Case Study 1 is a comprehensive assessment that highlights the preparation that will precede the procurement and contracting process. The scenario of outsourcing a corporate data center is one that is very current, and this decision is being made daily. You will prepare a document to be presented to the executives that will be comprehensive and easy to use to decide if the company will outsource or not. By the end of your analysis, you should have touched on all aspects of the contracting process, from plan purchases and acquisition stage, through the select sellers phase.

Please see Doc Sharing for Case Study #1.

Terminal Course Objectives (TCOs) All terminal course objectives studied up through Week 3 are being addressed in Case Study 1.

Given a specific project scope, a set of legal and management requirements, and the availability of internal resources, evaluate optional contract structures and recommend and justify the preferred structure for that given situation.

Given a simple procurement need and a complex project that requires one or more procurement activities, compare and contrast the scope and functions of contract procurement/management versus project management.

Given a specific project and its anticipated contract administration and project management requirements, create a procurement division of the responsibilities matrix and a project division of responsibility matrix that consider the utilization of internal resources in order to define any external resources that will be required.

Given specific contract procurement conditions for a project, identify and evaluate the factors that influence a contract pricing strategy and recommend the strategy that is best suited for the given conditions.

Given the need to procure a major contract, select a set of management and commercial requirements that are appropriate for the size and complexity of the contract.

Given the need to solicit goods or services from external sources, consolidate all contract and, if applicable, project requirements into a checklist that will form the framework to guide the development of a Request for Proposals (RFP).

Resources The weekly lectures and assigned readings serve as a starting point. Please be advised that considerable relevant material is also available on the Internet, so you might want to conduct a search for some materials that may yield insights into the procurement process that you will be undertaking. Remember to properly cite any outside information that you use.

Submitter Format Case Study 1 should be prepared in MS Word format. Any resources used beyond the ebook need to be cited in your document--Iincluding links to relevant websites. Your document shall be written as an executive summary clearly identifying your purpose, relevant data, decision-making/thought process, and conclusion. Your document will be your "go-to" plan for your outsourcing process. You need to quickly and succinctly understand the steps that you'll undertake for contracting. This means having minimal complete paragraphs, and instead, using bullet points or a simple table summarizing required action.

While this report should be fashioned as an executive summary, it does encompass the entire contracting process. As such, it shall be between 5 and 8 single-sided pages in length, using 10-point Times New Roman font, and 1.5-inch line spacing. The page requirements do NOT include any cover sheets that you may include with your report.

Submission Details See the Syllabus section "Due Dates for Assignments & Exams" for due date information. A firm 5% per day penalty for late submissions will be assessed. The file name for your submitted assignments should be formatted as follows: "CS1-student last name".

Grading Case Study 1 is worth a total of 60 points. These 60 points will be allocated in the following manner.

5  

Correlation of the assessment with the TCOs outlined above and material covered through Week 3.

5 Compliance with format requirements outlined above.

20 Assessment of how each of the three (3) outsourcing alternatives impact your business decision and also whether or not it might be helpful or detrimental to your core business.

5 Assessment of any issues that may arise (both in the short-term and long-term) for each outsourcing alternative.

5 Assessment of the type of contract chosen for each outsourcing alternative. Provide a rationale for your choice.

5 Assessment of the evaluation criteria used to rank the proposals. Again, a rationale for your choice needs to be included.

5 Strength of argument on the number of vendors selected to provide the services.

10 Assessment/identification of the difference in timeline (if any) between the three outsourcing alternatives.