Business & IT Consulting Projects - Spring 2021
Timeline
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May 3, 2021Experience start
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May 11, 2021Project Scope Meeting
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May 25, 2021Mid-Point Check-Ins with Each Team
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June 8, 2021Final Check in
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August 1, 2021Experience end
Timeline
-
May 3, 2021Experience start
-
May 11, 2021Project Scope Meeting
One meeting with all teams and company to confirm project scope and requirements. This is a general Q & A session.
-
May 25, 2021Mid-Point Check-Ins with Each Team
Feedback provided by virtual meetings or email between each student team and company to review progress and gain clarity on any questions or requirements.
-
June 8, 2021Final Check in
Feedback provided by virtual meetings or email between each student team and company to review progress and gain clarity on any questions or requirements.
-
August 1, 2021Experience end
Experience scope
Categories
Accounting Communications Market research OperationsSkills
business consulting business strategy marketing strategy competitive analysis data analysisWhat business or marketing process, organizational or management improvements, or IT Networking and Security needs can you implement to help you achieve your business goals?
Beginning in May 2021, teams of 3-5 fourth year Business and IT students will work with your organization to support you with achieving your key business objectives by developing a recommended plan of action. Capstone will be a 12 week program running May-July. The students will be expected to put in 5 hours a week into their project plus regular class time/check-ins weekly. Teams will be assigned to their projects within the first week of starting class, and will be expected to reach out to their client and set up a first meeting for charter review that first week. From there, each team should be sending an update on Friday weekly, and meeting with the client virtually once a week for 20-30 minutes at a time best suited for client & team.
Students
- Project plan and weekly status reports
- Final project report with recommendations and an executive summary
- Presentation of recommendations from top one or two teams (via a virtual webinar format)
Project timeline
-
May 3, 2021Experience start
-
May 11, 2021Project Scope Meeting
-
May 25, 2021Mid-Point Check-Ins with Each Team
-
June 8, 2021Final Check in
-
August 1, 2021Experience end
Timeline
-
May 3, 2021Experience start
-
May 11, 2021Project Scope Meeting
One meeting with all teams and company to confirm project scope and requirements. This is a general Q & A session.
-
May 25, 2021Mid-Point Check-Ins with Each Team
Feedback provided by virtual meetings or email between each student team and company to review progress and gain clarity on any questions or requirements.
-
June 8, 2021Final Check in
Feedback provided by virtual meetings or email between each student team and company to review progress and gain clarity on any questions or requirements.
-
August 1, 2021Experience end
Project Examples
Requirements
Accounting
- Our program is accredited by CPA Ontario. Our student have up-to-date knowledge and developed the professional judgment and critical thinking skills that are essential for today’s—and tomorrow’s accounting needs
Finance
Our students have taken courses such as
- Business Applications of Blockchain and Cyrptocurrencies, Derivative Securities, Equity Asset Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Financial Modelling, International Finance , Portfolio and Investment Strategies
Management: 
- Develop a project plan, business and marketing plan for a business
- Propose a plan to improve leadership strategies or behaviors, leadership development, or create a training plan
- Develop a solution to an ethical dilemma that a company is facing
- Assess operational strategies and practices
Human Resources Management:
- New job position requirements analysis and job description development, needs analysis for training and development proposals, compensation practice review
- Potential human resources strategies if an organization is considering going global (or already has global operations): unify company culture, reduce turnover, recruitment, on-boarding, etc.
Project Management:
- Project planning and management – charter, timeline development, success strategies for project teams, work breakdown structure development
- Propose strategies to improve project performance, risk management plans to address a given challenge
- Assess supply chain management challenges
- Examine and present ways to address challenges related to evaluating, acquiring, and implementing technology
Marketing:
- Marketing communications- sample advertisement, consumer behavior analysis for a new product (likely purchasers, strategies that align to consumers)
- Positioning statement, motto for a brand
- Situation analysis – the four Ps: product, place, price, promotion
- SWOT analysis
- Marketing strategies based on markets, segments, and customer value and an implementation plan for that strategy with measures for performance
Social Media Marketing:
- Social media strategy and digital strategies (not print) for a marketing campaign, measuring the performance of campaign, constructing a strategy for managing top-selling products and services, and selecting a delivery platform
- Social media marketing plan including platform selection, target market considerations, messages and hashtags, and how to assess effectiveness
IT Networking and Security:
- Data Analytics- Developing reports, data integration plans, or ETL processes.
- Data Management- Developing a data security and protection policy, reviewing data architecture, and recommending improved management practices.
- General Information Technology- Identifying and evaluating new software applications and technologies to meet user and organization needs, or developing prototypes of custom software and systems.
- Health Information Technology- Identifying and evaluating new software applications and/or technologies to meet needs in the healthcare industry.
- Information Assurance & Security- Conducting an IT security review, security planning, or developing a security policy.
- Networking (CISCO or Microsoft Technologies)- Reviewing existing infrastructure for possible improvement or evaluating of new technologies.
- Project Management- Developing an implementation plan for a new technology, process, department, or organizational change.
- System Development (Desktop, Mobile or Web-Based Applications)- Evaluating existing applications to recommend improvements or designing and prototyping a new application.
Additional company criteria
Companies must answer the following questions to submit a match request to this experience:
Be available to schedule and attend a final webinar presentation of project results during Week 8 of term. You can select the top one or two team solutions for presentations to minimize the load of multiple presentations.
Provide team feedback twice over the semester and complete a post course survey.
Commit to a minimum of 5 interactions with the five student teams remotely, approximately 4–6 hours minimum over the duration of the project. These contacts are likely to be question/answer sessions or requests for additional information or clarification.
Be available to attend a single kick-off/project scope meeting with all teams during second week of term. The kick-off will be a Q & A opportunity for all teams to solidify understanding of scope and requirements.
Be available for a quick phone call with the instructor to initiate your relationship and confirm your scope is an appropriate fit for the course.
Provide a dedicated contact to answer periodic emails or take phone calls as needed to address student questions in a timely manner. Students will be coached to make judicious use of your time.
Timeline
-
May 3, 2021Experience start
-
May 11, 2021Project Scope Meeting
-
May 25, 2021Mid-Point Check-Ins with Each Team
-
June 8, 2021Final Check in
-
August 1, 2021Experience end
Timeline
-
May 3, 2021Experience start
-
May 11, 2021Project Scope Meeting
One meeting with all teams and company to confirm project scope and requirements. This is a general Q & A session.
-
May 25, 2021Mid-Point Check-Ins with Each Team
Feedback provided by virtual meetings or email between each student team and company to review progress and gain clarity on any questions or requirements.
-
June 8, 2021Final Check in
Feedback provided by virtual meetings or email between each student team and company to review progress and gain clarity on any questions or requirements.
-
August 1, 2021Experience end