This section provides direction on how to go about solving the challenge
About the Challenge
The two groups of respondents for the challenge are: The technological experts and The Consultancy Experts.
The three criteria of evaluation are: Length, Quality and Originality
The winner will get a £50 Amazon voucher and an opportunity to present his/her idea to some of the best consultants from a major consultancy firm in the UK.
Resources
These resources will help you solve the challenge
Artificial Intelligence
Machine Learning
Cognitive Automation
Portfolio Management
Project Management Process
Practical Application
Our Amazing Team
Foucault Lefort
Heloise U Mudenge
Lucca Voss
Sanjana Rathi
Thomas Montier Lr
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Artificial Intelligence
It is the theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks normally requiring human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages.
Machine Learning
It is a type of artificial intelligence (AI) that provides computers with the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. Machine learning focuses on the development of computer programs that can change when exposed to new data.
Cognitive Automation
It is the simulation of human thought processes in a computerized model. The goal of cognitive computing is to create automated IT systems that are capable of solving problems without requiring human assistance.
Portfolio Management
Implementing mature processes and frameworks to select the right projects that are: fully aligned to the strategy; that optimise the return on investment; and that strike the right balance between running, protecting, and growing the organisation.
We work with our clients to develop appropriate frameworks and processes to manage the ongoing selection and refinement of investments to ensure the link between strategic objectives and portfolio selection is maintained and enhanced.
Invest
The Portfolio Delivery service brings together into a single point information to support balanced and informed risk and reward decision making.
The Portfolio Optimization service helps to make sure that the client’s portfolio is aligned to the business strategy.
The Change Portfolio Operating Model Design service assesses an organisation's ability to deliver change and recommends improvements
1. Portfolio Delivery
Overview
This service offering combines the work of assessment (maturity) benchmark, design of optimal framework, and deployment of portfolio management processes. It provides a single point through which the organization can deliver the portfolio by making balanced decisions on risk and reward.
Portfolio Delivery engages with senior management at the strategic planning level, the annual budgeting and reporting process cycle, and establishes protocols for critical business decisions and governance structures, focusing on the operational performance and the realization of benefits for Programs across their entire lifecycle.
2. Portfolio Optimization
Overview
The outcome of Portfolio Optimisation is a portfolio that is aligned to the business strategy focusing on:
• Identifying all programs within the scope of the portfolio;
• Design of optimal frameworks
• Evaluating the alignment between business strategy and portfolio prioritization criteria;
• Assessing the current portfolio against constraints (e.g. resource/budget) and targets (e.g. Target Operating Model); and
• Effective deployment of portfolio management processes
3. Change Portfolio Operating Model Design
Overview
The PwC Change Portfolio Operating Model Design service assesses an organisation's ability to deliver change and recommends improvements by reviewing:
• Governance of the portfolio;
• Planning, reporting and managing
change, and the supporting systems;
• Skills and resources available to deliver change;
• Organisation and management processes needed to support and sustain an effective change delivery function;
• Methods, tools and knowledge management which support delivery; and
• The results achieved by the change team and how/why these might vary from the objectives of the business.
Basic Project Management Process
The basic process management process is divided into the following steps
Project Definition
All aspects regarding the project such as objectives, scope, risks are defined and communicated to the various stakeholders. Any differences amongst them should be resolved before the project begins.
Initiation
A business case is produced which in detail explains the how, what, who, and why of the project that will be necessary to proceed with the project.
Planning
Within the planning phase, all activities, and tasks of the project are identified. All necessary resources, and information regarding quality, cost, schedule and timelines are identified as well as performance indicators. Also roles and responsibilities are assigned.
Execution
In this phase, the project’s plans are implemented and put into action. The purpose of this phase is to deliver the expected outputs/outcomes defined in the earlier phases. It involves a lot of communication amongst team members to ensure that it is being implemented according to the plan.
Monitoring and controlling
The status of the project including the timeline and performance is checked against the initial plan and adjustments are made where necessary to ensure the project stays on track. It might require regular review meetings
Closing
When all objectives are met, tasks of the project are completed and the client has signed-off, the project can be closed and resources are freed up for something else. A review may be conducted to outline the success and failures and they can be repeated and avoided respectively.
Practical Application
Amazon’s cloud service allows companies that work with large datasets to improve the quality of decisions from the quantities of data that they collect. These companies can build and modify their predictive models using their existing data and use the Amazon Machine Learning tool to make predictions in batch mode or in real time. Amazon's service essentially uses the companies’ data to train its algorithms to help deliver the result a company is looking for.
Chime is a platform that uses machine learning to connect real estate agents to leads that have higher chance of paying off and can also enable the processing of transaction paperwork. It can search the web for information while developing the leads and then triggering automated ad campaigns to make first contact with prospective buyers or sellers. This has helped agents increase their productivity and at the same time reduce time spent on mundane tasks.