Plan a project according to project management best practices
Scenario
You have been hired as a project manager for a software company, ABC Solutions. Their business development team has received a product request from a new client, XYZ Financial Services. They need a custom software solution to streamline some workflows and processes that will be implemented in their offices worldwide. Your company has developed a similar software solution, but the client requires additional features and customization. The new software needs to be ready for a test run at two of the offices in about six months and worldwide rollout in another three months. Your boss, the project director, has asked you to manage this product development project.
ABC Solutions uses the traditional waterfall method for software development. The proposed project schedule should include the following major tasks:
Determine the software requirements and design.
Conduct a code test and system test.
Address issues with the software.
Deliver the prototype.
You have been asked to assemble a team with the skills and expertise to perform these tasks.
Before initiating the project, you, the project director, and a software architect meet with the IT director and product manager of XYZ Financial Services to understand their requirements. They explain that the custom software should include three new features, five feature customizations, and a new interface design to match the client’s brand colors and logo.
Later, you and some key team members analyze the scope and requirements to arrive at some critical decisions and conclusions. These have been summarized in two project documents:
The XYZ Business Workflow Project Charter that includes the project objectives and other important details
A document with the XYZ Business Workflow Resource and Effort Estimates for each development task
You will need to choose and allocate resources from the following available team members: a user interface (UI) designer, UI developers, a software architect, technical team leads, software developers, and software testers. You will also have access to two team members from the development team of the original software who will act as consultants for your team. However, these members are only available part time since they are also busy on other projects.