9 Assignment: Pick your Project

Pick Your Project semester-long Assignment


The rest of the semester we will be work on a Project Management Plan using a project you will choose from the three provided preliminary Scope Statements. Each week you will be asked to create a part of the plan based on the project you choose. A sample Preliminary Scope Statement is provided below to help you get started.  

How do I choose a project?

I have provided three sample (draft) scope statements along with this document.  Although I am providing examples, it is best that you will actually execute whether it be for work or in your personal life.  This has been the advice from students in past semesters to keep them interested and motivated throughout the term. You should look over all three of the following documents and consider your own projects to make a decision.

Example 1: Shed

Example 2: Fundraiser

Example 3: Website

How to get started

  1. Review the examples above carefully and consider any your own project ideas that you could potentially carry out in real life.  Consider if you could work on this project for the rest of the semester.
  2.  If you choose a provided draft project, you may change any details about the project as you would like.  Make it your own!
  3. When you have decided, first take the Develop my Scope Statement questionnaire to help you start to brainstorm your scope statement.  After completing, you will be able to see the answers to your questions.
  4. Your Instructor will provide feedback on your submissions to help guide your project scope.  You will use this information for next week’s Scope Statement draft.

What if I want to change my mind?

You should choose a project that you are interested in working through the rest of the semester. It is possible to change your idea or tweak it to go in another direction, but starting next week you will be writing parts of the plan that will go in the final project so if you dramatically change your project, you will have to rewrite all the documentation.

Some clarifications on the questions to consider:

Project Team:

You must have a team so you can manage your team. Your team can be real people or a pretend group of people you believe would be needed to complete the project. Every project is different so more people will be needed for some projects but I ask that you have a minimum of three people other than yourself.
Project Objective:
This must answer the questions of:
What (short description of the outcome),
When (project deadline with date),
Where it will take place (if necessary),
for Who (customer)
How Much Will it Cost (budget).
You should write it in paragraph form as described in chapter 4.
Deliverables (5+):
What will your project provide? You should have a least five deliverables listed here. This is a list of items that will be produced during the project. This list can include thoughts as well. The list should show movement through the project. Consider that these should represent each of the phases of Project Management lifecycle (Initiation, Planning, Execution, Monitor & Control, & Closing).
To come up with your list, consider the important steps of the project and also the parts of the project that can be broken down into smaller tasks.
Milestones (5+):
Please make sure you have listed a date for each of these major steps through your project.
Example: Purchase building supplies by March 3, 2020.
Technical Requirements/Limits and Exclusions (5+):
Please include at least five items in each of these categories.
This can be measurements, technical qualifications, trainings, technology requirements, time requirements, etc.
Customer Review:
Who will be the person who can oversee the progress of the project? This should be a certain person by name or title.
See the sample below. You will submit a preliminary scope statement which I will evaluate and provide comments. There is a template in this module. 

 

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Project Management Basics Copyright © by Sharon Blanchard is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.