CIS 554 Case Study

Case Study 2: Critical Planning for Project Success 

Read the following articles:
“ Project Management Helps Virtualization Deliver”
“ Budgetary Black Holes” 
“ 12 Common Project Management Mistakes - and How to Avoid Them” 

Write a three to four (3-4) page paper in which you:
1.	List the activities that must be performed to complete the requirements definition of an IT project based on the provided articles. Compare the listed activities with the processes described in Figure 3.2 Process - flow of Requirements Engineering in Chapter 3 of the text.
2.	List at least three (3) issues mentioned by the articles that may occur if requirements are not properly documented. Describe how the problem categories listed in Table 3.2 in Chapter 3 of the text may help a project manager set the right expectations with various stakeholders. 
3.	Give your opinion on whether or not it’s beneficial in terms of planning and estimation to break up projects into smaller, more manageable efforts. Support the answer with real-life examples. 
4.	Describe how Figure 5.5A in Chapter 5 of the text could be used to assist the team in project planning and estimation activities. 
5.	Review the various project management frameworks presented in Appendix 5A of the text. Suggest the framework elements that could be used to address the issues described in the third article titled “12 Common Project Management Mistakes - and How to Avoid Them”.
6.	Use at least three (3) quality resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and similar Websites do not qualify as quality resources. 

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:
•	Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
•	Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:
•	Describe requirements engineering and scope management techniques.
•	Compare and explain the frameworks, standards, and guidelines for product foundations. 
•	Explain the planning process for software projects.
•	Compare the planning techniques in software projects.
•	Explain and prepare project estimation plans.
•	Use technology and information resources to research issues in IT Project Leadership Strategies.
•	Write clearly and concisely about topics related to IT Project Leadership Strategies using proper writing mechanics and technical style conventions.

Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality, logic / organization of the paper, and language and writing skills. Click here to access the rubric for this assignment.