You have just been hired by a new start-up company. One of the information technology objectives is to develop policies and procedures for information technology governance. You have been assigned to the team working on the project. You assignment is to research and describe the following functions that are part of the software project planning process and how they impact the overall project. 

The functions are:

• Risk asses
• Work breakdown schedule
• Human resource plan
• Project team
• How to identify the appropriate stakeholder for the project 

Responses to Other Students: Respond to at least 2 of your fellow classmates with a reply of at least 100 words about their primary task response regarding items you found to be compelling and enlightening. To help you with your discussion, please consider the following questions:

• What did you learn from your classmate’s posting?
• What additional questions do you have after reading the posting?
• What clarification do you need regarding the posting?
• What differences or similarities do you see between your posting and other classmates’ postings?

peer 1 to respond 2

When tasked with a software development project, one of the first steps that need to be done immediately is planning the project. Planning a software development project can be tedious and involves several different steps that are necessary to be completed efficiently. Also, there are many functions that will be made a part of the project planning process that can assist with the different aspects of the planning the project, as well as the actual development project. Each step in planning the project is important and so are the functions used in the planning process. Below some of the functions that are manipulated in the software planning process have been defined.

RISK ASSESSMENT

Software Development Projects all seem to come with some improbabilities and these improbabilities are associated with potential risks. Project Managers can not only be aware of the potential risks that can occur, but they also need to plan for these risks. During the planning of the upcoming software development project, an assessment needs to be performed to gain insights on the potential risks that can occur during the development project, and what can be done to correct the risk, or to prevent them from happening altogether. This prevention is referred to as Risk Management and is highly recommended to be implemented into all software project plans.

WORK BREAKDOWN SCHEDULE

A Work Breakdown Schedule (WBS) is a chart where the project tasks are illustrated to reflect their relations to each other and the project in general. WBS proposes a graphical nature that helps project managers predict results based on various scenarios. Usually, it described as a result-oriented tree that covers all the procedures in a project in a way that is thoroughly organized but can also display the tasks and elements of the project as a tabular list. However. The reason project managers use WBS is to break down the project into small components that are easier to be managed. Then the new smaller-sized components are decomposed until a required individual from the project team can be assigned. A WBS is created for multiple reasons that benefit all involved. Some of these reasons include:

• Helps with the organization of the project.
• Assist in defining the scope of the project
• Aids in distributing responsibilities and tasks to the members of the project team.
• The milestones are revealed.
• Estimating the cost, risks, and time is accomplished in the proper way.

The WBS is essential to the software development process and the project as well. If not completed then the project plan may not be effective or correctly put together.

HUMAN RESOURCE PLAN

A human resource plan is a tool that assists in the supervision of all projects and is incredibly important in the software development planning process. Attributes such as roles and responsibilities, organizational outlines, how resources are secured, and the schedule for each resource are defined within this plan. Also this plan guarantees the software development project will be a success because of defining the correct individuals will be established and correct training will be included. The approaches used by the project team are well-defined and the required tasks for the team to complete are handled in the most effective way.

PROJECT TEAM

Having the right individuals on the project team is crucial to the project being a success or a failure. The individuals who make up the team for the project need to be the best in their field of work, as well as work well with the members of the team. Software projects advance when the members of the team have been properly positioned. The project, functional, and operational managers all need to be placed accordingly. these team members have tasks and responsibilities within the project that are needed include organization and management, business considerations, best practices, human resources, proper communication skills, and calculated input.

HOW TO IDENTIFY THE APPROPRIATE STAKEHOLDERS FOR THE PROJECT

Identifying the stakeholders for a project is vital to the software development project being a success and can be determined by considering the following questions.

1. Who will be impacted by the project and the results of the project?
2. Who currently uses the software available now and who will use the new software being developed?
3. What units use the current version of the software and will also use the newly developed software?
4. How will the system change, and will this rework or produce any position?
5. Who has permission to make modifications to the development plan when it has been completed?
6. Any there any people whose support is utterly important to the project’s success and whose stock is wanted?

References

Contributor, C. (2020, july 28). Responsibilities Of Stakeholders. Retrieved from Chron.com: https://smallbusiness.chron.com/responsibilities-s…

Minning, L. (2021, february 8). The 10 Types of Stakeholders That You Meet in Business. Retrieved from activecampaign: https://www.activecampaign.com/blog/types-of-stake…

Project Stakeholders: How to Identify and Manage Them. (2021, April 8). Retrieved from KissFlow: https://kissflow.com/project/project-stakeholder-m…

spacey, j. (2015, november 24). 16 Types of project stakeholders. Retrieved from simplicable.com: https://simplicable.com/new/project-stakeholder

Peer 2 to respond 2

There are several policies and procedures that must be set in place to serve as a major impact in the software project planning process. For example, performing a risk assessment is an important part of software project planning as there are many risks that can occur. Some of these risks include inaccurate estimations, poor quality code, or poor productivity. Risk assessments are performed to identify these risks for development of possible solutions. The steps that are required to perform a risk assessment includes:

• Identifying risks and triggers
• Classifying and prioritizing risks
• Linking risks to a mitigation
• Monitoring risks
• Implementing mitigation actions for risks if necessary
• Communicating risks throughout life cycle of project

A work breakdown schedule organizes and defines the total scope of a project. This is important in any software project plan as it sets the foundation for initiation, planning, execution, control, and closing of a software project. The purpose of a work breakdown structure is to breakdown a project into smaller components, allowing developers and teams to work in manageable sections.

A human resource plan identifies human resource needs for the project to achieve its goals. According to my research, there are seven steps in a human resource plan. These steps include:

• Analyzing the objects
• Making inventory of current human resources
• Forecasting human resources demand
• Determining the number and extent of skills gaps
• Drawing up an action plan
• Integrating and implementing the plan
• Monitoring, measuring, and gaining feedback

Each of these steps in human resources planning play an important role in ensure a software project is successful.

When developing a software project, the team working on the project will have a huge impact on the project’s success. Teamwork ensures the project is well managed and less time is spent completing the project. The project team adds significant value to the project. These values include:

• Creativity
• Risk-taking
• Improvement in conflict-resolution skills
• Diverse strengths
• More skills, thoughts, and idea
• Leadership skills
• Finding solutions to complex problems

All projects are designed to fulfill stakeholders’ requirements as stakeholders are those who are directly impacted by the project.

References

Risk Management in Software Development and Software Engineering Projects. (n.d). Retrieved from: Risk Management in Software Development and Software Engineering Projects (castsoftware.com)

Goodard, W. (2020, April 27). Why is Human Resource Planning Important? Retrieved from: Why Is Human Resource Planning Important? – ITChronicles

Harren, E. (2018, August 29). 10 Reasons Why Teamwork Matters in Project Management. Retrieved from: 10 Reasons Why Teamwork Matters in Project Management • Girl’s Guide to Project Management (girlsguidetopm.com)