Business Plan or Business Proposal

The lead IT professional has experience and skills necessary to cover several years of computer communications background coupled with his present career in cyber security in support of the Department of Defense (DoD). I have also worked as a system engineer for several years before completing my bachelors of science in, “Information Systems Security”. My management and leadership skills come from the many years of service in the United States military as a supervisor with great levels of responsibility in personnel and government property. My business experience is tied together from what I have learned and gain throughout my career progression along with continued educational development of my current Master’s degree in, “Informational Management Technology”. I created and established this project in the hope of developing a home entertainment system solution that supports the common demands and the multi-media needs for all consumers.

2.1 Project Proposal

The purpose of this project is to produce a new capability of home entertainment storage convenience with improved multi-functional features that combines the technologies of today’s video and sound systems into one common solution. Many consumers across the globe are running into the same problem of having a growing collection of numerous movies on different digital format types with limited space for physical storage and with no sort of organization. This excessive cluttering can make finding your favorite movies somewhat tiresome or even frustrating (Corredoira & Sood, 2015). With the VS3 system, our goal is to provide the solutions to these any many other issues surrounding home entertain systems. The main objective for this project is to simply combine as much technology and available resources together as possible in order to provide multiple services on the VS3 system that mutually benefits everyone. The basic idea is to provide the consumer with what they want in a user friendly home entertainment system that supports the family’s collective enjoyment needs.

Measuring the project success will take both quantitative and qualitative resources, as much of the unknowns fall into professional experiences and software & hardware engineering. The project will also incorporate best case practices that identify historical information on similar systems during development and design. The project work will be broken down into milestones and select measurable deliverables that are laid out in a later portion of this report which will cover schedules and deliverables (see Appendix C). This will help the investor’s track the progress of the project throughout all efforts with weekly reports that will be identified during all phases of the development process. The budget will also be track in conjunction to the schedule for improved understanding and oversight of project objectives and time limitations (see Appendix B).

2.2 Project Planning Questionnaire and Surveys

Questionnaires and surveys will help identify any work conflicts and personality issues that may add risk to the project goals and objectives. The goal of this pre-development planning session is to help identify and determine all associated requirements related to the actual project are captured, from start to finish. This will help everyone involved to better understand certain expectations and project goals as they progress throughout the schedule. This would also help initiate lines of communications with stakeholders and across the organization for improved feedback on the development of the project which also inspires personal involvement (Teller, Kock, & Gemünden, 2014). Questionnaires and surveys will help with anticipating certain problems and provide possible course of actions toward the risk management process. This is important for project planning which supports the scope of work associated to the deliverable dates and time schedules. The questionnaire is covered in this project plan (see Appendix A), and it will support the projects efforts in order to help coordinate resources for development and improve risk management (Teller et al., 2014).

Additional questionnaires and surveys will be discussed with management as needed throughout the life cycle of the project. Creating good measurable data and information involves both writing good questions and organizing them to form the questionnaire. Good analysis is also important for capturing historical data and experiences throughout the project. This helps show the organizations dedication, commitment and professional pride in the efforts and work being conducted in support of the product and its services. The hardest thing however, is finding the time during a demanding work schedule to develop, administer, and analysis the information in support of possible changes and desired improvements. These are the decisions that project management must consider and evaluate in support of product quality and assurance. I will consider additional help as needed in support of this effort over time and the life cycle of the project.

3.0 Mission Statement

Our mission at VS3 is to designing, developing and market a system that will increase your personal entertainment enjoyment, data capturing and viewing pleasure. This system will store movies, home videos, music and pictures in support of various viewing formats for your personal use. The VS3 system will support specialized hardware and software that will combined several different major integrators. The system will also be designed to support technical upgrades and security updates in support of operational requirements. The VS3 distinguishes itself from the competition by its increased capabilities, multi-functionality, and ease of use that helps anyone to become organized with a personal library of view entertainment. The company values customer quality and product assurance through continuous feedback on operational performance with testing and evaluation. Sales will be made through select distributors with agreement from partners and stakeholders on locations of businesses that are key to a world while market field. Logistics is an important part to this process for any organization, so making the most out of established key infrastructure will save the organization money over time.

4.0 Goals and Objectives

· To expand the business aggressively and offer good returns to shareholders.

· To become the leading, innovative video systems company within 5-years.

· Achieve sales to exceed investment and salary dollars by the 3rd year.

· Increase sales by 20% per year and secure 50% of the market segment by the 4th year.

· Become a major supplier of VS3 and services systems worldwide.

· Increase employment of personnel for support and improved technical development.

· Have sales offices in key locations for marketing before end of the second year.

5.0 Customer and Competitive Analysis

The target customer is the common individual who enjoys home entertainment with a passion for movies, music, and combined services that support improved entertainment qualities. Many people will see the value of this VS3 system straight off from the beginning, with the simplicity of features and the unique capabilities of entertainment storage. System owners will quickly appreciate the benefits to this system with the overlapping technology working together for the common solution. Everyone has some type of entertainment system in their life and reviewing the analysis within the industry provides us with recommendations and feedback on new functions and/or features. The competitive market is filled with numerous companies that offer select services and packages to meet the basic needs of the consumer. The three main services under peer review that select companies provide are usually internet, phone (voice over internet protocol), and television with movies on demand (Robson, Pitt, & West, 2015).

True most companies offer a Digital Video Recorder (DVR) with their television systems however, it is limited to minimal storage and if the signal is bad or down for any reason then the recording is non-viewable or lost. With the way that the economy is today, cost will always be the number one selling point in business strategy and after that it is, quality of services with added capabilities and features. Why would you spend more on less capabilities as a customer who can appreciate the value of saving money and understands the benefits of increasing product features? The company’s business philosophy is to eventually bring the cost down of the VS3 system in order to be competitive in the market and to highlight the new and combining features. The intent is to support capabilities, innovation, efficiencies, quality, and customer needs, all of which can be leveraged to create this differentiation advantage and even the possibility of future cost advantages over time (Corredoira & Sood, 2015).

6.0 Marketing and Sales Analysis

The global digital entertainment market reached nearly $147.4 billion in 2012. This market is expected to grow to $150.9 billion in 2013 and $176.3 billion by the year of 2018, a compound annual growth rate of 3.2% over the five-year period, 2013 to 2018 as cited in my first peer review reference. The market for sales of DVD’s and Blu-ray’s however, has gone down within the last two years while subscription services to Netflix and Hulu, continue to show increases in there online sales of home entertainment. This supports the theory of millions of consumers that don’t wanting the clutter of hundreds of movies laying around taking up space in their living rooms. People are switching to online services for most of their on demand viewing needs because, this saves the consumer time and money through increased selection and associated cost of disks.

Consumers are spending more towards digital home entertainment systems because cost in electronics has come down and technology continues to improve. Today’s consumer wants their entertainment presented to them in ways that they expect to receive it, with multiple options at reasonable prices. The worldwide access of entertainment services continues to grow at a dramatic pace, as broadband services increase to meet the demands of gigabit speeds and qualities of high-definition viewing. The company plans to start out with sales packages and select incentives for the first three years in order to energize the marketing of the VS3 system and services. The company will stay competitive with the market and over time bring down the cost of select services and systems.

7.0 Financial Projections

The company is asking for investment from venture capitalists, angel investors, or even smart entrepreneur’s that are looking to make some capital over time on a bold new concept. The opportunity to get in on the ground work of this project could be financially important to any investor wanting to have influence within the company. The investors should see some possible profit after the second year of sales with options to cash out or even own stock in the company. All financial reports and budgets (see Appendix B) will be available to investors for review and continuous observation for situational awareness. This initial budget is the company’s initial request for the investment of $3M to support design, development and engineering of the hardware and software desired product to include operational cost estimated for the possible first year of business. The main objective is to continue to increase the number of clients served by at least 20% per year through superior performance and word-of-mouth referrals in support of sales and stock. Once we reach a comfortable marketing position we will branch out to incorporate more distribution service centers located in mutually beneficial industrial positions for cost savings and improved product support.

8.0 Deliverables and Milestones

The deliverables and milestones are be cover on the project schedule (see Appendix C), which is part of the deliverables that will support the work effort. This project schedule covers the configuration of the site location and lab construction as needed. To also include hardware and software design and selection, system configuration and integration, security testing, data management, training and the final piece of production. This schedule is a living document and will change with the times to reflect current efforts and possible delays which affect certain milestones and deliverables. Risk assessment and management will significantly alter the schedule due to unforeseen problems which occur during testing and development. There may also be additional deliverables which arise from the testing and development stages to include measurable data and new information (Teller et al., 2014).

After the first year of the project scheduled the company will progress into the next phase of product sales and services. Logistics will start becoming the second year planning phase that will identify distribution centers and services in locations of interest which support cost savings as well as customer services. This will be a big financial investment step towards select the most beneficial service centers for supporting the future growth of the corporation. The company will want to solicit support from investors and stakeholders to ensure the best possible resources are located for a more collective agreement and logistic support plan.

9.0 Risk Management

Planning for risk management involves the process of everyone creating individual lists of at least ten potential risk items that they can think of which is related to the project. Even with the best possible management practices in place issues occur which cause problems on a project over time. Therefore it should be addressed rather than ignored from the beginning. Management should allocate some time, budget and resources for preparing a risk management plan and to also include a possible business impact analysis. A good plan is always important to the projects overall success. The important part is in identifying the risk in order to characterize the possible affect it may have on the project. All potential risks associated with the project need to be addressed early on or the project will be in jeopardy of completing on time as per schedule, within budget and to meet the expected quality assurance requirements (Teller et al., 2014).

One of the current difficulties faced by many new project managers today is, not having a sample of a general risk list to refer to when identifying common and possible project risk. Project risk identification is the most important process in the risk management planning because, it determines which risks might affect the project and it also documents their characteristics. The project is rated with the potential of a medium to high risk level due to the considerations of the many unknowns and variables that have the potential to impact the schedule and cause unwanted delays (Fernández, López, Rubio, & Marco, 2009; (Teller et al., 2014). Most of the issues will probably be within software and hardware testing and configuration. This will also reflect on the initial cost associated to the system as identify through parts and labor. The other issue that is a concern is the legal aspects which surround the systems concept and use of proprietary information related to software and hardware in support of systems design and configuration. We are currently in the process of signing agreements for much of the systems requirements and multi-functionality.

10.0 Final Remarks

Project management and strategic planning are important tools to the success of any business. This project will face a variety of unique opportunities with new developments in information technology and software implementation that will surely challenge us and increase productivity and profitability for the company. The strategic plan must take into account everything about the organization in order to achieve certain objectives and desired goals. This is done through the triple constraint process of managing and balancing the three main factors in any project, which are time, cost and scope. Changing one constraint will undoubtedly affect another or even both and it could also possibly affect the projects total quality. The relationship between these three constraints need to be managed carefully in order to weigh the trade-offs between each for reaching the project goals successfully.

This project will have my full attention at all times for proper support of cross communications which is to ensure that everyone involved receives weekly status reports and reviews continuous accomplishments. I will utilize every available resource and technology to ensure this project successful as well as capture project data and/or information. Future advertising strategies will need to be scheduled for discussion along with marketing prior to production of the system. This should be determined by the progress and development of the projects within and during the first year. This would also identify the need for additional funding in support of advertising costs and production for product sales. The organization will present a collective agreement with stakeholders and associate representatives on approaches to sales and marketing.

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX C ( 1 ) ( 3 ) ( 120 Days ) ( 45 days ) ( 45 days ) ( 90 days ) ( 90 days ) ( 30 days ) ( 90 days ) ( 4 ) ( 6 ) ( 5 ) ( 8 ) ( 9 ) ( 10 ) ( 11 ) ( 12 ) ( On Going )

( Project Schedule First year )

( Facility configuration )

( Hardware & Software design )

( Configuration & testing )

( System integration )

( Security testing )

( Data Management )

( Training )

( Production )

( Months ) ( 12 ) ( 11 ) ( 10 ) ( 7 ) ( 6 ) ( 2 ) ( 3 )

( Start ) ( Milestone ) ( Milestone ) ( Milestone )

APPENDIX D

Risk Assessment Matrix

References

Corredoira, L., & Sood, S. (2015). Meeting new readers in the transition to digital newspapers: Lessons from the entertainment industry. El Professional de la Information, 24(2), 138-

148. doi:10.3145/epi.2015.mar.07

Fernández, J. L. C., López, I. L., Rubio, R. R., & Marco, F. G. (2009). An assessment of

behavioral variables implied in teamwork: an experience with engineering students of

Zaragoza University. European Journal of Engineering Education, 34(2), 113-122. doi:10.1080/03043790902748788.

Robson, K., Pitt, L., & West, D. C. (2015). Navigating the Peer-Review process reviewers' suggestions for a manuscript factors considered before a paper is accepted or rejected for the publication. Journal of Advertising Research. doi:10.2501/JAR-55-1-009-017

Teller, J., Kock, A., & Gemünden, H. G. (2014). Risk management in project portfolios is more

than managing project risks: A contingency perspective on risk management. Project Management Journal, 45(4), 67-80. doi:10.1002/pmj.21431