HND Business: Evaluating the Project Life Cycle of Binnj iPad

This case study analyzes the Binnj project, focusing on the development of the LiveMenu application for Apple iPad, and its adherence to the Project Life Cycle (PLC) stages: Initiation, Planning, Execution, and Closure. It evaluates the decision to use the agile project management approach, highlighting the reasons for choosing it over the Waterfall model, emphasizing the importance of scalability and flexibility. The study also discusses the leadership traits exhibited by Clay Hutcherson and the rationale behind selecting the Apple platform. It explores the elements used to measure performance and provides advice and recommendations based on the project's experiences. The documentation requirements at each stage of the PLC are considered, and the implications of adhering to these requirements within the agile framework are examined.

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Binnj on the Apple iPad
Project Life Cycle
1/19/2019

Project Life Cycle (PLC)
Table of Contents
Stages of Project Life Cycle (PLC).......................................................................................................2
Binnj Project & PLC Documentation Requirements.........................................................................2
Agile Approach to Project Management................................................................................................3
Leadership Traits for Agile Project Management..................................................................................4
Selection of Effective Platform..............................................................................................................5
Elements to Measure Performance........................................................................................................6
Advice & Recommendations.................................................................................................................7
References.............................................................................................................................................9
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
Introduction
The report is prepared for the Binnj project for which a LiveMenu application is being
prepared. The report covers the details of the Project Life Cycle (PLC) stages along with the
project management approach used in the project. The evaluation of the project decisions and
the leadership traits along with the details of performance measurement are included in the
report.
Stages of Project Life Cycle (PLC)
There are usually four stages in the Project Life Cycle (PLC) viz. Initiation, Planning,
Execution, and Closure. The first stage is the initiation stage in which the identification of the
business problem and business needs is done. It is the stage in which the project goals and
objectives are defined and the major project deliverables are also listed down. A high-level
analysis of the project estimations and the project requirements is done in this stage. The
documentation needed for this stage is the business case for the project and the initial meeting
notes with the client. There is a feasibility report and a project charter/brief prepared as an
outcome. The project feasibility project and cost-benefit analysis is usually done in this stage
to determine the doability and the project value. The second stage is the planning stage in
which the detailed planning of the project areas, such as scope, resources, risks,
communication, schedule, budget, stakeholders, and quality is done (Dalcher, 2015). The
documentation required for this stage includes project charter/brief, business case, and
statement of work. On the basis of all of these documents, project estimations are made and
the project plan is prepared as an outcome. The plan comprises of the project methodology to
be followed along with the details of the project estimations. The third stage is the execution
stage in which the plans are turned in to actions. The project requirements and project plan
are the primary documents that are needed to carry out the stage to produce working sets of
the product/system to be delivered. The last stage is the closure stage in which the final
product is needed along with the documents from all the three stages. The status reports and
the meeting notes are required to develop the performance evaluation reports and the final
closure report.
Binnj Project & PLC Documentation Requirements
Binnj project did meet the above requirements as the execution of the project was done using
agile methodology for project management. Clay Hutcherson headed the project and there
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
was a detailed planning and discussion involved with Nancy Phillip, Scott Corscadden, James
Hayes, and Jen Hosafros. The decision to use agile methodology, use of collaboration tools,
such as Skype, DropBox, etc. was taken during the communication and meeting sessions
(Hassan et al., 2018).
There were a few implications that were involved with the Binnj project team to adhere to the
PLC stages and the specific documentation requirements of each stage. The project was a
100-day carefully planned project that was termed as the team-based science experiment.
There were various activities that the team had to carry out in parallel which made it difficult
to focus upon the documentation requirements. However, the team was clear in its goals and
was aware of the significance of the documentation in each of the project stages. The 100-day
plan that was developed for the project included documentation as one of the activities during
all of the sub-stages that the project was divided in to (Altunel, 2017).
Agile Approach to Project Management
The decision to use agile approach to project management was taken by Clay during his
discussion with Scott Corscadden, Software Engineer with whom Clay had worked on
several projects in the past. During their discussion, Clay explained the LiveMenu features to
Scott and also pulled out iPad to provide a better sense of understanding of the idea. A 100-
day schedule was allotted to the project and all the four stages of PLC were to be conducted
and completed in this period. The project demanded scalability and flexibility that could be
offered only by the agile model. The use of Waterfall Model was not considered as an option
as it would have led to increased time in mapping the requirements. The estimated time with
the Waterfall model was calculated as 18 months which was way ahead than the 100-day
plan. As a result, Clay and Corscadden mutually agreed for agile model. Instead of spending
increased amount of time in planning, the execution of the project tasks and activities will be
carried out. Another reason that was involved behind the selection of the agile methodology
was the probability of operational errors and emergence of too many changes during the
project lifecycle. It was because such a project was being carried out for the first time and it
was assumed that there will be errors and changes that will come up (Juricek, 2014). Agile
methodology will provide the ability to manage these changes and resolve the errors without
having an impact on the progress. The decision to use the Waterfall Model was therefore
eliminated for the set of choices for the project methodologies as it was not a suitable option
in this case.
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
Project size did not have much of a role to play behind the selection of the project
methodology. It is because the primary factor that was considered was the project schedule
and the project requirements in terms of its functional, technical, user, and non-functional
aspects. Rapid creation and rapid re-creation were the properties associated with the Apple
tools and software that were shortlisted for the project. Clay and Corscadden assumed that the
agile methodology will be apt for the project as it will offer the required scalability and
flexibility to the project. They were correct in their assumptions as the Waterfall model is a
liner sequential method that is rigid and would not have provided with the required
scalability.
The Binnj project is a large-scale project as the LiveMenu that will be developed as an end-
product will be implemented across the restaurants in Canada. Also, it is a project that
involves multiple modules and there are various resources involved to carry out the project
tasks and activities. The project size does not have a huge role to play in terms of its
management process (Serrador and Pinto, 2015). The large scale and small scale projects are
not managed differently; however, there are additional elements that may get involved in the
large-scale projects that may enhance the overall complexity. For instance, the
communication and information exchange in the large-scale projects may be more complex
as compared to the small scale projects. It may lead to the additional management activities to
be performed by the resources. Also, the probability of conflicts and disputes in the small-
scale projects is lower than the large-scale project. It does not signify that the small-scale
projects will always be less complex as compared to the large-scale projects.
Leadership Traits for Agile Project Management
Leadership plays a significant role in the project success and its management. The leadership
traits required for the projects vary in terms of the project type and the methodology being
used. Cross-functional collaboration skills are required for an agile project leader as the teams
must not block the progress of each other. There are activities that run in parallel and it is the
responsibility of the leader to make sure that each of the team members gets to perform
without any bottlenecks. Communication skills are the leadership traits that a leader in an
agile project must possess. The team in the agile projects are self-directed; however, it is the
responsibility of the leader to communicate the teams about the project progress, project
changes, and issues. These discussions usually take place in the daily stand-up meeting and
the leader puts across the information. The leader must accurately share these information
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
sets with the team members and the stakeholders for the project success (Indelicato, 2016).
Continuous improvement is another trait that a leader shall have so that the project quality
does not drop. There are various advancements that may be made in terms of technology and
other criteria. The leader must be aware of all of such development and the zeal to
continually improve the project results and quality must be present. This will make sure that
all the other members in the team are also inspired to perform as per the high standards set by
the leader. Vision, decision-making, and problem-solving are the other traits of a successful
leader in an agile environment. There are no defined and set goals involved in the agile
projects and the leader must have the vision to turn the estimated parameters in to reality.
There are also conflicts and risks that appear during the project timeline and it is the
responsibility of the leader to make quick & correct decisions to solve the problems without
impacting the project progress.
Hutcherson exhibited the above traits to make Binnj project successful. There were meetings
and discussions arranged with Philip, Corscadden, Hayes, and Hosafros to clearly
communicate and discuss the project demands and requirements (Gemunden, 2015). The
needs analysis was done in accordance with the scalability and flexibility requirements of the
project and the evaluation of the alternatives was done before deciding to use agile
methodology and Apple tools in the project. There were a large number of collaborative tools
also used by Hutcherson to make sure that the information and knowledge sharing was strong
all throughout. Quality and continuous improvement were the parameters that were reflected
in the project tasks. A 100-day plan for such a wide-scaled project could not be successfully
conducted without the abilities, skills, and determination of Hutcherson. All of these traits
and skills played an extremely significant role in Binnj project and its success.
Hutcherson does have the traits to be a successful leader and the same was reflected in the
procedures and tasks that were followed and carried out during the Binnj project timeline.
Selection of Effective Platform
There have been a lot many different platforms developed by Samsung and Hewlett Packard
since the inception of the Binnj project. However, Hutcherson & team decided to restrict
itself to the Apple’s iPad and the iOS platform. Corscadden suggested using Apple platform
and building the application using iOS 3.2 mobile operating system which was the latest
version at the time of project execution. It was also decided that Core Data persistence layer
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
will be used which was a distributed SQL store termed as sqlite. The decision was made to
involved cloud-based deployment model as Apple’s in-house applications were also
developed using these platforms and technologies. LiveMenu was an application that was
first of its kinds and it was expected that there will be changes and modifications demanded
in the future (Furfie, 2010). The reconfiguration and propagation of the application would
have been easy with the use of Apple platforms in the real-time. The tools and Software
Development Kit (SDK) used by Apple are also secure and easy to use. These provide the
ready-to-use templates along with the code snippets. The customization and integration of the
tools and platforms becomes easier to accommodate the requirements and specifications.
Also, SDK is open-source in nature so it would make the development process hassle-free.
The software tools and platforms will also provide the ability to re-create and re-develop the
modules rapidly without much rework.
There are other benefits that also come along with Apple’s iPad that are not witnessed in the
devices offered by Samsung, Hewlett Packard, and other organizations. The authenticity and
security offered by Apple in unmatched as the organization individually approves each
application available on the App Store. There are a limited number of devices that are
supported by Apple which makes it easier to identify and resolve the bugs. In the case of
LiveMenu, such an application was being developed for the first time. It was expected that
there will be bugs and errors that will come up in the initial project phases. The resolution of
these bugs would have become easier with the Apple platforms as compared to the other
options available in the market. The device was first launched by Apple which was then used
as a base to develop other tablet devices in the market. The American and Canadian markets
are largely covered by Apple and the users in these regions are more comfortable with the
Apple platforms (Hewett, Torgerson and Douglas, 2014). Such ease of usage and trust has
not been observed with Android-based devices in these regions. As a result, the decision to
use Apple platforms over Samsung and HP devices was correct for the project.
Elements to Measure Performance
There are a number of elements that are involved in project management which are used to
measure the performance of the project. Such elements were also used in Binnj. A 100-day
plan was prepared by Hutcherson and team to carry out the project and the schedule was one
of the primary indicators of project success. It was desired that there were no gaps in the
actual and estimated values of project schedule. There were a number of collaborative tools
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
that were used by the team to measure the performance. For instance, Basecamp was one
such tool which was used to track the progress of the 100-day project plan. Milestone
management, time tracking, and calendaring were some of the features of the tool that were
utilized in the project (Barclay et al., 2012). There was also a post-to-do list prepared for each
of the project functions. There were also deliverables and milestones set by Hutcherson in the
100-day plan that was prepared. The tracking of these deliverables was to be carried out to
make sure that the project was progressing as per the expectations. Redmine is another
collaborative tool that was used in the project. It was the tool that allowed tracking of the
progress of software development. The tool support visual elements, such as calendar and
Gantt chart to represent the schedule of the project.
There are additional measures that Binnj could have used to measure the project performance.
The use of Earned Value Analysis technique could have been done to identify the gaps in the
schedule and budget of the project (Denas, 2015). The actual and estimated values would
have been highlighted which would have provided the ability to keep a track of the overall
project. There is a number of budget estimation and tracking methods, such as time-phased
budget, bottom-up estimation etc. which may have been used in the project.
Hayes made the suggestion of focussing on the Enterprise restaurant Groups (ERGs) to enter
in the markets. Hayes also communicated with three ERGs and they were pretty excited
about the idea of LiveMenu. Philip suggested sending out the brochure to the potential clients
and providing them with the beta version of the application which may be used by the clients
for testing in a pilot location. Both of these suggestions were made keeping the competition
and rivalry in to perspective. The suggestions made by Hayes are valid as it is necessary to
have a target audience. Also, the clients need to have the look and feel of the application
before it is officially designed and released for them. The involvement of the beta version and
the release of the same would have made sure that the customer interest was built up. There
are a few other mechanisms that the project could have followed. The time was a primary
constraint for the project and the use of social media could have been done to engage the
clients. The customers could have been informed about the product using the social media
channels which would have generated the interest among the customers. The development
work could be carried out in parallel and the clients would be provided with the working set
of products as per the 100-day plan. This would have enhanced the customer base associated
with the product.
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
Advice & Recommendations
After the passage of the first hundred days of the project, it will be essential to track the
progress and response before continuing with the rest of the project activities. The first stage
shall include analysis in which the feedback from the stakeholders and the end-users shall be
collected and analysed to determine the stir created by the application in the markets. It will
provide the strengths and weaknesses of the application and the further actions shall be
devised accordingly. The team shall utilize the strengths and work on the weaknesses to
provide the customers with the desired product. The next three stages shall be the PLC stages
as planning, execution, and closure. The planning stage shall determine the scope, schedule,
and budget for the activities to be carried out. Quality planning and marketing planning shall
also be done in this phase with the development of a quality management plan and marketing
plan. Once all the estimations and plans are in place, there shall be execution of the project
that shall begin. The design and development activities shall be conducted in parallel with the
testing processes (Saeeda et al., 2015). Security and performance testing must be the primary
testing types that shall be carried out. The customers shall be kept involved throughout the
cycle and shall be provided with the working sets of the LiveMenu application which they
shall use and evaluate. The changes shall be made in the application as per the demands of
the customers followed by the closure process.
The integration of the security tools and controls is one of the primary requirements that shall
be fulfilled. It is because there are a large number of security risks and attacks that are taking
place and the application information shall be kept secured at all times.
Conclusion
The agile project management approach was used in the Binnj project to manage the project
tasks and activities. A 100-day plan was prepared for the project and the project operations
were accordingly carried out. The project specifications were accomplished using the defined
set of methodology and guidelines. There were certain complexities that came up in terms of
feasibility determination and selection of the project methodology.
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Project Life Cycle (PLC)
References
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Project Life Cycle. Project Management Journal, 46(1), pp.e2-e2.
Denas, S. (2015). Risk Analysis Using Earned Value. International Journal of Risk and
Contingency Management, 4(3), pp.22-33.
Furfie, B. (2010). Is the iPad a game changer? [Tablet computer from Apple]. Engineering &
Technology, 5(4), pp.34-35.
Gemunden, H. (2015). Foundations of Project Management Research: Stakeholders and
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Hassan, S., Farhana, N., Aishah, S., Mahirah, S. and Firdaus Jimisiah. J, K. (2018).
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Indelicato, G. (2016). Agile for Project Managers. Project Management Journal, 47(1),
pp.e4-e4.
Juricek, J. (2014). Agile Project Management Principles. Lecture Notes on Software
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Saeeda, H., Arif, F., Mehmood Minhas, N. and Humayun, M. (2015). Agile Scalability for
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