Project Management Recommendation

To make a proper decision based on the three recommendations from the Piper Industries Corp. we must take a look at each one. Juniper is an improvement of the widget offered currently by the company, with Palomino a new line of widget products along with improvements using the existing technology, and Stargazer is completely new widgets that research and development has started. Our team has been tasked with analyzing these three projects and make recommendations for the best investment. The recommendation will contain a report of the five phases of the project with key deliverables.

Using the break-even analysis the Juniper project shows that the company will just break-even, if at all, during the life cycle of the widgets. The technology advancements will cause this product to become outdated after three years. The cost of $325,000 for this project and the rate of return on investment producing $250,000 over the three year life cycle of the product is not a good investment for the company.

With the life cycle of the widgets in the Palomino project will have a tough time producing revenue for the company. The 5% margin of error and product life of seven years is going to make it even tougher to meet the goals of the company to make a profit. The economy will also play a part in the success or failure of this project. The cost of the Palomino project is $655,000 with the return on investment of $450,000 over a period five years and a 5% margin of error. At the end of the life cycle of the widgets the company would see a profit.

Where research and development has already started working on the Stargazer project $450,000 would be a wasted along with the time. The rate of return on this project is projected within the second year and will go up in the following years of the life cycle. Out of all three projects the Stargazer is the best for the company financially. With the proper project management this project will not only break-even but make a sizable profit. The extra profit from this project will help costs for future that will replace this one.

The recommendation for the company is to go forward with the Stargazer project and continually improve on this process to reduce costs and increase profits. Management will need to have the best project management team that will seek opportunities for improvement and keep the project moving forward. With the proper team and tools Stargazer project will be a great success for this company.