Information Systems Term project total 5 assignment all connect

Term Project Overview The Big Picture

Ver. 23

Background In your future (or present) careers in information technology, chances are good that at some point you will want to change things—upgrade to a newer system, change to a different system, pursue some hot new technology, or even change strategic direction for your group or company. If that is the case, you will probably need to get approval for doing it from someone higher up the chain of command—because change is always a disruption and nearly always expensive.

You may also find yourself in a situation where a change is proposed by someone else, but you really don't think it is a good idea. You may want to present convincing arguments against the proposal so the company won't waste money, disrupt operations, alienate customers, or worse.

This term project is an opportunity to imagine yourself in that situation, and to prepare convincing arguments in favor of whichever position you take (for or against). In this particular case, you will gather information through research of published sources and prepare a "management-style" presentation that could be used to present your arguments in a logical and convincing manner.

During the semester, you will go through a five-step process, starting with picking a subject for your proposal, and ending with a presentation deck (a collection of presentation slides, using something like PowerPoint) along with an executive summary (a short written document that summarizes the main points of your presentation).

Since this isn't an in-person class, you won't actually present to the class, but you will present to at least one person of your choosing in step 4 of the process.

Whether you are a novice or an expert at creating presentations, this process will help you create a well-researched presentation that focuses on the needs of decision-makers in management.

The Five Steps

The steps for completing the project are explained in detail in individual documents, but following is a summary:

TP 1 : Choose the Subject for your project in the form of a question.

TP 2 : Propose an answer and provide arguments by researching content and creating an Outline.

TP 3 : Create an Example of a few pages of your presentation to make sure you are on the right track.

TP 4 : Review your work by presenting the complete presentation "live" to a person of your choosing (outside of class), and making a video recording of the first part of the presentation.

TP 5 : Submit the Final presentation file with a bibliography and a separate executive summary.

After you complete each of these steps, I will provide feedback that will help you make needed adjustments so that your final submission will be successful . To get timely feedback, you need to keep up and submit each step when it is due. You will find the due dates in the Schedule on Blackboard.

Software You will need to prepare text files and presentation files. You will also need to provide a short video recording of part of your presentation in TP 4.

Text files For preparing text files (TP 1, TP 2, and the executive summary of TP 5), you may use any word processing software (Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Open Office, etc.). The completed files should be submitted in pdf format .

Presentation files To prepare your presentation (TP 3, TP 4 and TP 5), you may use any presentation software (PowerPoint, Google Slides, Apple Keynote, OpenOffice, etc.). When you present your presentation in TP 4, you will probably want to use whichever software you used to create the file, but the files you submit to Blackboard should be in pdf format .

Video For TP 4, you will create a video less than five minutes long, and you can use your phone, webcam or whatever is easiest for you. The file does not need to be edited, and you won't be graded on the quality of the videography, except that the video and audio need to be clear. You can either submit the file in mp4 format , or you can provide a link to an online location of the recording.

Deadlines Deadlines for term project assignments are specified in the Schedule. Please refer to the Schedule early and often. It is very important to keep up, since each phase builds on the progress of and feedback from the previous phase.

If you turn in an assignment late, please send me an email so I will know to look for it. I'll find it eventually, but I would like to grade late TP assignments as soon as possible so you can move to the next step.

What About Plagiarism? For the reports that you prepare for this course, I expect that you will have three kinds of text.

1. Words that are directly copied from another source, which are marked with quotation marks and which include a reference to the full source in the bibliography. No more than 10 or 15% of a paper should consist of direct quotations.

2. Words that are primarily your own but that include specific facts or other information from a specific source, and so which also include a reference to a full source.

3. Words and ideas that are your own, from your own analyses or experiences, or that are synthesized from a variety of sources.

All of those types of information are fine. However, students sometimes include other information that is not acceptable . Those types of information include the following:

1. Words that are directly copied from another source but without quotation marks or sources, or with sources but nevertheless without quotation marks.

2. Words that are copied from another source, but with a few words changed here and there (with or without references).

Many times, plagiarism issues arise because of ignorance, laziness, and/or cultural differences. However, the website plagiarism.org has clear information about what plagiarism is and how to avoid it. I recommend that everyone be familiar with the rules and definitions of plagiarism.

Written projects will be checked for plagiarism, and students who turn in papers with significant instances of plagiarism may receive zero credit for their assignments and possible referral to the administration to address academic misconduct. (Full details are on the UML Academic Integrity page.)

The bottom line: Know what plagiarism is and avoid it. If you have any questions, please ask.