When would scope creep or gold plating be acceptable for a project? (1 Page)

PLEASE EXPLAIN WHY YOU AGREE WITH MY CLASSMATE RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE QUESTIONS? (A MININUM OF 150 WORDS)

Both scope creep and gold plating should be avoided as they often cause project to be delayed and/or over budget. A project scope is essentially the boundaries or parameters of the project. These are determined during the planning phase. Scope creep occurs when the project grows beyond the original plans, which creates scheduling issues as well as budgetary issues, both can be disastrous and negatively affect the project’s success. Gold plating on the other hand is adding things to the project that are not included in the project scope without prior approval from the customer. 

Both of scope creep and gold plating are generally considered bad and should be avoided by project teams and their leadership. In my opinion, there are only a few times when I would consider either phenomenon as acceptable. First involves safety related issues. If during a project, a safety issue was either not planned for or was identified during the project, one could argue that these could be necessary reasons to increase the scope of the project. The second reason that either scope creep or gold plating would be acceptable is when the customer or client if fully aware of the issues and is willing to adjust the budget and/or schedule to accommodate the increased scope. It is up to the project team to identify any issues that could create scope creep or gold plating, however; it is the responsibility of the project manager to communicate the issues to the powers that be to ensure vital information is shared with the key stakeholders to they can ultimately make the final decision on how to proceed. 

A critical component of any project planning is to develop a plan that defines the projects scope by identifying the projects objectives, work breakdown structure and finally by monitoring and controlling the project’s progress. A mandatory role that the project manager plays is the role of scope manager because “Without scope management there is no project” (Turner, 2016, p.149).

                                                                             Reference:

Turner, R. (2016). The handbook of project-based management (4th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill Education         

Purpose of Assignment 

Electronic spreadsheets are useful tools, especially when creating a business budget. Once a spreadsheet is set up correctly in Excel^®, values can be modified at any time, and the electronic spreadsheet will automatically update itself. Students will create a spreadsheet of computer equipment for a small fictional business where they are the owner. They will include the cost of all hardware and software needed for their employees, and calculate a monthly budget for the equipment. 

Assignment Steps 

Resources:

• Research hardware and software to satisfy operational requirements described above
• Microsoft Office 365, Office 2016: Introductory: Module 1: Creating a Worksheet and a Chart
• Microsoft Office 365, Office 2016: Introductory: Module 2: Formulas, Function, and Formatting

Scenario: Imagine you are the owner of a small internet business where you employ five people. You need to budget for the cost of hardware and software needed to run company operations. Each employee is required to work both in the office and remotely, and needs access to company data at all times. 

Choose the hardware and software that will provide your employees with the ability to stay connected to internal company data, communicate and collaborate with coworkers, and process data and sales information using wording, processing, and spreadsheet software applications. 

Create a business budget sheet using Microsoft^® Excel^®. In the budget sheet, do the following: 

• List the make and model of desired hardware devices and their cost.
• List software operating systems and applications for each device and their costs.
• Sum up the cost for both hardware and software for each employee, and then calculate the average monthly costs to maintain these systems.
• Insert a graph or chart displaying total costs graphically.
• Label columns/rows with titles reflecting data they contain.
• Use no more than two sheets in one workbook to display required data.
• Format data to highlight important totals. 

The Budget sheet answers should include 1,400 words. 

Note: this assignment only requires that you submit an Excel^® Workbook file. There are no written or APA guideline requirements. 

 Read Frontline: The Gospel of Luke: A Novel for Gentiles (链接到外部网站。)链接到外部网站。https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/story/luke.html

1. Read The Gospel of Luke (including Introduction) in The Complete Gospels. (pages 121 – 184)
2. Watch The story of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15: 11-32) (链接到外部网站。)链接到外部网站。https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14epxvU8XIA
3. Watch The Kingdom of Heaven is Here and Now (Luke 12) (链接到外部网站。)链接到外部网站。https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-f9IXD-cjw

Background

In the Gospel of Luke, we have some of the best loved teaching stories told by Jesus.  The interesting thing is that when you dig into some of these teachings stories – and you take into consideration the laws and customs of first-century Palestine – the meaning of the stories no longer seems like a slam dunk.  We begin to be puzzled by what Jesus could have meant – which is arguably JUST what Jesus intended to do with these stories!  Wisdom teachers historically try to get people to understand the idea that things are rarely black and white – that is, they may not be what they appear to be. 

Jesus’ teaching stories and parables frequently upend or reverse traditional thinking.  Remember that Jesus said,  “And people will come from east and west, from north and south, and dine in God’s empire. Those who will be first are last, and those who will be last are first.”  (13:29-30)  The meaning of this verse appears to be this:  Be prepared to be surprised!  The empire of God is not what you think it is.  In fact, it may be the exact opposite (first will be last, and last will be first).  Also remember that Jesus says that God makes the sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.  There is no black and white thinking in God’s empire. 

So, in looking at the parables, lets first make sure we are all on the same page regarding the meaning and function of parables.  Our textbook defines “parable” in this way:

A brief narrative or picture.  It is also a metaphor or simile drawn from nature or common life, arresting the hearer by its vividness or strangeness, and leaving the mind in sufficient doubt about its precise application to tease it into active thought.  

This implies that the very purpose of the parables is to “arrest” (or put a halt to) automatic and conventional thinking – and to cause you to STOP and think again!  Dig deeper, think outside the box.  But, above all else, THINK!  Don’t let others tell you what you understand.  

If we wish to truly understand any of the parables, it is especially important that we interpret them through the lens of the time and place in which they were told – first century Palestine.  But how can we do this since we do not live in first-century Palestine?  The answer is that we can do a bit of research into some of the historical information that we DO have from that time. 

Writing Prompt:

1.  Please write your own interpretation of these two very short parables:

     a.   The Parable of the Mustard Seed

     b.   The Parable of Leaven

These parables are found back-to-back in Luke 13.  While you may think you understand exactly what Jesus is saying in these two little parables, think again!  Read this little essay on the perception of Mustard seed in first-century Palestine.  And then do a little of your own research on the meaning of leaven as it is used in the Bible.  Jesus is comparing the empire of God to both the mustard seed and leaven.  How does Jesus reverse conventional thinking with these two parables? 

Please remember to include specific references (chapter and verse) to the particular passage you are writing about. 

As always, if you have ANY questions, I am right here to help you.  🙂
 

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Sum it Up and Next Steps

Assume you are a HR Business Partner and leader in a full-size HR department for your organization. Based on what you’ve learned and now know about total rewards, particularly WorldatWork’s model, what 3 concepts, tools, methods, or practices would you recommend as important best practice approaches that add value and competitive advantage to the organization’s overall total rewards program? Be sure to explain why you selected your choices.

BANKS Industries is a manufacturing company located in Centervale. A U.S.-based organization, BANKS’s major product line is electronics components. BANKS has just over 200 employees at their main plant in Centervale, but has recently acquired a new subsidiary in China. This acquisition adds close to 100 employees and their expertise in a new line of personal computing devices. BANKS expects these devices to give them a competitive advantage in their market.  BANKS started out as a family-owned organization that has a relatively flat organizational structure. After 15 years of being in business, BANKS continues to be family-owned and has acquired several small companies in the U.S. The acquisition of the Chinese company, which has now been renamed BANKS Components, is the first acquisition outside U.S. borders.  At this point, the acquisition is official and the company is in the process of taking over the operations of the plant in China. All employees have been retained, although turnover and some expansion are anticipated in the near future. Employees in both locations are feeling uneasy regarding potential changes, and some reorganization is going to be necessary. During the acquisition, some key employees of the Chinese company left the organization out of fear that their positions would be eliminated. This has left some upper management and director-level positions vacant, adding to the challenges that BANKS is currently facing.  As the HR manager, you report directly to the owner-president of BANKS Industries. You have a relatively small staff working under you, leaving you to make the majority of the HR recommendations and decisions on your own. You have been charged with identifying some of the challenges and issues in this new endeavor, making recommendations for action, working with employees, and several other tasks related to the acquisition.  Overseas Assignments, Acquisition & Integration  Consider the challenges of posting U.S. employees to overseas locations. You will develop a 25 – 30 slide presentation to make recommendations on the HR-related challenges. The PowerPoint presentation should include a title slide as well as a slide with references in APA format. A minimum of five scholarly references should be used, which may include direct reference to relevant laws and research. Be brief and professional on your slides, but use the notes feature to go into more detail regarding the topics. Consider your audience, so be sure that your text and background has enough contrast, that you limit animations and other distractions, and use graphs and tables where appropriate. Address the following in your presentation: •Identify and explain anticipated challenges and at least three common reasons why overseas assignments might fail. •Propose solutions for each of the reasons you identified. •Recommend special training for the employees going to China to increase their chance of success, including your justification for your recommendations citing scholarly references. •Determine how to select and train the acquired employees. Will you need to terminate some employees and hire replacements? •Identify challenges of integrating employees and issues which might create conflict. •Prepare the selection, retention, and separation plans. •Develop the new organization infrastructure; that is, the organizational chart •Address the different employment laws in each country.  Apply APA standards to citation of sources.