Development of Mobile App for RedBalloon: A Project Plan

This report presents a project plan for the development of a mobile app for RedBalloon, an online gift retailer in Australia. The plan includes scope, budget, schedule, and other aspects related to the project. The main objectives of the project are to determine the required features for the app, an appropriate time frame of the development, an appropriate and feasible budget for the project, to develop the mobile app as per plan, schedule and budget, to test the mobile app before going live, and to allow users to download the app free of cost. The report also includes a work breakdown structure, project network diagram, stakeholder register, communication matrix, and risk register.

Running Head: IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Development of Mobile App
Name of the Student
Name of the University

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Executive Summary
Mobile app is a useful tool for ecommerce and provides a wide range of features than regular
ecommerce websites that are accessed from computers or smartphone devices. RedBalloon is an
online gift retailer that is looking to develop a mobile app for their ecommerce purposes. In this
report, a project plan has been developed that aims to deliver a suitable plan including scope,
budget, schedule and other aspects related to the project for RedBalloon.

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Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction................................................................................................................................3
2.0 Project Plan................................................................................................................................3
2.1 Background of the Company and Company Network Diagram............................................3
2.2 Project Scope.........................................................................................................................4
2.3 Project Objectives..................................................................................................................5
2.4 Project Charter.......................................................................................................................5
2.4.1 Project Schedule.............................................................................................................5
2.4.2 Work Breakdown Structure..........................................................................................11
2.4.3 Project Resources and Budget......................................................................................11
2.4.4 Project Network Diagram.............................................................................................16
2.5 Stakeholder Register and Communication Matrix..............................................................17
2.6 Risk Register........................................................................................................................18
3.0 Conclusion...............................................................................................................................19
Bibliography..................................................................................................................................21

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1.0 Introduction
The selected company for this particular project is RedBalloon, which is an online gift
retailer in Australia. The company has decided to develop a mobile app in order to facilitate their
online business further. Currently, the company has an ecommerce website that can be accessed
by the customers through personal computers and smartphones for online shopping. However, a
website has only limited features and moreover, the personal data and information of the
customers like address, phone number, payment card details and others. A mobile app is much
more secure and can have a large number of different features unlike a website. As per the
agreed plan, a standard project life cycle will be followed for the development and testing of the
mobile app before it will be downloadable for the customers.
In this report, a project plan has been prepared for the development of the mobile app for
RedBalloon.
2.0 Project Plan
2.1 Background of the Company and Company Network Diagram
RedBalloon is online gift retailer based in Australia. The company operates through an
online website in which a customer visit, view all the items sold by the company, their prices,
their availability in stock, order for selected products and then making online payments or
choose to pay cash on delivery. However, the company found that the online website was not
sufficiently secure and the customers who choose to save their card information for future use
may have their personal and card information stolen by online hackers and other malicious files.

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Founding Director
ITMarketing
Mobile App DevelopmentWebsite
CEO Chairman
R & D
Server
Hence, the board members of the company decided to develop an online mobile app that can be
downloaded by the smartphone users and used for online shopping.
The company network diagram is shown as follows.
Figure 1: Company Network Diagram
(Source: Created by Author)
2.2 Project Scope
The main scope of the project involves the development of mobile app for RedBalloon in
order to take the advantages that are not gained in case of the website. However, marketing

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details, promotion and business strategy involving the mobile application is out of scope of the
project.
2.3 Project Objectives
The main objectives of the project are as follows.
 To determine the required features for the app
 To determine an appropriate time frame of the development
 To determine an appropriate and feasible budget for the project
 To develop the mobile app as per plan, schedule and budget
 To test the mobile app before going live
 To allow users to download the app free of cost
2.4 Project Charter
2.4.1 Project Schedule
An estimated schedule for the project is shown in the following table.
Task Name Duration Start Finish
Development of Mobile App for
RedBalloon
126 days Mon 8/20/18 Mon 2/11/19
Project Proposal and Discussion 13 days Mon 8/20/18 Wed 9/5/18
Identification of Issues with the
Website
2 days Mon 8/20/18 Tue 8/21/18
Identification of Advantages of 2 days Wed 8/22/18 Thu 8/23/18

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Mobile App
Proposal for a Project 1 day Fri 8/24/18 Fri 8/24/18
Approval of Proposal 2 days Mon 8/27/18 Tue 8/28/18
Final Decision on Mobile App
Development
3 days Wed 8/29/18 Fri 8/31/18
Discussion on Necessary Features
of the App
1 day Mon 9/3/18 Mon 9/3/18
Discussion of Appropriate Budget
for the Project
1 day Tue 9/4/18 Tue 9/4/18
Proceed with Final Approval 1 day Wed 9/5/18 Wed 9/5/18
Project Planning 14 days Thu 9/6/18 Tue 9/25/18
Appoint Team for Project 2 days Thu 9/6/18 Fri 9/7/18
Develop Project Charter 4 days Mon 9/10/18 Thu 9/13/18
Determine Project Scope 0.5 days Mon 9/10/18 Mon 9/10/18
Determine Project Objectives 0.5 days Mon 9/10/18 Mon 9/10/18
Prepare Estimated Schedule for
Project
1 day Tue 9/11/18 Tue 9/11/18
Develop Work Breakdown 0.5 days Wed 9/12/18 Wed 9/12/18

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Structure
Develop Project Network
Diagram
0.5 days Wed 9/12/18 Wed 9/12/18
Determine a Feasible Budget for
the Project
1 day Thu 9/13/18 Thu 9/13/18
Develop a Stakeholder
Management Plan
1 day Fri 9/14/18 Fri 9/14/18
Develop Communication Plan 1 day Mon 9/17/18 Mon 9/17/18
Identify and Manage Risks 5 days Tue 9/18/18 Mon 9/24/18
Proceed to Project 1 day Tue 9/25/18 Tue 9/25/18
Project Initiation 7 days Wed 9/26/18 Thu 10/4/18
Prepare List of Resources 1 day Wed 9/26/18 Wed 9/26/18
Procure Necessary Resources for
Project
3 days Thu 9/27/18 Mon 10/1/18
Appoint Mobile App Development
Team
1 day Tue 10/2/18 Tue 10/2/18
Assign Budget of Project 2 days Wed 10/3/18 Thu 10/4/18
Project Execution 82 days Fri 10/5/18 Mon 1/28/19

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Initiate Development of the App 2 days Fri 10/5/18 Mon 10/8/18
Install Development Platform in
the Workstation
3 days Tue 10/9/18 Thu 10/11/18
Install Necessary Support
Software
5 days Fri 10/12/18 Thu 10/18/18
Develop the App 15 days Fri 10/19/18 Thu 11/8/18
Add Necessary Features 15 days Fri 11/9/18 Thu 11/29/18
Finalize Beta Version 5 days Fri 11/30/18 Thu 12/6/18
Test the Beta 10 days Fri 12/7/18 Thu 12/20/18
Find Bugs and Issues 5 days Fri 12/21/18 Thu 12/27/18
Solve and Remove Bugs 5 days Fri 12/28/18 Thu 1/3/19
Develop Final Version of the App 10 days Fri 1/4/19 Thu 1/17/19
Testing of the App 5 days Fri 1/18/19 Thu 1/24/19
Go Live 2 days Fri 1/25/19 Mon 1/28/19
Project Completion and Sign Off 10 days Tue 1/29/19 Mon 2/11/19
Submit Documentation of the 5 days Tue 1/29/19 Mon 2/4/19

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Project
Review and Appraisal 2 days Tue 2/5/19 Wed 2/6/19
Sign Off 2 days Thu 2/7/19 Fri 2/8/19
Official Closing 1 day Mon 2/11/19 Mon 2/11/19
Accordingly, the Gantt chart of the project is developed as follows.

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Figure 2: Project Gantt Chart
(Source: Created by Author)

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2.4.2 Work Breakdown Structure
The work breakdown structure of the project is shown as follows.
Figure 3: Work Breakdown Structure of the Project
(Source: Created by Author)
2.4.3 Project Resources and Budget
The main resources of the project (human and material) and their estimated rates are
shown in the following table.
Resource Name Type Max. Units Std. Rate
Project Manager Work 100% $200.00/hr
Finance Manager Work 100% $175.00/hr
IT Manager Work 100% $150.00/hr
Developer Work 100% $75.00/hr

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Tester Work 100% $75.00/hr
Hardware Requirements Material $2,000.00
Software Requirements Material $2,500.00
Finally, based on these rates as well as the list of activities in the project, the following
budget has been determined and shown in the table.
Task Name Resource Names Cost
Development of Mobile App
for RedBalloon
$193,900.00
Project Proposal and
Discussion
$22,200.00
Identification of Issues with
the Website
IT Manager $2,400.00
Identification of Advantages
of Mobile App
IT Manager $2,400.00
Proposal for a Project IT Manager $1,200.00
Approval of Proposal Project Manager $3,200.00
Final Decision on Mobile Project Manager $4,800.00

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App Development
Discussion on Necessary
Features of the App
IT Manager, Project Manager $2,800.00
Discussion of Appropriate
Budget for the Project
Finance Manager, IT Manager,
Project Manager
$4,200.00
Proceed with Final Approval IT Manager $1,200.00
Project Planning $36,000.00
Appoint Team for Project IT Manager $2,400.00
Develop Project Charter $11,200.00
Determine Project Scope IT Manager, Project Manager $1,400.00
Determine Project
Objectives
IT Manager, Project Manager $1,400.00
Prepare Estimated
Schedule for Project
IT Manager, Project Manager $2,800.00
Develop Work Breakdown
Structure
IT Manager, Project Manager $1,400.00
Develop Project Network
Diagram
IT Manager, Project Manager $1,400.00

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Determine a Feasible
Budget for the Project
IT Manager, Project Manager $2,800.00
Develop a Stakeholder
Management Plan
IT Manager, Project Manager $2,800.00
Develop Communication
Plan
IT Manager, Project Manager $2,800.00
Identify and Manage Risks IT Manager, Project Manager $14,000.00
Proceed to Project IT Manager, Project Manager $2,800.00
Project Initiation $13,300.00
Prepare List of Resources IT Manager $1,200.00
Procure Necessary Resources
for Project
Hardware Requirements[1], IT
Manager, Software
Requirements[1]
$8,100.00
Appoint Mobile App
Development Team
IT Manager $1,200.00
Assign Budget of Project Finance Manager $2,800.00
Project Execution $98,400.00

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Initiate Development of the
App
Developer, Tester $2,400.00
Install Development Platform
in the Workstation
Developer, Tester $3,600.00
Install Necessary Support
Software
Developer, Tester $6,000.00
Develop the App Developer, Tester $18,000.00
Add Necessary Features Developer, Tester $18,000.00
Finalize Beta Version Developer, Tester $6,000.00
Test the Beta Developer, Tester $12,000.00
Find Bugs and Issues Developer, Tester $6,000.00
Solve and Remove Bugs Developer, Tester $6,000.00
Develop Final Version of the
App
Developer, Tester $12,000.00
Testing of the App Developer, Tester $6,000.00
Go Live Developer, Tester $2,400.00

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Project Completion and Sign
Off
$24,000.00
Submit Documentation of the
Project
Developer, Tester $6,000.00
Review and Appraisal IT Manager, Project Manager $5,600.00
Sign Off
Developer, Finance Manager, IT
Manager, Project Manager, Tester
$10,800.00
Official Closing Project Manager $1,600.00
Considering some buffer budget and additional budget, it can be said that the overall
estimated budget for the project is $200,000.
2.4.4 Project Network Diagram
The network diagram of the project is developed as follows.
Figure 4: Project Network Diagram
(Source: Created by Author)

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2.5 Stakeholder Register and Communication Matrix
The stakeholders who will be involved in the project and their roles and responsibilities
in the project are shown in the following table.
Stakeholder Name Stakeholder Designation Role and Responsibility
Mr. A Project Manager Approval and management of
project, management of other
stakeholders, approval of request,
monitoring, controlling and
supervision of project,
introduction of change
management
Mr. B Finance Manager Management of budget,
allocation of funds, allocation of
additional budget subject to
project manager’s approval
Mr. C IT Manager Supervision of the IT department,
determination of the issues
associated, determination and
proposal of solutions, listing and
procurement of necessary
resources, supervision of the
entire project work, reporting to
the project manager
Mr. D Developer Development of the mobile app

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as per the pre set requirements
Mr. E Tester Testing of the mobile app for
solving bugs and glitches
Appointment of stakeholders in the project also requires a suitable communication
management plan that is developed as follows.
Stakeholder Communication Need Communication
Frequency
Communication Mode
Project Manager Project update, new
requirements
Weekly Verbal meeting, email
Finance Manager Budget requirements,
need for additional
funds
Bi-Weekly Email, finance report
document
IT Manager IT requirements, project
update
Daily Face to face
communication
Developer Requirements of the app Before start of project Meeting
Tester Overall structure of the
app
Before testing phase Face to face
communication
2.6 Risk Register
There are some risks that may occur during the course of the project. It is important to
address these risks in order to ensure the success of the project. Some risks are discussed in the
following table.
Risk Name Effect on Project Chance of Occurrence Mitigation Plan

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Budget Risk High Medium Conduct feasibility test
before finalization of
the budget
Schedule Risk Low Medium Ensure the estimate
schedule is followed
without major delay
Cyber Security Risk Extreme Very High Install sufficient amount
of protection using anti-
virus software and
defender firewall before
initiating the
development of the
mobile app
Lack of Technical
Expertise
Very High Medium Ensure the developers
will be able to add all
the necessary features in
the app and to test the
app successfully for
bugs and issues
3.0 Conclusion
In this report, a brief project plan has been developed for the development of mobile app
for RedBalloon. As per the requirements of the project, the overall scope of the project includes
the development of the app but it excludes other aspects like promotion, marketing and business

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strategy. Based on the initial estimations, the project will require approximately 126 days for
completion and although there is not any major time constraint, it is suggested that the project is
completed within this timeline because major delays will result in increase in the overall budget.
Again, based on the estimations, the approximate overall budget required for the project is
$200,000. RedBalloon is a sufficiently large company to support such a high budget for mobile
app development but it is also required to ensure that the quality of the app developed is of the
best quality and also all the features discussed in the meeting are incorporated in the app. All
bugs, glitches and issues must be solved during the testing phase so that the customers do not
face any problems while using the app.

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