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Running head: COURSE PROJECT PART 3: THE FINAL PROJECT

Course Project Part 3: The Final Project
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COURSE PROJECT PART 3: THE FINAL PROJECT
Executive Summary:
The research will be based on how entrepreneurs can leverage new technology to
address a society's business idea. The proposal will particularly explore how artificial
intelligence (AI) will be applied to a business opportunity. The researcher has shown how a
blend of robots and 3D printing can improve customer service delivery in the shoe industry.
Robots will help hasten to package, fitting the customers, and value chain management. The
proposal has identified Nike and Adidas as the sector's major players in terms of critical
vendors. In the last section, the advantages and disadvantages of the proposed technology
have been identified. Among the benefits are increased production, 100% personalization,
and customer satisfaction. However, the high cost of capital and job loss is recognized as the
significant limitations of this technology.

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Table of Contents
Cover page ........................................................................................................................................... 1
Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................ 2
Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................ 3
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 4
Project Plan .......................................................................................................................................... 4
Organizational background ................................................................................................................. 7
Business problems or opportunities overview: ................................................................................ 7
Overview of Technology Solution Category .................................................................................... 7
Alternative Solutions and Recommendations................................................................................... 9
Organizational Impact: ...................................................................................................................... 12
Summary ............................................................................................................................................ 13
References .......................................................................................................................................... 14

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Introduction
The demand for high-quality shoes has seen tremendous growth since the early 2000s
due to the rise in the proportion of corporate and upper-middle-income earners' who demand
high-end products irrespective of the cost (Bhardwaj & Fairhurst, 2010). However, with the
increase in the demand for high-quality products, a new challenge has been poor customer
service. Notably, this corporate segment has complained of queening as they look for new
products. Indeed, queuing has several negative impacts on customer loyalty in the fashion
industry. For instance, shoe companies have experienced a considerable decline among loyal
clients who joined the new competitors (Bhardwaj & Fairhurst, 2010). The overall impact is a
significant reduction in profitability over the last three years. However, the challenge of
queuing can always be solved by incorporating new technology in customer service.
Therefore, this research proposal will explore how entrepreneurs can leverage new
technology to address a society's business idea. The proposal will particularly explore how
artificial intelligence (AI) will be applied to a business opportunity.
Project Plan
Project Team Analysis
A very important stakeholder in the proposed innovation is the innovation
development team. The team is made up of IT experts who design, plan, and evaluate the
innovation. They will align the objectives of the company with that of the project. They train
employees and evaluate the project. The project manager (PM) is another important
individual in the project team. The PM's role is to plan, organize, and direct duties among the
stakeholders in the project team. Moreover, the PM is tasked with ensuring that the project is
completed within the timeline, the budget, and the program's scope. The PM is a top manager
who acts as the company's agents and links the junior employees with the board of
management and shareholders. Top managers' main concern is to ensure the organizational

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culture is preserved. This is done through effective communication, motivating the workers,
and technology and innovation (Logan & Royse, 2010).
The customers are key to the success of the company. However, this success cannot
be achieved without aligning the customers' needs with the offered products and services.
The customers' main concern includes the cost of the products, assurance of the products'
quality, and effective customer service. The community is also a major stakeholder. Their
concern includes reducing pollution, offering employment to the locals, and taking part in
community programs through which the community's needs are met.
Skills for a Project Manager:
The success of the project will depend on the leadership style adopting by the new
project manager. Consequently, when looking for a project manager, the company will look
for an individual with the following qualities:
Communication skills:
Implementing innovation is not easy for project managers as they face resistance from
the employees. However, through effective communication, the project manager can
communicate this innovation's objectives to the employees.
Bargaining skills:
The project manager must bargain with various stakeholders. For instance, the PM
needs to convince the shareholders, the importance of adopting the innovation. The PM will
also use bargaining skills to convince the employees of the advantages of this innovation.
Consultation skills:
Project implementation is not a "one-man show." Various stakeholders are involved in
the project. Consequently, the PM must engage all the stakeholders in the implementation
process through consultation.
Planning skills:

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The main duty is to plan how the innovation will be implemented with a given
timeframe, budget, and scope. However, these objectives may not be attained if the PM has
poor planning skills. Indeed, time management is of great importance.
Reasons why the project could fail:
While implementing the new technology in the shoe industry, the stakeholders will
be faced with numerous challenges. Firstly, not all business administrators accept the idea of
having on how 3D printing and robotics are implemented. Secondly, the project is faced with
technology threats from the IT experts from whom the software is sourced. For instance, the
IT experts may share crucial information about the firm with other peer firms whom they
service. Besides, the plan may face internal resistance from the management or the
employees. For example, the administration may oppose the idea due to the high cost of
implementation and maintenance, while the employees may dislike the idea for fear of losing
their jobs. Lastly, the plan may be faced with the challenge of delay in the implementation
due to lack of enough funds.
Why planned work must be outsourced:
It was noted that our organization lacked human experts to facilitate the
implementation of the proposed innovation. Therefore, it is paramount that planned work and
expertise are outsourced for competence building. Furthermore, an outsourced plan is less
likely to be influenced by the organizational culture of the firm.
Type of system development methodology
The proposed system development methodology is prototyping. Prototyping is the
fourth stage of the design thinking process and allows planners to get ideas in real terms and
get feedback from the target group. This phase aims to start with a low accuracy option of the
proposed solution, after which it will increase over time based on customer feedback.
Prototyping must match human-centered solutions to validate the design thought process. For

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example, there is a prototype element in brainstorming because key stakeholders need to
identify key areas that need to be addressed. Once the fields are identified, they are analyzed
and then applied.
Organizational background:
Shoe Ocean is a modern footwear company that offers sophisticated south-western
style shoes in Atlanta, Georgia. The firm uses technology and innovation in the production of
the products. Mainly the firm uses 3D-print design in production. The company targets
middle-upper and corporate clients. The high-end products are sold at a premium price
through both online and store marketing. Being the only business idea in the area, Shoe
Ocean attracted a considerable market share in the sector.
Business problems or opportunities overview:
The demand for high-quality shoes has seen tremendous growth since the venture of
Ocean Shoe. Corporate and upper-middle-income earners' demand for high-end products
irrespective of the cost. However, customer service ...