This assignment has you create a work breakdown structure (WBS). In Ch. 3, you learned about project management and the tools/techniques used to manage and oversee Information Technology (IT) projects. A project manager will break the project down into individual tasks, determine the order for each task and figure out how long each task will take. A work breakdown structure is used to capture this information. The WBS serves as a source of input to develop a Gantt or Pert chart, which are used by a project manager to schedule and manage the IT project. To get started a project manager needs to identify tasks, estimate duration, and task patterns (dependent tasks, successor tasks, etc. etc.) . An example of a WBS is on page 80 Figure 3-7 in the book. For this assignment, you will take on the role of a project manager, managing an information technology project through Phase 1 (Systems Planning). You will utilize what you have learned in Chapters 1 - 3. Refer to pages 76 - 85 (Creating a Work Breakdown Structure & Task Patterns) in the book to assist you with how to create a WBS and to view examples. There are important activities that you have learned about in Chapters 1 - 3, that guide you through what to consider and specific tasks that need to be done in the 'Systems Planning' phase of a project. It's always a good idea to know whether a project fits a company's overall strategy when asked to begin working on an IT project. Your job will be to identify key tasks that should be done on any 'Information Technology' project; this gives the project team enough scope and understanding to make a good sound business decision whether to proceed with the project. Chapter 1 is more of a 'kick-off' chapter, focusing on concepts and what all goes into the development of information systems. Chapter 2 is very instrumental in defining what types of activities should be done to determine feasibility and what to recommend to management in terms of moving forward with a project. Chapter 3 is full of project management planning information with plenty of key tasks to choose from to put in your 'Systems Planning' task list. Here is what to do as you gather the information to put in a work breakdown structure: Use 'Microsoft Excel' to create a table similar to Figure 3-7 with columns for tasks number, description, duration and predecessor. If you do not know how to use MS Excel, please lookup tutorials or refer back to COMP 1000 where you learned how to use MS Office products. If you do not have MS Office, you have free access via the college web site for current students. Please follow the steps outlined below and see example at bottom of page.

Specific Assignment Requirements: 'Create a Work Breakdown Structure Using Excel'

Step 1: Identify Tasks: Come up with 30 tasks to perform in the 'Systems Planning' Phase from chapters 1-3. Your list should include 'major tasks' that would apply to most any 'information technology' project. You will add these tasks in the spreadsheet you create in Step 2. Go through each chapter and determine the key activities that should be done. For instance, for Ch.1 focuses on what makes up an IT system, modeling business operations, different types of business information systems, understanding organizational modules, the systems development life cycle (SDLC) and the Information Technology Department. Go through each section and come up with high level tasks you feel should be done. Do this for Ch. 1 - 3. An example of a task for Ch. 1, is 'Create a business model to identify the information the system must provide'; another would be 'Assess the business information system

How to construct the task: Start each task with an 'action' verb. Here is an example of a task beginning with an action verb: 'Perform a SWOT analysis to ensure project goals are met'. When you come up with a task, ask yourself if the task is important enoughfor all the work required in the Systems Planning Phase. Come up with good descriptive tasks and begin with an action verb.

Step 2: Create Spreadsheet: Create an excel spreadsheet with four columns. Name the columns: task number, description, duration, predecessor tasks. (the spreadsheet should look like Figure 3-8 on page 81). You will be adding 30 tasks in Step 3 to this spreadsheet. Highlight rows 1 - 31 in the spreadsheet and apply borders (using 'All Borders' in the Borders tool). Step 3: Add tasks from Step 1 to Spreadsheet: Using your task list from Step 1, enter each task in the spreadsheet. Enter one task per row in the description column. Step 4: Number each Task in the Spreadsheet: Number all the tasks (1 - 30) in the task number column.

Step 5: Complete Duration and Predecessor for each Task: Fill-in duration and predecessor information next for each task. For the duration, estimate 1 or 2 days for each task. This is best guess at this point.

Step 6: Determine Predecessor: For the predecessor task column, you will analyze the tasks to determine whether they are concurrent or dependent on each other. Determine whether a task is dependent on one or more other tasks, then list the corresponding task number of the dependent task/tasks in the predecessor column. For instance, some of the tasks are concurrent and can be done at the same time, while others are dependent which means they cannot be performed (begin) until another task has been completed. Task Dependency is a relationship in which a task relies on other tasks to be performed (completely or partially) before it can be performed. Read [Pages 78 - 85] in the book to assist you with this part of the assignment and to view examples.