Assessment Handbook
Managing Projects and Technology 2021/22
Table of Contents
QUESTION 1................................................................................................................................... 6
QUESTION 2................................................................................................................................... 7
QUESTION 3................................................................................................................................... 8
UNIV E RS IT Y OF S US S E X BUS INE S S S CHOOL
University of Sussex | Jubilee Building | Brighton BN1 9SL | United Kingdom T +44 (0)1273 872668 | [email protected]
Assessment 1 – Project Plan (PRJ) – 70%
Link to Module Learning Outcomes
- This assessment evaluates students’ ability to plan a project, which is a key learning outcome of this module.
Available project plan topics
- Each student must develop a Project Plan.
- To do so, first, they choose one of these project topics by Workshop 03:
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1. Developing a new business technology product (e.g., a software/an app) and bringing it to an organization to transform their operations (usually building with the help of a technical team) |
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2. Deploying an existing business technology in an organization to transform their operations (usually via buying the tech and planning for its implementation) |
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4. Using business technologies for social/humanitarian purposes. |
- Then, they specify the project topic for a business technology. Some business technologies that could be used include but are not limited to:
- Social media networks
- Mobile apps on productivity, healthcare, etc.
- Enterprise-wide systems (e.g., an ERP)
- Digital platforms (two-sided markets)
- Data Analytics (small or big data collection and processing)
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) including voice recognition, speech, chatbot, image and video processing
- Consumer products mass customization (printing name on shoes)
- Internet of Things (IoT) – Connected everything
- Geospatial – location trackers such as GPS, RFID, barcode scanners
- Virtual reality (VR)/Augmented reality (AR)
- Interactive retail technologies (e.g., ordering touch screens, finding the best clothing fit)
- Cryptocurrencies (digital assets)
- Blockchain and distributed ledgers
- Robotics and automation, autonomous work (e.g., driving)
- Digital content
- Next, students develop a detailed project plan.
Preparing the Project Plan
- To prepare your project plan, you should briefly complete and include all seven Project Chunks covered in the module. These project chunks are available throughout the PowerPoint files of workshops slides available on Study Direct.
- To succeed, make sure that your project plan fully addresses all seven project chunks.
- You should provide references to the articles, books, and other sources of information that you use.
- Avoid wordiness. The word count excludes the text in the tables, the references list, and appendices. The main project plan text should be a standalone narrative, without a need to read the tables. To enable this, for each table, explain the key item of it in the text. The purpose of a table is to include a short list of additional information, not long sentences and paragraphs that belong to the main text, so do not misuse tables.
- The length of the submission, 1500 words, can go 10% either side.
List of Project Chunks
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- Project Introduction and Justification
- Project Introduction: Describe the Project
- Project Introduction: Describe the parent organization of your project
- Project Introduction: Justify your project
- Project Introduction: List similar projects in the past
- Project Stakeholders
- Identify key stakeholders of your project
- Develop a communication management plan for your project
- Plan for influencing your project stakeholders
- Explain the origin of the core project team
- Identify a project champion for your project
- Project Scope
- Define a SMART project objective
- Create phased deliverables
- Define DUMBS work packages
- List key scope exclusions
- Outsource some work packages
- Project Schedule
- Estimate the duration of each work package
- Define the dependencies of all work packages
- Schedule the work packages and identify the critical path
- Project Budget
- Plan outgoing cash for your project
- Determine cost reserves for your project
- Plan incoming cash for your project
- Analyse the cash flow of your project
- Analyse the financial performance of the project
- Project Risk Management
- Identify key risk factors in your project
- Analyse the impact potential (risk exposure) of the identified risk factors
- Plan risk mitigation strategies for top risks
- Project Execution, Control, Closure and Evaluation
- Plan coordination of key integration points in the project
- Plan key progress control tollgates
- Plan for evaluating and demonstrating project success
- Project Introduction and Justification
Submitting the Project Plan
- Please refer to your assessment timetable on Sussex Direct for the submission date.
- This will be an E-submission, you must submit two files that contains your Word File Project Plan and your Excel (WBS, Gantt chart and cash flow analysis, budgeting details).
Evaluating the Project Plans
- Along with the marks, a detailed feedback will be provided (200 to 400 words).
- Various aspects of project plans will be assessed used the following marking criteria.
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Criterion |
Detailed Criteria |
What your markers are hoping you’ll show |
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Introduction, Description & justification 10% |
Clearly describes the project and its objective? |
Knowledge & understanding Critical Thinking Reading & Research |
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Introduces the organization in which the project happens and the connection of the planner to that organization (e.g., by explaining their location in the organizations’ structure)? |
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Clearly justifies why the project is being carried out (using real data such as revenue projections and linking to the organization’s strategy)? |
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Stakeholders 10% |
Identifies key stakeholders? |
Application Critical Thinking |
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Includes an appropriate communication management plan? (e.g., does the communication technology make sense, appoints only one owner for each task)? |
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Discusses ways of reciprocating with key stakeholders? |
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Identifies a realistic project champion? |
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Scope 10% |
Presents a clear and SMART project objective? |
Application Critical Thinking Knowledge & understanding |
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Defines the project’s PHASED deliverables compatible with the project’s objective and also the excluded activities? |
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Develops the several DUMBS work packages (Full WBS included as an appendix)? |
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Discusses some ways in which the project might suffer from scope creep and includes a reasonable exclusions list related to the scope creep? |
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Outsources two work package using appropriate contract types? |
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Schedule 10% |
Provides a realistic project/task duration estimation given the scope of the project? Uses some realistic estimation for different work packages using data, and explains the applied estimation technique for one specific duration estimation example? |
Application Presentation & Style Critical thinking |
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Defines appropriate task dependencies and explains an example? |
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Highlights the critical path and at least one float (slack) in the Gantt chart? |
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Includes a full, legible Gantt chart (as an appendix) with task names and task IDs (numbers) corresponding to the included WBS? |
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Budget and resource 10% |
Provides a sound and detailed bottom-up budget (cost/revenue) analysis without any obvious omissions? (Budgeting details included as an appendix) |
Application Knowledge & understanding |
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Uses realistic project cost estimates given the scope of the project and compared to similar real-world projects? Explains one cost estimate using some real data (i.e. real costs of materials, salaries per hour) and estimation techniques? |
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Includes the outgoing cost of different required resources (e.g., human resources) for work packages without any obvious omissions? (in the budgeting details) In doing so, considers realistic reserves (contingency and management) in the budget according to the riskiness of the project? |
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Identifies main sources of incoming cash and properly spreads them over time? |
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Includes a project cash flow analysis with a constantly positive cash flow and a financial efficiency analysis? |
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Includes a financial performance analysis, discussing the ROI for for-profit projects and break-even for not-for-profit projects? |
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Risk 10% |
Identifies main project risk factors without any obvious omissions? |
Application Critical thinking Presentation & Style |
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Reports on risk analysis (i.e., estimation of likelihoods and impacts) to prioritize risks? Includes an assessment of the overall riskiness of the project? |
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Proposes sound and effective risk response strategies for the top 2 risks? |
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Evaluation and control 10% |
Identifies and discusses an important integration point in the project (specifies the related work packages and point in time) when a high level of work coordination is required? |
Application |
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Plans one critical point in time to measure and review the progress of the project and discussed the corrective action to be taken (e.g., for senior management to release funds or to evaluate project’s 'Go/no go')? |
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Explains ways of measuring and demonstrating the achievement (or lack thereof) of the SMART project objective at the end of the project? |
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Coherence 10% |
consistent)? |
Presentation & Style Critical thinking |
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Quality of Writing and Professional appearance 10% |
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Presentation & Style Critical thinking Knowledge & understanding |
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Overall fit with purpose 10% |
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Presentation & Style Critical thinking Knowledge & understanding Application |
Interpreting the Marks for Project Plans
- The overall mark for this assessment can be interpreted this way:
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Mark |
Classification |
Description |
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90-100 |
Exceptional 1st |
An exceptional project plan, based on a substantial and demanding work with a very high level of originality, initiative, independence, and thoughtfulness in conception and planning. |
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80-89 |
Outstanding 1st |
An outstanding project plan, displaying a high level of originality, initiative, independence and thoughtfulness in conception and planning, requiring only very minor modifications. |
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70-79 |
Clear 1st |
An excellent project plan, displaying originality, initiative and independence in conception and planning. Requiring some modifications. |
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60-69 |
2.1 |
A well-planned project, written up with clarity. Evidence of care and application in conception and planning but one presented without the completeness of those gaining marks at the higher bands. |
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50-59 |
2.2 |
A reasonably well constructed project plan, but one which indicates a lack of attention to key features of the planning process. |
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40-49 |
3rd |
A basic description of the project plan, and some analysis of the detailed plan. However, the project plan is problematic in terms of key features of the planning process. |
