Greenhouse Consulting, LLC.

Unified vision.

Global perspectives.

Unmatchable know-how.

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Request for Proposal

Self-Paced MS Project 2003 Instructional Training Modules

for the Project Management Course of

the Department of Instructional Design & Technology.

College of Education and Human Services.

February 10th , 2007

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Table of Contents

Our Organizational Overview…….……………………………………………… 5

About Our Client. …….………………………………………………………………. 6

About the Project………………………………………………………………………. 7

Project Goal……………………………………………………………………….………. 8

Project Objective ………………………………………………………………………. 8

Project Desciption………………………………………………………………………. 9

Content Description……………………………………………………………………. 10

Target Audience…………………………………………………………………………… 11

Requirements……………………………………………………………………………… 12

Required Deliverables………………………………………………………………… 13

Special Notes………………………………………………………………………………. 14

Assumptions and Agreements………………………………………….. 14

Required Format………………………………………………………………… 16

Submission Deadline……………………………………………………………..…… 17

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Our Organizational Overview:

Greenhouse Consulting, LLC. is a Consulting Firm specialized in

taylored learning solutions for the Higher Education sector. Our

headquarters are located in Palo Alto, CA.

For over three decades, Greenhouse Consoulting has been the market

leader through the synergy of technology, education and design. Our

branch offices are located in Hong Kong, Melbourne, Dubai, Frankfurt,

London, Pretoria, Sao Paulo, Santiago de Chile and Mexico City.

Our global partners provide us a unified vision though global

perspectives that provide our clients the unmatchable know-how.

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About our client:

The Department of Instructional Design and Technology of Western

Illinois University is located in Macomb, Illinois. The Mission of the

Department of Instructional Design and Technology (IDT) is «to

develop in students the ability to apply new and existing technologies

to achieve educational goals in a wide variety of instructional settings

including, but not limited to, schools, industry, government, health-

related agencies, and institutions of higher education.»

The Instructional Design & Technology program is designed around

four main areas:

• Training program design and production,

• Instructional/training program media production,

• The latest hardware/software technological applications in

training,

• Technology-based delivery systems.

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About the project:

The project being requested by the client is the creation of «Self-Paced

MS Project 2003 Instructional Training Modules for the Project

Management Course at the Undergraduate and Graduate level».

Project goal:

Following Western Illinois University's Image Guidelines as approved

by the Office of the Academic Vice-President, the modules are to be

delivered in electronic form. The graphic user interface employed

should reinforce the image of the University as it is proyected in the

strategic plan along with the particular image guidelines of the College

of Education and Human Services and the Department of Instructional

Design and Technology

The self-paced, instructor independent e-learning modules will provide

the tools necessary for learners to achieve succesful mastery of the

use of the software «Microsoft Project 2003».

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Project Objectives:

Through a series of interviews and surveys with Faculty, Staff and

Students, core objectives have been provided by the client:

• Two online self-paced instructional modules shall be developed

and deployed.

o Each module shall be delivered as a stand alone product.

o Each module, when tested, shall not exceed 30 minutes for

completion by the learner.

• An open Graphic User Interface shall be designed to leverage

state-of-the art technologies such as XML, RSS and «Web 2.0».

The interface shall be authored and properly documented for

future modifications set forth by the Department of Instructional

Design and Technology.

• The Modules shall provide means to establish, gauge and track

the performance of the learners a content is being accessed.

Case scenarios shall provide means to evaluate, provide

immediate feedback and remediation strategies.

• The modules shall be developed through existing content that

the client shall provide.

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• The training shall be effective, engaging, and interactive to the

learners.

• The client shall receive all electronic and written material that

was developed by the agency that had won the bid proposal.

Materials and any necessary training to Faculty and Staff shall be

provided as part of the project.

• All final online materials shall be based upon the Corporate

Image Guidelines established by the client.

• The Intellectual Property and Copyright shall be sole property of

the client in partial and final completion.

Project Description:

Two online self-paced interactive and engaging instructional training

modules shall be developed for the Project Management Course in

both Graduate and Undergraduate levels. The modules must be ADA

and SCORM compliant. The Illinois Accesibility Guidelines shall also be

followed in their absolute.

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Content Description:

The content for the two modules will be divided into 10 major lessons:

1. Getting Started with MS Project 2003,

2. Creating a WBS,

3. Adding Task Dependencies,

4. Modifying Task Dependencies,

5. Adding Resources,

6. Modifying Resource Assignments,

7. Resolving Resource Conflicts,

8. Putting the Final Plan Together,

9. Tracking Progress,

10. Project Summary.

Each module shall be completed in a maximum of 30 minutes, while

the average desired completion time shall be of 15 minutes.

Development of the new modules will require the production of new

graphics, artwork, animations, and video. Industry Standard Visual

Literacy guidelines are to be followed as well as proper ADA & SCORM

compliance. The Graphic Design of animations is expected to be simple

and elegant. Two-dimensional objects and shapes shall not be

complex. Content shall be written in Standard English language.

Content should be presented with photos, video, audio, and animation

where appropriate to reinforce learning and engage various learning

styles. Scenario-based activities are required to illustrate processes

and improve retention of material. Opportunities to practice and self-

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check learning should be present throughout the course material to

provide feedback to users. An assessment strategy must be designed

to align with course objectives and implemented to assess user

performance within each module and as an overall course.

Target Audience:

The client has specified the composition as follows:

• Students that are enrolled in the «IDT 565 'Project

Management'» course of the Department of Instructional Design

and Telecommunications.

• Young Adult & Adult learners with varied cultural backgrounds

and a mixture of technical skills.

Therefore:

• Instruction shall be geared for an adult reading level.

• The design shall be interculturally appropiate

• The technicall skills shall match the guideline set by the

Department of Instructional Design and Technology.

• The learners will be approximately 65% native English speakers,

while the remaining 35% are ESL speakers.

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Technical Requirements:

The following technical requirements must be agreed to in all project

proposals. Any deviation from the requirements listed below must be

documented and justified in the project proposal.

• The emphasis shall be to develop a widely accesible platform on

which content can be acquired for offline viewing and also

bandwidth independent.

• Learners shall be able to access the content from workstations

that possess at least a broadband connection to the Internet.

Support shall also be provided for 56Kbps connections.

• Web Browser support shall include: Firefox 1.x+, Safari 1.x+,

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0+

• Software Compatibility:

o The platforms that shall be supported are Macintosh (Mac

OS X 10.3 and above) as well as Microsoft Windows 2000

and above.

o Adobe Flash Player 8 and above.

• Hardware Compatibility:

o Supported systems include:

Pentium III with 500 MHz (or better for PC)

PowerPC 'G3' 500Mhz (or better for MAC)

Speakers

• Development and design shall be done using Lectora Software.

• Students with various disabilities, such as visual and hearing

impairments, shall also be able to access the content in each

module.

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• All modules shall be consistent in navigation, layout, look, color,

fonts, headings and diverse graphics with WIU's Corporate

Image Strategy.

Required Deliverables:

• Communication Plan:

Include schedules for:

• Weekly/monthly meetings with project and

client leaders, and project team members.

• Progress reports (weekly/monthly).

• Project review process (weekly/monthly).

• Timeline:

Specify deliverables and review checkpoints for both

the client and the project team.

• Outline and Workflow:

For each module design.

• Interface Design and Mock-ups:

Reflect usability and WIU’s Corporate Image

Strategy.

• Storyboards:

Includes content, animation plans, graphic

descriptions, and interface navigation options.

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• Working Prototypes (two modules):

Pilot of each prototype will be conducted by the

client and feedback will be provided to the project

team.

• Video, Audio, Animation Scenarios & Other Elements:

To review for alignment with the Code of Conduct of

the University (Client), their Policies, Governance

and other guidelines.

• Delivery of Each Module:

Based on project timelines, each module will be

delivered upon completion for review by the client.

• Copyright:

WIU requires collection of all materials associated

with this project to protect its Intellectual Property

and Copyright.

Assumptions and Agreements:

The winning bidder of the project for «Self-Paced MS Project 2003

Instructional Training Modules for the Project Management Course of

the Department of Instructional Design & Technology.» will operate

under, but not be limited to the following work assumptions and

agreements:

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Due Dates:

February 2007

• 20th – Proposals.

• 27th - Communication Plan (defined).

March 2007

• 6th - Project Timeline associated with Deliverables.

• 6th - Project Outline and Workflow (finalized).

• 13th - Interface Design Mock-ups.

• 13th - Storyboards for both modules (completed).

• 20th - Working Prototype for Module 1.

• 27th - Working Prototype for Module 2.

April 2007

• 3rd - Staged Module Delivery.

• 24th - Final Delivery of Modules.

• 24th - Collection of all Files.

• 30th - Project Completion.

Penalties:

• A 15% penalty will be assessed for every calendar

week the project is late.

• An increase of 15% penalty will be assessed per

week for every calendar week the project is late

starting on the third week of extention.

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REQUIRED PROPOSAL FORMAT:

Qualifying proposals shall not exceed five pages. The format has to be

compatible with Microsoft Word. Legible sections and standard one-

invh margins across the document shall be used. The font of choice is

Helvetica, Size 12. Paragraphs shall be double spaced and pages shall

be numbered.

For consideration, submit your proposal timely to Greenhouse

Consulting, LLC via our website at www.thinkgreen.com

The following information will aid us select the best bidder:

• Your company trajectory:

o Product Portfolio and markets you have experience with.

o Case Studies are a plus.

• Project Scope:

o Share any plans, ideas and innovative technologies that

may enhance your bid value.

• Schedule:

o Develop a timely layout including personnel headcount and

task load.

o Include a WBS.

• Qualifications:

o Provide a talent pool and list the achievements of the team

you have assembled..

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• Project Budget:

o Substantiate your initiatives and their matching

investments.

• Supporting Information:

o Provide any information about similar projects and the

outcomes for each.

Payment:

The winning bidder will receive the following dollar amounts.

• 10% After signing the contract and terms.

• 15% After approval of two prototypes.

• 25% After all terms and requirements of the contract

have been accepted by the Instructional Design &

Technology 565 on-line project management

students.

• 50% After successful completion and validation by the

Client.

Submission Deadline:

As stated in the Assumptions and Agreements, all proposals will be

due February 20th, 2007. Any proposals delivered beyond that date

shall not be accepted. A decision will be reached, and the authors of

the selected proposal will be notified no later than February 23rd,

2007. The project is expected to start on February 27, 2007, and

adhere to the proposed schedule as detailed in this RFP. The

completion date for this project is April 30th, 2007. The winning

bidder will receive 10% after signing the contract and terms.