Introduction and Background

Project Title: Web Application Development for Social Media Research Centre

This project is based on the development of the web based application for Social Media Research Centre. The overall duration of the project is 8 months and the budget is AUD 50000. The budget is broken down as follows.

Activity/Group	Estimated Budget
Technical Experts Work Payments Save Time On Research and Writing Hire a Pro to Write You a 100% Plagiarism-Free Paper. Get My Paper	AUD 15000
System Upgrade Cost	AUD 20000
Hardware Cost	AUD 6000
Software Cost	AUD 4000
Development of Web Based Application (Website)	AUD 5000

Social Media Research Centre needs a new web based application for storing and management of student records so that they can be accessed by the students, the institution and the enrollment agents. Moreover, the website will contain exclusive portals for the enrolled students where they will able to log in and view course descriptions, lessons to be learnt, online academic library and personal progress in the course. The objectives of the project are as follows.

• To develop a virtual storage interface for Social Media Research Centre for the purpose of storage and management of student records
• To design a student portal for accessing different details of course in the centre
• To develop an online academic library
• To upgrade the available technical setup

The project scope includes the following.

• The upgradation of the centre’s technical systems is within the scope of the project.
• Design and development of a website for the centre is within the scope of the project.
• Development of a dedicated student portal and online academic library is within the scope of the project.

The primary deliverables of the project along the estimated time schedule is shown in the following table.

Task Name	Duration	Start	Finish
Development of Student Record Management System	125 days	Fri 21-04-17	Thu 12-10-17
Planning Phase of the Project	8 days	Fri 21-04-17	Tue 02-05-17
Requirements Analysis	2 days	Fri 21-04-17	Mon 24-04-17
Definition of System Requirements	2 days	Tue 25-04-17	Wed 26-04-17
Time Estimation	2 days	Thu 27-04-17	Fri 28-04-17
Development of Project Plan	2 days	Mon 01-05-17	Tue 02-05-17
Project Initiation Phase	30 days	Wed 03-05-17	Tue 13-06-17
Approval of Project Plan	5 days	Wed 03-05-17	Tue 09-05-17
Project Time Estimation	5 days	Wed 10-05-17	Tue 16-05-17
Plan Verification	5 days	Wed 17-05-17	Tue 23-05-17
Contract with Sponsor	5 days	Wed 24-05-17	Tue 30-05-17
Resource Procurement	5 days	Wed 31-05-17	Tue 06-06-17
Appointment of Project Team	5 days	Wed 07-06-17	Tue 13-06-17
Project Execution Plan	79 days	Wed 14-06-17	Mon 02-10-17
Design of the Website	15 days	Wed 14-06-17	Tue 04-07-17
Software Procurement	15 days	Wed 05-07-17	Tue 25-07-17
Creation of Online Database	15 days	Wed 26-07-17	Tue 15-08-17
Software Implementation	2 days	Wed 16-08-17	Thu 17-08-17
System Security Implementation	5 days	Fri 18-08-17	Thu 24-08-17
Development of the Required Website	15 days	Fri 25-08-17	Thu 14-09-17
Development of the Online Portal	4 days	Fri 15-09-17	Wed 20-09-17
Development of Online Academic Library	5 days	Thu 21-09-17	Wed 27-09-17
System Testing	1 day	Thu 28-09-17	Thu 28-09-17
Software Testing	2 days	Fri 29-09-17	Mon 02-10-17
Project Closing Phase	8 days	Tue 03-10-17	Thu 12-10-17
Management and Maintenance Plan Development	5 days	Tue 03-10-17	Mon 09-10-17
Starting of the Portal and the Website	1 day	Tue 10-10-17	Tue 10-10-17
Project Closing	1 day	Wed 11-10-17	Wed 11-10-17
Stakeholder Signoff	1 day	Thu 12-10-17	Thu 12-10-17

From the project, the organization will be able to reduce the manual previously required for storage and management of student records. Due to manual handling, there are many errors in the records management system and the student records often get misplaced. The new proposed system will solve this problem and provide maximum efficiency for the management of the student records.

The limitations of the project are as follows.

• The project will not address the student enrollment process of the institution.
• The project will not address the use of agents for bringing new students to the institution.
• The project will not address the financial and business related issues of the institution.

The quantifiable benefits that are to be achieved from the project are defined by the Measurable Organizational Value (MOV). Social Media Research Centre needs a new web based application for storing and management of student records so that they can be accessed by the students, the institution and the enrollment agents. Moreover, the website will contain exclusive portals for the enrolled students where they will able to log in and view course descriptions, lessons to be learnt, online academic library and personal progress in the course. There are certain areas of impact that are desired from the project. These are arranged in the order of importance as follows.

Operational – The organization will be able to reduce the manual previously required for storage and management of student records. Due to manual handling, there are many errors in the records management system and the student records often get misplaced. The new proposed system will solve this problem and provide maximum efficiency for the management of the student records. Hence, this project will significantly benefit the operational aspect of the project.

Customer – The new updated system will attract more students to join the institution and take part in the academic course. Moreover, the new technical system will also provide better user experience for the existing students who will also have access to the online academic library for helping them in their coursework.

The project will be accepted as successful if the following conditions are successfully met.

The budget does not exceed the pre-set AUD 50000.

The time required for execution of the project does not exceed 8 months.

All the required features are incorporated in the new website.

All the deliverables of the project are met.

The assumptions made during the project are as follows.

• There will be no unforeseen incidents that will result in exceeding of the budget limit for the project.
• The technical setup can be successfully upgraded.
• The online portal for the students will run successfully without any errors.

The constraints of the project are as follows.

• The AUD 50000 cap for the budget may prove to be too limited for the project as the technical upgrades will require significant amounts of expenses.
• The management and maintenance system for such technical upgrades are not yet available at the research centre.

The stakeholder list is as follows.

Stakeholder Designation	Roles and Responsibilities
Project Manager	Development and approval of project plan, financial plan, project schedule, control, monitoring and change management in the project
Sponsor	Delivering sufficient funds for the project, providing additional funds in case of emergency requirements
Financial Manager	Handling and management of budget, allocation of funds to different departments of the project
Technical Experts	System design and development, maintenance and testing of technical systems implemented
Operation Manager	Management of project operations
Human Resources Manager	Human resources recruitment

During the preparation of this assignment, it has been learnt that project charter is an important document for the development of a project plan. The project charter defines the project background, scope, budget, work breakdown structure and others. These factors provide a suitable basis on which the project can be built up and executed.

The charter sign off and project closure formalities will be done when all the project stakeholders sign the closing document and the project manager approves the completion of the project.

Communication is an essential part of a project i.e. there must be sufficient communication between the stakeholders of the project in order to ensure its success. The communication plan can be used to define the communication requirements for the stakeholders.

The communication plan for the project is as follows.

Stakeholder	Information to be Shared	Frequency of Information Exchange	Location of Information Exchange	Purpose of Communication	Mechanism of Communication
Project Manager	Project progress and change requests	Monthly	Manager’s Office	Approval of changes and requests, new ideas	Documentation
Sponsor	Requirement for additional funds in cases of emergency	When required	Sponsor’s office	For supply of additional budget for the project	Telephone calling
Financial Manager	Allocation of funds according requirements	When required	Finance Office	For the requirement of funds for the project	Document (Finance Report)
Technical Experts	System requirements	During preparation of project plan	Project Meeting Room	For describing the project requirements and expected outcomes	Verbal Communication
Operation Manager	Operation management requirement	During the course of the project	Department of Operations	Management of operational activities in the project	Meetings
Human Resources Manager	Shortage of sufficient manpower	During the course of the project	HR Department	Requirement of human resource	Verbal Communication, Meeting

Changes management is needed to make changes in the project in order mitigate risks and ensure the project success. The project manager is responsible for the implementation of the changes. He will review the change requests and implement suitable changes.

Several meetings need to be conducted during the project. The main purpose of these meetings will be to share ideas between stakeholders for the benefit of the project and the progress of the project. The project manager will undertake the meetings and the final outcomes of the meeting will be documented in form of reports.

Boud, D., Cohen, R., & Sampson, J. (Eds.). (2014). Peer learning in higher education: Learning from and with each other. Routledge.

Burke, R. (2013). Project management: planning and control techniques. New Jersey, USA.

Heagney, J. (2016). Fundamentals of project management. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn.

Kerzner, H. (2013). Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley & Sons.

Leach, L. P. (2014). Critical chain project management. Artech House.

Mir, F. A., & Pinnington, A. H. (2014). Exploring the value of project management: linking project management performance and project success. International Journal of Project Management, 32(2), 202-217.

Schwalbe, K. (2015). Information technology project management. Cengage Learning.

Turner, J. R. (2014). The handbook of project-based management (Vol. 92). New York, NY: McGraw-hill.

Verzuh, E. (2015). The fast forward MBA in project management. John Wiley & Sons.

Walker, A. (2015). Project management in construction. John Wiley & Sons.