Specific design, methodology and framework you would like to use. As long as you follow the general principles laid out in the Project Description, there are no set answers, since dozens of effective FMC System proposals can be constructed within those general principles. Each specific proposal may offer a different approach, process, data collection methods, framework or methodology. Even organizational monitoring methods, type and level of management participation, and how the required changes and adjustments are made during the FMC process may vary a lot.
Being open- need, it encourages lots of creativity in constructing your proposal. One alert. Please do not read too much into terms such as ‘technology’ and ‘modeling’ that may have been used the Project Description. Think of them instead as overall approaches used in FMC proposals. As said in the Project Description and this week’s Synopsis, financial monitoring and control is a broad concept and associated framework that can be used for many purposes e. G. A key part of an integrated project or program management process, in the financial management of a large private corporation, overspent department or non-profit organization, etc. Chief Financial Officers (Coffs) of large, middle size or small companies [some as large as General Electric, MM, Boeing or NASA or some very small local companies or micro-enterprises] always use in one or other form of FMC systems. These FMC systems are often customized for large companies or agencies, but can be purchased ‘off-the-shelf’ too (as small or micro- companies often do).
The main idea is always to keep close track of important finance, cost, budget and performance indicators. Robust FMC system can be used at ritually all managerial levels from CEO, to top level managers, Coffs, Coo’s, middle level managers, Project Managers and all the way to operational line or functional managers, and certainly by the organization as a whole. This means that there may be even organizational structure issues to enable key management decisions at different hierarchical levels.
The monitoring and control system should check how actions need to be taken, what type of corrective actions they should be, who makes decisions on all these items, etc. Initiatives for changes in projects or programs and heir financial implications are often covered under the ‘control’ theme. Typically, organizational or management committees are heavily involved in such decision making, and there is almost always an ‘organizational parallel’ to FMC in institutions. Output from FMC systems can be used in a variety of ways.
They could include simple or complex cash flow analysis, financial statements review, accounting and auditing analysis, inputs for capital budgeting and investment decision analysis, and even Earned Value Management (FEM.) analysis which is often used as part of project management. Private companies, government bodies and non-profit organizations almost always make use of FMC systems for one or more of these purposes. A good part of the next few Class Weeks will be devoted to in-depth analysis on specific techniques that all can be anchored on a good FMC system.
Key outputs of well designed and effective Financial Monitoring and Control System (FMC) include “in” and “out” cash flow analysis, evolution of liquidity positions, financial ratios, capital budgeting and investment financing techniques such as Net Present Value (NAP), Internal Rate of Return (AIR) methodologies, as well as project reference indicators such as Earned Value Management (FEM.). My strong suggestion for the paper is that your submission and presentation should at the minimum first focus on FMC systems in the broad sense, covering the main characteristics of the FMC system.
You may want to start the paper by first describing the meaning, purpose and objectives of ‘financial monitoring’, and then do the same for ‘financial control’ and its objectives and purpose. You may want to include a brief summary your proposed system is conceptualized and will be designed, before going into the details of the structure and steps involved in your FMC proposal. It may be worthwhile to point out any organizational implications for the use of such a system at different hierarchical levels. A typical Project Manager would normally fall into the organizational structure as a middle level manager.
If you wish, you are at liberty to devote the entire paper to the overall features of the FMC system, and describe specific components of it in greater detail. An alternative that some people like is to spend the first half or two-thirds of the presentation to that, and use the remaining space to illustrate the use of the proposed FMC system to apply a specific technique such as NAP, AIR, FEM. or cash flow or financial ratio analysis. I realize that some of you are already aware of the Earned Value Management (FEM.) methodology, and may tend to equate the broad concept of FMC immediately into FEM..
I would prefer that you avoid that trap, and try to deal as much as possible with the FMC system in a broad sense given its broad purposes described above. While FEM. serves as one of the tools or methodologies under the FMC umbrella, please remember that distinction. You may use FEM. as one example of a FMC tool, but please do not use FEM. as the main subject matter of this assignment. We will discuss the FEM. methodology and its application in ample detail in Class Weeks 5 & 6, and your Mid- Term paper is entirely devoted to application of an FEM. to a specific project.
While you may refer to FEM. as one of the examples or a tool, please do not devote this entire paper to FEM., since we will cover it in a different assignment. Remember too company example. You may include them too in the second half of the paper in case you feel it adds more ‘texture’ in explaining the potential use of your proposed FMC system. This too would be for illustrative purposes. You already have plenty of eternal in your assigned readings and text books, and material from your previous Courses, to anchor this exercise.
You may also want to use Google or other Internet search engines to look for even more diverse material on this broad subject. Please do your research to get the background you need and then proceed to prepare, complete and submit your paper. Please also follow the guidelines already provided to you in the ‘Project Description’. Should any of you have remaining questions on this paper/presentation, please let me know via a specific e-mail to me at my g-mail count with the best telephone number to reach you, or covey them through the Open Forum. C.
Page limits, word limits, etc. I will not be too rigid in terms of the minimum or maximum size of this paper or presentation, number of pages, etc. , although the rough guideline has been about 25-30 Power Point or equivalent slides. In case you decide to use the alternative off text paper complemented with other graphic devices, flow charts, feed back loops, etc, Just use a readable font size. My guess is that most of you will use Power Point slides. If used, stay within a reasonable limit of say 25-30 slides; you do not need to Orr about total page limit.
You may want to make use of the other tools available on Power Point slides (to add supplementary notes on each slide, talking points, etc), and still make use of flow charts or feed back diagrams if needed. Any annex material or tables, if you wish to add them, will not be counted in the page limit. In most case, these may not be needed. The guidelines provided in the Project Description give you a pretty good indication. Please do not make the submission too long, since it may stray away from the main essence of the main content you may want to convey.
Please do make adequate use of good graphics, flow diagrams to explain the FMC system proposal you have in mind. A good FMC system can actually be used at different hierarchical or management levels, all the way to the COOP or CEO, with a different senior manager or management committee making decisions at each of these levels. Since this parallels the organizational management structure and hierarchical decision making involved in financial monitoring and control, you may want to indicate if feasible how the iterative process works across the different management levels.
In other words, using the financial monitoring information made available, financial control and management decisions on resource allocation, priorities, needed project changes and adjustments, etc. Could be made at different management levels. The underlying concepts and processes will in principle be the same across all those hierarchical levels. Please include any relevant References you may make use of; there is no minimum limit to the number of References nor is a maximum limit (please use only the References that are essential for this exercise).
