McBride Financial Services Project Management Plan
McBride Financial Services aims to provide low-cost mortgage services to home buyers in the five-state area of Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. It has an ambitious goal of breaking even financially within six months of starting its operations and of becoming profitable within one year. In order to accomplish this goal, it intends to leverage technology to minimize its costs and streamline is process to make obtaining mortgages simpler and more efficient for both its customers and itself. The key factor in its ability to achieve this goal is the development of a web site that allows customers to quickly apply for a mortgage online for a flat fee that includes all of the primary services needed to buy a house, including the making of arrangements for appraisal and inspection of the property by local licensed professionals. The process is designed to take place rapidly, allowing customers to enjoy a short elapsed timeframe between application and closing. This project management plan covers the project planning process, including the development of the project plan, the achievement of the project goal of learning to use the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), the project charter and scope, a stakeholder analysis, a communication management plan, a quality management plan, and a staffing plan.
The methodology used to complete the mission, goals, and objectives of the project will be the Project Management (PM) methodology. PM methodology sets up the project as a series of phases based along a time axis. The PM methodology includes five processes-initiating, planning, controlling, executing, and closing, and the information flows from one to the next in that order (Nathan & Jones, 2003, p. 38). Initiating processes include setting goals and deliverables, identifying the project's scope, identifying boundaries, and opening the project, a...