Discussion question

Computer science and Information Technology Question There are a number of factors that will need to be considered should a Project manager lose two of their three designers whilst preparing for an upcoming project. In such a situation, the designers are looked at in the form of labor as that is their main purpose and thus the loss of two designers will result in the reduction in the amount of labor that is available to the manager for the project at hand (Portny, Mantel & Meredith, 2007). In order to efficiently deal with such a setback, one needs to look at the areas that will be affected by such a change so as to determine the best solution for such a conundrum. There are two major areas that can be said are affected by the loss of labor in a project, they include: 1. Time – The schedule of the project will be affected as a result of the loss as fewer designers will mean less work will be completed in the span of time that was originally allocated to the project (Chemuturi & Cagley, 2010). This may result in having the due/ finish date pushed back to suit the capabilities of the remaining work force which in turn will affect the timing of everything else related to the project as a result. This can include issues such as the release date of the Mp3 player to the public as well as marketing plans to mention but a few. 2. Cost – The sudden loss of two designers will more than likely lead to the accrual of unexpected and additional costs that may have not originally been planned for (Melik, 2007). This is because the labor lost would have to be replaced if the company is to keep schedule and the suddenness of the needed replacements may mean that it may cost more to get new designers on time. There is also the issue of cost should it be decided that the designers will not be replaced (Kousholt, 2007). The cost of the two designers may have been eliminated but new costs in relation to time management will rise up as a result of not replenishing the workforce when it was required (Stellman & Greene, 2005). The main options that are to be considered in such a situation includes replacing the two designers with others on short notice in a bid to maintain schedule. Since the team exists on a virtual platform it should not be too difficult to arrange meeting requirements. The second option consists of rescheduling the release date of the Mp3 player allowing the remaining designer more time to work on the project as he is alone. The third and final option involves shelving the project until an appropriate time where an adequate number of designers can be found again. Question 2 User testing can be considered to be an important part of product testing and thus it is a stage that should be taken into careful consideration if one has never undertaken such a task previously (Lock, 2007). The fact that user testing has not been conducted by the team before making it an unknown requires that adequate research is first performed on the subject to ensure that everybody is on the right track (Cleland & Gareis, 2006). The period of 12 months will serve as an advantage in such a situation as this will allow the team enough time to cover all the preparations they might require to deal with an unknown. There are a number of responses that can be taken when dealing with an unknown in such a situation to enhance the chances of the outcome being a desirable one. These responses include; Conducting Research – The first step will require the gathering of data with regard to the best methods and strategies to be implemented. There are a number of options that are available in the user testing stage and it is essential that the team decides which ones will be most suited to their particular project thus bringing about more accurate results (Nokes, 2007). Research will also need to be conducted on other related factors to the user testing phase such as information on the target population to make things easier during the latter stages. Research ensures that an individual does not walk blindly to an endeavor. The research done can include secondary data collected from published material and the likes as well as first hand information that can be collected from individuals who may have perhaps already conducted a user testing phase for a similar product (Dinsmore, 2005). The information collected will allow the team to adequately prepare for what is required of them as well as give them an idea of what to expect. Hiring Professionals – This can be said to be the best solution in such a situation and should be considered if the team can afford to bring an outside party to deal with the user testing stage of the project (Ireland, 2006). This will ensure that the phase is placed in capable hands decreasing the chances of failure as a result. All one needs to do is tell the professionals what they require from the phase and the span of time allocated to them to achieve this. References Chemuturi, M. & Cagley, T. M. Jr. (2010). Software Project Management: Best Practices, Tools and Techniques. Florida: J. Ross Publishing. Cleland, I. D. & Gareis, R. (2006). Global Project Management Handbook. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional Dinsmore, P. C. et al (2005). The right projects done right! New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons. Ireland, R. L. (2006) Project Management. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional Kousholt, B. (2007). Project Management –. Theory and practice. New York: Nyt Teknisk Forlag. Lock, D. (2007) Project Management (9th ed.). New York: Gower Publishing, Ltd. Melik, R. (2007). The Rise of the Project Workforce. New York, NY: Willey. Nokes, S. (2007) The Definitive Guide to Project Management. 2nd Ed. London Financial Times / Prentice Hall Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J. Jr. & Meredith, J. M. (2007) Wiley Pathways Project Management (1st Ed.). New Jersey: Wiley Global Education Stellman, A. & Greene, J. (2005). Applied Software Project Management. O’Reilly Media.