Managing a Successful Business Project: Digital Shadows

This report examines the impact of digital technology on Digital Shadows, a UK-based cybersecurity company. It explores the advantages and disadvantages of digital technologies in the business environment, analyzing how Digital Shadows has coped with the challenges of digital disruption and transformation. The report includes a project management plan, a work breakdown structure, a Gantt chart, and a small-scale research study using qualitative and quantitative methods. It concludes with recommendations for businesses seeking to leverage digital technologies effectively.

MANAGING A SUCCESSFUL
BUSINESS PROJECT – Digital
Shadows

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................3
P1 PROJECT AIMS AND OBJECTIVES.....................................................................................6
P2 PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN..........................................................................................7
P3 PRODUCING WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE AND GANTT CHART.....................9
P4 SMALL SCALE RESEARCH BY QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
METHODS.....................................................................................................................................13
P5 ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH DATA......................................................................................15
P6 RECOMMENDATIONS..........................................................................................................16
P7 REFLECTION..........................................................................................................................17
CONCLUSION..................................................................................................................................19
REFERENCES..................................................................................................................................20

INTRODUCTION
The Digital Technology has revolutionized the way the businesses operating in the
real world. Over the past few years, digital technology has drastically changed the
business activities and models to a greater extent than ever before. In this
assignment, the advantages and disadvantages of digital technologies in the
business environment are briefly analysed and explained. Digital technology
disruption is a major concern for businesses when older technology fails with the
advent of newer technologies.
In this report with the help of an organizational example Digital Shadows, the readers
will be able to understand how businesses have coped with major challenges of the
Digital Technology and transformation in the business. Digital Shadows is a start-up
company based in the UK which was founded in the year 2011 by Alastair Paterson
and James Chappell. In this assignment, a project management plan is created in
order to analyse the influence of Digital Technology on Digital Shadows.
It is followed by conceptualizing the aims and objectives, Work breakdown structure
and making a Gantt chart for the timeline of research activities in project
management. In the later sections of the assignment, small scale research is
conducted based on qualitative and quantitative analysis of the research methods for
achieving the objectives of the project plan. Then reflection of own learning will be
conducted based on experience while doing project planning. At last a conclusion will
be derived based on the effectiveness of various digital technologies for the
organizations along with some recommendations.

DIGITAL DISRUPTION AND ITS IMPACT ON BUSINESSES
Figure 1: Digital Disruption
Source:[https://venturebeat.com/2014/05/15/digital-disruption-is-forcing-
businesses-to-change-how-business-is-done/]
Digital Disruption actually refers to a transformation caused due to emerging
technologies in the business models. An example of Digital Disruption is how Kodak
cameras failed to capture the future market with the advent of digital cameras. Digital
cameras have made a move in the photographic industry as it is much more friendly
and reliable as a gadget that Kodak cameras being used earlier. Digital Disruption is
an unstoppable force that cannot be neglected and fighting this force is futile (Weill
and Woerner, 2015). The only way to fight against digital disruption is to have a plan
for it; the businesses can embrace digital disruption by keeping an eye on the risks
associated with the digital technologies and its possible impact in the future.
Digital Disruption helps businesses to make changes as per the changing customer
needs and demands which help businesses in keeping their customers happy and
opening up new opportunities for the customers in finding what they want from the
company. Many people are fooled by the term disruption and often misinterpret it as

being a negative force for the business. But the reality is it can only be a negative
force for those companies who fight against it or ignore this force. Companies like
digital shadows have embraced the force of digital disruption and have benefited its
business in various ways which contribute to its overall success.
Figure 2: Digital Disruption Survey Analysis
Source:[https://chiefmartec.com/2016/09/everybody-plan-get-hit-digital-
disruption/]

TASK 1
Project management basically refers to the process of planning and implementation
of the planned activities for meeting the aims and objectives of the business project
(Kerzner and Kerzner, 2017). It aims to meet the requirements of the clients and
stakeholders in the business. In project management, there are several stages
involved which needs to be successfully executed such as project planning, task
scheduling, task controlling and then achieving the find results and deriving the
conclusions. Project management is used by Digital Shadows in order make effective
coordination among team members while eliminating and minimising the risks
caused due to mismanagement.
P1 PROJECT AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Aim
The aim of the project is to analyse the impact of Digital technology on Digital
Shadows in transforming its business operations.
Objectives
 To analyse how businesses have coped with Digital Technologies while
considering various challenges of Digital Disruption and Transformation.
 To analyse the influence of Digital Technologies on Digital Shadows while
considering the advantages and disadvantages of digital technologies.
 To investigate how digital transformation brought changes in individuals and
groups in Digital Shadows.
 To analyse how digital technologies is influencing the perception of
employees, leaders and managers for Digital Shadows (Meredith and Mantel,
2011).
 To analyse the challenges posed by Digital Technologies or Digital
Revolutions in the businesses.

P2 PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN
Digital Shadow is an organization which monitors and manages the digital risks
across the widest range of sources visible in the organization (Kerzner and Kerzner,
2017). But over the year’s Digital shadows is facing changing in technologies in
areas of finance and accounting, operations that urges the need for the company to
analyse the impact of digital technologies in its operations and what are the threats
associated with these technologies.In the project management plan, there are a lot of
factors that need to be taken into consideration as discussed below.
Figure 3: Project Management
Source:[http://north.fourthwall.co/what-are-milestones-in-a-project-plan/]
 Scope: The purpose of the project is to conduct a thorough research on the
new and upcoming digital technologies so that companies have the required
knowledge and skills to incorporate these technologies in its method of
operations for achieving greater productivity and efficiency.
 Time: The time required for project implementation would be two months.

 Quality: The data and resources used in the project will aim to achieve the
requirements set by the clients or stakeholders thus achieving the quality
metrics in all the project deliverables (Burke, 2013).
 Communication: Transparent mode of communication is used in the project
between the two parties one is the stakeholder and other is the team
members involved in project execution.
 Risks associated with the Project: The main risks associated with the
project include quality risks, time-bound risks, human resource risks and
requirement standards risks.
 Resources Used: The resource used in the project for carrying out the project
activities are mainly human resources, digital resources, financial resources,
some equipment’s and facilities.
 Cost Involved in Project: Mainly direct and fixed cost is involved in the
project for achieving the project deliverables (Burke, 2013).

P3 PRODUCING WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE AND GANTT CHART
WORK BREAK DOWN STRUCTURE
It is a process in which all the tasks in the project are bifurcated and each task is
given a standard execution time so that there is no partiality or priority to the tasks.
The tasks are carried out in an orderly manner which helps in determining the risks
associated with each task (Larson and Gray, 2013). The breakdown structure for
analysing the impact of Digital Technology on digital shadows is explained below.
The above figure indicates various project activities such as analysing the impact of
digital technologies on digital shadows like for example impact of cloud technology its
advantages and disadvantages for digital shadows. Next comes analysing the
communication technologies such as social media, instant messaging, blogging,
tweeting, video conferencing etc. (Larson and Gray, 2013). Various other trends in
the company would be analysed based on production trends, production methods,
operational activities in practice and use of artificial intelligence in the business (AI).
ProjectPlanDetermingtheimpactofDigitaltechnologiesonDigitalShadowsImpactonSalesandDistributionImpactonCommunicationImpactonOperationsImpactofDigitalDisruptiononDigitalShadowsExaminingtheimpctofDigitalTechnologiesonemployeesinDigitalShadowsAnalysingtheRisksandChallengesInvestigatingopportunituesandChallengesofDigitalTechnologies

GANTT CHART
Duration in
weeks 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Tasks
Project Planning and
development
Implementation of
Working definitions
Stakeholder
Determination
Analysing impact on
Operations
Analysing impact on
Employees
Analysing impact on
Storage and distribution
Analysing Risks and
Challenges
Data Evaluation
The above representation of the Gantt chart will help in achieving the project
deliverables in a timely manner (Sharp, et al. 2012). In the first-week project planning
and development activities would be carried out while considering various political,
social, legal and statutory factors. In the later stages, the implementation of the
working definitions will take place followed by identification of the stakeholders in a
project. Then the impact of digital technologies will be analysed for digital shadows in
areas of operations, sales and distribution etc. Moreover, the risks and challenges
associated with digital technologies will also be analysed followed by evaluation of
data collected from the analysis.

PROJECT PROCESS
A project process refers to implementing the project activities which is divided into
subprocesses. There are main five stages in project execution starting from project
preparation, planning, project implementation and completion (Kerzner, 2017).
Project Planning and development
It refers to a process as to how to complete a project within timeline boundaries. In
the planning phase, the aims and objectives of the projects are being set followed by
identifying the project deliverables (Kerzner, 2017). In this project, the planning is
done in order to analyze the impact of digital technologies on digital shadows. After
identifying the project deliverables a project plan is scheduled as to how much time
would be required for the completion of the full project. The plans may be related to
planning the human resources activities, risk management planning etc.
Implementation of working definitions
It is the second phase of the project process in which working definitions in the
project are being analysed related to tasks associated, project activities related to
operations etc.
Stakeholder determination
The project which is under execution requires stakeholder's involvement in
successful implementation and execution (Kerzner, 2017). The key stakeholders of
the project are being identified in the project. The stakeholders contribute to the
successful implementation of the project in a way that they are satisfied with each
phase of project completion.
Analysing the impact of business activities
In this phase of a project, the impact of digital technologies in business key areas are
analysed such as operation, Human Resources, Administration etc (Rahi, et al.
2012). Digital technologies in the business have a huge impact on organizations
performance hence it is important to identify the measure and extent to which these
technologies have impacted the business.
Evaluation of Data

The primary and secondary data collected from varied sources is being evaluated in
this phase of the project plan. The assessment of data will help to derive conclusions
for the aims and objectives set in the initial phase of the project planning. It will also
help in conducting a statistical analysis for the digital shadow company while
considering various key metric indicators such as customer satisfaction levels,
product quality, brand value etc (Rahi, et al. 2012).

TASK 2
P4 SMALL SCALE RESEARCH BY QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE
RESEARCH METHODS
With the advent of digital technologies in the businesses, the businesses operations
are changed entirely across all departments whether it is HR, Operations, and
Finance etc. (Bhardwaj et. al 2013).
According to a research conducted by Ganguli and Roy et al 2011, in their research
found that there are some quality dimensions in the field of digital technology which
have relations with customer loyalty. In his report, he found that the four service
quality dimensions in digital technologies are customer service, security, technology
quality and ease of access. He stated that the technology to be used in the business
should be customer friendly and must help in improving the employee efficiency in
the workplace environment. Incorporating those technologies in the businesses
which do not support customer satisfaction should not be used by the industries
moreover it is important to check the quality, validity and reliability of technology for
long-term growth and sustainability in the business.
Oldham and Silva et al. 2015, in their research, stated that digital technologies
should enhance the innovation in the workplace environment for the businesses.
They realized that there are four conditions for generating new ideas for employees
in the workplace environment such as exposure to digital technologies, exposure to
information, employer support and employee engagement. If employees are exposed
to new technologies then their creative ideas can help improve the operational
activities of the businesses through innovation and creation. In his research findings,
he stated that digital technologies can also have a negative impact on organizations
as technologies mare sometimes effective and ineffective depending upon the nature
of technologies used in changing environments. For instance, digital technology like
cloud computing has its use in some specific industries like IT, E-Commerce etc.
In a research conducted by Sia et al 2016, he found that business is getting
digitalized which is changing the competitive landscape for many companies. Even
the customers are becoming more and more digital savvy which graves the concern
for companies to incorporate the use of digital technologies in its businesses. But he
also stated that digital technologies have various risks associated which cannot be

ignored. The companies should not rely on one technology rather should use
different types of technologies because there is a high change of technology failure
and disruption of technologies with the advent of new and upcoming technologies in
the business. It is often seen that digital technologies fail and companies have to
bear huge losses due to technology crises. Hence it is important for companies to be
aware of the digital threat associated with these technologies in order to minimize the
threats caused by these technologies in the future (Sia, et al. 2016).
As per in his research stated that Fitzgerald et al 2014, he stated that new
technologies like cloud computing have immensely improved the operational
activities for many businesses by bringing in greater efficiency in operations. In his
finding, he stated that digital technologies have left a positive impact on businesses
by providing good associations within the business functions thereby helping
businesses to face challenges that arise in the businesses.
Digital technologies in the businesses help firms in improving the productivity and
operational performance (Kallunki, et al. 2011). Technology has become a part of the
modern business, use of computers is seen everywhere and billing and shipping
mostly rely on automation these days. Use of digital technology helps in saving
money for the organizations because the use of technology limits the number of
people in the same physical location for instance when companies conduct
teleconference meetings then employees remain at their positions and with the help
of digital conferencing the meetings gets conducted. In other words, employees need
not communicate from one place to other which saves companies money and travel
expenses.

TASK 3
P5 ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH DATA
The data analysed in the report helps to structure the findings from different sources
of data. It helps in breaking down a macro problem into micro parts (Taylor, et al.
2015). The primary and secondary data collected from the quantitative and
qualitative analysis is put together and carefully examined. The data collected from
the researchers, journals and empirical data collected is used for conducting a
thorough investigation of the impact of digital technology on digital shadows. This
data helps in determining the impact of digital technology on the business activities
for the digital shadows across all its departments like finance, accounts, HR,
operations etc. The data collected from literature review is carefully examined and
analysed for understanding the impact of digital technology on the businesses in
detail.
The data collected for the research helps to inspect, clean, transform the model with
a view to reaching to a certain conclusion for a given situation. The two types of data
used are qualitative and quantitative data. In the qualitative data analysis, non-
numerical data is collected and analysed with the help of literature reviews. On the
other hand, quantitative data is used for a statistical analysis for revealing the results
and conclusion for the research project. In this report, both types of data are
analysed for the research findings (Taylor, et al. 2015).
The quantitative data collected help in analysing the current and future developments
in the Digital Shadows. The company provides various cybersecurity services to
other businesses and industries. The company believes that cyber threats basically
range from political hacktivists to well train cyber threat actors who are continuously
looking for profit. Digital shadows analyse the digital risks associated with the digital
technologies. The early detection of risks and data breaches helps companies to
critically minimize the exposure and organisational impact. Digital shadows help
businesses to protect its confidential data and information and provide recommended
actions to be performed in case some threat is detected in the workplace
environment.
Digital technologies such as the use of computers and high data storage devices are
quite prone to data loss and can have serious implications for the organization. Some

of the risks associated with the data are brute force and confidentiality stuffing
attacks which gets attacked by malicious actors and hence it is important for the
firms to monitor the activities of employees and remediate the risks from exposed
data by verifying the risk and following recommended actions (Miles, et al. 2013).
The qualitative data collected helped in analysing the advantages of digital
technologies for the businesses such as it encourages innovation and creativity in
the workplace environment. When employees in the organization use digital
technologies they are able to innovate a new business idea which helps in business
growth and expansion. Employees in Digital shadows make use of digital
technologies as a challenging opportunity for coming up new ideas for the
businesses. Employees are given a reward when they come up with ideas and
suggestions for the company.
The use of digital technology also helps companies in reducing the turnaround time
for accomplishing the day to day tasks which ultimately helps in saving money, time
and increase productivity for the company. Digital technologies also help in speeding
up the manufacturing processes for the companies to a wider extent. For instance,
the machines and computers can do work that was once performed by humans more
quickly and efficiently.
Digital technology in the workplace also helps in improving the Human resource
activities in the organization. It helps human resource managers to do their job with
greater efficiency with the use of the internet as a tool for advertising their jobs. The
applicants interested to apply for the vacant job positions in the organization use
online channels for applying to job positions posted online. This process saves time
for the managers and also helps in reducing the costs. Digital technology is helping
firms to automate various tasks which were being handled manually earlier. The use
of internet and computers has eliminated the space and time boundaries for
employees Woking in the companies. Now employees are working remotely from
anywhere in the world which helps employees stay in control of their jobs (Miles, et
al. 2013).
The supply chain activities within the business make use of digital technologies like
scanners, barcode readers etc. which has transformed the business operations
entirely. Supply chain management is regarded as one of the most important factors

for increasing the productivity of the business and with the use of digital
technologies; it has taken a paradigm shift in the way it is being handled today. The
use of computerized chain management system has revolutionized the supply chain
activities by ensuring greater visibility and tracking of goods. The digital technologies
like tracking systems, GPS Systems help in real-time monitoring of goods for the
businesses which has helped industries increase its operational performance to a
great extent than ever before.
P6 RECOMMENDATIONS
Digital Technology is becoming more and more important for the businesses as in
the present modern era businesses cannot work efficiently without the use of digital
technology (Westerman, et al. 2014).
There are many advantages of digital technologies which are recommended for the
business like healthcare business, for example, digital technologies have proved to
be beneficial for treating people and saving lives of many people. The invention of
the computer and digital technologies related to computers has helped businesses to
communicate more easily with their clients, employees and stakeholders. Time
management is one of the most important constraints for the businesses like Digital
shadows and use of digital technologies helps in saving time and more for the
businesses. Sales and purchases are facilitated more effectively and efficiently with
the use of digital technologies.
Caution against Digital Disruption and Digital Risk in Technologies
It is highly recommended for businesses to use technologies with caution as the
innovation of new technologies can impact the value of existing goods and products
offered in the industry (McQuivey, 2013). It is essential for the small businesses to
use digital technologies for speeding up its services for meeting the desired aims and
objectives of the company. Technologies are of great benefit as most of the digital
technologies are not expensive and can play a bigger role in its growth and
expansion.
Ensuring Data Security and Reliability
It is important for the businesses to keep its data safe and with the use of digital
technology platforms like Cloud Storage companies like Digital shadows secure its

data (Chen and Zhao, 2012). Information and data security in the businesses is one
of the biggest issues as hackers and thieves steal confidential data or proprietary
information from within the business. With the use of digital technologies such as
digital software’s and alarm systems businesses can continuously monitor the
activities of employees in the workplace environment.
Increasing overall business efficiency
In the present modern era, businesses are now operating more efficiently with the
use of digital technologies. Digitizing the files helps businesses to customize
documents for example user agreements and contract templates (Westerman, et al.
2014). The software programs and solutions used in the business help improve data
collection and implementation.
TASK 4
P7 REFLECTION
This project was related to the study of digital technology and the advantages and
disadvantages of the digital technologies in the business (Laudon and Laudon,
2015). Digital technologies in the business have many benefits including the security,
automation and improving the overall efficiency of the business operations. From the
above discussions, it can be analyzed that digital disruption is the flip side of digital
technologies which are being used in the businesses. A digital technology used
under cautionary measures will always be advantageous for the business otherwise
the same technology can turn out to be a big risk for the businesses. The established
companies like Digital Shadows make use of digital technologies in order to reinvent
business activities through increased employee involvement and engagement.
The data storage of digital as well as visual information has proved to be of high
quality with the use of digital technologies. The development of digital and
information system have evolved a number of changes in the current patterns of
technology. The above discussion proved with the help of numerous examples that it
is important for companies like digital shadows to incorporate the use of digital
technologies in its business for emerging as a global brand in the business. With the
use of digital technologies, the employees in the organization get empowered as they

have access to new applications which their productivity in the workplace
environment (Laudon and Laudon, 2015).

CONCLUSION
The above discussion concludes that with the advent of digital technology it becomes
inevitable to apply these technologies in all business related areas in order to
empower employees towards achieving sustainable and global development. The
digital technology should be properly implemented in the businesses as it is the need
of the fast-paced changing environment. It becomes additionally important to use
digital technologies with caution as it has advantages and disadvantages in the
business. Digital disruption is another important concern that needs to be considered
by the business as with the advent of new technology old technology has no
importance which affects the value proposition of goods and services.
Digital technologies in the businesses establish represent an excellent
communication between communities, people, employees etc. It encourages
employees to be creative and become independent professionals. However digital
technologies are still facing some obstacles as it is represented by some expensive
tools and equipment’s, hence it is necessary for all businesses to adapt with the
changing requirements and changes in the modern era.

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