Establishing a Business Consultancy for a Start-up Company - Assignment Example

A PROJECT CHARTER Sponsor: My Project Establishing a business consultancy for a start-up company that provides consumer website building tools Prepared By: My name Date: nearly Problem/Opportunity Statement: ( 6 marks) Dubai is among the countries with rapidly growing economies and a business hub in the Asian continent. Many businesses continue to thrive in the region every day owing to its accessibility to Africa, Asia, Europe and America among the middle east countries. The current business domain needs to take into account the changing technological application to better harness profit from the ever increasing world customer base. Dubai, like other economic hubs in the world, has attracted investors and business potentials from both local populations as well as from abroad. Todays business activities transacted across the borders need to be automated to minimize expenses that come with the need to travels to make purchases and sales to various persons. Internet provisions can be developed which can help business persons to carry out their businesses through online platforms. Dubai, despite being a regional economic hub is deficient in technological applications, especially regarding business. This has tremendously reduced earnings and business potentials of various persons transacting businesses from within and without. The available internet facilities are poorly maintained, expensive to host and maintain and sometimes unreliable making businesses unpredictable and loses prone. Besides, many famous business organizations shy away from venturing into ebusiness due to inability to develop and maintain web based business practices. This project capitalizes on these facts to provide consultancy services to various business organizations that wish to automate their ebusinesses with an aim of increasing their customers’ bases and hence profit margins. The absence of such a company in the region is expected to be a boost to this project since there is expected to be less, if not the absence of, competition during the initial phases of the business. Currently, only one consultancy firm (ztech company) has shown interests in venturing into such business opportunity in Dubai. Key Deliverables( 6 marks) 1. Provide a relative scope for assembling Website designers and blogging platforms products into one. 2. Provide web hosting capabilities to consumers at a reduced cost 3. Serve the needs of the developers who need to add back-end code not provided by competitors. 4. Promote the scope for the professional community (web designers, photographers, and product integrators) involvement in better helping customers make their websites and also reduce the time for making a website. 5. Recommend appropriate pricing structure for each segment. 6. Avail the advertising tools for carrying out activities such as advertising, branding and communications strategy, its associated costs and estimated returns and measurement. Key Requirements ( 6 marks) A business-friendly environment that can facilitate innovation and creativity. Adequate capacity to accommodate ebusiness technologies. Adequate and available information among team members that is suitable for establishing the project requirements Timely, convenient and satisfactory provisions to the clients Political goodwill among the local leadership to see forth the success of the project Suitable bureaucratic procedures for ease in implementation Exclusions( 2 marks) Long bureaucratic procedures that may hinder effective and efficient implementation of the project needs. This is to ensure that the project is accomplished within the expected time frame and as planned. Political bad will towards technological implementation. This may interfere with the implementation process or limit the planned ideas. BENEFIT KPIs Expansion of business opportunities both in the local and in the international realms Increased customers base Market expansion by up to 50% in the first year of operation Up to 20% increase in the number of customers within the first half of the year Reduced operational expenses Up to 50% reduction in the costs of business operations in the first year of business. Strategic Alignment( 6 marks) Needs identification: the project will identify the varied needs of various individuals and small businesses and determine why and how they build or opt to build websites, and what they look for when building such websites. Segmentation and Competitor analysis: this project will also carry out a competitor analysis to find out whether competitors satisfy all the needs of consumers. Pricing: the study shall also recommend a pricing structure for each segment. Advertising: the tools shall provide a suitable plan for carrying out various activities such as advertising, branding and communications strategy, its associated costs and estimated returns and measurement Finance: Estimate the capabilities and resources required for starting the business in Dubai, and associated costs involved in starting and running the business. Suggest which functions/tasks can be outsourced and which ones are needed internally. Building Capabilities and Management structures: Suggest strategies for building and boosting internal capabilities and the systems/policies that would guide the future direction for the organization - key areas includes the organizational structure, HR policies, training, employee satisfaction, knowledge management, organizational learning, marketing and holistic marketing orientations. Approximate Cost ( Budget) To successfully implement the project within the context of the target region, approximately US $100,000 will be required. About 50% shall be used in acquiring the equipment, 30% for infrastructure 15% for labour and 5% for contingent needs. Approximate Timeframe The approximate time required for full establishment of the project is 3 months Key Risks Online advertising is a challenge. Online advertising is a complete new field in the business sector. Many people especially the older generation are not aware of the concepts and fundamentals of the exercise. Expertise will, therefore, be required to steer the entire process and ensure proper maintenance of the systems concerned. In spite of identifying customers needs, speaking to potential customers directly, and making a good product, there is still an uncertainty as to how many people will ultimately buy the product. There is no way to predict the future with a definitive level of accuracy. Market conditions could change affecting the pricing of the product, consumer tastes could change, and so on. The mentioned techniques will reduce uncertainty, but can never eliminate it. Market dynamics: it is not certain that the target market will be stable all through. There are instances when the market is at its lowest, and this can negatively affect maximum utilization of the services provided Poor infrastructural developments in the areas targeted by the project could as well be a hindrance to its success. Technological applications are fully reliant on the internet. In some places, Internet applications are not stable and fall out from time to time. This may affect peoples levels of access and maximum utilization of the resources availed to them APPROVAL Yes/No Authority: ______________________________ Date:____________ Sponsor REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY MATRIX ( 8 marks) Product Requirement Deliverable component 1. Availability of a conducive environment for carry-out work requirements. 1. Renting a workstation of about 20mX20m in an office environment where web building services can be availed such as the stable internet. 2. A supportive environment and atmosphere that can enable creative and innovative developments. 2. Purchase of not less than ten computers and latest technology aids that support web building opportunities. 3. Capacity to adopt international design standards and requirements to be able to link up to the www. 3. Recruit at least five experts who have the adequate knowledge and skills of the latest creative web building trends 4. Continuous information on web building, updates, and hosting 4 Subscribe for updates from famous web building companies such as Google, Microsoft, etc. as well as have constant updates within our in-office library. A possible scope change that is requested by Sponsor 10 marks: Project title Establishing a business consultancy for a start-up company that provides consumer website building tools Change request number: 1 Date: Requested change The consultancy firm be established in a competitive business town of Abu Dhabi Feasibility Abu Dhabi has a competitive business environment with stable network provisions suitable for the project, good infrastructure, security, and suitable market. The cost of hiring a workstation here is relatively low. The cost of equipment in Abu Dhabi is also relatively cheap compared to the previous town. The centrality of the city promotes its market potentiality. Impact on Benefits There will be no negative impacts on this decision. The cost of operation and acquisition of operation equipment is expected to reduce Impact on budget The overall budget of the project shall be reduced by up to 5%. This is due to reduced costs of transportation. Besides, accessibility of library resources shall be reduced since many online and built libraries are available within the city and which we can use at a cheaper cost Impact on schedule The establishment period shall be reduced by approximately one month since all equipment, expertise and other operation requirements shall be acquired from a centralized point. Impact on quality Good reliable internet provision will improve the work quality. Abundant research centers within Abu Dhabi would aid in the accessibility of research materials for quality improvements and upgrade. Abu Dhabi is highly populated with business people from all over the world. This is expected to increase the customers base Location within Abu Dhabi will enhance our access to the outside world and grow the business at a faster rate Recommended by: Date: 10/05/2014 Approved by: Date: 22/05/2014 Revised section of the WBS in regards to the requested scope change 1.0 1.1 1.1.1 1.1.2 1.1.3 Project management Scope management Collect requirements Review of the requirements Create scope for documents 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.3.1 5.3.2 Workstation establishment Purchase the necessary office equipment Arrange the location Confirm power connection Ensure cables are in good working condition Check the lighting systems PART II (30 marks) CASE STUDY: "Goal Definition and Performance Indicators in Soft Projects." 1. What are the: (16 marks) Deliverable(s) (4 marks) The key deliverable for this project is: to design a program that will help in examining the professional responsibility command and promote civilian oversight agencies by providing an opportunity to investigate and deal with corruption and complaints of serious misconduct within the police service Component deliverables are: (4 marks) 1. Develop a feedback mechanism into the central server at the NSW police service 2. Provide the NSW police service with a systematic project management framework that can link the public and the police service directly (change management) Benefits (4) 1. Enhance the existing management frameworks by introducing better strategies and management techniques 2. Minimizing corruption practices in the police force by enhancing monitoring practices 3. Enhance the quality of police supervision and prevention of grafts KPI for one of the benefits Reduce corruption cases in the police force by up to 100% in the first year of project implementation Strategic alignment (4) 1. Enhance police monitoring and management services in New South Wales by introducing technological monitoring systems 2. Prevent corruption cases in the police force by involving the public sector in the monitory process 3. Ease feedback mechanisms over graft cases through technological applications through public integration 1. Describe one specific project planning problem encountered in this project, and how it may have been avoided or better managed. (8 marks) The project described involved the creation of a software program that would help in police monitory processes in a bid to prevent the police force from being involved in graft cases. The project aimed at bringing both the public and the government in a collaborative monitoring process through technological connectivity. The public can use the applications to alert the relevant authorities to graft cases involving the police force. The effective implementation of the project was inhibited by problems relating to insufficient interconnectivity through internet applications (David, (2005). Some areas have no stable network connectivity. These areas were, therefore, devoid of police supervision and corruption cases could not be reported through the system. Such regions were not included in the project concerns. The exclusion made the project inappropriate to in fulfilling all the needs targeted during conception. The project involved the development of an interactive platform whereby the public could interact freely with the corruption monitoring body and remit any cases of graft involving the police. The software would be installed on the mobile phones of the individuals. One only had to download and install the App on his/her mobile phone. Once installed, the individual would take a picture or video of the scene and remit it to the authority for further action. However this did not work in some places due to poor internet connectivity since the project had to rely on the internet to transmit and receive the data packets (Saikat, Bin & Paul, (2010, November). Internet connectivity in all targeted places was not prioritized in the planning process to cover all regions resulting in failure of the project in some areas. 2. Describe one specific example of good project planning in the project (8 marks) The project described above is a soft project that was aimed at enhancing corruption monitoring processes in the region of New South Wales. The project was passed through a series of planning and execution phases. The success of the entire project lied upon correct identification of the relevant target population, the public, to be involved in the monitoring process. Systematic identification procedures were used to identify and categorize the target population about their location and mobile phone possession as recommended by The National Audit Office (2001). In regions where the network was often strong and reliable, success was met. Although the conception stage was based on the assumption that all people possessing mobile phones in New South Wales would download the App and use it appropriately, insights on knowledge of the Apps usability were not taken into account. However, the project team worked out relevant and efficient strategies quickly to reach out to all persons through the use of both the print and electronic media deemed suitable by Jehoshua, & Thomas, (1988, August) for public education. Public education and awareness were easily created using these media platforms leading to an all inclusive adoption of the project by a staggering majority. Besides, there was a continued evaluation and reorganization of the project content, target, and coverage based on the following areas: Ability to satisfactorily meet the needs of the intended audience while ensuring efficiency and reliability of the application in meeting the demands of the target population Ability to update the system continuously by upgrading its contents to suit the varying and varied needs of the targeted persons References David, G. (2005). Factors Affecting the Successful Implementation of ICT Projects in Government. Electronic Journal of e-Government, 3 (4), 175-184. Jehoshua, E., & Thomas, S. R. (1988, August). New Product Preannouncing Behavior. Journal of Marketing Research, 282-92. National Audit Office. (2001). A Practical Guide to Sampling. Retrieved 2001, from http://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2001/06/SamplingGuide.pdf Saikat, G., Bin, C., & Paul, F. (2010, November). Challenges in Measuring Online Advertising Systems. IMC’10, 1–3. Read More