Reference no: EM132169450

Question:

Prepare a preliminary PickPOCIT project management organization chart and show how it interfaces with the ISI organization structure. In 300 to 350 words describe a) The primary roles and responsibilities of the key project management staff, b) The expectations the project manager has of project staff, c) The expectations the project manager has of functional managers and d) The methods of communication that would be employed with each. Be as specific as you can with names of people and organizational units in ISI.

Article:

Inventory Specialists, Inc (ISI)

Introduction:

Inventory Specialists, Inc (ISI) is a high-technology company, privately owned and operated for profit. The company was founded about ten years ago by Sid Jones and a small group of experienced software designers who left the Southern Software Co. to set up a small company to produce leading edge inventory management software. The software produced by Jones and his associates are at the high end in quality and advanced design, and have become well known for being very stable, user friendly, and intuitive. The company's highly responsive and effective customer support has earned an increasing demand for its products. The company gradually expanded to include hardware, and three years ago decided to change its name to ISI and enter the inventory management market in areas where innovative engineering, rapid response, and affordable products are required. This venture succeeded beyond Jones’ expectations, and at this juncture the company has a staff of 250 employees and has recently acquired new quarters with space for further growth. Operations The company's gross business is about $95 million per year, one-half of which is expended in-house and the other half goes for subcontracted services. About 80% of the company's work is for commercial concerns, with the remaining 20% involving state and local government contracts. Commercial programs are generally acquired by competitive bidding in response to a published Request for Proposal (RFP). The contracts ISI has won have been generally of the Fixed Price, Cost Plus Fixed Fee, or Cost Plus Incentive Fee types, depending on the degree of risk involved. ISI is a fully integrated operation including hardware/software development and test laboratories, computing facilities, technical information services and administrative support. Personnel Sid Jones is President and Chief Executive Officer of ISI. His early associates, Rich Reynolds and Gerald Garcia are Vice President for Engineering and Vice President for Business, respectively. Three years ago, Victoria Valley joined the company as Vice President for Programs after 15 years of program management and marketing experience with General Software, Inc. Jean Stapleton, Director of Product Operations, is involved in most management decisions because of her seniority and key function. Of the company's 250 employees some 200 are software and hardware developers and skilled technicians. About 50% of the personnel are engaged in hardware and software development engineering operations; 25% in product integration and test operations; 5% in technical program management; 15% in administrative support and 5% in staff functions. The company is a matrix organization. Program managers are primarily responsible for the accomplishment of the technical work and delivery of the product within budget and schedule, and for interfacing with the customer. Software Development and Product Operation managers are responsible for the actual development and production of the product and for its technical capability and integrity. General Organization The top-level organization of ISI, showing the principal staff and operating functions that report to the Office of the President, is depicted in Figure 1. Because the company is relatively small, the management and staff operations are correspondingly limited. Top management consists of the President and three Vice Presidents, responsible for engineering, business operations, and programs, respectively. At the staff level, the Directors of Quality Control and Human Resources report directly to the President. The Programs Office, managed by Jim Sams, houses the program managers for current major tasks, and reports to the VP for Programs. The marketing function, which in larger organizations is handled by a Director of Marketing and staff, is the responsibility of the VP for Programs. There is no Chief Counsel at the staff level; legal advice is obtained when needed from a consulting legal firm. At the operating level, the VP for Software doubles as the Director of Software Development, while the VP for Business serves as Director of Administrative Operations. These ‘duplicate listings’ are indicated by an asterisk (*). The Director of Product Operations reports to the President. The majority of ISI stock is held by the officers of the company. The President, Vice Presidents and the Director of Product Operations serve as the Management Committee, shown in Figure 1a, which meets semi monthly to report on their respective operations and to advise on program areas. Figure 1. Top-Level Organization of ISI Figure 1a. ISI Management Committee Administrative and Product Operations The organization of the Administrative Operations Department, headed by Gerald Garcia, is shown in Figure 2. It consists of two groups: Financial Services, managed by Ruth Simms and Support Services, managed by Stephen Lota. The former is responsible for contracts and purchasing, accounting, payroll and management information, while the latter handles shipping and receiving, office services, plant services and computer support services. All operations are integrated by extensive use of information networking, with a tradition of teamwork and service. purchasing, accounting, payroll and management information, while the latter handles shipping and receiving, office services, plant services and computer support services. President and CEO Sid Jones VP Software/Hardware Development Rich Reynolds * Director, Software/Hardware Development Rich Reynolds Systems Test Group ETG Quality Control Group ETQ Software Development Group ETS Product Improvement Group ETI Hardware Group ETH Chief Architect ECA Architecture Group ECAG VP Business Gerald Garcia * Director, Administrative Ops Gerald Garcia Financial Services Group AFG Support Services Group ASG VP Programs Victoria Valley Manager, Programs Office Jim Sams Director, Product Operations Jean Stapleton Integration and Test Group PIT Installation Group PFF Customer Service (PCS) Director, Quality Control Dana Deming Director, Human Resourses Alli Apple President and CEO Sid Jones Director, Product Operations Jean Stapleton VP Programs Victoria Valley VP Engineering Rich Reynolds VP Business Gerald Garcia purchasing, accounting, payroll and management information, while the latter handles shipping and receiving, office services, plant services and computer support services. All operations are integrated by extensive use of information networking, with a tradition of teamwork and service. Figure 2. ISI Administrative Operations The Product Operations Department organization is illustrated in Figure 3. The Planning, Scheduling and Documentation Staff plans and oversees the flow of work in the department. The Integration and Test Group, managed by Priyanka Moorjani, is responsible for testing components built in-house or contracted out, assembling them, conducting system tests and performing the appropriate quality assurance functions. Director, Administrative Ops Gerald Garcia Financial Services Froup (AFG) Contracts and Purchasing Accounting Payroll Management Information Ruth Simms Support Services Group (ASG) Shipping and Receiving Office Services Plant Services Computer Services Stephen Lota Figure 3. ISI Product Operations Hardware and Software Engineering Department The Hardware and Software Engineering Department is the largest operating unit of the company with a staff of 130. As seen in Figure 4, it is organized into six groups under the leadership of the Software Development Director, Rich Reynolds. Figure 4. ISI Engineering Department Director, Product Ops Jean Stapleton Integration and Test Group (PIT) Integration Quality Control Software/Hardware Test Installation Group (PFF) Product Installation Product Training Customer Service (PCS) Planning, Scheduling, and Documentation Staff Director Software/Hardware Development Rich Reynolds Systems Test Group (ETG) Quality Control Group (ETQ) Software Development Group (ETS) Product Improvement Group (ETI) Hardware Group (ETH) Chief Architect (ECA) Architecture Group (ECAG) The Architecture Group (ECAG) is comprised of 10 people and is led by Pete Handle. They are responsible for choosing a standard way of pursuing application development and creating, defining, or choosing an application framework for the applications. They are also responsible for recognizing potential reuse in software and hardware applications by observing and understanding the broader system environment; creating component designs; subdivide a complex application, during the design phase, into smaller, more manageable pieces; grasp the functions of each component within the application; understand the interactions and dependencies among components; and communicate these concepts to developers. They also lead the development of functional requirements, interface definitions, and preparation of technical proposals. The 20-member Systems Test Group (ETG), led by Estelle Aker, conducts testing on a complete, integrated system to evaluate the system's compliance with its specified requirements. ETG testing takes, as its input, all of the "integrated" software and hardware components that have successfully passed integration testing and also the software system itself integrated with any applicable hardware system(s). The purpose of integration testing is to detect any inconsistencies between the software units that are integrated together (called assemblages) or between any of the assemblages and the hardware. The eight four person Quality Control Group (ETQ), led by Hector Zapata, is responsible for software and hardware quality control to check whether the project follows its standards processes, and procedures, and that the project produces the desired internal and external (deliverable) products. The Software Development Group (ETS) is led by Robert Burns. This group of 60 people develops the SUS software products which involves writing and mainlining source code and is involved between the conception of the desired software through to the final manifestation of the software. The Product Improvement Group (ETI) is led by Susan Bettersome. This 19-person group is involved in research, new development, prototyping, modification, reuse, re-engineering, maintenance, and other activities that result in new software products. The Hardware Group (ETH) is led by Dave Morrill. This 10-person group is involved in research, new development, prototyping, modification, reuse, re-engineering, maintenance, and other activities that result in new products that require hardware.