Your Module Project is to develop a comprehensive report that provides a plan for a successful second launch of the United Kingdom’s national identification (ID) card project. The initial introduction of the national identity cards came in 2006 but was met with challenges and suffered some shortcomings during the initial presentation.

Assume that the benefits of national identity cards have been found to far outweigh the negatives that have been associated with them. You have been assigned the IS/IT project manager role for the second launch of this massive undertaking. Your main goal is to thoroughly research the lessons learned from the first launch and, based on that analysis, select the tools and techniques that you will use to warrant a successful project.

Key issues to be considered:

Your recommended tools and techniques should address the project reporting requirements throughout the project life cycle, such as progress checks and milestones and taking into account various stakeholders’ needs. Stakeholder engagement and communication is a significant success determinant and should, thus, be considered during project planning and implementation.

The second launch of the ID cards also presents a different challenge in that the teams will be virtual instead of collocated. Team members will be dispersed geographically as well as located within various organisations, such as from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, or even various healthcare organisations across the UK. For the success of this project, it is essential to identify the challenges associated with managing virtual teams and to analyse methods that you, as the project manager, can use to overcome these challenges.

To prepare for Part 1 of your Module Project:

Research and analyse the initial 2006 launch of this massive national identification card IS/IT project.
Consider the benefits and risks of the initiative at the time. Why did the project fail? What organisational dynamics, social attitudes or political issues might have contributed to project shortcomings?

To complete Part 1 of your Module Project:

Identify and analyse the challenges during the initial launch of this IS/IT project.

Reflect on the lessons learnt and the ways the above challenges could have been resolved if proper planning had taken place during the project’s initial launch.

Part 1 of your Module Project should be supported with examples from your career, the weekly notes, your individual research, the Learning Resources, as well as your Discussions and Assignments throughout this module.

Category: Essays