Information Technology Project Management March 4, 2017 Question 1 a. Explain some potential difficulties that can arise when defining project activities in a WBS. b. What can you do when these challenges are present? c. Acme Inc.TM must complete Phase I of their system upgrade before they can begin Phase II. What main type of predecessor activity is Phase I in this case? d. What might be an external predecessor for Acme Inc.TM's project? e. Complete the table below for eight potential stages in Acme Inc.TM's system upgrade project (challenge yourself - don't make them sequential predecessors and use unequal durations). Stage 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Direct predecessor Duration f. What is the critical path for this project? g. What is the earliest possible completion time? Question 2 In what ways does project management differ from general management? Use examples if it aids your discussion. Question 3 a. Label each section of the figure below with the phases of a Project Life Cycle. b. Label the axes. c. Provide at least 5 bullet points per phase with tasks that should be completed during the phase. Question 4 Suggest an example project of your choosing (perhaps one from the readings, or one that you used in a Discussion post). a. Explain which project drivers would most influence this project's success and why. (List at least two.) b. What potential types of changes are most likely for this project? (List at least two.) c. A new legal requirement unexpectedly becomes a project driver. i. What might be an example of a legal requirement driver for your example project? ii. What change management steps would you need to take to respond to this new project driver? iii. How might this new project driver affect your project scope? Question 5 In order to \"sell\" your current and future projects, you will need to perform basic costbenefit analyses. (You do not need to show calculations, but it is easier for me to assign you partial credit for incorrect answers if you do.) Assume that a project has a start-up cost in Year 0 of $250,000, and is expected to earn $85,000 per year. The marginal value of money for the firm is 15% per year. a. What is the cost-benefit ratio? b. What is the payback period? c. What is the Net Present Value (NPV) for the first four years of the project (Years 0, 1, 2, and 3)