Group Assignment Case Study
Case Study: The Tech Innovators Project
Background:
A leading technology company, Tech Innovators, has embarked on a groundbreaking project to develop a cutting-edge smart device that integrates artificial intelligence, IoT connectivity, and advanced user interfaces. The project aims to revolutionize the consumer electronics market and establish Tech Innovators as a pioneer in the field.
Project Over Project
Name: SmartTechX
Project Duration: 12 months
Project Budget: $15 million
Project Objectives:
Design and develop a highly innovative smart device with AI capabilities.
Ensure seamless integration with existing IoT ecosystems.
Implement user-friendly interfaces and ensure a positive user experience.
Meet strict quality and regulatory standards for consumer electronics.
Launch the product to market within the specified timeframe.
Project Team:
Project Manager: Group Leader
Technical Lead: Member 1
Design Specialist: Rachel Lewis
Software Engineer: Member 2
Quality Assurance Analyst: Member 3
Marketing Specialist: Alex Turner
Project Phases:
Initiation (Months 1-2):
Define project scope, objectives, and deliverables.
Assemble the project team and allocate responsibilities.
Develop a detailed project plan, including timelines and budget allocation. Planning (Months 3-4):
• Conduct market research and competitor analysis.
• Refine product specifications based on market insights.
• Develop a risk management plan and contingency strategies.
Execution (Months 5-8):
• Begin product development, with regular team meetings and progress assessments. • Establish communication channels and reporting mechanisms.
• Conduct user testing and gather feedback for iterative improvements.
Monitoring and Controlling (Months 9-10):
• Regularly review project performance against key milestones.
• Implement changes based on feedback and unexpected challenges.
• Ensure adherence to quality and regulatory standards.
Closing (Months 11-12):
• Finalize product development and conduct comprehensive testing.
• Develop marketing and launch strategies.
• Launch the SmartTechX device to the market.
Challenges:
• Rapidly evolving technology landscape.
• Balancing innovation with adherence to regulatory standards.
• Coordination among cross-functional teams.
• Market competition and changing consumer preferences.
Tasks
Your team is assigned the project of designing and implementing this Tech Innovators Project. Your organization uses an agile development approach. Your lecturer will play the role of the project sponsor. Your team will work collaboratively to develop a comprehensive project plan with detailed timelines and resource allocation. The project sponsor will guide your team regarding the project requirements and you are required to attend all the project meetings. In the meetings, your team should discuss the steps to initiate this project and discuss how to progress. The above given are only an indication of some basic requirements of the project. The actual project scope should be revised as your project requirements. Your team is free to make necessary assumptions where necessary. You are free to make suitable assumptions and alter the project scope, budget and schedule if required. However, please indicate those parameters clearly in the introduction section.
Once you established the necessary assumptions, your group need to produce project management plans and other documents considering the project requirements you have selected. The completed project report should contain 6 main parts (9 tasks) as listed below:
• Part 1: Project Integration Management
o Task 1: Prepare a business case
o Task 2: Prepare the project charter
• Part 2: Project Scope Management
o Task 3: Develop an initial scope management
o Task 4: Develop a work breakdown structure (WBS)
• Part 3: Project Schedule Management
o Task 5: Create Gantt chart for WBS, and then identify at least five milestones • Part 4: Project Cost and Quality Management
o Task 6: Develop documents for cost estimate and business case financial analysis • Part 5: Project Resource Management
o Task 7: Prepare a Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RACI Chart) for the WBS
• Part 6: Project Risk Management
o Task 8: Create a risk register
o Task 9: Plot the risks on a Probability/Impact Matrix
Deliverable Description
Your group needs to submit the final version of your assignment in Week 9. The structure of the final report is as follows:
• Executive Summary: The executive summary should provide an overview of the report’s outcomes and be no longer than half a page. You can find helpful guidelines on how to write an executive summary in this link:
• Table of contents
• Introduction: State the purpose and objectives of the report.
• Part 1: Project Integration Management
o Task 1: Prepare a business case
o Task 2: Prepare the project charter
• Part 2: Project Scope Management
o Task 3: Develop an initial scope management
o Task 4: Develop a work breakdown structure (WBS)
• Part 3: Project Schedule Management
o Task 5: Create Grantt chart for WBS, and then identify at least five milestones • Part 4: Project Cost and Quality Management
o Task 6: Develop documents for cost estimate and business case financial analysis • Part 5: Project Resource Management
o Task 7: Prepare a Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RACI Chart) for the WBS • Part 6: Project Risk Management
o Task 8: Create a risk register
o Task 9: Plot the risks on a Probability/Impact Matrix
• Overall Summary: Summarize your findings, consolidating and drawing attention to the main points of the report.
• Referencing: Reference sources must be cited in the text of the report, and listed
appropriately at the end in a reference list using Harvard referencing style.
• Appendix: Attach Meeting Agenda Minutes for 2 meetings.
Your group can use the templates provided in the .zip file to complete the report.
Marking Rubric
Criteria
Fail
Pass
Credit
Distinction
High Distinction
Task 1
(4 marks)
Major errors in business case preparation.
Basic business
case with some errors.
Competent
business case with minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful business case.
Exceptional,
innovative business case.
Task 2
(4 marks)
Major errors in project charter preparation.
Basic project
charter with
some errors.
Competent project charter with minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful project
charter.
Exceptional,
innovative project charter.
Task 3
(4 marks)
Major errors in initial scope
management.
Basic initial scope management
with some errors.
Competent initial scope management with minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful initial
scope management.
Exceptional,
innovative initial
scope management.
Task 4
(4 marks)
Major errors in work
breakdown
structure
development.
Basic work
breakdown
structure with
some errors.
Competent work breakdown
structure with
minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful work
breakdown
structure.
Exceptional,
innovative work
breakdown
structure.
Task 5
(4 marks)
Major errors in Gantt chart
and milestone identification.
Basic Gantt chart with some errors.
Competent Gantt chart with minor errors.
Well-structured
Gantt chart and
insightful milestones.
Exceptional,
innovative Gantt
chart and
milestones.
Task 6
(4 marks)
Major errors in cost estimate and financial analysis.
Basic cost
estimate with
some errors.
Competent cost
estimate with
minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful cost
estimate.
Exceptional,
innovative cost
estimate.
Task 7
(4 marks)
Major errors in RACI Chart
preparation.
Basic RACI Chart with some errors.
Competent RACI Chart with minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful RACI Chart.
Exceptional,
innovative RACI
Chart.
Task 8
(4 marks)
Major errors in risk register
creation.
Basic risk register with some errors.
Competent risk
register with minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful risk
register.
Exceptional,
innovative risk
register.
Task 9
(4 marks)
Major errors in the risk matrix.
Basic plotting of risks with some errors.
Competent plotting of risks with minor errors.
Well-structured and insightful risk matrix.
Exceptional,
innovative risk
matrix.
Appendix
(4 marks)
Incomplete or inaccurate
meeting
agenda.
The minutes are adequately
detailed,
capturing key
points of
discussion and
decisions made.
Minutes
demonstrate a
good level of detail, providing a clear understanding of the discussions and decisions.
Minutes are
comprehensive,
offering a thorough and insightful record of discussions,
decisions, and action items.
Exceptional quality minutes capturing nuanced discussions and demonstrating a deep understanding of the project.
Student Assessment Citation and Referencing Rules
Adapted Harvard Referencing Rules
Holmes has implemented a revised Harvard approach to referencing. The following rules apply: 1. Reference sources in assignments are limited to sources that provide full-text access to the source’s content for lecturers and markers.
2. The reference list must be located on a separate page at the end of the essay and titled: “References”.
3. The reference list must include the details of all the in-text citations, arranged A-Z alphabetically by author surname with each reference numbered (1 to 10, etc.) and each reference MUST include a hyperlink to the full text of the cited reference source. For example:
1. Hawking, P., McCarthy, B. & Stein, A. 2004. Second Wave ERP Education, Journal of Information Systems Education, Fall,
4. All assignments must include in-text citations to the listed references. These must include the surname of the author/s or name of the authoring body, year of publication, page number of the content, and paragraph where the content can be found. For example, “The company decided to implement an enterprise-wide data warehouse business intelligence strategies (Hawking et al., 2004, p3(4)).”
Non-Adherence to Referencing Rules
Where students do not follow the above rules:
1. For students who submit assignments that do not comply with the rules, a 10% penalty will be applied.
2. As per the Student Handbook, late penalties will apply each day after the student/s has been notified of the due date.
3. Students who comply with rules and the citations are “fake” may be reported for academic misconduct.