1attempting To Trim The Excess At Torrens Universityreturning To His O ✓ Solved

1 Attempting to TRIM the excess at Torrens University Returning to his office one afternoon, Elmo Cee sat at his desk and set-down a manilla folder, focussing his sight on it, almost absentmindedly. The folder contained the meeting agenda, and minutes of the previous meeting Elmo had attended. Shifting slightly, and now gazing wistfully in the direction of the Flagstaff Gardens, where the late afternoon sun drew long shadows of the mature trees, he reflected on the competing interests at work as he sought to find a solution for Torrens University’s Document Management system. Cee was initially brought in to provide expert opinion, following Gartner Consulting’s report about the suitability and applicability of TU’s Document Management Systems.

As it stood, the University had been using a Records Management tool called TRIM Context for the past several years; and Gartner had been enlisted to report on the future and current requirements of the University in the Document Management space. Determining the suitability of the system was a multi-faceted venture — on the one hand: the system itself was several versions behind the current release. On the other, there were sentiments being echoed that this was not the right tool for the job, being of course a Records Management product, whereas the University had been utilising it as their Document Management System. Notwithstanding these considerations, it had to be noted that the system had in fact been well- adopted at the University, given the time that had already transpired since being first introduced.

Setting the Records Management straight Well-connected and with several years of Project Management experience, and some consulting stints to boot, Elmo Cee was the ideal candidate to find a solution to this quagmire which Torrens had found itself in. With a reputation for problem-solving within even the most challenging organisations, Elmo set about meeting with all the key stakeholders critical to the success of this project. Historical Context The TRIM system was introduced to the University in a somewhat unorthodox manner -- in almost all cases, the University’s Information Technology Services area evaluates software and IT solutions on behalf of areas within the University. This is to ensure a standardised approach, with due to consideration to the prevailing technology landscape within the organisation.

TRIM, however, was decided upon unilaterally by senior executives from the business, without referring to IT. It was only after the deal was finalised, and the product shipped to the University, that the Director of Information Technology Services was informed about this purchase. Pseudonym used to maintain privacy. 2 With the passage of time, and the adoption of this package over several years, the time had now come to re-evaluate the University’s strategy towards its Records Management System which stood at version 3.x, whereas the current version supported by the vendor was 7.x. Gearing up for a major decision The context surrounding the system is that TRIM was only being used at the Melbourne campuses; with the University having expanded in recent years to cover two campuses in Brisbane, and one in Auckland, the scalability of the system needed to be evaluated.

Further, the Auckland campus had their own systems in place to store and archive sensitive Records and Documents, which staff at the Melbourne campuses could not access. The roadmap from here was not clear; was the existing system relevant for the University? If so, would the upgrade to the latest version be applicable and / or helpful? Of paramount importance is the risk posed to the stakeholders as a result of this undertaking; this essentially formed the premise of the future directions to be taken at the University. The next step would be an evaluation of the situation, by means of a three-week engagement where Elmo Cee could be relied upon to assess the applicability of this endeavour.

The assessment from Gartner had been that TRIM would be useful for Records Management, but not Document Management. With 400 existing users, already well-entrenched in the usage of the system, the task was to take a fresh look and determine the appetite at the organisation for a change of this magnitude. To begin with, a brand new tool / system would necessitate a huge impact -- starting with the migration of existing records and sensitive documents. Then there was the other aspect of the lifecycle of the records -- at what point could the documents be legally destroyed? Security implications would also need to be considered.

Intentionally bringing about such wide-ranging change, to a well-adopted system with the safety and security considerations alluded to above, was not without a heightened sense of risk. Managing the Change To fully appreciate all the factors at play, and to ensure a considered approach, it was deemed necessary to initiate a one-year project aimed at developing a comprehensive solution. This would entail a huge change management component, as the brief was to look at the upgrade itself, as well as being able to roll this out to further areas within the organisation’s international locations. Questions about the level of uptake would have to be considered as well. An on-premises solution, as a managed service from the University’s Information Technology Services area seemed to be 3 the preferred option at the outset.

The primary concern at this stage was to look at initiating a link between the Auckland and Melbourne campuses to ensure that records could be synchronised where relevant. An additional challenge was brought about due to the limitations on network infrastructure -- the private network link between Melbourne and Auckland campuses had been notoriously slow for even the most basic of tasks. Technical challenges aside, the change management would also have to evaluate the resistance faced by the project from the other campuses where they already had pre-existing systems, not linked to TRIM. There would need to be a training needs analysis, with possible repercussions on job descriptions and duties for the affected staff.

In essence, an exercise in stakeholder management. 4 References Agle, B, Donaldson, T & Freeman, R 2008, ‘Dialogue: toward superior stakeholder theory’, Business Ethics Quarterly, vol. 18, no. 2, pp.. Bennis, W & Nanus, B 1985, Leaders: The Strategies for Taking Charge, Harper & Row Inc., New York, NY.

Berkun, S 2005, The art of project management, O'Reilly Media Inc., Sebastopol, CA. Crowe, S, Cresswell, K, Robertson, A, Huby, G, Avery, A. & Sheikh A 2011, ‘The case study approach’, BMC medical research methodology, vol. 11, no. 1, p.1. Dwivedula, R &Bredillet, CN 2010, ‘Profiling work motivation of project workers’, International Journal of Project Management, vol.

28, no. 2, pp. Fassin, Y 2009, ‘The stakeholder model refined’, Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 84, no. 1, pp.113–135.

Gibson Jr., GE, Yu-Ren, W, Chung-Suk, C, & Pappas, MP 2006, 'What Is Preproject Planning, Anyway?', Journal of Management in Engineering, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 35-42 Goodijk, R 2001, ‘Partnership at corporate level: the meaning of the stakeholder model’, Journal of Change Management, vol. 3, no.

3, pp.225–241. Jergeas, GF, Cooke, VG & Hartman, FT 1999, ‘Value engineering incentive clauses’, Cost Engineering, vol. 41, no. 3, pp. 25-34.

Liu, JYC, Chen, HHG, Jiang, JJ & Klein, G 2010, ‘Task completion competency and project management performance: The influence of control and user contribution’, International journal of project management, vol. 28, no. 3, pp.. Project Management Institute 2013, A guide to the project management body of knowledge: (PMBOK guide), 5th edn, Project Management Institute, Inc Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. Smudde, P & Courtright, J 2011, ‘A holistic approach to stakeholder management: A rhetorical foundation’, Public Relations Review, vol.

37, no.2, pp.. Watt, A 2014, Project Management, BCCampus OpenText, Vancouver, BC Yang, J, Shen, G, Ho, M, Drew, D & Xue, X 2011, ‘Stakeholder management in construction: An empirical study to address research gaps in previous studies’, International Journal of Project Management, vol.29, no.7, pp.. 2 Financial markets and institutions University Phoenix FIN/571 Professor 12 Apr 2021 Financial markets or institutions A financial institution provides financial and monetary transactions to individuals and businesses. They deal with activities such as investments, deposits, and loans, among others. Financial institutions involve a wide range of business operations that offer financial services.

They offer a wide range of products and services to businesses and individuals. The specific services offered depend on different types of financial institutions. The first financial institution is retail and commercial banks. Retail banks deal with products to retail customers. Commercial banks deal with deposits, business, mortgage, and personal loans, offer financial products, and checking account services (Gup, 2011).

Most people bank with commercial banks. They offer financial services based on the policies set by Central Bank. The second financial institution is investment banks. It does not deal with deposits. The main goal is to help businesses and individuals.

It is also involved with raising capital for governments. It deals with services that facilitate the operations of businesses, such as equity offerings. They also offer brokerage services. They also facilitate trading exchanges and mergers and acquisitions. They are also known as mutual fund companies.

Funds from individuals are pooled together to provide them with access to a larger securities market approach. The third financial institution is insurance companies. This is a non-bank financial institution that offers insurance to individuals and corporations. The main goal is to protect assets against any risk such as financial risk. Individuals and companies use insurance companies in protecting against any financial loss or unparalleled action (Gup, 2011).

The fourth financial institution is a brokerage firm. They are investment companies and brokerages that provide investment services such as wealth management. They also provide investment products such as stocks and bonds. How financial markets and institutions influence the U.S. and global economies The first financial institution is retail and commercial banks. They provide specialized financial services hence reducing the cost of acquiring information on savings opportunities and borrowing.

Retail and commercial banks have played a vital role in developing the U.S. financial services industry and financial markets. In the global economies, they have lowered search and transaction costs in the economy. They have also played a vital role in achieving economic development by allocating credit efficiently, reducing risk elements for businesses, and matching businesses and individuals' saving and investments. It has also helped expand the market by raising living standards and expanding the trade and commerce of an economy. The second financial institution is investment banks.

Investment banks have influenced the U.S. economy by promoting business growth and financial development. In the global economy, it has increased consumer spending, international trade, and investment in capital spending, impacting the level of production of goods and services (Davis & Kim, 2015). The third financial institution is insurance companies. In the U.S., insurance companies have helped in stabilizing the economy during the financial crisis. It has influenced the global economy in mitigating risk and protecting employees.

It helps businesses in running successfully hence increasing more job opportunities. The fourth financial institution is a brokerage firm. It impacts the U.S. and global economy in rising market values. It influences consumers' and businesses confidence hence impacting the overall economy (Gup, 2011). References Davis, G.

F., & Kim, S. (2015). Financialization of the Economy. Annual Review of Sociology , 41 . Gup, B. E. (2011).

Banking and financial institutions: A guide for directors, investors, and counterparties (Vol. 615). John Wiley & Sons. Instructions: Please ensure that you provide a brief description of the project case and the organization where the project was executed. For completing your Project Report you need to consider the following 1.

Examine the current state of organization and the context in which the IS/IT project is executed. 2. Consider the issues related to the quality of the project and evaluate the tools used to address those issues. 3. Investigate the leadership style used by the project manager to motivate the team members.

Analyse the methods used for conflict management. 4. Examine the approaches used for stakeholder identification and evaluate the methods used for effective communication amongst the stakeholders. 5. Analyse the tools and methods used for planning and conducting procurement.

6. Examine the risks which would have a negative impact on the project and evaluate the tools used to analyse those risks. 7. Include how being a part of this subject has impacted your personal and professional journey into the global project management field. Please consider some general instructions for preparing your assessments as given below.

A Project Report General Instructions - 1. If you have sensitivity about criticising your own organisation or any other organisation, remove any specific reference to the identity of the organisation, the people within it, or the identity of any projects referred to. The assessment is intended to develop your analytical skills and ability to suggest improvements. 2. Do not exceed the word limit.

Give concise descriptions of projects and avoid irrelevant technical detail. In marking the assessment, attention will be paid to clear and concise expression of ideas. Include and refer to appendices if you feel they are required to provide a clearer understanding of the relevant project details, extensive attachments will not be read. Including unreferenced appendices will lose marks. 3.

Formal documents like Cover Page, Executive Summary, Table of Content, Appendix, References are not included in the specified word limit. All your claims and recommendations must be supported by relevant literature. Hence, significant amount of academic reference from high quality journals must be included in the report. Laureate_Assessment_Template.Docx Page 2 of 2

Paper for above instructions

Introduction

Torrens University, a rapidly evolving educational institution, is currently grappling with the inadequacies of its Document Management System (DMS), TRIM Context. Originally designed for Records Management, it has been adapted for broader Document Management tasks, sparking a need for reassessment. This report evaluates the organization's current state, project issues, leadership style, stakeholder communication, procurement practices, and risk management strategies relating to the DMS transition, drawing upon comprehensive literature to substantiate the analysis.

Current State of the Organization

Torrens University has expanded over the years, ensuing the need for an effective and robust Document Management System that aligns with its developmental trajectory. The current DMS, TRIM Context, is significantly outdated, operating on version 3.x while the latest version available is 7.x. Compounding this challenge is the fact that this system is only implemented at the Melbourne campuses, and the Auckland campus employs a disparate system for sensitive document management (Project Management Institute, 2013).
The existing DMS has been well-accepted among its 400 users, making a complete overhaul a complex proposition. Gartner Consulting's assessment prompted a reevaluation of whether TRIM is suitable. The sentiment is that while TRIM is effective for records management, it is not ideally suited for document management, necessitating an integrated approach that considers the needs of multiple campuses (Berkun, 2005).

Quality Issues and Tools

Quality issues surrounding the current DMS stem from its functionality and user satisfaction. Stakeholders have expressed concerns regarding its capability to meet evolving academic and administrative demands (Liu et al., 2010). The adopted approach for quality assurance in this project involves utilizing a stakeholder-focused methodology, affording a platform for extensive user feedback to gauge the system's effectiveness. Techniques such as surveys, feedback mechanisms, and stakeholder interviews will be instrumental in shaping solutions (Yang et al., 2011).

Leadership Style and Team Motivation

Elmo Cee's leadership style draws upon transformational management techniques, facilitating relationships characterized by inspiration and motivation among team members. Transformational leaders are adept at empowering their teams, aligning their values with organizational goals, which is integral to any project focused on substantial change (Bennis & Nanus, 1985). Cee fosters an environment of collaboration, enabling team members to contribute ideas and solutions, thereby reinforcing commitment to the project's success (Fassin, 2009).

Conflict Management Strategies

Effective conflict management will be pivotal as the project unfolds. Managing disagreements among stakeholders, particularly those from diverse campuses regarding the current use of DMS, is a pressing concern. Strategies will include open communication channels, negotiating consensus, and employing mediation techniques to address divergent views (Dwivedula & Bredillet, 2010). The project will benefit from utilizing dialogue as a tool for conflict resolution, which aligns stakeholders around common objectives (Agle et al., 2008).

Stakeholder Identification and Communication

Identification of stakeholders will adhere to a systematic process, mapping those directly affected by the DMS transition, including faculty members, administrative staff, and IT personnel. An evaluation of their interests and how they will be impacted by the new system is essential (Smudde & Courtright, 2011). Communication methods will involve regular updates through emails, updates in departmental meetings, and dedicated workshops exploring the transition process, thereby reinforcing transparency and engagement (Crowe et al., 2011).

Planning and Conducting Procurement

The planning phase will involve thorough market research, identifying suitable alternatives to TRIM while ensuring proposals comply with the university's strategic objectives. A needs analysis will direct procurement strategies, identifying the specific functionalities necessary for enhanced document management across campuses (Gibson et al., 2006). The procurement process will adopt a competitive tendering approach, encouraging multiple vendors to bid, and making decisions informed by comprehensive evaluations.

Risk Management Strategies

The project will face several risks, including resistance to change, technological integration challenges, and potential barriers in data migration (Watt, 2014). Identifying these risks early allows for proactive solutions. Tools such as risk assessment matrices and SWOT analysis will be employed to analyze potential implications effectively (Jergeas et al., 1999). Regular risk assessment meetings will ensure continued vigilance against risks as the project progresses, promoting agility in response.

Personal and Professional Reflection

Though this assignment is an academic endeavor, it significantly impacts my personal and professional journey into global project management. Engaging with the complexities inherent in the Torrens University scenario has heightened my awareness of the multifaceted nature of project management. The need for stakeholder engagement, robust communication strategies, and conflict resolution has emerged as fundamental elements in navigating project challenges, informing my approach to current and future project roles.
Engaging with literature has provided valuable insights into contemporary practices and academic theories contextualized within real-world scenarios. Concepts like transformational leadership and stakeholder dialogue offer frameworks that could be applied across various organizational settings.

Conclusion

The transition from TRIM Context to a potentially new Document Management System at Torrens University is a multifaceted project fraught with challenges but also rich with opportunities for learning and development. By evaluating the current state, addressing quality issues, utilizing effective leadership, managing conflict, and deploying strategic communication with stakeholders, Torrens can navigate this complex change. This project not only serves immediate operational needs but can establish a more cohesive strategy for the university's expanded functionality across campuses.

References

Agle, B., Donaldson, T. & Freeman, R. (2008). Dialogue: toward superior stakeholder theory. Business Ethics Quarterly, 18(2), pp. 153-190.
Bennis, W. & Nanus, B. (1985). Leaders: The Strategies for Taking Charge. Harper & Row Inc., New York, NY.
Berkun, S. (2005). The Art of Project Management. O'Reilly Media Inc., Sebastopol, CA.
Crowe, S., Cresswell, K., Robertson, A., Huby, G., Avery, A. & Sheikh, A. (2011). The case study approach. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 11(1), pp. 1-11.
Dwivedula, R., & Bredillet, C.N. (2010). Profiling work motivation of project workers. International Journal of Project Management, 28(2), pp. 127-136.
Fassin, Y. (2009). The stakeholder model refined. Journal of Business Ethics, 84(1), pp. 113–135.
Gibson Jr., G.E., Yu-Ren, W., Chung-Suk, C. & Pappas, M.P. (2006). What Is Preproject Planning, Anyway? Journal of Management in Engineering, 22(1), pp. 35-42.
Jergeas, G.F., Cooke, V.G. & Hartman, F.T. (1999). Value engineering incentive clauses. Cost Engineering, 41(3), pp. 25-34.
Liu, J.Y.C., Chen, H.H.G., Jiang, J.J. & Klein, G. (2010). Task completion competency and project management performance: The influence of control and user contribution. International Journal of Project Management, 28(3), pp. 241-251.
Project Management Institute (2013). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Project Management Institute, Inc Newtown Square, Pennsylvania.
Smudde, P. & Courtright, J. (2011). A holistic approach to stakeholder management: A rhetorical foundation. Public Relations Review, 37(2), pp. 107-116.
Watt, A. (2014). Project Management. BCCampus OpenText, Vancouver, BC.
Yang, J., Shen, G., Ho, M., Drew, D. & Xue, X. (2011). Stakeholder management in construction: An empirical study to address research gaps in previous studies. International Journal of Project Management, 29(7), pp. 761-771.