Table of Contents

Capstone Proposal Summary 1
Goals and Objectives 6
Project Charter & Scope Statement 8
Project Plan and Timelines 11
Project Development 13
Project Summary 15
References 16
Appendix 1: Competency Matrix 17
Appendix 2: Website Screen Shots 19
Appendix 3: Site Structure Map 24

Capstone Proposal Summary

My Capstone project is to develop a website for a startup company that was recently formed by my family. This company is just starting out and will have a wide, diverse range of products and services. Some of these will include website design, remote network support, graphic design, photography sessions, and technical support. The web presence is an initial step to introduce the company. Following this, prospective customers will be able to access the website for information about the company and the services offered. Future updates will include the addition of available products made by the company. The site will need to provide information about the company’s qualifications and certifications of the staff, contact information, and information request forms. In anticipation of future growth of the services and products offered, a site template page will need to allow for the creation of additional pages and information. The project is forecast to be completed in three basic phases. The first phase will be to define the content to be initially included on the site by researching other company websites of a similar nature. This will produce a rough draft of the content and page layout for the website. It will also provide a basic template constructed from observations of similar sites, which will act as a starting point. The second phase will be the actual construction of the website pages and template. This will include the purchase of web page creation software and texts to aid in the construction. A minimum of three different software packages will be compared based on their content, documentation, support, and cost. The final phase will be the purchase of a domain name, web hosting, and launching of the website. In addition, the site will undergo testing in various browsers for compatibility, speed, and accessibility. The entire construction process will need to be documented thoroughly, to facilitate the expansion of the website in the future.

Review of Other Work

To begin this project it is necessary to review other types of websites that represent similar companies and their products. These sites will help to determine a starting framework that will guide in the development of the website structure and content. Some common features to observe will be site layout, navigation structure, company information included, multimedia applets, site search capabilities, contact forms, and product displays. Other features may be included as the comparable sites are surveyed.

When examining websites, it was decided to include at least one high traffic site that provides enormous amounts of information. This first site is www.espn.com. This site offers information on a wide range of sporting events, with the data being updated almost constantly. Although this is not something that our startup site will feature, the layout and navigation elements are great examples of site structure. Featuring multiple horizontal navigation bars to subpages, plus links to all stories and videos, site visitors are able to directly access popular information from the home page, without clicking through multiple pages. This is a key component to successful web design; make the information easy to access to keep your visitors returning to your site.

The previous site gives the user an abundance of information and links, which may turn away the casual browser. On the opposite end of the scale is www.mint.com. This site opens with a sleek, clean home page with a minimum of information for the user to browse. Again seen is the standard horizontal navigation bar for simple browsing of the site pages. This minimalistic approach seems more appropriate for the small startup website. It provides a key mission statement that describes the site’s purpose with links to more detailed information. The site has ample room for expansion when and if more products are offered.

Next we looked at the site, www.giftrocket.com. This site seems to be in the middle ground between to two previous sites, in regards to information access. This site is an example of an e-commerce website that takes advantage of the free space to include advertisements for other sites. This is an option for a growing business that needs more visibility among potential customers. This would not seem to be an option for our startup site. The look tends to be busy with sales pitches aimed at the site visitors. Otherwise, the site has the same core components, including a site map at the bottom of the page for more detailed browsing. The standard horizontal navigation bar at the top offers basic browsing through the critical information.

The three previous sites gave us an overview of common web practices used on the Internet. However, we needed to examine a site that was more in tune with what we would like to construct. One site was found that represented an established company in the same field that would meet the goals of our project, www.networklogic.net.

Network Logic is an established company with over 14 years of experience in the information technology field. Their website has a basic, slim design using neutral colors. It does not employ any graphic text elements or outrageous colors to grab your attention. It is assumed that the user is there for the content, not the flashy graphics. General information about the company services are displayed on the home page, along with links to more detailed information about their services offered. In addition, a small contact form to request a free consultation is constructed along the right border. Each of the detailed link pages offers a more in depth description of the service offered, along with links to their chat portal and customer service request page. The same page design is consistent throughout the website, maintaining the same color scheme and frame construction. This helps the potential customer find the newly requested information quickly, without having to search each new page. Another noted feature is the condensed site map feature that is presented at the bottom of each page. The links from the horizontal navigation bar at the top of the page are repeated, along with a mission statement of the company. This serves as a closing border to the page and provides a basic containment structure for the information on each web page

In summary, our research of other websites has shown the need for standard website navigation through a horizontal navigation bar, with some additional links to other important information. In addition, a brief explanation of the site’s purpose with a clean aesthetically pleasing look on the home page to encourage repeat visitors should be displayed. Finally, there needs to be room for expansion in the event of new products and information.

Rationale and Systems Analysis

The rationale for this project, being a startup company, is to create a website to facilitate the release of information regarding the company and its products and services. The web presence will provide for expansion of services and updating the company information available to the public. Since this is a new company, there is no current system in place. This will create the need to establish a basic set of tools to create, maintain, update, and troubleshoot the website. For this purpose, three potential software packages contain the tools necessary for website creation, publication, and updating. In addition, a web hosting company will need to be found to publish the site to the Internet.

Expression Web is a free to download tool for designing, developing, and publishing high-quality websites offered by Microsoft. This software is designed for the experienced web designer who has some knowledge of XHTML, CSS design, and JavaScript, among other things. For this reason, there may need to be some training included with the selection of the software, since the free version does not include technical support from Microsoft.

Web Easy Professional is a simple, easy to use web design software package that is made for the novice user. Its modest price of around $50 makes it an appealing choice, along with the drag and drop features and helpful menus. However, it is not built to design more advanced website features, such as JavaScript applets, interactive navigation bars, and photographic slideshows. For these additional features, a second product would be necessary.

Dreamweaver CS6 is the latest version of Adobe System’s proprietary web development tool. It is probably the most complete web design package available, with multiple design views for the novice and expert user. Dreamweaver is built for the multiplatform era, creating pages viewable on web browsers, tablets, and mobile phones. It is the most flexible application in regards to operating systems, as Expression Web is built solely for Windows systems. Also, it is tightly integrated with Adobe Flash, the predominant multimedia extension used for graphics and videos on the Internet (Mendelson, 2012). However, it does come with more of an investment, a $50 per month annual plan. This does include updates, technical support and cloud storage. It remains to be seen if this would be a viable investment at this time for this company.

There is a wide variety of web hosting companies available to publish the site to the Internet. Most include the same basic features, including domain name purchase, FTP support, technical support, site visitation statistics, and storage. GoDaddy.com offers a wide variety of service plans starting at $3.49 per month. This would seem to be a viable option for our web hosting needs.

The company is expecting to increase its reach with new customers throughout the country. These customers will require an ever-changing variety products and services to fulfill their business needs. A news and information page will continually update progress on new products. As these items become available, the website template will be invaluable in creating new pages for these products. The template will continue to keep a continuity between the structure and style of the all the web pages. The site structure document will be a living component that will continue to be updated as the website grows and expands its coverage. Links to new pages will be added, along with updating and removing links that become extinct. Finally, the Project Summary Report will document the entire process of the website construction. Including any issues with the software packages that may arise, design features that were introduced and how to duplicate, and a final timeline that can be used to schedule future expansions.

Goals and Objectives

By implementing this project proposal, the company would have two main goals. Establish a web presence to introduce the company, and to provide a portal for potential customers to order products and services.

This project would establish a website, which will be the public’s first impression of the company. It will need to portray a professional image, offering new and unique products that are highly sought after. It would also circulate the company logo and mission statement making it more identifiable. Other marketing would be needed in concert with this proposal to get the company off the ground. To gauge the results in meeting this goal, the second objective would be most effective. Customers contacting the company through the web portal would be asked their initial impressions of the website and any changes that would make it easier to navigate.

The customer portal section of the site would allow communication from potential customers via an email request for information form. As mentioned above, a small survey would accompany the request to ascertain the effectiveness of the website in providing information about the company and its products. Further correspondence could include product ordering, technical support, and updates on new products. Through the web host a site visitor counter will be able to track the number of visitors to the site, in relation to actual customer contacts created through the feedback form. Coupled, these would create a complete view of user activity on the website, which will be a guide for future improvements.

Project Deliverables

The following objects will be delivered during the execution of this project:

• Project Charter

• Project Scope Statement

• Site Structure Document

• Website Template

• Project Summary Report

The Project Charter will serve to initiate the project and set the company’s expectations for the project deliverables. It is a formal, detailed vision of the project with respect to company’s mission statement.

The Project Scope Statement will define the limits to the project. It will contain the expected outcomes from the project in terms of the deliverables, and outline the items that will not be included. The scope statement will include the product description, key deliverables, success and acceptance criteria, key performance indicators, exclusions, along with time and cost estimates.

The Site Structure Document will diagram the basic structure of the website. It will serve as a graphical site map that will be used to construct the navigation elements of the site. This document will be critical to future expansion pages for the site.

A Website Template will be created to facilitate the construction of all pages within the website. This will produce a cohesive look and feel, which can then be passed on to future add-on pages. This is one of the key deliverables of the project.

The Project Summary Report will signal the completion of the project. It will contain a final timeline, budget review, expectation review, maintenance requirements, upgrade documentation, and final acceptance.

Project Charter & Scope Statement

Company Web Presence Project

This Charter formally authorizes the Company Web Presence Project to develop and implement a new website for use by DaleJane Resources, LLC. A project plan will be developed and submitted to the Project Sponsor for approval. The project plan will include: scope statement; schedule; cost estimate; budget; and provisions for scope, resource, schedule, communications, quality, risk, procurement, and stakeholder management as well as project control. All resources will be assigned by the Project Sponsor, Teresa Gruver, Chief Operating Officer.

The purpose of the Company Web Presence project is to provide an information portal for prospective customers to view available services and products. This project meets DaleJane Resources’ need for improved product awareness. The project deliverables shall include a website template page, site structure map, and prototype website. The objectives of the project are to provide information on products and services offered by the company, with a means for prospective customers to contact via email or constructed contact form. High-level risks for this project include ensuring that the information provided is accurate and easily accessible. Additionally, the contact information and contact form page must be fully functional and accurate to facilitate customer communication. The Project Sponsor will determine success once the website is published through the web-hosting provider selected and the page is fully functional on the Internet.

The scope of the project is limited to the deliverables necessary to construct and publish the company website. This includes purchasing of software package, design of web page template, construction of the prototype website, publishing via the web-hosting company, and documentation of the project. Other marketing materials such as advertisements, flyers, and social media pages are out of the scope of this project. It is assumed that the personnel necessary to provide company information and product descriptions will be available when needed. The project constraints include the budget of $1000 and the maximum time frame of two months to complete the project once the project charter has been approved.

The Project Manager, Tim Gruver, is hereby authorized to interface with management as required, negotiate for resources, delegate responsibilities within the framework of the project, and to communicate with all contractors and management, as required, to ensure successful and timely completion of the project. The Project Manager is responsible for developing the project plan, monitoring the schedule, cost, and scope of the project during implementation, and maintaining control over the project by measuring performance and taking corrective action.

The project plan will be submitted and approved in accordance with the milestone schedule below. Upon approval of the project plan resources will be assigned to the project and work will commence within one business day. The Project Sponsor must approve any schedule changes, which may affect milestones. A detailed schedule will be included in the project plan. The high-level milestone schedule is:

Oct 8, 2013 – Project Plan Complete and Approved

Oct 12, 2013 – Software Package Approved and Purchased

Oct 15, 2013 – Web Page Template Completed

Oct 18, 2013 – Prototype Web Site Completed

Oct 22, 2013 – Final Testing Completed

Oct 23, 2013 – Site Publishing Completed

Oct 24, 2013 – Project Summary Report Completed

The budget for the Payroll project is $1000. It is to be funded through the DaleJane Resources general cash account.

Project Plan and Timelines

| |Tasks | | |Duration |Start |Finish |
| | | | | | |
| |1. Identify Business Goals | |1 day |10/3/13 |10/4/13 |
| |Project research began this day. Started on schedule. |
| |2. Document Goals & Objectives |1 day |10/3/13 |10/4/13 |
| |Able to perform concurrently with previous task to speed up process. |
| |3. Review Similar Work | |1 day |10/4/13 |10/5/13 |
| |Similar work reviewed by team members to establish site requirements. |
| |4. Finalize Goals | | |1 day |10/5/13 |10/6/13 |
| |Goals finalized and ready for documentation. Project on schedule. |
| |5. Write Project Charter | |1 day |10/6/13 |10/7/13 |
| |Project Charter completed 1 day ahead of milestone scheduled. |
| |Charter approved by Project Sponsor on this day. |
| | | | | | |
| |1. Perform System Analysis | |1 day |10/7/13 |10/8/13 |
| |Analysis of existing system features completed. |
| |2. Document Project Requirements |1 day |10/8/13 |10/9/13 |
| |Project requirements documented based on system analysis and needs. |
| |3. Document Solutions | |1 day |10/8/13 |10/9/13 |
| |Software packages & Web-hosting solutions researched and multiple |
| |solutions provided to Project Sponsor. |
| |4. Develop Project Scope Statement |1 day |10/9/13 |10/10/13 |
| |Scope of project defined, including items that would be out of scope. |
| |5. Develop Overall Project Schedule |2 days |10/9/13 |10/11/13 |
| |Overall project schedule completed with tentative duration times. |
| | | | | | | |
| |1. Select Project Solution Package |1 day |10/11/13 |10/12/13 |
| |Software package selected and purchased. Milestone date met. |
| |2. Site Structure Document |2 days |10/12/13 |10/13/13 |
| |Initial Site Structure Map constructed ahead of schedule by one day. |
| |3. Review & Refine Site Structure |1 day |10/12/13 |10/13/13 |
| |Site Structure Map reviewed by team with minor changes and approved. |
| |4. Web Site Template | |2 days |10/13/13 |10/16/13 |
| |Template page construction completed. Additional day required for |
| |team to familiarize with software package. Second software package |
| |was purchased at no charge to include more design features. |
| |Milestone date was 1 day late due to training and second package. |
| |5. Develop Prototype Site | |5 days |10/16/13 |10/18/13 |
| |Prototype site was created 2 days ahead of schedule. Increased time |
| |in developing template decreased the time needed for actual construction. |
| |Milestone date was met. |
| | | | | | |
| |Project on schedule. Testing proceeded normally. |
| |2. Analyze Test Results | |1 day |10/19/13 |10/20/13 |
| |Test results analyzed by team and recommendations made. This was done |
| |concurrently with testing to try and stay on schedule. |
| |3. Review and Revise Site | |1 day |10/20/13 |10/21/13 |
| |Revisions made per testing results. |
| |4. Perform Final Testing | |1 day |10/21/13 |10/22/13 |
| |Final testing complete. Website ready for publication. Milestone date |
| |met. Project on schedule. |
| | | | | |
| |Report completed within allotted time frame. |
| |2. Publish Final Web Site | |1 day |10/22/13 |10/23/13 |
| |Website published through web-host 2 days behind Milestone date. |
| |3. Review Maintenance Requirements |1 day |10/22/13 |10/23/13 |
| |Review of maintenance requirements by team completed. |
| |4. Review Upgrade Steps | |1 day |10/22/13 |10/23/13 |
| |Upgrade steps using template and site structure map completed. |
| |5. Archive Project Items | |1 day |10/24/13 |10/25/13 |
| |Final report, template, site structure map, and all documents saved. |
| | | |
|Leadership & Professionalism |Leadership |My leadership is demonstrated in the preparation of the |
| | |project schedule and management of company resources/ |
|Leadership & Professionalism |Professionalism |I have shown professionalism in my ability to form a new |
| | |company and work with technical staff to analyze available |
| | |software products. |
|Leadership & Professionalism |Self-Management Skills |My self-management is exemplified in my management of time |
| | |and tasks to complete the project on schedule. |
|Language & Communication |Written Communication Skills |My written communication skills are shown in developing the |
| | |project documents in an orderly and easy to understand |
| | |method. |
|Quantitative Literacy |Utilize standard problem solving skills |My ability to analyze the needs of the company and form a |
| | |plan to meet the goals and objectives demonstrates standard |
| | |problem solving skills. |
|Upper Division Collegiate Level Reasoning & |Planning and Information Gathering |By evaluating different sources representing a range of |
|Problem Solving | |software choices to create multiple solutions to the |
| | |problem. |
|Quantitative Literacy |Utilize flow charts, logic diagrams to solve |Creating a site structure plan that traces the flow of |
| |quantitative problems |navigation through the website demonstrates my ability to |
| | |utilize logic diagrams. |
|Language & Communication |Evaluating Information |Evaluating the website test results and extrapolating the |
| | |needed changes demonstrates my evaluation skills. |
|Web Technologies |Web Page Creation & Programming Languages |The use of web development software and JavaScript to |
| | |construct the company website shows my skills in web |
| | |creation & programming languages. |
|Quantitative Literacy |Applying Technology to Quantitative Problems |The use of new web development software demonstrates my |
| | |ability to apply technology to quantitative problems. |
|Language & Communication |Adaptation |My adaption skills are used in the development of the |
| | |project plan to reword the technical aspects of the project |
| | |into more understandable terminology. |

Appendix 2: Website Screen Shots

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Appendix 3: Site Structure Map

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