The following is meant to provide you a realistic preview of what the upcoming midterm exam will look like.
Discuss the changing realities within the information
technology field as it applies to future information technology projects.
In class we had a discussion regarding best-in-class versus
world-class. Provide a brief discussion involving your interpretation of this
topic.
Discuss the five perspectives on quality. Give examples of quality using an automobile as
an example.
Define the four processes in requirement analysis.
Describe a process, its characteristics, and why processes
are important in the project lifecycle.
Explain what PMP and PMI mean and stand for.
E-projects differ from traditional projects on 2
dimensions—what are they?
Discuss what can happen when organizations do not place
priorities on projects and the effects on both the company and the project.
Explain the three ways feasibility is assessed and
resources are determined.
Describe the components of a project team. Emphasize the importance of an integrated
team and the role of a project manager.
Explain how to avoid project failure.
Define how risk is controlled on a project.
Explore the characteristics of effective and ineffective
problem solvers. Why are
some of these characteristics are effective or ineffective?
Discuss creative interaction and the importance of
listening.
Explain the first four steps of problem definition.
Briefly discuss the common caused of mental blocks and
describe the six types of mental blocks.
Explain the correlation of analogy and cross-fertilization
to problem solving.
Discuss ethical considerations in solution selection. Emphasize the checklist questions.
Discuss the top factors projects may fail and relate these
factors towards the items discussed in the IT PROJECT SUCCESS FACTORS article.
Discuss criteria for evaluating requirements.
You have
been asked to plan a convention. The following is a set of activities that need
to be accomplished to make the convention happen. Generate an activity graph
from the list. What is the critical path? How many days will it take to get
completed?
A. Survey customers- 10 days
B. Determine number of attendees – 2
days
C. Determine convention goals- 5 days
D. Determine convention location – 1
day
E. Set budget – 4 days
F. Set agenda – 4 days
G. Obtain keynote speaker – 10 days
H. Book entertainment- 5 days
I. Determine menu- 1 day
J. Develop promotional brochure- 5
days
K. Mail brochure to participants – 2
days
Determining risk. You have been confronted with a
new important scenario at work. The news has just reported that Worldcom has filed for bankruptcy, which impacts your
company because MCI is your current long distance provider. You are now faced
with a tough situation do you stay with MCI or switch to another provider. This
situation causes you to mitigate risk with percentage probability of adverse
reactions. There is a 80% probability that if you
switch you will not experience any disruption of service although there is a
cost of $20 million if you do so. However, there is a 20% probability that you
might switch when you don’t need to which will cost the same $20 million.
However if you don’t switch there is a 50% chance that Worldcom
will cease to exist thus costing you $30 million if you decide after the fact.
But if you don’t switch and Worldcom doesn’t cease to
exist than it will cost you $0.00. Conduct a risk analysis chart as discussed in
class and write an assessment regarding your results—that is what is your final
decision?
Problem definition. In 1991, 64% of all commercial
radio stations in the country lost money. In order for a radio station to
remain solvent it must have significant revenue from advertisers. Advertisers,
in turn, target the market they consider desirable (ie
income, spending, interest), and for the past several years this target has
been the age group from 25-54. Along with revenue loss, the number of radio
stations playing the Top 40 songs has decreased by a factor of 2 in the past
three years, as did the audience for the Top 40 songs. Many stations tried
playing a blend of current hits with hits of 10 and 20 years ago; however, this
blend irritated the younger listeners and also did not seem to solve the
economic problem. Apply two or more problem definition techniques to this
situation.
You are an
IT director for a mid size company that consists of over 500 employees. You
have just received a notice that your computing systems are outdated and that
you need to obtain a new server and operating system, specifically from
UNIX-based to Windows-based. You should note that the old system has been in
place for over 10 years and you have a majority of your employees who have been
with your company for over 20 years. This new system will improve communication
and also allow access to information that was previously contained by a few
individuals. Provide a discussion below
regarding the steps you would undertake to implement this new solution in your
company. Be sure to include your vision of the project definition, project
statement, training, project design, training, and other items mentioned in
class. (Note you don’t need to be concerned with coming up with detailed
information ie. actual day and cost estimations—just
explain the process you would engage in).