REFLECTIVE REPORT

Public Education on Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Project

Damilola Yusuph 0817125

Introduction
This report contains the critical reflection of my project management role within my project group. It will comprise of my personal contribution to the successful completion of the project while highlighting the challenges and positive experiences I faced as well as my general ability to work within a group. Evaluation of the tasks I was accountable/responsible for and Championing Integration I was accountable for the project management and had the responsibility of leading the group, delegating tasks to team members, checking the progress of the task and ensuring the project did not deviate away from its central objectives. The management of the VDI project using the PRINCE2 methodology gave me the opportunity to enhance my knowledge and skills with respect to initiating and managing projects to completion. Being a champion on integration, gave me the idea on effective coordination, management, monitoring and and controlling of the various project activities to allow a project to be carried out effectively and successfully. This is explained in detail below During the initiation of the project, I participated fully in the project planning phase by developing the planning document(PID) which helped ensure everything needed to start and run the project on a sound basis was in place. i.e. project team structure, contingency plans to contain risks, resources for product development, quality criteria for products, agreed frequency and method of communication e.t.c Utilising the PID was beneficial for the project team members as it gave everyone a better understanding of the project processes and what was expected of our roles in accordance with the Prince2 methodology. Furthermore, I developed the project Gantt chart which included six project milestones each culminating in the release of a product. The project was broken down into different stages such as gathering of resources/materials, product planning/design, project documentation, products development, testing, quality review and other activities. Time constraint was also put into consideration while developing the project plan as such each task had a start date and finish date. The Gantt chart was updated throughout the lifecycle to track the development of products and to accurately reflect the real-time status of the project. This assisted the group in achieving the aims and objectives of the VDI project and also played a part in effective time management for the project team members as it ensured that enough time was allocated for the development of the products thus had a positive impact on the quality of the final project deliverables. Activities were well co-ordinated and team members were delegated work based on their skills, knowledge, and interest levels thus showed readiness to accept new tasks. This contributed to the success of the project as it helped minimise overlap or oversight within the group members. Tasks were regularly reviewed through inspections and progress was monitored closely by communicating with my team members through text messages,

numerous emails and weekly progress reports which recorded the amount of work done on the project within the reporting period. In addition, forecasts enabled me to assess the team members productivity based on the information already available and the impact it may have on the project schedule and products quality. This facilitated effective monitoring and control as it helped indicate areas of concern thus allowing proactive measures to be put in place when necessary. I also managed product delivery via negotiation of work package detail with the team leaders and supervised the completion of other tasks such as the social media presentation, VDI showcase, PowerPoint slide, educative video and other miscellaneous tasks ensuring they were up to the speculated standard and to specification. Without being excessively critical, team members were informed to improve the quality of work produced and products were approved only when they met the acceptance criteria. Corrective actions were also taken at different stages of the project i.e. rescheduling the group meetings when necessary to do so and communicating with the group through other means when the need was urgent. I also ensured effective smooth transition from one stage to another by overseeing that products were thoroughly tested before approving the quality review procedure for the deliverables. Additionally, the project board was provided with relevant information and evidence at different stages of the project to show that the project is ready to be taken to the next stage. For example, before the initiating the stage of developing the final report, a member of the project board viewed and approved the completed project deliverables during a practical session by giving a very positive feedback. The concluding stages of the project incorporated a quality review procedure which helped verify the quality and acceptability of the project deliverables and ensured it met the acceptance criteria. In demonstration of effective project management, I documented lessons learned throughout the VDI project lifecycle as part of a continuous improvement process which enabled my team members to discover the root cause of problems that occurred and avoid those problems in later project stages. Recommendations and suggested actions for future reference were also documented in the final stage. The VDI project was brought to a controlled closure after the consensus of the team members that the project had met the aims and objectives specified at initiation stage of the project. CONSULTED I was consulted on the project brief and provided input to the acceptance criteria for the project deliverables based on criteria specified by the project board and indentified the constraints to the VDI project. Also, I provided the "introduction to VDI" video script and also featured in the video production alongside other members of the team making this product a success. For the virtual showcase, I was directly involved in the development by giving inputs on the design, textures, and materials to utilize and convey in our virtual showcase. I regularly reviewed, proof-read and edited the documentation for the VDI project. This got me acquainted with my personal short-comings with regards to punctuation and grammar giving rise to an improvement in my abilities in these areas.

Lastly, I gave input on the highlight report by providing an update on issues/risks that may have crept in since the initiation phase of the VDI project. Challenges and General ability to work within a Group Several challenges were encountered during the management of the project. Resolving issues that arose during the VDI project Assigning tasks to team members based on ability without being unfair Working alongside people from different background with dominant characters was uncomfortable in the beginning Having to notify team members to improve the quality of work produced without being too critical Even distribution of project tasks amongst team members

In general, I would describe the experience of my active participation and project management approach as brilliant. I have been able to gain practical experience and acquisition of skills in managing a project, and a consciousness of possible issues, risks inherent with project executions and most notably, possible solutions in ensuring a project is carried out effectively. Moreover, I am now very aware of the significance of time management given the project was delivered within the expected time frame envisaged and I feel I have improved my sense of being proactive and multi-tasking abilities. Been actively involved in all the project deliverables, enhanced my ability to critically analyse a product in terms of quality and improved my collaborative skills within my group, which was evident as the project progressed as I found my manner and approach more confident. A significant factor I will be taking with me is communication. I found from this project it is one of the key elements to a successful teamwork.