IT Project

System request Companies dealing in car rental business have been experiencing a higher demand of cars for rent than what they can supply. The main challenge in this case is the increasing number of visitor into the country as well as the expansion of the tourism industry. This is brought about by the massive investment in infrastructure and business that has made Abu Dhabi a stopping point for most of the tourist.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on IT Project-Planning phase specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Prominent individual including sportsmen, actors and actresses, models, great organization leaders, and even presidents have been known to visit Abu Dhabi for their holidays, meetings and shopping. The country has some of the best shopping malls in the word. Much capital inflow in form of investment from both the citizens and foreigners has become common in Abu Dhabi. There is need to improve the systems being c urrently used by the car rental businesses in the market to serve customers. Most of the systems are manual and time consuming leading to unwanted delays. The car rental businesses, who are the clients for this software have requested for efficient system software that will cater for the increasing demand. The software should provide for easier coordination of tasks and quick retrieval of data. The system should also store much information concerning the client and the car for easier record keeping and follow up. The client wants a system that can be adopted into their current system without so much change in terms of requirements. The software should utilize the readily available hardware and not demand for complete change of the entire system Problem statement After thorough assessment of the situation in the Abu Dhabi car rental businesses, we saw that there was need to address the situation. The demand for cars to rent is higher than what businesses can provide. The main reason is that the system used by most businesses does not allow quick and efficient service delivery to the customers. The service per customer in a unit time is too big and thus much time is spent serving a few customers. The software to be developed is to be done in such a way that it provides a database for storing both client and vehicle details. The software should also allow for online transactions without getting congested.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This means that it should have the capability of handling as many transactions as possible without causing any delays in the system. Another critical element that the software should meet is the memory. Much information will be stored within the system including the terms and conditions for the contract, the client details, car details, charges per day, car history, time span for the contract and any other data as need ar ises. This information has to be accommodated within the system. Development of the software shall involve adoption of other available software of same functionalities that will be modified and customized to meet the current demands. Business profile Abu Dhabi is among the most visited areas by tourists in the world. Car rental business has been on the increase with many companies venturing into the sector. The country has many tourist attracting features and that draws tourist from different regions of the world into the country for different purposes. There are those who visit the country for leisure purposes, for commercial purposes whereas others for business meetings and conferences. The country is continually growing and therefore, attracting more tourists. Visitors would always want to tour different places within the country. As mentioned before, most people visiting the country are foreigners who mainly come for a shorter time. This implies that as long as the number of tou rists into the country is increasing, the car rental business shall also be on the increase. In fact, the current businesses available cannot meet the market demand. Abu Dhabi is known for its prestigious hotels, world-class shopping malls, prominent buildings, and famous conference facilities in the world. It is also an attractive spot for businesses in various domains. There are so many opportunities for business within the country that no one can afford to be idle. Car rental business has proved to be one of the fastest growing businesses within the country. The main reason behind this growth is the expanding tourism sector. Most tourists would want to drive around and visit various places within the country. In addition, most of the visitors in the country are international dignitaries and high class persons who would want to move around in private cars.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on IT Project-Planning phase specifically for you for only $16. 05 $11/page Learn More Because of their short-term stay in the country, most of them would opt for using rental cars than buying new ones. The current system of car renting by most companies is manual and this takes longer when serving customers. Most customers would wish to carry out all their transactions online without making longer queues to get the service. Some companies have gone a step farther and implemented an online system of booking cars. However, this has also not been successful because of the number of customer wishing to use the service. Instead, it has resulted in congestions and thus slowing down the speed of service delivery to the esteemed customers. Most of the companies in this sector are large with several departments. The number of employees varies from 100 to 500 depending on the size of the company and client base. Clients are many and their demand for cars for rental is higher than what the companies can offer. Business aims and objectives T he business goals and objectives for this particular project shall be to come up with software that shall bring forth the following results: Ensure efficiency and quick retrieval of data Ensure better record keeping of client and vehicle details Enhance the ability and effectiveness of the members of staff to perform tasks as planned Eliminate incidents of superfluous data entries within the company Promote an online system of data entry and retrieval Provide a user-friendly interface for transactions Project goals and objectives Ensure user participation in the design of the software Ensure realization of all the business goals and objectives within the set time span and budgeted funds. Lessen the impact of the software system on the basic operations of the business The scope of the project Customers prefer a user-friendly interface that will provide them with quicker services efficiently. This project aims at developing software system that will be adopted by companies in the car renting business. The benefits of using the software will not only benefit the service providers but also the customers at large. For instance, customers will be required to enter their details and select the model of the car they wish to hire. The system immediately will provide them with the available cars of that model as well as their government assigned registration numbers. The system will help car dealers to find the details of clients with particular cars just at the click of a mouse. They will only enter the registration number of the car and all the details about the client having the car are displayed. The software will enhance efficiency in the operation. Additionally, the software will help car rental businesses to accommodate the increasing number of customers and avoid confusions brought by ineffective manual systems.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Because of improved efficiency, companies will save much time and increase their turnover. This project shall involve a number of activities and processes. Some of the processes and activities pertaining to the project include; Phase 1: signing contractual agreements This shall involve entering into contracts with the respective companies. The companies that will be willing and ready to adopt the software shall enter into contract with the software developer and accept to the terms and conditions related to the contract. The other stakeholders involved at this level shall be the project sponsor, the team of professional experts, and the coordinating panel. Phase 2: detailed design It shall involve detailed design of the project. This entails bringing together the required tools for the software and assembling them together into the desired form that finally will produce the desired software. It shall also involve generating the codes as well as assembling the required hardware for t he development process. Thereafter, detailed documentation on the software developed shall be done before presenting the product for testing and validation. Phase 3: Installation and testing It shall involve installation and testing of the software for presentation purposes. After the software has been developed and the related documents processed, it shall be tested whether or not it meets the purpose for which it was meant. This shall be done in a form of presentation to the panel of clients and other clients for purposes of validation. In case it is found inefficient it shall be modified until it meets the ultimate target for the project. Phase 4: integration of hardware and software It shall involve amalgamating the hardware required and the software developed into a system. This shall be done at the business premises of the various companies that would have subscribed to the software. Phase 5: Training After a successful testing and installation of the software, there remains a need to train the staff and technicians on the functionality of the software. Users have to familiarize with the new system and know well how it works. This shall be done for purposes of maintenance and operations of the system. Feasibility evaluation Risk assessment The software to be developed will bring forth efficiency and ensure quick service delivery to the customers. Some of the benefits of this software are development of a client database that shall ensure quick retrieval of necessary data by the respective companies. It shall also ensure proper coordination within the companies hence leading to a well-organized internal system. As a result, much time shall be saved as well as increasing the output of the companies involved. When compared to the current system in use by most companies, the new system shall enable these companies to reach many customers and the work rate shall also improve drastically when using this system. The following shall be required for the developme nt of the software and its successful application. Hardware requirements In the development of the project, the main hardware requirements shall be around five computers with 512MB RAM and a memory of not less than 80GB. These shall be connected and networked to allow for faster flow of work within the company Software requirements The software shall be tailored in such a way that it is compatible with all available operating systems. However, for security purposes, anti-virus software shall be required to boost the system and avoid any system breakdown because of malware and other software hazards. Technical requirements The development of the software shall require experts to carry out all the operations until the product is realized. Once developed, less is required to run and maintain the system. The system shall need at least three experts in addition to other employees to run. In a nutshell, this project shall lead to a reduction in the operational costs. There will also be a remarkable decrease in personnel payment costs as the system will need a lesser number of personnel to run. Most important, the software shall increase the turnover of the company due to an increased client base. Qualitatively, the software shall enhance quick decisions within the company because data can be accessed faster and the intended decision made on time. As outline in the preceding sections, this software shall enable the user to retrieve all the information concerning the whereabouts of a particular car by entering its registration number. All the information including the contacts of the client shall be displayed on a click of a mouse. Moreover, the adoption of the software shall be a competitive tool in the market as those companies using the tool shall have an advantage of reaching a larger number of customers. On the other hand, there are risks involved when using this software, especially during the early times of its application. Most customers may shun away from usi ng the software because of the fear of losing their money. Therefore, some customers may go elsewhere the old system is used. The new system software is likely to attract a negative public perception because many employees shall be laid off thus leading to unemployment. The software is developed to reduce the costs of operations and maximize on the profits of the respective companies. Despite the limitations, the software has more benefits when applied and therefore remains the best option for efficiency. Table 1: Expected costs ITEM Quantity Cost ($) Hardware requirements Computer 5 @500 Uninterruptible Power system (UPS) 5 @70 Software requirements Antivirus software 1 per computer @10 Operating system 1 per computer @50 Technical requirements Technicians for maintenance 3 @500 pm Training staff on the use 1000 Software development experts 5 1000 Testing the software 200 Other costs System upgrades 150 Operational costs 100 Training developers in updated technologies 370 Project assumptions The software will be designed in such a way that it can be used with almost any available operating system. The most obvious ones are Microsoft Windows (in all its formats) and Mac OS. The software should easily work in harmony with other drivers such as those providing the connection to the printer and the company’s database. This will help in streamlining of operations, from the front desk all the way to the administration office. In addition, the following were assumed when preparing this plan: plan is subject to alterations depending on the emerging issues Constraints Car rental businesses are willing to adopt the new AutoXpress car rental software. The managerial team will ensure all the team players are available at all times The coxswaining panel shall get involved fully in the execution of the whole project. Failure to make the necessary changes within the specified time limits will result into delays that will auto matically hamper other processes All the players in this project shall be bound by the set rules and regulations without compromise. The project constraints AutoXpress will be a relatively easy software to handle and will therefore work on computers with different system specifications. However, it is also necessary to note that there has to be a base limit of requirements for it to run effectively. Verification and validation is also a demanding task, given the competitive nature of the software design industry. As such, it will take a lot of work to ensure that all loopholes are sealed, if this software is to pick up in the market. Because of the need to store information on the cars’ history, it will also be mandatory that the clients who use the software be in a position to afford proper data storage facilities, the other option being to hand-over the function to companies that specialize in data storage and distribution. Some of the major barriers to this project are: There are insufficient financial sources for the project funding The legalities related to this project cause many uncertainties on resource availability. The project is faced with a challenge of withdrawal of funding by the sponsors In case of war outbreak, the implementation of the project shall be completely hampered Table 2: Project work plan Time required Software project management plan 1 week Specifying Software requirements (both hardware and software) 1 week Preparation of design documents 2 weeks Preparation of a validation plan for quality assurance and verification of the software 6 days Software design and development 5 weeks Presentation of the developed software 3 days Updating the software 1 week Database preparation and installation 1 week Testing and validation of the software 1 week Integrating the system 5 days Final presentation 1 day Installation of the software 1 week Training users on the operation of the software 2 weeks Rec ommendations for the next phase The next phase should focus on the division of the tasks and assigning of roles. The criteria for choosing a professional team to steer the project to completion should be set up. The various consultants required for the successful completion of the project should be identified and their participation in the project defined in the next phase. The tasks should be broken down into smaller units and each participant or group assigned specific task to accomplish within the time span specified. This report on IT Project-Planning phase was written and submitted by user Tamia Silva to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.