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IT 328 Final Project

William Todd

Southern New Hampshire University

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TO: John Doe, Project Manager

FROM: William Todd, Team Member for IT Development Project

DATE: April 18, 2020

SUBJECT: Student Degree Progress Tool Project

Students at Regatta University need an online portal for easy to access information

related to, but not limited to, their degree program. The goal is to establish a user-friendly web

portal which allows students easy access to their academic programs. Students will have access

to course information, registration information, and grades. As outlined in the attached project

charter, I have listed the key objectives:

This project will include the creation of graphic elements, within a web-friendly format.

This project should be completed within the budget that was agreed upon. This project must be

executed free of all major errors and must be completed no later than November 13.

Key Stakeholders and Roles:

Project Sponsor: Jane Smith

Jane will oversee this project in its entirety, and ensure all the stakeholders wants are met, as

well as making sure the project is a success. Jane will set a budget goal, and a plan as to how the

project will stay on budget. It is Janes responsibility of keeping the project on track from

beginning to end.

Project Manager: John Doe

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As project manager, John has the task of writing the project charter and creating the project

management plan. John will work to define the scope of the project, as well as create a budget

plan that will adhere to the project sponsor’s allocated budget resources. John will compile a

Gantt chart, illustrating scheduling as well as milestones throughout this project. It is also John’s

responsibility to monitor the progress of the project until completion. As the project reaches

completion, John will perform reflections and compile a final report.

Backend Systems Analyst: John Jones

John Jones’ task is to create an architectural design of the back end of the application (for data

processing) as well as coming up with back-end code to send and process the data within the web

application.

Systems Analyst: Shila Cole

Shila, John Jones, and Ana Fischer will work together on much of this project. Specifically, Shila

creates a test plan, which includes all system components. Together, both system analysts and

Ana, will runs various tests to ensure proper application behavior. They will run tests which will

ensure both the front-end and back end components work properly. They will also monitor the

risks throughout the duration of the project.

Middleware Application Developer: Ana Fischer

Ana will create a mock user interface, which then she will submit for review. Ana will develop a

front-end architectural design, which is used for the application. Ana’s task also includes the

developing of the web code which receives data from the back end and places the data within the

GUI.
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Core Stakeholder: Arthur Bowman

Arthur assumes the role of the customer, or user. Arthur’s involvement in developing the scope

of the project, as well as informed of various steps throughout the duration of the project. Arthur

will test the end project, then communicate feedback to the team members. See Appendix A and

B.

I have chosen the role of application developer, which in this given scenario, is Ana

Fischer. An application developer is responsible for creating the software application for the

project. This person creates the mock user interface for review, followed up by coming up with a

design for the front end of the application. Some important responsibilities of the application

developer are analyzing the data to meet an applications specifications and requirements, which

is often done in collaboration with other analysts on the same project. It is often the

responsibility of the application developer to write the code for the application. Once the coding

step is complete, it is then necessary to test the application to make sure it operates as planned.

According to the Gannt chart, the application developer’s tasks should begin on day 9.

For this project, it is day 9 when the application developer will be creating a mockup user

interface to be reviewed. It is also on day 9, an added task of creating a mockup user interface for

an added pop up informational box should happen. These tasks should take a total of two days to

complete. In addition, the application developer is scheduled to create the design for the front

end of the application on day 9 of the project. These three tasks should all be done on day 11,

according to the Gannt chart. In perspective, these tasks should get done pretty early on in the

project, with the only predecessors being done by the project manager in the first few days of the

project, which include creating the project charter, management plan, defining the scope, and

creating the Gannt chart.

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On day 11, the application developer should begin creating the web code to receive and

place data within the GUI. This task is scheduled to take five days to complete. On day 16, the

application developer will work with the other system analysts and will begin a series of testing

to ensure the application works as planned. It is important the predecessor tasks are done prior to

this step, because the application must be ready to go, for the tests to be done. These steps are

crucial to ensure that the application will be ready to go live, which is scheduled for day 26.

The new element that I have chosen to implement into the project is the addition of a pop

up (callout) information box, that will give students even more information when they hover

over it when using the application. This small detail will give students easy access to additional

information when they are using the web portal. Regarding the triple constraint relationship

between this projects scope, timeline and budget, only two of these factors will be altered. The

schedule may be changed slightly, however, this addition should not delay the completion of the

project. The addition of a pop-up information box will not add a significant amount of work to

the application developers task load. See Appendix C.

The scope of the project will remain the same, even with the addition of this detail. As

described in the project charter, the concepts of creating graphical elements in a web friendly

format and creating the needed web service to allow students access to their information will not

be affected. One aspect of the project that will change is constraints. In the initial project charter,

it states that there will be no additional funding resources available. However, with this addition,

the team has been allowed an extra 10,000 to cover development and execution of this new task.
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Project Risk and Risk Mitigation

With the completion of the student degree progress tool project, there are various risks

involved. The risk I have chosen to discuss is a risk regarding the rollout of the project, meaning

when it goes live. The web portal being designed will be highly accessible to all students 24/7.

There is a risk that the high number of changes happening during the time it goes live, that the

system could jam up and potentially go offline, temporarily making the system unavailable. The

likelihood of this happening is low; however, all risks need to be identified and looked at

carefully.

The probability of this risk happening should remain low, if the team members stay on

schedule and perform all the scheduled tests prior to going live. If the project stays on schedule,

the various tests can start as early as day 16 of the month-long project. More integrated testing is

slated to begin on day 21, which is done to ensure front end components and back end

components speak to each other properly. On day 26, the project begins to transition into a live

environment. This step should mimic the environment on the day it becomes available to

students. Of course, there is still potential risk for the system to get bogged down, or for the

application to freeze up during the launch because there may be lots of students trying to access

it all at one time but if proper testing is done, this is not likely to happen. These tests will help to

mitigate risks involved; however, they will not affect the overall success of the project.

The best strategy to avoid such risks, as well as ensure the project launches as smoothly

as possible, is to run all the testing scenarios as described in the Gannt chart. All the tests should

be done multiple times before the project goes live, so team members have time to correct any

errors that may happen. The project schedule allows for ample time to run all the needed tests, so
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theoretically, the project should not be delayed, nor will the scope of the project be affected at

all.

Completion of this project will greatly benefit the students at Regatta University. The

creation of the student degree progress tool I have described will aid students in their educational

journey at Regatta University. As laid out in the project charter, I believe the team can get the

project completed, on time, with very minimal risk, while staying within the budget allocated by

the project sponsor. I have included a copy of the Student Degree Project Charter, the RACI

chart, as well as my updated Gantt chart to help you get a clear understanding of what this

project entails. I look forward to the completion and launch of the Student Degree Progress Tool

in the near future.

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Appendix

Appendix A

Regatta University
IT Project Charter
For
Student Degree Progress
Version 1.0
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Table of Contents
Document History
Executive Summary
Project Purpose/Justification
Project Description
Preliminary Scope Statement
Out of Scope
Project Objectives and Success Criteria
Constraints
Assumptions
Project Deliverables
Project Resource Estimate
Summary Milestone Schedule
Summary Budget
Project Approval Requirements
Project Organization
Authorization
Project Team
Directors of Assigned Resources
Project Sponsor
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Document History
Document Revision/Release Status
Revision Date Description of Changes Author / Editor
0.1 6/29/15 Initial format Jane Smith

1.0 8/31/15 Initial draft John Doe

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Executive Summary
Students leverage a web portal to access university-related information and resources. Content within it
can be targeted to all users or to those within a pre-specified role (e.g., students at a particular campus)
or it can be user-specific.
As an academic institution, one piece of information critical to students is their current progress in their
degree program or programs.
The purpose of the student degree progress project is to create an area to display user-specific academic
progress.

Project Purpose/Justification
University leadership requested this project to promote student awareness and provide students easy
access to their degree progress.

Project Description
Preliminary Scope Statement
The purpose of this project is to create an area that displays user-specific academic progress within
the appropriate roles, leveraging data through a back-end system. This project will include the
necessary modifications to the back end to relay this information. More specifically, this project will
include the following:
 Creating the graphical elements in a web-friendly format
 Creating the necessary web view to accommodate the graphical elements
 Creating the necessary changes to the back end to prepare data supporting the student
information
 Creating the necessary web service to securely expose the student’s information to the
graphical elements and web view

Out of Scope
Due to business-specific processes, some students, particularly those who have been pursuing a
degree for over four years, may not be able to see their academic progress using the deliverables of
this project. Changes to the back end to expand this functionality are out of scope, as are any
changes intended to enhance functionality to provide additional data beyond the academic progress
already captured in another system.

Project Objectives and Success Criteria

 The project will provide the functionality described within the preliminary scope statement.
 The project will be delivered without incurring any additional expenses.
 The project will be delivered free from any significant defects or without causing any down time.
 The project will be delivered no later than two weeks from the target time frame defined within
the milestone schedule below.
Constraints
 Additional funding is not available.
 The information available to students is derived from data within the back end and is as
accurate, timely, and available as the source data and its structuring.
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Assumptions
 No major changes in formatting or scope will be presented during the life of the project.
Project Deliverables
 Project Charter
 Project Management Plan
 Design
o User Interface Mockup
o Architectural Design
 Test Plan
 Test Scenarios

Project Resource Estimate

The student degree progress project is estimated to use the following resources:

Project Resource Estimate

Resource Estimated Work Hours
Project Manager 48 Hours
Systems Analyst 12 Hours
Middleware Applications Developer 44 Hours
Backend Systems Analyst 50 Hours
Total: 154 Hours

Summary Milestone Schedule

Summary Milestone Schedule – List key project milestones relative to project start
Project Milestone Target Date
Project Start September 1
Graphical Component Unit Complete September 23
Web View Unit Complete September 25
Backend Unit Complete October 7
Integration Testing Complete October 14
Submit to Leadership October 26
Leadership Acceptance November 2
Transition to Production November 5
Project Closeout November 13

Summary Budget
Fiscal Year
Summary Budget – List component project costs
Project Component Component Cost
Hardware $0
Software and Licensing $0
Vendor N/A
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Total $0

Project Approval Requirements

The project will be completed once all requirements are met and all deliverables have been received
and approved by the client.

Project Organization
Role Name(s) – Department(s)

Project Sponsor Jane Smith

Project Manager John Doe

Core Stakeholder Arthur Bowman

Vendor Resources None

Project Team Members Shila Cole, Ana Fischer, John Jones

Authorization
Approval of this project charter provides authorization to move forward in accordance with the
information contained in this document.

Project Team
John Doe, Project Manager Date:
Shila Cole, Systems Analyst Date:
Ana Fischer, Middleware Application Developer Date:
John Jones, Backend Systems Analyst Date:

Directors of Assigned Resources

Michael Erdmann, Middleware Director Date:
Amber McLedon, Applications Director Date:
Cynthia Carmom, PMO Director/Acting Student Systems Director Date:

Project Sponsor
Jane Smith, Project Sponsor
Date:
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Appendix B

Develop the back-end code to process data and send it to the

11 A/R
web application
12 Create a defined test plan for all system components A/R C/I C/I
Test the scenarios defined in the test plan for proper
13 A/R R R
application behavior

Perform integration testing to ensure that the front-end

components and back-end components speak to each other as
14 I A/R R R
well as integrate seamlessly with the rest of the web
application

Transition web application into production environment (go-

15 C/I A/R A/R
live)
16 Monitor project progress throughout its life cycle A/R I
17 Manage project deliverables for records and hand-off A/R I
18 Assess and manage risks throughout the project life cycle A/R R R R
19 Develop the final project report I A/R I
20 Perform project reflections A/R C C C

Appendix C
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ID Task Task Name Duration Start Day End Day Predecessors Resource
Mode January 2017
Names February 2017 March 2017
11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
1 Create the project charter 1 day Day 1 Day 2 John Doe John Doe
2 Develop the project management 2 days Day 2 Day 4 1 John Doe John Doe
plan
3 Define the project scope 4 days Day 2 Day 6 1 John Doe John Doe
4 Create a formal budget and budget 2 days Day 6 Day 8 3 John Doe John Doe
plan
5 Fill in a Gantt chart with the project 1 day Day 8 Day 9 4 John Doe John Doe
schedule and milestones
6 Develop a user interface mockup for 2 days Day 9 Day 11 5 Ana Fischer Ana Fischer
review
7 Develop a user interface mockup for 2 days? Day 9 Day 11 5 Ana Fischer Ana Fischer
a pop up information box
8 Create the architectural design for 2 days Day 9 Day 11 5 Ana Fischer Ana Fischer
the front end of the application
(user-facing)
9 Create the architectal design for the 2 days Day 9 Day 11 5 John Jones John Jones
back end of the application (for data
processing)
10 Develop the graphic user interface 5 days Day 11 Day 16 6 Ana Fischer Ana Fischer
(GUI) for the degree tracker
11 Develop the web code to receive 5 days Day 11 Day 16 8 Ana Fischer Ana Fischer
data from the back end and place
data within the GUI
12 Develop the back-end code to 5 days Day 11 Day 16 9 John Jones John Jones
process data and send it to the web
application
13 Create a defined test plan for all 2 days Day 11 Day 13 8,9 Shila Cole Shila Cole
system components
14 Test the scenarios defined in the 5 days Day 16 Day 21 10,11,12 Ana Ana Fischer,John Jones,Shila Cole
test plan for proper application Fischer,John
behavior Jones,Shila
15 Perform integration testing to 5 days Day 21 Day 26 14 Cole
Ana Ana Fischer,John Jones,Shila Cole
ensure that the front-end Fischer,John
components and back-end Jones,Shila
components speak to each other as Cole
well as integrate seamlessly with
16 the rest of web
Transition the web application
application into 1 day Day 26 Day 27 15 Ana Ana Fischer,John Jones
production environment (go-live) Fischer,John
Jones
17 Monitor project progress 29 days Day 1 Day 30 John Doe John Doe
throughout its life cycle
18 Manage project deliverables for 29 days Day 1 Day 30 John Doe John Doe
records and hand-off
19 Assess and manage risks throughout 29 days Day 1 Day 30 Ana Ana Fischer,John Doe,John Jones,Shila Cole
the project life cycle Fischer,John
Doe,John
Jones,Shila
Cole
20 Develop the final project report 3 days Day 27 Day 30 16 John Doe John Doe
21 Perform project reflections 1 day Day 27 Day 28 16 John Doe John Doe