Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration
 
Technical Letter of Intent and Technology Project
Justification Guidelines

Technology Letter of Intent – Template

Technology Project Justification – Template

Technology Project Status Report - Template

Sample – Technology Project Justification (Time Sheet Entry)
November 2009
University of Toronto
Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
________________________________________________________________________
Preamble:
This document provides the template and guidelines for the completion of the Technology Letter
of Intent and the Technology Project Justification.
The Technology Letter of Intent will provide to the Office of the Chief Information Officer notice
of a proposed project and provide a high level description of that project. This letter will also
help in determining if there are other similar/related projects which have been implemented, are
in progress or have been proposed.
The Technology Project Justification document will be submitted and used for project approval
and priority setting. It is not meant to be a project charter or a detailed project plan. It should
provide information to determine if the project meets the goals and objectives of the University,
proper consideration has been given to funding sources, cost, return on investment and risk
management. Once the project is approved then this document can form the basis of the project
charter.
The Technology Project Status Report will be submitted by the project manager/leader to the
project sponsor (s) on a frequency determined by the size, complexity and duration of the report.
These documents must be completed for all projects which are over $100,000 OTO costs and
$25,000 in on-going annual costs or which consume more than 30 days in staff resources or as
requested by the Director, EASI.
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University of Toronto
Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
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TECHNOLOGY LETTER OF INTENT:
The Technology Letter of Intent is meant to describe the project at a high level and will form part
of the project charter. Be as concise as possible, this document should normally be less than 1
page. Please complete this template using the guidelines below:
DESCRIPTION:
This is your ‘elevator speech’ that briefly describes the project. What will be done for whom?
How will we know it is completed? How will we know it is a success?
PROBLEM TO BE RESOLVED:
What or who initiated the project, why, and why now? This section is not a description of the
current state – but rather why the current state is no longer acceptable
BACKGROUND:
Describe the current state, the problem that needs to be solved and, if appropriate, what the
competition is doing.
OBJECTIVES:
At this stage, please describe your objectives as clearly as possible. In the next stage and before
the project is started you will need to define specific, measurable, agreed, realistic and timebound
criteria for determining success of the project
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University of Toronto
Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
________________________________________________________________________
TECHNOLOGY PROJECT JUSTIFICATION:
The Technology Project Justifications document is used to ensure that all aspects of a technology
project have been considered for a successful and timely completion of a technology project. The
document will also be used to assist in the prioritization of the project which will consider source
of funds and resources its relevance to the University’s goals and objectives.
This document must be completed for all projects which are over $100,000 OTO costs and
$25,000 in on-going annual costs or which consume more than 30 days in staff resources.
The justification is meant to describe the project and will form part of the project charter. Be as
concise as possible.
CAPSULE DESCRIPTION:
Copy from your letter of intent and update if necessary
PROBLEM TO BE RESOLVED:
Copy from your letter of intent and update if necessary
BACKGROUND:
Copy from your letter of intent and update if necessary
OBJECTIVES:
Copy from your letter of intent and update to ensure these objectives are specific,
measurable, agreed, realistic and time bound criteria for determining success of the
project. (Agreed means you agree to achieve these objectives if the project is funded)
RECOMMENDED SOLUTION:
Describe the recommended solution (the results of the project not a specific product) in
general terms, including a discussion of the scope of the project. If the project is
approved, this will be further described in the project charter.
OTHER OPTIONS:
Give a narrative describing other options that have been explored. Summarize in the table
their advantages and disadvantages and the costs of those options.
STRATEGIC ALIGNMENT:
Briefly describe how the initiative uses technology to achieve the objectives set out in
Stepping Up or the IT Review, or helps the University of Toronto achieve competitive
advantage, or benefits the University of Toronto community by demonstrating the
creative use of technology, contributing to discovery and enhancing the student
experience. Please do not re-state the strategies and please keep these brief.
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University of Toronto
Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
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BENEFITS:
Qualitative Benefits:
Please describe the qualitative benefits under the following headings. You may not need
to complete for each heading, you are welcome to add others. Some benefits are directly
related to the strategic alignment – try to avoid repetition.
Clients Affected:
Who will benefit from the initiative? Just a Faculty or the whole University?
How will they benefit? How much will they benefit? To avoid duplication, do not
include benefits for student learning here.
Learning Impact:
This heading is for benefits that relate to student learning. Ideally there would be a
quantifiable benefit here but that can seldom be achieved.
Decision Support Capability:
Ability to make accurate data available in a timely and informative fashion. If you have
covered this in Clients Affected, please do not repeat
Efficiency and Productivity:
Allow the university to do more with the same resources or the same with reduced
resources. Please consider if these items can be described as quantitative benefits
Business Process Improvements:
Process improvements can produce quantitative benefits such as shorter process time
with the same resources or efficiencies such as a reduction in effort – include those in
quantifiable benefits and not here if you can measure them. Include increases in service
quality, data quality or savings in time that do not translate into direct savings here.
Collaboration and Partnerships:
The development of collaborations and partnerships within the University and beyond is
a core value – how does this project help achieve that?
Reputation:
Under this heading please identify benefits to the University of Toronto reputation for
innovation, quality of research and quality of teaching. These are directly related to the
strategic alignment – please try to avoid repetition.
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Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
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Quantitative Benefits:
Please describe the quantitative benefits. These must be measurable, but not necessarily
measured in dollar terms. They can include reductions in process time, savings in effort
that can be measured, cost savings of reduced staff, etc.
COSTS AND PAYBACK:
Costs:
Please describe the resource requirements and estimated time allocation. Take into account
project management, hardware and software acquisition, training, client communication, security,
support and any other project components.
This cost sections will become part of the Project Charter if the proposal is approved
Resource Requirements:
This table is to record the effort required for the project and the skills of the people that
will be necessary.
One-Time Costs:
Please include the costs to complete the project
Include any allocation from the Sponsor’s department – allocation of departmental
funding is seen as a commitment to the priority of the proposal. Do not include this
amount in the Total Request
Please include the costs of any departmental resources that must be backfilled – the
project will only cover that actual backfill costs incurred.
On-going Costs:
Please describe the on-going costs - what is the estimated lifespan of the solution? When
will additional or replacement equipment be required? How will these costs be covered
e.g. by the Faculty or Department.
Please itemize all on-going annual costs. Where replacement costs are periodical, include
the pro-rated annual costs
Payback Period:
What is the payback period for the project?
(The time it would take for savings to equal costs)
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University of Toronto
Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
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TECHNICAL FUNDAMENTALS:
This section is used to assess the strength of the project planning and management. Please provide
information for as many of the following areas as possible.
Commitment, Sponsorship and Resource Allocation:
How strongly does the Faculty and/or Department support this initiative? Who is the
project sponsor? What resources will be committed and funded by the Faculty/Division
and/or Department?
Note that projects receive higher ratings if the Faculty/Division and/or department is willing to
commit something to the project.
Scope and Complexity:
Describe what is to be included in the project – defined as clearly as possible. Can it be
completed within one year? What is the most complicated or challenging component of the
project? Will the project involve process changes as well as implementation of technology? The
scope will be included in the project charter if the project is approved. Clearly defined scope
indicates a well-planned project.
Compatibility with Technology and Architecture Standards:
What is the proposed architecture? How does it fit with established technology standards?
Infrastructure Implications:
Does the project have implications for network bandwidth, processing capacity, disk, or security
including authentication and identity management?
Technical Capability:
Are the resources proposed for the project familiar with the proposed technology and domain of
expertise? What resources will be required from University Technology Services or other
technology service provider?
Technology Risks:
Will proven or emerging technology be used?
Project Management Risks:
Is an experienced project manager assigned to the project? Will the resources be available? What
is the risk of the project being delayed or failing?
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Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
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Business Continuity:
How critical is the ongoing availability of this initiative? Will a business continuity plan be
included in the project deliverables? Once implemented, who will be called for support? What
will happen if support is not available?
INSTITUTIONAL RISK MANAGEMENT:
This section is used to evaluate how the project helps the University reduce each of the following
existing risks. Please also describe if the project creates additional risk and what strategies will be
used to manage these risks.
Reduction in Institutional Risk:
Inability to attract the top students:
Inability to attract tip employees (including faculty):
Risk to financial soundness:
Security:
Please describe if or how this system this system affects the physical and system security in the
University.
Privacy and Confidentiality:
It is essential to protect information relating to students’ personal information and research
initiatives. How does this proposal reduce these risks or avoid exposing confidential information?
Regulatory Compliance:
I some areas the University does not comply with regulations. How does this project bring these
areas into compliance? Does this project fully comply with all relevant regulations?
Technology Currency:
Continued use of obsolete technology presents an increasing risk that such technology will fail.
How does this project update existing inadequate technology?
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Technology Letter of Intent and Technology Project Justification Guidelines
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TECHNOLOGY PROJECT STATUS REPORT:
The Technology Project Status Report is meant to summarize a project’s progress for a given
period during the life of the project. The status report will be produced on a frequency
commensurate with the size, complexity and duration of the project. The project manager or
project leader will be responsible for the completion of the report.
CAPSULE DESCRIPTION:
Copy from your letter of intent or from the Project Justification report.
CURRENT STATUS:
Provide a brief description of the status of the project according to plan and which should reflect
the “Planned Activity over the Reporting Period” for the pervious status report.
CHALLENGES/ISSUES:
Briefly describe and challenges/issues encountered over the reporting period and comment on
their import to the project schedule, change in scope or change in budget/resources. Also include
a description of how the identified challenges/issues are to be dealt with.
PLANNED ACTIVITY OVER NEXT REPORTING PERIOD:
Briefly describe the activities and tasks to be performed over the next reporting period. Include
these activities and for tasks that will address the challenges/issues described in the section
above.
OTHER COMMENTS:
Any comments or observations pertinent to the project and not described above.
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