This document outlines a proposal for a Metro Transit mobile application project. It will include: 1) Developing a multi-functional mobile app to improve the rider experience for Metro Transit customers and reduce costs for the company. 2) Using a waterfall development methodology and outsourcing the app development to a third party to ensure stability and manage risks. 3) Creating a communication plan, training customer service agents, and promoting the app to help with a successful organizational change and implementation. The project aims to increase ridership and revenue while reducing material costs through an easy-to-use app that provides schedules, maps, electronic bus passes and other features.

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Metro Transit
Project: A user-friendly, multi-functional application
IDSC 4204W
Guoxin Guan

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TABLEOF CONTENTS
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Table of Contents .……………………………………………………………………………………………………………....2
Executive Summary ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………3
Benefits, Costs and Sponsorship …………………………………………………………………………………………4-5
Context diagram ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..5-6
Operating model and Enterprise architecture …………………………………………………………………….6-7
Project deliverables, Scope and WBS ……………………………….…………………………………………………7-8
Approach ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..9
Risk Management ………………………………………………………………………………………………………….10-11
Solution Architecture …………………………………………………………………………………………………………12
Project Management and Organizational Change Management …………………………………….13-14
Appendices ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………15-17
Works Cited ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….18-19

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Executive Summary
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In a coldwinterinMinnesota,Tomfinallyfinishedall hisclassesand waseagertotake a bus
home.He waited at the busstop,sufferingfromthe coldweatherfor15 minutesuntil the buscame.
Tom was sosleepy andquickly fellasleeponthe bus.Of course Tom missedhisstop, andhe spent
another10 minutesinthe cold waitingforanotherbusto take himback. There were more people on
the bus.It took Tom a lotof efforttowork through the crowdand pull the cord whenhe arrived.After
Tom finallygothome,he foundouthe hadlosthis buspass.What a badday for Tom!Tom decidedto
use Uber nexttime instead of MetroTransit.
 Metro Transit needs a mobile application
“Metro Transit does not develop any applications for particular devices for now.”1 The
purpose of this project is to provide a user-friendly, multi-functional application to attract
potential customers and improve the current users’ satisfaction with Metro Transit.
 Mobile application will serve both users and company
An application built for mobile platform users with many features aims to improve users’
riding experience and reduce the cost for Metro Transit. With the application, users will have a
more accurate bus schedule, find stops and routing information more easily, and have easier
access to bus passes.
 Use Bottom up approach to make more accurate budget estimation
We recommend to use bottom up method to do the budget estimation to increase
accuracy. The accuracy of budget estimation is key to a successful project.
 Waterfall development methodology is the best choice for this project
The waterfall development methodology is more reliable and measurable than others and
we have clear requirements. We recommend using waterfall development methodology for this
project.
 Mitigate risks to ensure success of this project
There are three project risks and one business risk associated with this project; we conduct
responses and contingency plans to make sure to minimize effects of risks.
1. Metro Transit, “MobileDevices and Transit apps”, http://www.metrotransit.org/mobile-site-and-transit-apps

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Benefits, CostsandSponsorship
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Mobile application is consistent with company’s goals
 The project will saveusers’time and improve the experience, which relates to Metro Transit’s
dedication to provide people with better quality of life2.
 The project will use an electronic buss pass instead of the physical card, which relates to
Metro Transit’s strategy of environmental stability and low cost3.
Mobile application brings many benefits to company
With the application, the number of bus riders is expected to increase by 4%-6%, which
will lead to 1%-3% increase on Metro Transit’s revenue. The cost of a physical bus pass will be
eliminated, which will reduce Metro Transit’s material cost by 1%-3% as well.
• Increase customers
o There are 267,700 riders each weekday now. With the application, the
number of riders will increase to 278,408
o Improve the riders’ satisfaction
• Reduce the cost
o The current cost of physical bus pass will be eliminated
o More environmentally friendly by reducing use of plastic and papers
Accurate budget estimation is key to success
We recommend to use the bottom up method to calculate the budget, because it can
generate more accurate budget estimations. The main cost is application development, and
other costs associated with this project are training costs, and promotion costs.
o Application development, the average cost per application is $ 270,000 and the median
cost per app is $ 171,4504. We will give a budget of $250,000 on application
development.
2 .Metro Transit, “Our Mission”,http://www.metrotransit.org/mission-statement
3. Metro Transit, “Our Mission”,http://www.metrotransit.org/mission-statement
4. Formotus, “Figuring the costs ofcustom mobilebusiness appdevelopment”, http://www.formotus.com/14018/blog-mobility/figuring-the-
costs-of-custom-mobile-business-app-development

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o We recommend using social media to promote our new mobile application, which is a
relatively cheaper platform. Because of this, we only have to pay for employees
($40/hour), and we decided to hire ten people to work on the promotion for two weeks.
The estimation cost on promotion is around $32,000.
o The average training cost for a single employee is around $1,2085, and we probably
need about ten trained employees to provide customer service. Therefore, our cost for
training is around $12,080.
o Other costs related to this project are roughly about $40,000.
o We also reserve 10% of the gross cost in case we meet some unexpected events during
the implementation.
After adding all of the costs, we come up with a rough estimation of $368,000 for this
project (See Table1 in AppendixA).
Potential sponsorship for mobile application
The perfect project sponsor is Adam Duininck. He is a member of the Transportation
Strategic Management and Operations Advisory Task Force, Mn/DOT, former legislative and
political director for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 49, and former
Executive Director, Win Minnesota6.
Context Diagram
Application implementation
Our application interacts with users, the buses/light rails, and Metro Transit (Figure 1).
Users provide inputs and send requests to the Metro Transit mobile application. After receiving
requests, the application will forward users’ requests to a specific bus/light rail or Metro
Transit, then the application will receive the latest information from specific buses/light rails or
any information required by users. At last, application sends back information/services required
to users.
5. Association for talent development, “2014StateoftheIndustry Report: Spending on EmployeeTraining Remains a Priority”,
https://www.td.org/Publications/Magazines/TD/TD-Archive/2014/11/2014-State-of-the-Industry-Report-Spending-on-Employee-Training-
Remains-a-Priority
6. MetropolitanCouncil,“CouncilMembers & Districts”, http://www.metrocouncil.org/About-Us/Who-We-Are/CouncilMembers.aspx

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Figure 1
Operating model and Enterprise architecture
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High integration and high standardization – Good for application design
Metro Transit’s unification model is derived from high process integration and high
process standardization. This model makes mobile applications easier to design, because our
mobile application only need to meet one standard. Also, currently, Transit providers must
“submit route performance information to the Council every year for review”7, which enables
us to provide accurate route information for users.
7. MetropolitanCouncil,http://www.metrocouncil.org/Transportation/Planning-2/Key-Transportation-Planning-Documents/Transportation-
Policy-Plan-%281%29/The-Adopted-2040-TPP-%281%29.aspx

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Make or Buy
Metro Transit has no experiences in developing mobile application, which means Metro
Transit lacks both technical expertise and production capacity. Therefore, buying the
application from another company is the best choice. In addition, it is safer to choose
outsourcing development. So we recommend to outsource the mobile application from a third
party.
Application Decisions
During the design phase, there are many architectural decisions that need to be made
about this mobile application. Those decisions include:
 Ease of downloading app
o The application will be available for both iPhone and Android
o The application can be downloaded for free
 Notification settings
o Ring/buzz as a reminder
o Special functions for the blind and deaf
 Security issues
o Keep users’ personal information private and safe
Project deliverables, Scope andWBS
Ease of Use
At the end of the project, a complete multi-functional, user-friendly mobile application
will be available for download.
The app enables users to:
1. Use live tracking on the buses/light rails
o By providing accurate estimation on arrival/departure time
2. Find the nearest stop and specific information about the routes of every line

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3. Spend bus time more efficiently
o By registering destinations once passengers are on the buses/light rails
4. Access their bus passes with their mobile phones
5. Check balance and transfer money to bus pass
Key PM Deliverables:
In order to develop the mobile application, there are three project management
deliverables:
 Security problems related to customers’ personal information and bank information
 Mobile Application’s functional requirements list
 Training plans to create ten customer service agents
The scope of Mobile Application
1. Gather requirements from users and upper management
2. Find a good vendor to design the mobile application
3. Purchase database to store both personal information and transactional information
4. Preparing a marketing strategy to promote the application
5. Train ten employees to be customer service agents
6. Test the application and get feedback
7. Integrate the application based on feedback
8. Promote the application
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
Our project is developed in five phases, which are: Plan phase, Analyze phase, Design
phase, Test phase, and Implement phase. The five phases are a sequentially designed process
and are fundamentals to a successful project. We list all functional requirements in the
application requirements and we invested to train ten employees to be customer service agents
to help with any problems with the application. More detailed information about WBS can be
found in Table2 in AppendixB.

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Approach
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Methodology: a phase to phase model
After analyzing, we recommend waterfall development methodology, which is a phase to
phase model, as our approach for this project. We made this recommendation for three
reasons:
1. The reliability of waterfall methodology is relatively high. The high reliability of this
methodology can ensure the stability of the mobile application, which can satisfy and
attract customers. Because buses provide a critical service to people and people who
ride the bus value this stability.
2. We conducted a complete and clear requirements list before the project began by
gathering requirements from both customers and leadership; there will be limited
changes on the requirements during the project.
3. It is easier for us to measure the process of our project, because the final deliverable of
this project will be a mobile application. We can test the application’s functions and
stability.
There are also some potential risks for using waterfall development methodology:
1. We need to create a completely specific requirements list before the project and it is
hard to make modifications during the process. We have to be extremely careful when
gathering all requirements.
2. If the project team fails to meet a significant requirement, it will cost both time and
money to do post-implementation programming8. So, the project manager should keep
close attention to every single step, to ensure nothing was missed or went wrong during
the process.
8. Dennis, Alan,Barbara Haley Wixom,andRoberta M. Roth.Systems Analysis &Design. 5nd ed.

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Risk Management
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Benefits Come with Costs
Every coin has two sides. Although the mobile application brings many advantages to
both users and Metro Transit, there are still some potential risks that come with this mobile
application. There are generally two kinds of risks, project risks and business risks. Among those
risks unexpected expenses have the serious impact on the project. It may cost over cost and
miss the schedule, or even force the project to stop because of insufficient budget.
The project risks include:
 Unexpected expenses
 The mobile application may not be completely enough to fully operate on most
mobile phones
 Poor signal may cause failure to do live tracking on buses/light rails
The business risk includes:
 The reluctance of older demographics and others to use mobile technology
The following table (Table 3) provides more details on risks, our response and
Contingency plans.

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Table 3
Risk Response
type
Response Trigger Contingency
The projectmay go
overcost for 15% of
total budgetbecause
of inaccurate budget
estimation
Mitigate  Track everystepto
ensure efficiencyon
resource allocation
 The cost go over
15% of budget
afterfirstmonth
Cut downthe in scope
activitiestoreduce the
cost
The mobile
applicationmaynot
be able to operate on
some mobile devices
or have some bugs
Mitigate  Have user testing  Try to fiton as
manydevicesas
possible
Onlyprovide mobile
applicationonApple and
Android
Poorsignal may
cause failure onlive
trackingon
buses/lightrails
Accept  Nothingwe can do
aboutsignal
 Some areashave
poor/nosignal
Notifyusers aboutpoor
signal (“Poorsignal may
cause the failure toget
latestinformation”) when
there ispoor signal
The reluctance of
olderdemographics
and othersto use
mobile technology
Mitigate  Provide
instructional video
to teachpeople
 People have many
issuesaboutnew
technology
Provide 24/7 customer
service tohelppeople
solve issues

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SolutionArchitecture
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Concerns about the Mobile Application
Since this is the first app owned by Metro Transit, there are many concerns with this new
mobile application:
 Speed of transferring money
o As long as users transfer money to the bus pass, users can use that money even
if the money is still in pending status
 Have problems while using the application
o There will be 24/7 customer service to answer any issues you have on the
mobile application
To better address those concerns, Figure2 shows the whole process of this mobile
application. Customers provide personal information and bank information to Metro Transit.
Once personal identity is verified, the mobile application will provide many functions for users.
In order to provide better user experiences, there will be trained agents to provide 24/7 hotline
service to answer any issues about the application.
Figure 2

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Project Management andOrganizational Change Management
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Complete team is the key
I’ve been asked to serve as the project manager for the Metro Transit Mobile
Application project after it is funded. I’m looking forward to that position, and will ask for
assistance is these aspects of project management. Since I am an ISTJ type, which means:
 I always have a keen sense of what is right or wrong, especially on my interested or
responsible areas
 I care about time, and have always been punctual
 I will devote myself on a proven procedure at any cost
 I can easily be affected by others
 It is always hard for me to tell my own feelings unless they have been asked
Based on my type, I found both potential strengths and challenges as following:
Strengths:
 Task oriented, organized, and carful about task descriptions
 Pay a great attention to responsibility, tradition, and accuracy
Challenges:
 No strong team leadership
 No significant impact and influence
 Lack of flexibility
In order for the project to succeed, we want to find a junior manager with team
leadership and influence that can solve my challenges of strong leadership and influence. We
will want the other team members to have organizational awareness and conceptual thinking
that can solve my challenge of lack of flexibility. People with different characteristics and
strengths can form a complete team that ensure the success of this project.

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Communication strategy for integration
In order to successfully implement the new mobile application, Metro Transit has to do
three things:
1. Communicate with users
a. Build a communication plan like survey/questionnaire to gain feedbacks from
users and integrate the application based on that feedback
2. Keep employees involved
a. Keep all employees informed and provide them enough training
3. Customer service agents
a. Invested in well trained agents to solve any issues on the application

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Appendix A
Table 1
Components Cost/unit Units Estimated Costs
Application Development $250,000 1 $250,000
Promotion $40 10 Workers for 2 weeks $32,000
Training $1,208 10 Customer service agents $12,080
Other Cost $40,000 1 $40,000
Risk Reserve $33,500 10% of gross cost $33,500
Total Cost $367,580

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Appendix B
Table 2
Task Name
Metro Transit'sMobile Application
Project Management
Create CommunicationPlan
MonitorProjectVariables
KeepProjectonSchedule
SystemRequirements
Gather BusinessRequirements
DesignBusinessProcessFlows
Finalize Technical Requirements
Reviewall GatheredRequirements
Calculate the Budget
ApplicationRequirements
Create Functional Requirements
CollectUserInformation
Provide Route/StopInformation
SetDestinations
RemindStops
ShowingE-buspass
TransferringMoneytoBus pass
ApplicationSoftware
InitializeApplicationDesign
Finalize ApplicationDesign
DevelopApplication
DeliverApplication
Hardware
ConductHardware RequirementsList
InitializeHardware Design
Finalize Hardware Design
Acquire Hardware
Install Hardware
Training
Conducta HelpAgentTrainingRequirementsList
Prepare TrainingMaterials
Train Employeestobe HelpAgents
Testing
CollectTestingRequirements

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Conducta Test Plan& Test Cases
PerformAssemblyTest
PerformApplicationTest
ConductUser Acceptance Test
Project Wrap-Up
Prepare PostImplementationReport
Acquire Performance Report
Go Live

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Works Cited
“COUNCIL MEMBERS & DISTRICTS”, Metropolitan Council, n.d.
<http://www.metrocouncil.org/About-Us/Who-We-Are/CouncilMembers.aspx>
Dennis, Alan, Barbara Haley Wixom, and Roberta M. Roth. Systems Analysis & Design. 5nd ed.
New York: J. Wiley, 2012. 23-33. Print
“Figuring the costs of custom mobile business app development”, Formotus, October 25, 2015.
<http://www.formotus.com/14018/blog-mobility/figuring-the-costs-of-custom-mobile-
business-app-development>
“Mobile Devices and Transit apps”, Mobile Devices and Transit Apps, Transit Technologies,
Transit Improvement, About Metro Transit, Metro Transit, n.d.
<http://www.metrotransit.org/mobile-site-and-transit-apps>
“Metro Transit (Minnesota)”, Wikipedia, 28th Sep, 2015
< https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro_Transit_%28Minnesota%29>
“Our Mission”, Mission Statement and Guiding Principles, About Metro Transit, Metro
Transit, n.d.
< http://www.metrotransit.org/mission-statement>
“2014 State of the Industry Report: Spending on Employee Training Remains a Priority”,

19. 19
Association for Talent Development, Laurie Miller, November 08, 2014.
<https://www.td.org/Publications/Magazines/TD/TD-Archive/2014/11/2014-State-of-
the-Industry-Report-Spending-on-Employee-Training-Remains-a-Priority>
“2040 Transportation Policy Plan”, Metropolitan Council, 14th Jan, 2015
< http://www.metrocouncil.org/Transportation/Planning-2/Key-Transportation-
Planning-Documents/Transportation-Policy-Plan-%281%29/The-Adopted-2040-TPP-
%281%29.aspx>