Reference no: EM132294795
Manage Budgets, Project Costs and Financial Plans Assignment - Managing Project Costs
Assessment Task - Your task for this unit is to develop the project Cost Management Plan. The Cost Management Plan clearly defines how the costs on a project will be managed throughout the project's lifecycle. It sets the format and standards by which the project costs are measured, reported and controlled. The Cost Management Plan:
- Identifies who is responsible for managing costs
- Identifies who has the authority to approve changes to the project or its budget
- How cost performance is quantitatively measured and reported upon Report formats, frequency and to whom they are presented
Using the CAL template (Cost Management Plan) or your own company's template, your task is to develop a comprehensive project cost management plan for your project. If you use your own company's template you will need to ensure it includes all the information listed below so you may need to alter your template to suit.
Where possible, you should develop your cost management plan using the project you are working on and the information gathered in the charter document you developed for the previous module assessment.
Remember, as with the previous assessment, you can develop your cost management plan for a new project you are working on or, you can go back and review the cost management plan already developed for your project.
If you do not have a project either about to commence or one that you are currently working on then you may elect to complete this task by case study.
Your cost management plan must include all of the following (further details of what each section needs to contain is included in the template doc provided with tutorial 1):
- Introduction
- Cost Management Approach - This section you explain your approach to cost management for your project.
- Measuring Project costs - This section defines how the project's costs will be measured - you need to detail how you will measure the project costs.
- Reporting format.
- Cost variance response process - This section of the Cost Management Plan defines the control thresholds for the project and what actions will be taken if the project triggers a control threshold.
- Cost change control process.
- Project budget - should include a detailed breakdown of the direct and indirect costs and include a management and contingency reserve along with a narrative/notes section to outline/explain assumptions etc.
- Sponsor acceptance.
Below you will find a summary of how the tasks you have completed align to the performance criteria and foundation skills for each unit of competency in this qualification and against which you will be assessed.
1. Determine project costs
1.1 Determine resource requirements for individual tasks identified in the work breakdown structure, with input from stakeholders and guidance from others
1.2 Estimate project costs to enable project budget to be prepared within agreed tolerances
1.3 Develop a project budget
1.4 Develop a cost-management plan, within delegated authority, to ensure clarity of understanding and ongoing management of project finances
2. Monitor and control project costs
2.1 Implement agreed financial-management processes and procedures to monitor actual expenditure against budget
2.2 Select and use cost-analysis methods and tools to identify cost variations and evaluate alternative actions
2.3 Implement and monitor agreed actions to maintain financial objectives
2.4 Provide accurate and timely financial reports
3. Complete cost-management processes
3.1 Conduct appropriate activities to signify financial completion
3.2 Review project outcomes using available records to determine the effectiveness of project cost management
3.3 Review cost-management issues and document improvements
Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit. Evidence of the following is essential:
- Applying budgetary processes, tools and techniques relevant to the project context
- Monitoring project costs across the project life for a project of sufficient complexity to demonstrate the full range of performance requirements
- Preparing a budget for a project.
Attachment:- Assignment Files.rar