Online Tutoring: Social Responsibility, Startup, & Project Planning

This project outlines the startup of a socially responsible online tutoring company, focusing on its aims, objectives, and the legitimacy of its corporate power. It emphasizes the importance of balancing company needs with societal welfare, including employing marginalized individuals, promoting adult literacy, and protecting the environment. The project management plan covers cost, scope, time, quality, communication, risk, and resource management, detailing the project's initiation, planning, execution, and closure phases for an online tutoring service in India. It includes a work breakdown structure, Gantt chart for timeframe visualization, and discusses both quantitative and qualitative research methods for evaluating the project's success. The importance of considering various risk factors and resource availability during the planning stage is also highlighted.

LO1
P1
How to start up a socially responsible company, (aims and
objectives).
The corporate power legitimacy depends a lot about in the legitimacy
demands and functions of company. A company needs to perform only
legitimate functions and these in turn determine the role of company.
Company uses societal resources like manpower and raw materials and
these have to balance the needs of company and society as well.
The role include starting a company in rural area, employing many of the
handicapped and socially weaker section of the company, taking care of
the welfare and interest of employees and their family along with
spreading the idea of adult literacy. The company needs to take great
care in protecting the environment they set up their units. Along with
these, the company has to look after the consumer health issues and
their safety.
These functions are qualified because the society creates company and
hence, company can be for only social welfare and economic betterment
of society.
The law of the land permits and encourages company to do business and
this encourages and permits to serve society at large and is not solely for
profit making. The company must be patriotic and the endeavour must
result to its contribution to general social welfare. In other words,
company should make profit only to survive and its role is for social
welfare and economic betterment of society.
Its role has to be service motivated and society oriented. In order to
determine the soul of a company, a constant evaluation is needed to look
beyond ever changing political issues. Corporate social responsibility is
needed to promote narrow and contradictory social agendas as opposed
universal measures of integrity. Looking beyond these facile symbolism
opens up an examination of ethics.
P2
Project management plan (cost, scope, time, quality,
communication, risk, resource)
The project management plan gives an idea of how the team will execute,
monitor, control and close the project. These will have the subsidiary
management plans and baselines which are combined together
cohesively and integrated to manage the project.
The project life cycle includes processes used or managing the project
and information.

Project: Online tutoring, India operation (initiation, planning,
execution and closure)
Project initiation:
Online tutoring for middle grade students, Indian schools. Plan is to
impart quality internet based, tutoring for students who lack in
fundamental and basics of subjects they miss out in schools. The online
tutoring will help in getting quality help at a affordable price and within
the safety of their home environment.
Project planning:
The pilot for subject Mathematics, curriculum creation for grade VIth,
VIIth and VIIIth. The curriculum creation begins with segregation of topics
to be covered in each semester and further into lesson planning.
Selection of tutors followed by training and helping each of them to guide
students through interactive whiteboard following perfect pedagogy.
Project execution:
Email and social media campaign using database and Facebook to spread
the news and offers. Motto of anytime and anywhere along with playback
for review of individual sessions. Suitable live sessions and unlimited
review from recorded sessions.
Project closure:
Conduction of sessions for short period to help overcome specific topics
and sections where students need more personal approach. These are
conducted for brief period in batches and new sessions repeated for
newer topics.
Cost variance of project:
This defines the acceptable cost variance, which indicates warning and
unacceptable limits. These also defines trigger preventive or corrective
action whenever there is a change in control process.
Scope variance of project:
This defines acceptable scope variance which indicates a warning or
anything which is unacceptable. These are indicated by features and
functions of the end product or even by end product performance
metrics. The major deliverables of the project is imparting quality
knowledge (fundamentals and concepts) assuming that the chosen time
and conduction period is suitable for students to acknowledge and
engage in perfect pedagogy followed live sessions. The scope also gives
the entire team to perform the detailing of every lesson plans to be
covered and guide the trained tutors to execute the final model without
deviation (except in specific cases where a parent / student request for
extra duration / study materials) and are contained within the project
boundaries. The scope also helps in documenting the initial assumptions
and elaborated further only in specific cases in assumption log.

Time variance of project:
This covers the entire schedule of project and indicates the percent of
variance from baseline or circumstances which will trigger preventive
action when the change control process is enacted. The timeline of the
project is stipulated and not rescheduled unless there is a need of it, due
to change in process output and are considered under the contingency
plan.
Product Quality:
Entire project is reviewed by knowledge team to cross check the
curriculum and lesson planning, hints of changes if any is corrected and
reviewed before allowed for final pilot sessions and finally allowed for
live sessions with valued customers.
Communication:
The stakeholders and team members are communicated continuously for
various inputs and progress along with the mode of campaign and kept
abreast of the overall executive team including trained tutors or subject
matter experts. The entire system is kept transparent for positive inputs
and changes if required for the final product to be launched and
contingency plan ready for any last minute changes in the execution. The
benefit of the service has to be explained to the customers which instil
confidence and also the better grades, higher performance and better
understanding of the subject. The display of what the customers can gain
by taking the product or service at an affordable price is essential to help
mitigate the limits of risk factors. Customers’ needs to be assured that
the product comes with a unique refund policy in case the overall
conduction is not matching their expectations. Customers can be
encouraged to take a 1 – 2 trial sessions with tutors to decide before
signing up. Other ways of allaying fears is by providing testimonials from
other parents and students who have taken up sessions with the trained
tutors.
Risk factor:
In any project, a risk can be almost any uncertain event associated with
work. Not all the forms of risk are important and the project manager has
to identify the uncertainty that matters and work out accordingly. The
pricing of product and providing too much of discounts can be
counterproductive and hence, the product cannot be sold below the
baseline price and operational costs. The availability of manpower or
resource at a given period of time needs to be looked into hence a
backlog team of tutors are kept ready to take up live sessions or extend
beyond scheduled time frame with benefits. Interactive whiteboard to
conduct sessions has to be cross checked for bug and glitches before the
final go is given for product launch. The need of training materials has to
be sent to all the trained tutors on time so that they are well equipped
before they begin the sessions.

Resource:
The availability of subject matter experts and technical team along with
curriculum designers and trainers are big issues. These are taken into
account at the project planning stage where each of these aspects are
looked into, benefits well described and manpower for both technical
backup team and managing team to execute the program are placed in
appropriate task team. The communication is kept open for any changes
that are obvious in terms of management and execution teams. In-house
subject leads can help in identifying the topics and lesson planning’s for
better implementation as depending upon external sources can be both
cumbersome as well as risky in terms of product design and changes if
required.
P3
Work breakdown structure and Gantt chart for timeframe and
stages of completion.
Work breakdown for online tutoring
Generic work breakdown structure for online tutoring are done in two
levels. Level 1 will comprise the entire project and followed by level 2,
where product breakdown elements, service breakdown elements, results
breakdown elements, cross cutting elements and finally project
management elements.
The total project takes into account the inception to final execution of the
plan and it initiates, plans, executes and closes the project. These are
correlated with the level 2 breakdowns where each of the components
are taken into account and planned accordingly.
Product breakdown:
This sub-division of level 2 is basically the physical structure and product
design which are delivered to the consumers. This is considered as the
common basis for a work breakdown structure and is one of the easiest
method of work breakdown structure to develop. These have tangible
output products like the software that will be used for integrating the
interactive whiteboard with voice and digital pen to be used during live
session. The live streaming of sessions, recording of sessions to be used
later by students, file transfer by tutors and students and also integrating
the flash drive / html for better presentation. The place to conduct live
sessions using interactive whiteboard, the internet speed and other basic
requirements are all integrated into manual and sent to individual
members and trainers and executed as one product in this breakdown
structure.
Service breakdown:
The service projects do not have a tangible structure deliverables and is
always depending upon the others for final outcome. This output is
defined as body of work done for others and is considered as logical

collection of related work areas. The training of subject matter expert,
curriculum mapping and lesson planning, pedagogy management,
campaign through various channels like social media and email as well as
outgoing calls etc. along with product design approval are all considered
under service part of the breakdown.
Results breakdown:
These again do not have tangible structured deliverable and the output is
the consequence of a process which results into a final product or
conclusion. These are a series of accepted steps and include the
acceptable norms laid out by top management to build and approve and
go onto the next level of creation.
Cross cutting elements:
This level of work breakdown structure is intertwined into various sub
groups of the project. This is basically the assembling each segments of
system into one or generally speaking the integration of all sub products
into one final product. Bringing all parameters of training modules under
one platform, integrating whiteboard with study materials, integrating
digital access for each participants and voice over for the live sessions
are carried out in this breakdown. There may be more than one element
of this characteristic at level 2 and while there is no restriction, these
type of cross cutting elements are usually not found in every projects.
Project management:
The work breakdown in this category of level 2 is mainly meant for
managerial responsibilities and managerial activities of the project. This
includes the report creation, project reviews, and usually considered as
project overheads. This is one of its kind in work breakdown system and
exists in types of projects in level 2.
Gantt chart for timeframe and stages of completion
The Gantt chart is considered as the visual progress report which helps
in identifying each work stages and is represented in vertical axis and
horizontal line. The work stages are mentioned in vertical axis while the
schedule completion dates on horizontal line. Gantt chart includes the
movable bars with various colours which indicates scheduled and actual
progress. A manager can observe immediately whether a particular
project is on schedule or behind the due date. Gantt chart is helpful
planning tool but does not show the interlinked jobs or the inter relation
of the various jobs under the project.

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Gantt Chart
LO2
P4
Small scale research for online tutoring
Quantitative and qualitative research:
The data which are collected through these two methods of qualitative or
quantitative options gives an opportunity to know how and whys of a
particular project. The qualitative approach deals with the how and why
of the project and gathers mostly unstructured methodology for data
collection and then continue to collate to get the big picture. So the how
part tries to find how this project will help and why do the customers
would benefit from online tutoring. This qualitative part explores the
market by interacting with actual people and bring about a workable
conclusion. The quantitative method is considered to be cheap and easy
to implement. But the approach is limited in capacity for the kind of
investigation followed by explanation essential for getting into some kind
of research outcome.
The pioneer in Indian context is Mr K Ganesh, a serial entrepreneur has
shown the world what online tutoring is all about and to what extent the

scaling up possible. According to data available, India alone has 100
million students in private schools where we get to see about 02 million
shortage in qualified teachers. The need of the hour is to address the
current generation requirement and has a potential of huge business
opportunity. The online section in Indian context is still at its nascent
level as internet driven work culture is still a marginal of the huge
potential. But the limits of such barriers are getting breached every
quarter and it’s growing with the Government initiative of digital India.
Online tutoring companies need to get into the integration of technology
and talent available to teach on a scalable model.
According to David Kapuler, who himself is an educational consultant
with more than 10 years of experience in K12 pattern of educational
system, online tutoring over the years have become very popular
amongst students who look for immediate instant help and try avoid the
traveling to tutoring centers and also spend huge amount of money for
such classes. The ideal alternative to such option are online tutoring
where you get a tutor right within the comfort of home and take live
sessions over computer and now over mobile platform. These are
considered to be cheaper than actual classes in centers where one has to
shell out large amount of money as well as spend time for travel. Several
online sites have come up where students spend little or no money and
get the all kinds of help. The most popular according to Kapuler is WizIQ
and there are others like Buddy school, Tutor Hub, Sophia, Happy tutors
and from Indian context the site launched by Mr Ganesh Tutor Vista
which pioneered the way these sessions are scaled to unimaginable
levels. The basic advantage of such online sessions are the conduction
from one on one pattern and the manner in which these are conducted.
Students get an expert tutor with just a click of a button. Sessions are
conducted on an hourly basis and tutors are paid according to the
number of hours they clock by taking sessions. The entire K 12 is
segregated into middle grade, higher grade I and Higher grade II and
finally the college grade. Similar patterns are applied to segregate the
tutors as well. The pay scale depends upon the grade and number of
sessions these tutors take during their login period.
LO3
P5
Analyse research and data using appropriate tools and techniques
There are main two types of data and they are quantitative and
qualitative. These are used to enable and apply in most appropriate type
to test their hypothesis. The combined use of these data types facilities
triangulation of data sources which enables researchers to substantiate
individual findings by correlation. Quantitative methods of data collection
include the collection of numerical data and participants responses in
close ended questions. Qualitative methods enable researchers to gather
personal human experience relevant to hypothesis. These questions are
unbiased in order to get the right response for research questions.

According to registered online tutors worldwide, a survey suggested how
many of them are actually taking online sessions, how many are planning
to begin online and how many of these have no plans in near future. Two
third of the respondent surveyed conducted online by withcoach.com
have come out with following results. 30% of those who haven’t
responded are planning to begin in 2017.
Online tutoring
Current online tutor No ready for tutoring online Planning to start in 2017
Tutors those who are tutoring for more than 3 years.
tutoring more than 3 years
tutoring by around 2 - 3 years
tutoring for 1-2 years
Newcomers in tutoring
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Tutoring experience
Tutoring is secondary part but the primary aspect of these online
tutoring portals is their marketing strategy. The marketing campaign has
gone to next level due to the advent of digital marketing. Advantage of
digital marketing is its cheap, far reaching and is unbiased. These
strategies are unique and since the whole idea of marketing is its reach
and impact or outcome. The digital marketing has both and the advent of
social media impact it creates for such product is unbiased which makes
it more interesting. Apart from online marketing the use of referral
program is also taken into consideration as well. With each referrals the

referred person and sponsor get discount and hence is beneficial all
across.
youtube
online marketing
advertisement online / offline
website and blogging
referral program
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
online marketing
high volume low volume average
Along with the data shared above the strategy of tutoring is another big
challenge for individual as well as big players in online tutoring. The
need for communication with students either directly over skype, other
media based calling, online or offline marketing strategy and shared
calendar is necessary. The finished work or live streaming is the basic
need as students need to interact for clearing their individual doubts on
specific topics and concepts.
skype
email
sms
online / offline marketing
shared calendar
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%
interaction with students
avg low high
Coming to subjects which are preferred by students throughout year
depend upon a lot on geographical zones and country of origin. Students
prefer subjects according to the requirements and difficulty level they
face in their respective schools and college. Mathematics is all time
favourite as the subject students prefer to go for clearing their doubts in.
Closely followed by chemistry and physics. In language French is the
most preferred subject closely followed by English.

M a t h C h e m i s t r y P h y s i c s L a n g u a g e F r e n c h E n g l i s h S p a n i s h
63%
28%
9%
0%
51%
38%
11%
Volume
P6
Appropriate recommendation and data analysis to draw valid and
meaningful conclusions
Recommendation for online tutoring is based on the subject preference
and need of specific topic handling by existing tutors. The
recommendation is also base on annual mapping of sub topics that
students prefer to have expert handling in both cross checking their
assessment and assignments. The need of the hour and in coming years
is to cater to this ever growing market of education. With the competition
level reaching new heights the need of expert to help achieve such
competitive edge, the market for educational products and education
handlers is increasing as well. Industry preference for such sector is also
changing as big players are investing in big way to hire experts and
design educational products to suit the next generation needs. The ever
increasing idea of getting to top with societal pressure for better and cut
throat competition, the need of expert right at the click of button
becomes the common idea.
From basic whiteboard to interactive platforms with voice over and video
streaming with session recording and monitoring the technology is
playing a huge role in doling out the right kind of environment for such
endeavours. Money being no constraints for perfect blend of talent and
technology, the future is lying in digital education.
LO4
P7
Reflect on the value of undertaking the research to meet stated
objective and own learning and performance.
Online tutoring is part of the cooperative approach to meet the problems
faced by students and educated youth looking for meaningful earning
potential. These include the shared online learning experience whereby
students of mathematics and science receive both resource and online

tutoring from subject experts in another domain. The possibilities are
immense as it provides respectful earning to both educators and big
players in this field without any environmental fallout and at the same
time help a large segment of students looking for expert help in such
subjects. The programs developed by expert’s especially young people
who for various reasons including disability are confined to home. These
programs enable personal online help 24/7 throughout year and work on
virtual platforms and virtual social centers for participants and personal
tutoring.
The former chairman of Lloyds banking group has listed of why 15% of
employers consider recruitment from school. He finds a lack of joint
action by both academic and vocational qualifications and also lack of
career advice, giving rise to university fees and poor employment
opportunities at graduate level. Most of the employers are looking for
talent and not necessarily degrees and hence, the advent of online
tutoring which gives both employers and employees to achieve the target
of generating revenue and employment generation. The offshoot of such
programs help in creating the right environment of giving more power to
community and overall educational field. The idea of corporate social
responsibility is also getting a big stepping stone which in turn help
nurture young talents to earn and spread knowledge beyond
geographical barriers.
Youth service: A properly joint approach, which is accountable to
educational system would help bring in local youth service into a
cooperative learning partnership which are much needed in generating
revenue for both local bodies as well as country as a whole and help
enhance skill set for young people. They would be seen with their own
distinctive approach to learning which will be complementary to school
and college and also offer additional earning opportunities to those who
are excluded from mainstream economy as well as for those who are left
out from regular schooling practice.
Partnership recreated: Within such units there would be the information,
advice and guidance service supporting impartial school, college and
local employers. Teachers from different centers and countries will work
together on curriculum and platform to create magic in educational field
and help overcome the problems faced by teaching fraternity. There
would be a sharing of specialist subject knowledge where it might be
lacking in some of the providers. Overall, the schools would benefit from
resources and expertise from around the world to further education
promotion.
Turn it in report:

Project Logbook for the chosen organisation:
Name of the learner: Name of the Supervisor:
Project Title: Date:
Update of weekly research/ tasks
achieved (Account for a minimum of six
weeks with dates)
 What have you completed?
 Did you fulfil Task requirements?
 Are you on track and within
deadlines set?
 Did you need to make any
changes to your project
management plan?
Comments
Aims and objectives of socially
responsible company
Completed
Yes within deadline
No I have stuck the given plan
Any risks and / or issues identified?
 Did you identify risks/issues with
a lack of skills required for
undertaking research tasks?
 Did you identify any additional
risks/issues that have an impact
on the project management plan?
Lack of proper data and plagiarism
issues. Most of the data taken for
research had similar work flow and
parameters and hence increased the
risk of plagiarism.
Each process catered a specific class
and category of customer yet the
social responsibility remained same.
Problems encountered
 What barriers did you face?
 How did you overcome them?
Specific problem of converting
available data into Gantt chart
Learnt the Gantt chart online step by
step and used it for my available data
New Ideas and change of project
direction Finding out new methods of operating
online business without much of
fallout. Providing backend service with
automated response and use of
technology to enhance customer
experience
What Have I learnt about myself this
week?
 How did I feel when I had to deal
with tasks/problems?
 Did I find it useful to complete the
tasks?
Was very clear about the main idea
but was searching for specific project
so that the main idea of social
responsibility could be implemented
without much difficulty.
Yes, once I was very clear about the
process that goes for online business,
I could align all the process