Section A
Statement of Work
Project Summary
The project is for the client Anvil Corporation. The project involves installation of new and bigger servers for the firm, update of employee computers and development of another website. The recent shift in marketing to online marketing has forced the firm to buy faster and bigger servers to ensure that all the database servers are attended to. Also, the older servers were not linked to all the processes of the firm.
Online marketing has proven its worth in modern markets because of the widespread use of the internet (Alallan, 2011, p. 1). The firm seeks to increase its market through the use of online advertisements, social media sites, and online videos. From the online market, the firm has predicted higher user feedback from clients and suppliers. Thus the updated servers’ project will need to cater for all these activities and concurrently manage the virtual processes in the firm.
Working will be limited from 8 AM to 5 PM from Monday to Friday.
Service Description
Servers update requires the acquisition of computers and development of new software to suit the hardware. Implementation of the project will be concurrent but divided into three groups. The process will not interfere with any process such as stopping machines for extended periods and switching off the website.
The first group will work on installing the servers. These servers will be responsible for management of the company processes and the network requests. Software specially designed for the computer such as the operating systems, security, and access control systems will be developed. The customer website will be authentication and authorization based to protect the privacy of the users.
The second group will work on the wiring the machines and computers to the servers. By fixing conduit pipes in the walls of the company, the machines will be connected by use of wire and optic cables. The third group will install programs and customize the machines in the firm. The Access Control programs will be customized to suit the various job descriptions at Anvil. Through the cables, the machines will be connected to the servers. All the processes will take place in the company premises except the development of the programs; this will depend on the vendor.
Deliverable
The project’s first expectation is to have the first team through with the installation of programs in the employee and system computers. This process will also require that the computers are limited to user access hence will require security programs. Also, the vendor will develop accounts on the social media platforms. The vendor will take pictures of the company premises to be put up on the website and social media platforms.
The process should not significantly interfere with the working processes of the company; hence, the wiring process will be done in segments. The process should also not interfere with already present wiring and other connections. The wiring will, therefore, be hidden on the walls and conduit pipes used.
The database is required to be completed in three months. The software development and testing processes are expected to take the longest time hence the three months. The materials to be purchased will be dependent on the vendor. The database will be connected to all the automated and virtual processes in and outside the company. Access to the database will incorporate various security features such as access control, authorization, and authentication.
Payment Schedule
Anvil Corporation will cover all the extra costs such as the purchase of servers and wiring materials. Also, in case of sub-contractors, Anvil will cover the costs. The vendor will, therefore, only receive payments for their services. Meals for the employees in the company premises will be catered for by Anvil in the company canteen.
Payments will be paid in three monthly installments to the vendor. The company will not accept any financial liability for any subcontractors hired by the vendor.
Anvil has a financial budget of $100,000. However, the vendor will be paid a total of $50,000. The rest is meant for buying of the computers, routers, wires and other necessary materials required.
Subcontractors
Anvil will only be financially liable to the subcontractors that provide materials needed for the project. Only the materials’ subcontractor is acceptable for the project. Financial liability for labor issues is limited to the vendor. Therefore, in seeking the vendor, Anvil requires a contractor capable of efficiently implementing the project without external subcontractors.
Representatives
- Mrs. Jennifer Martins-Project Manager
- Representative from Vendor
- Albert Andrews-Representative from Subcontractor
Acceptance Criteria
Rejection and acceptability criteria will be determined by the following;
- Adherence to safety in fitting the conduit pipes
- Access control, authentication and authorization security features incorporated into the system
- Fast access to internet and servers by both users and employees respectively
Section B
Project Selection
Project selection is mostly determined by the financial capabilities of a firm in implementing them (Monnapa, 2017, p. 1). However, there are other factors considered in the project evaluations process (Kettering, 2006, pp. 2-3);
- The senior management’s commitment to the project- the will by the management team to embrace the project is critical because they are empowered to make decisions on financial budgets of companies (Kettering, 2006, p. 2).
- The project’s linkage to the goals of the firm- the project should be aimed at realizing the company goals such as reduction of operational costs or improving the marketing strategy.
- Available funds for the project- without financial funds a project is foregone for a smaller one.
- The projects’ plan of implementation- this involves the deadlines and clarity of process.
Business cases for projects are important in businesses for strategizing on risks and financial concept. Lack of these cases leads to (Mar, 2012, p. 1);
- Chaotic projects- due to lack of the business cases planning, organization and control of projects is not implemented
- Unmanaged risks- business project management is responsible for the identification, management and control of risks, without which the risks are neither identified nor provision for mitigation procedure available.
- Unmatched processes- the business does not recognize other processes of the company in implementing the project which leads to unstandardized and unmatched processes and quality.
References
Alallan, F. (2011). The Small Business Online Marketing Guide. Online Marketing, 1(1), 1-19. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/31748027/Online_Marketing
Kettering, C. (2006). The Importance of Project Selection. Six Sigma Qualtec, 1-6. Retrieved from http://www.ssqi.com/breakthroughs/whitepaper-pdfs/Project_selection_WP.pdf
Mar, A. (2012). Why Project Management is Important. Simplicable, 1(1), 1. Retrieved from https://management.simplicable.com/management/new/why-project-management-is-important
Monnapa, A. (2017). Project Selection Methods for Project Management Professionals. Simple learning, 1(1), 1. Retrieved from https://www.simplilearn.com/project-selection-methods-article
