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Running head: PROJECT MANAGEMENT ROAD MAP 1

PROJECT MANAGEMENT ROAD MAP 12

Project Management Road Map

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Course name and number

Instructor’s name

Date

Part 1: Project Management Plan

A) Executive Summary

Business need

Gladwell Grocery operates ten stores. It has around four hundred and twenty employees to assist in performing the daily work activities. The firm has one main employee who performs both the human resources and operations management functions. This person visits all the stores on a weekly basis to perform various functions. The majority of the employees are part-timers thus, the chance of meeting all the employees during a visit are low. Additionally, travelling costs are high because of increased fuel prices. The manager further wastes time visiting these locations. It is also tiresome making regular visits and performing similar tasks manually. It is therefore, recommended that the firm adopts a Human Resource Information System (HRIS) to benefit from low costs, rapid decision making, and reduced paper work.

Work statement

The activities that are required for this project are:

· Assess the retail sector in which Gladweell stores falls under and identify issues

· Define the human resources functions recommended for Gladwell stores

· Select the most important function

· Choose the HRIS type that is appropriate for the selected function

· Research HRIS vendors

· Choose the best software for implementation

· Implementation phase

· Project schedule

· Going live

Project objectives

The objectives are:

· To identify the most significant human resources function for Gladwell

· To recommend on the best HRIS

· To show how Gladwell stores will implement the selected HRIS

Constraints / limitations

The constraints and limitations identified for this project:

· The costs and benefits of the HRIS are based on estimates

· Exerted effort depends on voluntary involvement by the stakeholders

Assumptions

The assumptions are:

· This project has the approval from authority

B) Scope overview

Phase 1 –Requirements

a. Find out retail sector issues:

· High labor turnover

· Adhering to regulatory laws- Wage rules and labor laws

· Heart breaks encountered by employees as a result of interacting directly with the customers

· Diversity management challenge

· Season fluctuation-Existing workers clashing with new workers added during high season.

b. Define human resources functions for Gladwell based on identified issues:

· Planning

· Compensation and benefits

· Recruitment and selection

· Performance appraisal

· Training and development

· Employee and labor relations

· Employee safety and health

· Preparing payroll

c. Select most important function

· Recruitment and selection

d. Select the best HRIS type with regards to recruitment and selection function

· Decision support system

· It will be of great help to Gladwell in assessing and forecasting staffing needs

· The system offers weights and criteria to evaluate and assess job candidates

e. Choose HRIS vendors

SAP Business Objects BI

Assists in viewing, sorting, and analyzing data

The functions offered by the software:

I) Designing and producing reports

II) Creating interactive dashboards

III) Visualizing data

IV) Developing queries

V) Analyzing data

VI) Searching via data sources

Benefits

I) Eliminates report duplication

II) Guarantees consistent and accurate data

III) Works together with other enterprise solutions

IV) It is flexible, scalable, easy to use, and of high quality

Supported human resource functions

I) Strategic planning

II) Performance appraisal

III) Budgeting

IV) Forecasting

V) Benchmarking

Price

I) Thirty-day free trial

II) Pay $21 per month to use it

1000 Minds software

The functions offered by the software:

I) Decision making

II) Prioritization

III) Money value evaluation

IV) Comprehending stakeholder values

Benefits

I) It is quick

II) Has won numerous awards for being innovative

III) User-friendly

IV) Scientifically valid

Supported human resource functions

I) Budgeting

II) Forecasting

III) Sensitivity analysis

IV) Data analysis

V) Decision tree analysis

VI) It will help Gladwell Stores to assess staffing needs and analyze the labor market.

Price

I) Twenty-one day free trial

II) Pay annual fee

f) Best software for implementation

The best system for Gladwell is 1000 minds. It is a decision support system that will quicken recruitment and selection besides hire the best job candidate, the most significant function for the firm. Employees are needed to perform work. It is the most costly function. Hiring the wrong people may contribute to high exits leading to missed opportunities and delays in doing work, eventually pulling down the company’s productivity level.

Phase 2: Implementation planning

Current human resource function determination

Gladwell manually performs its functions. The only system that it uses is spreadsheets when preparing payrolls. The firm needs to invest in new system to reap the benefits of HRIS implementation. The stakeholders who will be affected are the employees. Training will be required to help them learn and adopt new system. The human resources team will be the key participants of the new software.

Project lead

The implementation will be overseen by the project manager.

Interface choice

Gladwell will use a single interface. One system is suitable to address the need.

Risk management

The amount of time and resources to manage risks will be determined. In addition, a risk assessment will help to make a decision on how to treat anticipated and unexpected risks.

Implementation

The new system will be rolled out gradually

Team leaders will be chosen focused on qualifications and the ability to handle work stress during the transition period.

Extended support

Systems often fail even if the plans are understandable. Moreover, workload tends to increase as implementation nears. The resources will not however, be reduced to save costs in order to attain the highlighted project objectives.

Implementation steps

First, configure the system for policies and processes. Come up with particular workflows and policies related with various function such as training and payroll. Then, try to internalize how the system is required to function. Ensure that the system accommodates how the business is run. Second, the data is interfaced with other systems. Change the historic data into the new system. Thorough preparation will be needed for example, training preparation. In addition, the employees must acknowledge the fact that they will have to perform things in a different way. It is recommended to test the system on a small group to collect feedback on how to conduct the training. Also form teams to handle various HRIS activities (Gomez-Mejia, Balkin & Cardy, 2016). Finally, get prepared for the HRIS. Estimate resources needed for implementation, communications, and training. Stress and problems may occur because several changes will happen before, during, and after the implementation (Mahajan, 2015). Communication plans and using teams will assist in managing change.

Scope management Plan

The proposed changes will be analyzed in relation to effect on resource use, project schedule, and cost. Revisions and documentations will be made if changes occur. Any changes made will be approved by the project manager. Changes to funding or staffing will be approved by project owners.

C) Budget overview

The firm will pay $300 per annum for software license fee. $50 will account for the pay whenever technical personnel are called upon to assist in using the software. In addition, the human resources team will be trained on how to use the software. $150 is needed as training cost.

D) Project team

The stakeholders who will participate in the planning are:

Executive sponsors: Contribute resources and act as project influencers

· Kathy Arbeit

· Jackson Kelly

Project owners: Ensure resources sufficiency and monitor the project

· Ross peters

· Adams Clarke

Project Manager: Direct planning and execution

· John Bells: Company manager

Implementation team: Rollouts the new software

· Edith Romney

· Ann Harrison

E) Project schedule

The approximated time for each task and the responsible persons will be detailed. The schedule will be updated as soon as each task is completed. The project manager will endorse the schedule.

F) Going live

Communication

Through communication, the staff will know what to expect. Communication prepares staff to deal with new functions. To avoid rumors, outline what is going to take place and the specific dates for implementation (Employee Connect, 2016). Meetings will be held weekly to check on work progress and clarify issues.

Switching over

The project lead will leave the system to lower staff to control configuration after mastering it (Employee Connect, 2016). The human resource staff should learn to configure and maintain the system.

G) Issues management

The team will establish if an issue is important to involve the project manager if it occurs. The project manager together with the team lead will arrive at a consensus whether the entire organization should be involved in the matter.

I) Approval

The executive sponsors, project manager, and owners will approve the plan. Any changes to the project will be approved by the project manager and owners.

Part 2: Cost justification

Cost-Benefit matrix

	Direct	$ estimate	When benefit / cost is incurred	Indirect	$ estimate	When benefit / cost is incurred
Reduced cost (benefit)	Eliminates travelling cost.	$300 / month	During travelling	Potential costs (saves time that would have been spent doing the work manually)	$1000 per annum	When performing the HR functions.
Enhanced revenue (benefit)	New revenue (new sales as work delays are eliminated via correct hiring)	$500 / annum	During grocery sale	Rapid decision making	$300/ month. The cost is related to traveling cost. Initially, the manager had to visit locations before a decision was made. Automation will eliminate the cost.	When performing the HR functions, notably recruitment and selection.
Implementation costs (cost)	Software fee Training cost	$300 / annum $150	During installation To facilitate training materials and pay the instructor	Technical support need Productivity lost	$50 every time a technician is consulted. $200	Technician support During switching to the new system

Justification

The available strategies to justify the HRIS costs are organization enhancement and avoiding risk. Risk avoiding strategies help to justify the purchases which are likely to mitigate future risks. For example, change needed to adhere to new laws needs justification focused on avoiding risk. By doing so, future issues which could affect firm survival are avoided (Kavanagh, Thite & Johnson, 2014). Enhancement strategies show how the firm will become effective and is measured by reduced costs and increased revenue.

Part 3: HR metrics

Recruitment and selection was chosen as the most important Human Resource function for Gladwell. Installation of 1000 minds software will quicken the recruitment and selection process. By assigning weights and criteria, it will enable the ranking of job candidates and selecting the best. The labor turnover rate will therefore, determine if the software promoted right hiring. The second metric is revenue per employee. The revenue per employee will determine whether the electronic recruitment and selection process was effective or not. The average time taken per hire will determine if electronic recruiting is fast or not. Finally, the cost of hiring using traditional techniques will be compared to electronic recruiting to ascertain if the cost per hire due to implementing the new system is low or not.

References

Employee Connect. (2016). The roadmap to HRIS implementation. Retrieved from https://www.employeeconnect.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/The-Roadmap-to-HRIS-Implementation.pdf

Gomez-Mejia, L., Balkin, D., & Cardy, R. (2016). Managing human resources. New York, N.Y.: Pearson Education.

Kavanagh, M., Thite, M., & Johnson, R. (Eds.). (2014). Human Resource Information Systems: Basics, Applications, and Future Directions. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Mahajan, J. (2015). Managing Human Resources. New Delhi, India: Vikas Publishing House.