Assessment 3: Project Management Report for Sunshine Homes

This report analyzes the project management strategies employed by Sunshine Homes, an Australian real estate agency, for its web development outsourcing and IT infrastructure upgrade. It delves into the phases of the project lifecycle, from initiation to closure, examining each stage's key activities and considerations. The report details the creation of a stakeholder register, communication management plan, and project charter, crucial for effective project governance. Furthermore, it includes the development of a project network diagram, cost calculations (including net present value), and a work breakdown structure to ensure project success. The report provides insights into the practical application of project management principles, offering a comprehensive overview of the processes and tools used to manage and control the project effectively, ensuring the project's successful completion within the set timeframe and budget.

Assessment 3

Table of Contents
Table of Contents.............................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................1
1. Explanation of phases of project life cycle..............................................................................1
2. Creation of stakeholder register and communication management plan.................................3
3. Creation of project charter.......................................................................................................5
4. Creation of project network diagram.......................................................................................6
5. Calculation of the project cost and net present value..............................................................7
6. Creation of project work breakdown structure........................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Project management could be defined as the process of controlling, planning, determining
and handling a project so that all the activities related to it could be performed in systematic
manner. When the individuals working on it will not be able to perform all the tasks that are
related to it then it may result in failure of the project (Delisle, 2019). In order to make sure that
all the desired outcomes are achieved it is very important for managers to pay attention towards
project management. Main aim of this report is to understand the key aspects which are required
to be focused while working on a project. It is mainly based upon Sunshine Homes which has
decided to outsource web development. This assignment covers various topics such as phases of
project life cycle, stakeholder register, communication management plan, project charter, project
network diagram, project cost, net present value etc. Apart from this, project work breakdown
structure is also created in this report.
MAIN BODY
1. Explanation of phases of project life cycle
Sunshine Homes is one of the real estate agencies of Australia which is involved in the
business of rental accommodation. It has grown rapidly in last few years and it is employing
around 90 agents and apart from this, it has opened 5 new offices. The entity has planned to
develop a cloud-based management information system and upgrade the IT infrastructure. It has
been planned by it that the web development will be outsources by the entity and a contract for
the same is signed with PB web design (Görög, 2016). While working on the project it will be
very important for all the managers to make sure that they pay attention towards all the stages of
project lifecycle as it can help to carryout all the activities related to project in systematic
manner. While moving throughout the completion of the project all of them will be followed by
the managers. Discussion of all of them in context of the project of Sunshine Homes is as
follows:
Initiation: It is first stage of project lifecycle where the managers initiate the project. At
this stage the upper management of the entities analyse the strategic need for business so that the
business could be developed with the help of further planning. If they will not pay attention
towards the need of business then it will be very difficult for them to make sure that all the needs
and expectation of the entity are met (Heagney, 2016). As the management in Sunshine Homes
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decided to develop a new cloud-based management information system and upgrade the
company IT infrastructure so it is very important for managers to make sure that it is needed for
business or not. At this stage all the managers working within the entity will be responsible to
assure the effective initiation of the project of development and upgradation.
Apart from this, directors have also planned to outsource the web development from PB
web design company so all the activities related to this task are also required to be performed in
systematic manner. Here the managers will elaborate the description, risks and conditions of the
project to all the individuals who will be involved in it so that they can work effectively. Apart
from this, they will also be required to formulate the objective of the project. The objective of
development and upgradation project of Sunshine Homes is to develop the business with the help
of new management information system and IT infrastructure (Hoda and Murugesan, 2016).
Planning: It is second stage of the project life cycle where the managers are responsible
for organising and preparing. Main purpose of this phase is to analyse the detailed strategy of the
way in which whole project should be performed and completed successfully. At this stage all
the plans for future which are required to be implemented are formulated so that the staff
members can work on them properly to meet the project goals and objectives. It has been
estimated by the management and directors of Sunshine Homes that the project of development
and upgradation will take almost 3 years to get completed (Kerzner, 2017).
In order to complete it in the set time period it will be very important for all the managers
to make sure that they assign responsibilities to all the individuals according to their capabilities.
It will help to enhance the engagement level of them in the tasks that will be assigned to them. It
has been planned by the management teams that the progress of the project will be measured on
weekly basis. Apart from this, it has also been planned that funds will be allocated in monthly
basis according to the requirements of different teams that are working on project. It will help to
complete the project successfully within the predetermined budget. A plan regarding
identification of different alternatives for IT infrastructure is also been planned as it is required to
select the best one for the development of business (Kerzner, 2019).
Execution: It is third phase of project lifecycle which is focused with execution of all the
plans that are formulated in the planning stage of the project. In other words, it could be
described as the set of activities that are performed to carry out project according to
predetermined activities. As the managers planned to complete the project of Sunshine Homes in
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3 years so it will be very important for them to make sure that all the activities are performed by
the teams according to the duration which is assigned to the activities. If It will not be possible
for them to complete in the specific time then it may result in late completion of project. At this
phase the managers will also analyse the progress of the project so that it could be determined by
them the plans that are formulated by them are able to result positively or not (Meng and Boyd,
2017). Additionally, at the stage of execution the finance manager will analyse needs of all the
teams working on the project so that funding could be assigned them according to their
requirements. If the needs will not be analysed then it will be very difficult to ignore
overspending of budget.
The main responsibility of project manager at this stage is to supervise project and try to
ignore any type of error which may take place and affect the tasks. Monitoring and controlling
related activities are also performed at this stage as the performance is monitored and appropriate
actions to control the negative situations are taken. For example, if the web development project
will require more funding for completion then this situation could be controlled by taking right
action for the same as the managers will have funds because of effective planning of them. Here,
the details of progress of the project will also be shared with stakeholders of project so that
completion of it on time could be assured to them (Meredith, Shafer and Mantel Jr, 2017).
Closure: It is last stage of project lifecycle where the project managers take corrective
actions to close the project. It marks the official closure of project because it is completed
according to the plans and strategies of management teams. Here, the managers will demobilise
all the resources that were used by them during the project. In case of project of Sunshine
Homes, the project managers will share the information of completion of project with
stakeholder and make owed payments. At this stage, the IT infrastructure will be upgraded and
the new cloud-based management information system for the enterprise will be developed.
2. Creation of stakeholder register and communication management plan
Stakeholder register: Stakeholder register is a project document which is used for the
purpose of keeping detailed information of all the stakeholders of the project so that their needs,
expectations and requirements could be analysed. It is one of the most useful documents as with
the help of it, information of stakeholders could be gathered. For all the stakeholders of Sunshine
Home’s project a register is created below:
Stakeh Title Pow Influe Current Desired Interest Concerns
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older
name
er nce engagem
ent level
engageme
nt level
John
Martin
Director
General
Manager
High High Neutral Supportive Improved
performance of
business
No errors in
execution of all the
operations
Bes
West
Director
Finance
High High Neutral Supportive Effective use of
funds
Ignorance of
overspending of
budget
Silvia
Archer
Operations
manager
High Low Unaware Supportive Developed
entity
Removing error
from operations
Dave
Hunt
Customer
service
manager
Low Low Unaware Supportive Highly satisfied
customers
Quick resolution of
customer issues
Richar
ds
Woods
Finance
manager
High High Neutral Leading Proper
utilisation of
monetary
resources
Allocation of
funding
appropriately
Mary
Appleb
y
Administrat
ion
manager
Low Low Unaware Supportive Effective
management
Management related
issues
Kate
Rose
IT manager High High Supporti
ve
Leading Successfully
developed
infrastructure
Ignorance of error
in the IT
infrastructure
Phil
Brown
Director
(Outsourcin
g)
High Low Leading Supportive Proper
outsourcing the
services
properly
Meeting needs of
the client
Jack
Fry
IT Team
leader
Low High Leading Supportive Appropriate
performance of
all the staff
members
Supervising the
individuals of team
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Communication management plan: It could be defined as a plan which is used in project
management to analyse the way in which important information related to project will be
communicated with the stakeholders. Main aim of it is to promote success of the project by
making sure that all the information needs are met successfully (Rasnacis and Berzisa, 2017). A
communication plan which is developed for the project of Sunshine Homes for the upgradation
of IT infrastructure and development of new cloud-based management information system is as
follows:
Description Frequency Method Audience Owner
Project team
meeting
Daily basis Personal meeting All the members
of project team
Manager of the
project
Board meeting Weekly Formal meetings All the board
members
Project manager
Contribution to
department
newsletter
Monthly basis Sending
newsletter
All the
departments of
the organisation
Managers
working on the
project
Updates to
stakeholders
Every two
weeks
Emails or video
conferencing
Stakeholders
related to project
Project manager
3. Creation of project charter
Project charter: It could be defined as the short document which provides brief
information about the project so that all the stakeholders can get aware of all the activities of the
project. It is very important document as it can help to provide brief but accurate information to
all the individuals who are involved in the project. With the help of it, it could be analysed that
project is progressing or not. The project charter for the project of Sunshine Homes for
developing IT infrastructure and upgradation of new management information systems is as
follows:
Project Charter
Project Name Development of IT infrastructure and
upgradation of cloud-based new management
information systems
Objective Completing the project in specific time limit
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and developing the entity
Organisation Sunshine Homes
Scope Successful completion of the project in
predetermined time duration and budget
Time 3 years
Budget
Quality All the software and hardware which will be
used for project will be check for quality
before using so that quality could be assured.
Stakeholders John Martin
Bes West
Silvia Archer
Dave Hunt
Richards Woods
Mary Appleby
Kate Rose
Phil Brown
Jack Fry
Key resources Human capital
Hardware
Monetary resources
Software
4. Creation of project network diagram
Project network diagram: It could be defined as a diagram which helps to analyse the
way in which activities related to project will be completed in the specific time limit (Turner,
2016). The network diagram for the project of Sunshine Homes is as follows which helps to
analyse all the activities
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5. Calculation of the project cost and net present value
Project cost: The total cost of the project is the overall money required for completing it
successfully. There are various elements of it which are required to be focused at the time of
analysing the project cost. These are the project management, hardware, software, testing,
training and support etc. The project cost of the project of Sunshine Homes is as follows:
Units/Hrs. Cost/Unit/Hr. Subtotals
WBS
Level 1
Totals % of Total
WBS Items
1. Project Management $2,75,525 21%
1.1 Project manager 800 $120 $96,000
1.2 Project team members 1800 $70 $1,26,000
Contractors (10% of software
development and testing) $53,525
2. Hardware $89,000 7%
2.1 Handheld devices 110 $650 $71,500
2.2 Servers 5 $3,500 $17,500
3. Software $5,03,500 38%
3.1 Licensed software 110 $250 $27,500
3.2 Software development* $4,76,000
4. Testing (10% of total
hardware and software costs) $59,250 $59,250 4%
5. Training and Support $1,86,300 14%
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Start
Initiation Initiating the project formulating objectives for
future
Planning Measuring progress of all the
activities
sharing information with
project stakeholders
Execution Identifying needs of all the
departments
Assigning funds to all the
departments according to their
needs
Closure Demobilising the resources closing the project
Successful completion of the
project

5.1 Trainee cost 110 $450 $49,500
5.2 Travel cost 15 $720 $10,800
5.3 Project team members 1800 $70 $1,26,000
6. Reserves (20% of total
estimate) $2,22,715 $2,22,715 17%
Total project cost
estimate $13,36,290
Working notes for software development:
Contractor labor estimate 2500 $140 $3,50,000
Project team member estimate 1800 $70 $1,26,000
Total labor estimate $4,76,000
Function point estimate Quantity
Conversion
Factor
Function
Points
External inputs 12 3 36
External interface files 4 6 24
External outputs 4 7 28
External queries 4 5 20
Logical internal tables 7 12 84
Total function points 192
Java 2 language equivalency value 46
Source lines of code (SLOC) estimate 8,832
Productivity *KSLOC^Penalty (person
months) 40.40
Total labor hours (160 hours/month) 6,464.70
Cost/labor hour ($120/hour) $120
Total software development estimate 7,75,763
Net present value: The total value of a project after deducting all the costs is known as
net present value. The calculation of it for the project of Sunshine Homes is as follows:
Discount rate 10.00%
Assume the project is completed in Year 0 Year
0 1 2 3 Total
Costs 5,00,000 3,00,000 3,00,000 3,00,000
Discount factor 1.00 0.91 0.83 0.75
Discounted costs 5,00,000 2,73,000 2,49,000 2,25,000 12,47,000
Benefits 0 8,50,000 5,50,000 6,00,000
Discount factor 1.00 0.91 0.83 0.75
Discounted benefits 0 7,73,500 4,56,500 4,50,000 16,80,000
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Discounted benefits -
costs (5,00,000) 5,00,500 2,07,500 2,25,000 4,33,000 NPV
Cumulative benefits -
costs (5,00,000) 500 2,08,000 4,33,000
ROI 35%
Payback in Year 1
Discount rate 10.00%
Assume the project is completed in Year 0 Year
0 1 2 3 Total
Costs 60,000 10,000 5,000 3,000
Discount factor 1.00 0.91 0.83 0.75
Discounted costs 60,000 9,100 4,150 2,250 75,500
Benefits 0 75,000 14,000 12,000
Discount factor 1.00 0.91 0.83 0.75
Discounted benefits 0 68,250 11,620 9,000 88,870
Discounted benefits -
costs (60,000) 59,150 7,470 6,750 13,370 NPV
Cumulative benefits -
costs (60,000) (850) 6,620 13,370
ROI 18%
Payback in Year 1
6. Creation of project work breakdown structure
Work Breakdown Structure: WBS is a part of project management plan which is used
for the purpose of analyse the structural execution of all the activities so that all the staff
members can get aware of their responsibilities and liabilities (Walker and Lloyd-Walker, 2016).
If The work breakdown structure for the project of Sunshine Homes is as follows:
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CONCLUSION
From the above project report, it has been concluded that project management is the
process of measuring and controlling all the activities of the project so that the success could be
assured. There are various aspects of it which are also required to be focused by all the entities.
These are project life cycle stages that initiation, planning, execution and closure, stakeholder
register, communication management plan etc. Apart from this, project network diagram is also
required to be formulated along with the work breakdown structure.
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Project of Sunshine Homes
Project
management
Project
manager
Project
team
members
Hardware
Handled
devices Servers
Software
Licensed
software
Software
development
Testing
Training
and
support
Training cost
Travel cost
Project team
members
Reserves

REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Delisle, J., 2019. Uncovering temporal underpinnings of project management
standards. International Journal of Project Management. 37(8). pp.968-978.
Görög, M., 2016. A broader approach to organisational project management maturity
assessment. International Journal of Project Management. 34(8). pp.1658-1669.
Heagney, J., 2016. Fundamentals of project management. Amacom.
Hoda, R. and Murugesan, L. K., 2016. Multi-level agile project management challenges: A self-
organizing team perspective. Journal of Systems and Software. 117. pp.245-257.
Kerzner, H., 2017. Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and
controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
Kerzner, H., 2019. Using the project management maturity model: strategic planning for project
management. John Wiley & Sons.
Meng, X. and Boyd, P., 2017. The role of the project manager in relationship
management. International Journal of Project Management. 35(5). pp.717-728.
Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M. and Mantel Jr, S. J., 2017. Project Management: A Strategic
Managerial Approach. John Wiley & Sons.
Rasnacis, A. and Berzisa, S., 2017. Method for adaptation and implementation of agile project
management methodology. Procedia Computer Science. 104. pp.43-50.
Turner, R., 2016. Gower handbook of project management. Routledge.
Walker, D. and Lloyd-Walker, B., 2016. Rethinking project management. International Journal
of Managing Projects in Business.
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