costs for the resources, and add the costs to the resource information in the Microsoft Project file.
• Estimate the total cost for the project, using the Microsoft® Project budget or cost reports.

Submit all Individual assignments (Project Proposal and Project Task List and Schedule) with updates based on instructor feedback.

Assignment 4

As a project manager, you are going to prepare two project outlines for the development of a mobile application. One project outline uses a waterfall model, another uses an agile method.

Prepare two project outlines using Microsoft® Project. Each outline shall consist of a task list and a Gantt chart showing task durations and precedence relationships.

Include a 350- to 700-word brief explanation of how the two project outlines differ. Be sure to address how Agile addresses complexity and uncertainty.

Assignment 5

Consider the following scenario:

Your company has been using Traditional Project Management (TPM) methods for years, but is now looking into the possibility of adopting agile practices. Your boss has asked you to prepare a paper comparing TPM to agile practices and summarizing the benefits and limitations of each.

Write a 5- to 7-page paper including, at a minimum, the following information:

• Briefly describe the TPM waterfall method.
• Briefly describe one or more Agile project management approaches.
• Compare and contrast TPM and Agile methods, emphasizing the strengths and weaknesses of each.
• Discuss what kind of projects would be more appropriate for TPM approaches and what types would be more appropriate for Agile approaches.
• Discuss how a project approach is selected for different types of project. Provide an example by selecting an approach for one of the following projects, and explaining your rationale for the selection. Remember to focus on the project approach and not get involved in the technical details of the project.
• Converting a large enterprise from using IPv4 to IPv6
• Managing a Business Process Reengineering (BPR) project to modernize and integrate a major company’s business systems (accounting, sales, logistics, manufacturing, etc.) into an enterprise-wide unified architecture
• Building a new data center for an international business