...5. Project Planning and Feasibility Studies Project planning is part of project management, which relates to the use of schedules such as Gantt charts to plan and subsequently report progress within the project environment. Initially, the project scope is defined and the appropriate methods for completing the project are determined. Following this step, the durations for the various tasks necessary to complete the work are listed and grouped into a work breakdown structure. The logical dependencies between tasks are defined using an activity network diagram that enables identification of the critical path. Float or slack time in the schedule can be calculated using project management software. Then the necessary resources can be estimated and costs for each activity can be allocated to each resource, giving the total project cost. At this stage, the project plan may be optimized to achieve the appropriate balance between resource usage and project duration to comply with the project objectives. Once established and agreed, the plan becomes what is known as the baseline. Progress will be measured against the baseline throughout the life of the project. Analyzing progress compared to the baseline is known as earned value management. The inputs of the project planning phase include the project charter and the concept proposal. The outputs of the project planning phase include the project requirements, the project schedule, and the project management plan. Feasibility studies...
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...Steps to Writing a Grant Proposal Holly Regan HSM/270 June 8, 2014 Fedder Williams Steps to Writing a Grant Proposal Grant proposals are a crucial element within a human service organization for new programs to find and request financial funding from grantors. These grants come from a variety of sources which are usually to fund a specific target population program within an allotted time frame. For an organization to receive funding they must write and submit a grant proposal. A grant proposal is a written presentation of a program plan that is comprised of several different elements or components that include an abstract, table of contents, specific aims/background and significance/needs and problem statement, target population, approaches and methods, long and short-term goals, process/outcome and impact objectives, activity plans/scheduling (timeline), evaluation plan, agency capacity and project management, and a budget/budget justifications. The first step is to find an organization that shares the same mission with a published request for funding opportunities written by the grantor, also called an RFP (request for proposal) or RFA (request for application). Applicant agencies or organizations are given about six to eight weeks to respond to the RFP/RFA which details all major important information such as due dates, funding focus, eligibility, and the program type the grantor wishes to fund. Part one of the grant proposal is the table of contents. The table...
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...does not mean the contractor can start doing the work. Before the project can proceed, a contract must be signed between the customer and the contractor. A contract is a vehicle for establishing good customer–contractor communications and arriving at a mutual understanding and clear expectations to ensure project success. It is an agreement between the contractor, who agrees to perform the project and to provide a product or service (deliverables), and the customer, who agrees to pay the contractor a certain amount in return. The contract must clearly spell out the deliverables the contractor is expected to provide. For example, a contract will state that the project result will meet certain specifications or that certain documentation will be provided. The contract must also state the terms by which the customer will make payments to the contractor. There are basically two types of contracts: fixed-price and cost-reimbursement. FIXED-PRICE CONTRACTS In a fixed-price contract, the customer and the contractor agree on a price for the proposed work. The price remains fixed unless the customer and the contractor agree on changes. This type of contract provides low risk for the customer because the customer will not pay more than the fixed price, regardless of how much the project actually costs the contractor. However, a fixed-price contract is high risk for the contractor because if the cost of completing the project is more than originally planned, the contractor will make a lower...
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...A grant proposal is a representation of a program plan. A plan indicates the approach the applicant will use to identify the needs or problems. A grant proposal has several major sections that outline the program plan: the abstract, table of contents, specific aims/background and significance/needs and problem statement, target population, approaches and methods, activity plans and scheduling (timeline), agency capacity and program management, budget and budget justification, evaluation plan, (Yuen/Terao, 2003). An abstract is a summary of the contents within the grant proposal. It consists of 45 lines, but one page is recommended. Contradictory to one another, the abstract is the shortest part of the proposal, but also the most important and most read. An abstract, to any piece of writing, is typically the go-to piece to read so there can be avoidance of reading something that may not be of interest to the reader. Better yet, it provides that first impression for anyone who reads it. The following are included in the contents of the abstract of a grant proposal: agency name and the type of organization it is, the purpose and objectives of the project, specific interventions for the project, target population such as race, demographic, age, gender, special needs, location and setting of the project, and the relevance of the proposal to the funding source (Yuen/Terao, 2003). Considering that the abstract is the most important piece as well as a summary for the proposal, it is...
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...Re-Entry Project | for Middle Managers Class (MMC) Batch 3 Guidelines | The | CONTENTS | I. The Re-entry Project (ReP) | | A. The Nature of the Re-entry Project (ReP) | 3 | B. The Rationale behind the ReP Requirement | 3 | C. Characteristics of the ReP | 4 | II. Phases of Re-entry Project Execution | | Phase 1: Formulating the Proposal | 6 | Proposal Abstract | 6 | Chapter I: The Performance Gap | 7 | Chapter II: The Intervention | 8 | Endorsement of ReP Proposal by Institutional Partner | 9 | Phase 2: Designing the Plan | 10 | Chapter III: The Plan | 11 | Endorsement of ReP Plan by the Faculty Adviser | 11 | Powerpoint Presentation Version of Chapter III | 12 | Phase 3: Implementing the Plan | 12 | Progress Reports | 12 | Phase 4: Reporting the Results | 13 | Chapter IV: The Final Report | 14 | Endorsement of Report by the Faculty Adviser | 14 | Powerpoint Presentation Version of Chapter IV | 14 | Final ReP Document | 15 | III. Approval Procedure | | A. The ReP Proposal | 16 | B. The ReP Plan | 17 | C. The ReP Progress Reports | 19 | D. The ReP Final Report | 21 | IV. Terms of Reference for Panel Members | | A. Institutional Partner (IP) | 25 | B. Faculty Adviser (FA) |...
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...MIS Project Management at First National Bank Lessons Learned Report Prepared by: Group B 09-12-2013 Table of Contents 1. Introduction 3 2. Project Overview 4 3. Contributing Factors to Failure 5 3.1. Project Proposal Lifecycle 5 3.2. Planning and Communications 6 3.3. Risk Management 6 3.4. Stakeholder Involvement 7 4. Recommendations 9 4.1. Inter-Departmental / Stakeholders Conflict Management 9 4.2. Effective Planning and Communications Strategy 11 4.3. Shorter proposal lifecycle 11 4.4. Introduction of Risk Management mechanism 12 5. Conclusion 12 6. Bibliography 13 Introduction “Collecting and analyzing successes and failures is a valuable tool to improving performance. This information, once captured, can be used to streamline future projects and ensure a successful launch for the next project or team. Everyone benefits by reviewing past activities and decisions to learn what worked, what didn’t, what can be changed, and what must be managed”. The following Lessons Learned report has been concluded by applying the formal project management knowledge to case study of MIS project at First National Bank. This document will depict project management failures and their causes and use them to generate recommendations by identifying new approaches/improvements. The first part of the report is an overview of the project and analysis of its factual background information. Project stakeholders will be...
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...U.S.-Israel Science & Technology Foundation Tips on How to Write a Proposal In addition to the title page and budget forms, the USISTF only provides a general outline of the items to include in a proposal. Here are some tips to help you prepare a better proposal. Before you begin preparation of your proposal, carefully read the “Request for Proposals” (RFP) and “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQs) to clearly understand the issues to be addressed and the information you are required to submit. All proposals must include certain basic information. These basics include: Why are you doing this project? What will you be doing? How will you be doing it? Who will be doing it? Where will it be done? How long will it take? How much will it cost? The following generic proposal template is provided for guidance only. The USISTF does not require a specific format. Follow this format in organizing your thoughts for preparing your proposal. Executive Summary: Some people consider this the most important part of the proposal because it is the reviewer’s first impression. Even though it appears first, write it last because it is a summary of the proposal. The executive summary is a concise description of the project covering objectives, need, methodology, and dissemination plans. It should identify the expected outcomes of the project. An executive summary should be less than 750 words and fit on one page. Need: Well-documented description of the problem to be addressed and why it is important...
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...Steps to Writing a Grant Proposal Writing a grant proposal requires practice and procedure. Many grant request are denied the first time they are submitted. Luckily, there are steps that one can follow to make the process a little bit easier and with practice and revision; a quality grant proposal will be the result. In order to get started with writing a grant proposal, an agency must have all its information and research organized. Then an agency needs to be found that has funding and is looking to support a program like the one the grant proposal is for. For this paper, I will use the scenario three, PEACE Domestic Violence Agency (PEACE) to summarize a grant proposal’s writing steps, outline the process, and create a needs and problem statement. The first part of the grant proposal PEACE needs to develop is the table of contents, which will also be one of the last parts to finish. It is a guide to what is in the proposal and where to find it. It is one of the first things to be developed because it serves as a checklist during the writing process and is one of the last to be finished because the pages where each section can be found will not be known until the proposal is mostly finished. The next part is specific aims. This section can be referred to as or includes as subsections the needs and problem statement, the background and significance, or the literature review. In this section, it is important for PEACE to express that they know what they are doing and why...
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...DETAILED RESEARCH PROPOSAL Part I Procedural Documents: these include individual pages containing the cover sheet, Standard Application Form for Ethics Review (SAFER), clearances, endorsement from the agency head, and the curriculum vitae. There should be no pagination on these documents as they are meant to stand-alone. Cover sheet – Please use a separate sheet. This contains the following information: 1. 2. 3. 4. Revision date and number Title of the study Study number – (to be provided by PCHRD) Signatures and dates: a. Author(s) / Contact numbers b. Implementing agency / Contact numbers(This refers to the agency/ies implementing the research proposal) c. Cooperating agency / Contact numbers (This refers to the agency/ies, which is/are expected to cooperate/contribute to the research work.) A. Standard Application Form for Ethics Review (SAFER) – Please use a separate sheet. This contains the following information: (For Ethics Review Committee use only) 1. 2. Reference Number– (to be provided by ZCHRD) Contact details of Program/Project leader (This indicates the name of the program and/or project leader, his/her designation or title in his/her agency, field of specialization and his/her mailing address, telephone and fax numbers. Indicate percentage time to be devoted to his/her research. A program leader is one who directly plans, organizes, supervises the over-all activities of an R and D, and is directly responsible for the conduct of one of the projects of said program...
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...Uncertainty on Project Planning Process Project across most industries face huge uncertainty as regard to complex, ambiguous and dynamic environment (external environment) which can have impact on the project planning process. Similarly, projects are becoming larger and more ambiguous which make the execution and realisation of project complexity to be on the increase therefore increase our internal complexity. (Azim, 2010) established that project are increasingly being characterized as complex across most industries and sectors. (Vidal et al. 2011, p. 719) define project complexity as the property of a project which make it difficult to understand, foresee and keep under control, even when given reasonably complete information about the project system. Besner and Hobbs project (2012) established that size, complexity and together with risk (known unknown) and uncertainty (unknown unknown) are path of project characteristics to be considered in selection of project management toolsets to be adopted in their management approach. Each of the project classification approaches attempt to address interaction between complexity and uncertainty and the impact this interaction has on project planning process. The key principles for addressing complexity in the planning process. The complexity of project has always been there which make the need to execute and bring realisation of project complexity on the increase. Therefor the key principles of project complexity in the...
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...Steps to Writing a Grant Proposal Holly Regan HSM/270 June 8, 2014 Fedder Williams Steps to Writing a Grant Proposal Grant proposals are a crucial element within a human service organization for new programs to find and request financial funding from grantors. These grants come from a variety of sources which are usually to fund a specific target population program within an allotted time frame. For an organization to receive funding they must write and submit a grant proposal. A grant proposal is a written presentation of a program plan that is comprised of several different elements or components that include an abstract, table of contents, specific aims/background and significance/needs and problem statement, target population, approaches and methods, long and short-term goals, process/outcome and impact objectives, activity plans/scheduling (timeline), evaluation plan, agency capacity and project management, and a budget/budget justifications. The first step is to find an organization that shares the same mission with a published request for funding opportunities written by the grantor, also called an RFP (request for proposal) or RFA (request for application). Applicant agencies or organizations are given about six to eight weeks to respond to the RFP/RFA which details all major important information such as due dates, funding focus, eligibility, and the program type the grantor wishes to fund. Part one of the grant proposal is the table of contents. The table...
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...a Grant Proposal The PEACE Domestic Violence Agency is a nonprofit organization based out of Portland, Oregon whose mission is to reduce victim trauma, empower survivors, and promote recovery through direct services based out of Portland, Oregon. Over the last 5 years there has been growing cases of domestic and youth violence, road rage incidents, and spousal and child abuse happening within the metropolitan city. PEACE wants to be able to reduce these cases by challenging the social norms and beliefs that condone the violence while also educating the community about the growing problem. PEACE has two separate programs that provide founding to nonprofits: • The Small Grants Program offers one-time grants of up to $5,000 to registered charities with an annual budget under $500,000. • The Investor Program is an innovative funding program designed to support six organizations under each of the objectives of the Supporting Families program, with up to $150,000 a year for up to 3 years. In order to address the growing problem in the Portland community, grant proposals for the organization should be written out in order to receive funding. Writing a grant proposal takes time and patience in order for it to be done properly. There are several steps that are involved in writing a grant proposal which would be from this list: 1. Abstract 2. Table of contents 3. Specific aims 4. Target population 5. Approaches and methods 6. Evaluation plan 7. Agency...
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...PROJECT PROPOSAL 1.0 Introduction This paper will give the meaning of a project proposal. It will also give the importance of a project proposal. In addition it will give the characteristics of a good proposal and finally go into the details on the components of a project proposal. 2.0 Definition. 2.1 Project proposal A project proposal is a detailed description of a series of activities aimed at solving a certain problem (NEBIU 2002). In order to be successful, the document should provide a logical presentation of a research idea; illustrate the significance of the idea. Project proposals are documents designed to present a plan of action, outline the reasons why the action is necessary, and convince the reader to agree with and approve the implementation of the actions recommended in the body of document. Generally the project proposal should outline the task at hand and how it is to be accomplished by giving details of methods its background, what is already known and how facts will be gathered and analyzed. 3.0 COMPONENTS OF A PROPOSAL 1. Cover/ Title Page The name of the project is formal because it is to be used in coding or filling. This consists of the title, applying agency, motto, project duration and amount of requested financial assistance. The title covers main areas/focus/target and needs to be coherent/ consistent with the project description. States the title of the project, your institution’s name, address, phone, contact person, the name of the person/organization...
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...Associate Level Material Appendix A Final Project Overview and Timeline Final Project Overview Project Proposal Final Project Timeline You should budget your time wisely and work on your project throughout the course. As outlined below, some assignments in the course are designed to assist you in creating your final project. If you complete your course activities and use the feedback provided by the instructor, you will be on the right track to successfully complete your project. • Suggested in Week One: Decide on the website topic and theme for your project. You design the project plan for a 5- to 7-page website throughout the course. Once your topic and theme have been decided on, they may not be changed; thus, place considerable thought into this decision. Possibilities include developing a website plan for your favorite charitable organization, your professional portfolio, a small business in need of a web presence, or your choice. • Suggested in Week Two: CheckPoint: Website Plan, Part One Begin a professionally written website plan consistent with APA guidelines. This plan must include the following: • A title page • The site purpose: a short paragraph to describe the purpose of the website • The target audience: bulleted list of your target audience • A message: Create a slogan for the site. It must be 10 words or fewer, but must drive the site’s purpose to the audience. Write two to three sentences explaining how the slogan...
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...Assignment: Due Week 5 This is a two part assignment. Part 1 First, develop project selection criteria and a high level process for applying the criteria and managing the portfolio. The criteria should be consistent with the business environment for the industry, consistent with your company's overall mission/strategies, and consistent with the mission and strategies of your strategic business unit. You are proposing a process, not individual projects. The deliverable for Part 1 is a written proposal for the project selection criteria and a high level description of a proposed portfolio management process. You may also be expected to make an informal presentation of the report in class. The proposal should be in the form of a memorandum to your Vice President (your instructor) outlining your proposal. The memorandum should be no more than 10 pages, including any figures and tables. It should be double-spaced, 10 or 12 point font with one-inch margins. This is a summary for an executive, so be concise, to the point, and leave out the fluff. If you don't need 10 pages to document your proposal fully, I am sure that your Vice President will be happy with less as long as it is complete. Using appropriate grammar, spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure will be part of your grade. The actual proposal should include the following: 1. A description of the proposed portfolio process. You are explaining it to the executives. 2. The reasons it was selected (tie to...
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