Project Management Cost Estimation

Word Limit: 1,200-1,700 words.

Scenario

Your organization has just completed the Initiation Process for implementing an Email System Upgrade. It was identified in a recent meeting with management leaders from the Sales, Consulting and IT departments that the current email system is causing significant amount of business interruptions and must be updated immediately.

You have been assigned the role of project manager to develop the project schedule and budget. As project manager, you are responsible for implementing and enforcing the project schedule and its estimates, expected costs, and the techniques and methods that will be chosen to execute and control the project. The project is being initiated with the following initial project scope in mind:

- There are five email systems currently being used across twelve departments and offices. These will be replaced and consolidated into one email system.

- New Email Standards and Protocols will be established and training provided to all departments.
- All 2000 current email users will be converted to the new system, and 500 new users that did not have email before will be added.
- Users will have both LAN and remote access to email.
- Help desk and support infrastructure will be set-up to accommodate the new system.
- Equipment will be salvaged.

User PCs will be upgraded to accommodate the new email system.

Assignment Objectives

Apply project scheduling methodologies, including Critical Path Method (CPM), Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT), resource allocation and network crashing.

Formulate approaches to control the project cost schedule and performance using earned value management, scope control, and rebase-lining techniques.

Utilize cost estimating methodologies to include handling of incomplete cost data, sensitivity analysis, l inear programming, and Monte Carlo simulation to determine baseline costs.

The CIO has decided that it is time to create the work breakdown structure for the project.

The work breakdown structure (WBS) that is representative of the project scope, which should include the following:

• The scope of the project
• Activities
• Tasks
• Products or services

Including the following activities and tasks

Network Testing Task
Software Testing Task
Internet Protocol Testing Task

In addition:

• Assign an initial work effort to each of the activities from the WBS.
• Provide an estimation framework for the WBS.

o The framework should be estimated in days.

• Come to a consensus on the appropriate work effort for each activity.
• Calculate estimates in days of work effort (not duration).

Based on the WBS and estimates

• Apply the standard PERT estimating formula and calculate the expected estimate (Te) for each activity.

o Download and use the attached table to complete the estimates.

• Explain the purpose behind the PERT calculations.