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A and D High Tech B Managing Scope Change Case Solution
| Solution Id | Length | Case Author | Case Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2731 | 1451 Words (7 Pages) | Mark Jeffery, Derek Yung, Alex Gershbeyn | Kellogg School of Management : KEL158 |
A Word File
The online store mission of A&D High Tech was a huge success, which led to Chris Johnson becoming the vice president of the online vertical. The post of project manager was granted to Eric Robertson. In August 2003, the CIO Matt Webb dismissed Robertson because he underestimated the costs and the project completion time, and this was a big loss for the company as the holiday shopping season would not be fully utilized. Johnson became the interim project manager and was tasked with three important things: calculating the costs, determining the project completion time, and planning promotional bundles.
Technically, the system was equipped to deal with different pricing schemes, and only minor tweaking was required. Due to the IT staff being completely occupied, Microsoft consultants were considered for the configuration task and training another developer, which would have cost implications. Johnson used historical data and conducted an analysis to assess the original project and integrate promotional bundles.
Following questions are answered in this case study solution:
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As of August 26, what is the projected cost and schedule? What are the trends? What is the critical path(s)?
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Given the dimensions of project management and critical paths of a project, what can be done to bring the project back on track?
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Is it possible to implement the changes to incorporate the promotional bundles and to complete the project by December 1? What are the necessary changes to the plan? Are there any additional risks involved in the revised plan?
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What is the estimated cost variance for the project?
Case Study Questions Answers
1. As of August 26, what is the projected cost and schedule? What are the trends? What is the critical path(s)?
Projected Cost:
Before being dismissed, Robertson had informed Webb that costs would be twenty percent greater than the initial estimates. Regarding the promotional bundles, costs would be incurred to train the staff and get them acclimatized with the new system. A contract developer charged $175/hour, and the associated overtime charge was 150 percent. Acquiring the services of a Microsoft consultant meant that $500/hour would be charged. Considering all the labor costs, software costs, design & development and testing costs, the total project cost comes out to be $987,155.
Projected Schedule:
Before being relieved of his duties, Robertson had communicated to Webb that the new completion date of the project would be a month ahead. Integrating the promotional bundles was a real challenge, given that there were erroneous calculations and many pending tasks. The best scenario would be that mid-November executes the project, but constraints meant that it would take till the 1st week of December. As shown in Exhibit 1, baseline days were considered 127, with a negative variance of 2. 90 days have already passed, and 65 days are remaining. The lead time for acquiring the services of Microsoft consultants was 14 days. Considering all the requirements and delays, the projected completion date is December 15.
Trends:
Looking at the tasks mentioned in Exhibit 1, there are 40 variances, out of which 24 are zero. The fact that more than 50% of variances are zero means that the majority of the project is on track. Of the remaining 16, 8 are positive, and 8 are negative. Negative variances are good, meaning the task will be completed earlier than scheduled. The biggest positive variances are related to the ERP interface, which is the only negative trend. Majorly, there are positive trends.
Critical Path:
It involves the design and construction of the ERP interface, and both activities take more time than expected.
2. Given the dimensions of project management and critical paths of a project, what can be done to bring the project back on track?
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