Project Management

Order Description 1, Prepare a simple checklist that you could use as a guide for when you write reports. 2. List five typical errors and discrepancies you might find when preparing financial reports. 3. While you have been preparing a bank reconciliation you have come across several inconsistencies that have all arisen in accounts controlled by one of your managers. It is not fraudulent but charges have been wrongly allocated and as a result it distorts the true picture. What would you do in this situation? (50 words) 4. An organisation has sales of $825,000 over the fiscal year to June 30th 2015. Cost of goods sold was $260,000 and administrative and sales expense was $180,000. Depreciation was calculated at $65,000. Interest earnings were $15,000 and interest paid on loans was $35,000. The organisation is based in Australia. What is the Net Income for the Year Ending June 30th 2015? 5. How would you involve project management sections in the process of finalising accounts and at what stage would their involvement begin? (50 words) 6. Detail the communication strategies that would be used with each section. (50 words) 7. What information might you require from the different sections and how will that information relate to project costing? (50 words) 8. What information might you require from the different sections and how will that information relate to project costing? (50 words) 9. This table was presented comparing the costs and tangible benefits of two accounting information systems proposed for the project. Costs and Tangible Benefits System 1 System 2 Project completion time 1 year 1 year Expected life of the system 5 years 5 years One-time costs $300,000 $140,000 Recurring costs incurred at beginning of years 1–5 $45,000 $55,000 Annual tangible benefits incurred at end of years 1–5 $170,000 $135,000 1 Which system would be chosen on the basis of this information? Explain. (50 words) 2 Does this table provide enough information to make an informed decision? Explain. (120 words) 10. Prepare a trial balance sheet for an organisation that has provided the following figures: short-term loans payable $25,000, prepaid expenses $17,000, inventory $85,000, long-term loans payable $42,000, equipment $60,000, paid in capital $35,000, PAYG tax withheld $15,000, accounts receivable $185,000, goodwill $15,000, cash $60,000, retained earnings $50,000, accounts payable $15,000, depreciation $95,000, expenses payable $20,000 and capital stock $15,000. 11. Why are the variances from budgets and forecasts important to know? (100 words) 12. Based on the scenario Fred’s Shed, and using the WBS template provided, develop a project budget (based on the costs in the WBS) for presentation to the Project Steering Committee. Fred’s Shed Fred Smith, the founder and chief executive of Fred’s Shed, received a phone call one afternoon from a local farmer, Mr Jones, requesting a quote to design and build a large storage shed on his property. Fred asked Mr Jones what size and type of shed he would like, when he wanted work to commence and when he wanted it completed. Mr Jones told him that he required a large shed, big enough to store his tractor and utility vehicle and spaces for a workbench, tools and fertilisers. He also specified that the shed must have power, water and a toilet. He requested that the shed be made of high-quality materials because twice in the previous 10 years some of the other sheds on his property had been damaged by inclement weather, costing him many thousands of dollars in repairs. Mr Jones wanted work to commence in six weeks and would like the job completed no more than three weeks after that so he would have a place to store his vehicles before the winter rains came. Mr Jones asked Fred to come up with a design and quote to build his shed and asked him to present them to him at a meeting at his house in one week’s time. He told Fred that he was obtaining three quotes from three different builders and that he would select his preferred builder based on four criteria. These were quality, the ability to start and finish on time, and cost. Mr Jones said he would like to spend no more than $40,000 on the shed, but would consider alternative proposals that were a little higher in price if they could exceed his minimum evaluation criteria. Fred knew he would have to come up with a winning design, so he would need to put his designer, Karen, on the job of coming up with some innovative designs. Fred would also have to source higher- quality building materials than he usually used because, although Fred always used good materials, he thought he would try to use the best possible materials (if it was cost-effective) to give him the edge in meeting Mr Jones’s stringent evaluation criteria over his two competitors. Fred also knew that he would need to plan the human resources necessary to complete the job in the time frame required. Some of his other construction projects were nearing completion, so it would not be too much of a problem getting some of his construction workers to start in six weeks’ time. Fred was not sure about the availability of his subcontractors—Eddie the electrician, Bob the plumber, Gary the glazier and Tony his fencing contractor and odd job man—because business was booming and they were all very busy. If he was successful in winning the contract, Fred knew that there would still be lots of work to be done. After signing the contract he would need to submit a development application and construction certificate to the local council and await their approval. Mr Jones’s final selections for colour and style of shed materials would need to be finalised and a deposit received prior to commencing work. Once all that had been accomplished Fred and his team of four would have to prepare the site for construction. This would involve performing underground cable service checks and, perhaps, contracting a surveyor to locate existing boundaries as the shed was going to be built close to the boundary with Mrs Mitchell’s property. The site would need to be cleared, temporary site facilities (such as a toilet, site fencing, power and water) would have to be established, the site set out and the formwork built. Following this, the site would be excavated. While the excavation was taking place Fred would need to remember to book a council inspection for the formwork prior to concreting, as well as booking the concrete truck, a date for the shed to be delivered, a date for the shed installation team to put the shed into place, and dates for his subcontractors to come and install power and water. After pouring the concrete and finish his team would need to strip the formwork. At this time Fred could invoice Mr Jones for a progress payment, as this represented a milestone in the project. Following this the shed could be delivered and installed, Eddie the electrician could be called in to connect the mains power, Bob the plumber could connect the water and install the toilet and Gary the glazier could install the windows. While they were busy doing that Fred and his team could start clearing the site, removing any rubbish and the temporary site amenities. Once all these tasks were accomplished the job would be at practical completion. Fred would then meet with Mr Jones, present him with a final bill and hand over the keys to the shed. Fred’s Shed 13. What is a project’s governance structure? (25–50 words) 14. Describe the role of each of a project’s key stakeholders. (100–150 words) 15. Describe range of methodologies to break project objectives into achievable project deliverables. (100–150 words) 16. Describe the phases in the life cycle of a project. (200 words) 17. Outline the organisational documentation applicable to project integration and associated processes. (100 words)