As the business analyst in the CIO's department of Maryland Technology Consulting (MTC), your next task in working towards an IT solution to improve the hiring process at MTC is to write a justification and implementation plan for a system that the CIO has decided will meet MTC's needs. The system, EZ-ATS, is described in the vendor brochure provided with this assignment. The vendor, UMUC Hiring Solutions, Inc., and EZ-ATS are fictitious names created for use with this case study but based on real-world SaaS application information. In this Stage 4 assignment, you will explain how the selected system meets MTC's requirements, and what needs to be done to implement the system within MTC.Section IV of the Business Analysis and System Recommendation Report will explain how the selected system helps MTC achieve its strategy, improve its hiring process, and meet its system requirements, and you will explain how each implementation area might be addressed to help ensure a successful implementation of the technology solution.Using the case study, assignment instructions, vendor brochure, Course readings (in particular, Implementing a SaaS Solution and Developing a System Proposal)and external research, develop your Section IV. System Recommendation. Approximate lengths for each section are provided as a guideline; be sure to provide all pertinent information.IV. System RecommendationA. System JustificationProvided with the Stage 4 Assignment Instructions is a brochure that describes an IT solution that the CIO has selected, with the HR Director’s endorsement, to meet the needs of improving MTC’s hiring process. In Stage 1, you analyzed the strategy and objectives for MTC and how a technology solution to improve the hiring process would contribute. In Stage 2, you analyzed how to improve the hiring process with a technology solution, and in Stage 3 you identified specific requirements. After reviewing the EZ-ATS Brochure, briefly describe the selected solution. Then, describe how that selected solution aligns with achieving the strategy, improves the process, and meets the requirements. Write two to three clear, concise, well-organized paragraphs to summarize this assessment. Don’t just repeat information from previous stages but synthesize this information and provide strong information and justification to explain why this proposed solution is a good fit for MTC. Remember you are writing a report to your boss, the CIO of MTC, that he can use to convince the leadership team why this is the best solution based on your analysis.B. Implementation AreasTo successfully implement this technology solution, MTC will need to develop an Implementation Plan and below is a list of key implementation areas that should be included. First, provide a brief introduction to this section – what it contains and why an Implementation Plan is so important for MTC. Then address each of the seven (7) areas below to explain what MTC needs to do (with support by the vendor). Below the numbered heading, write one to two paragraphs to address the area. The sub-areas (a,b,c, etc.) contain questions and areas to help guide your thinking about what should be covered and should be incorporated within your response to the major category. For an explanation of the implementation areas, refer to the Week 7 Reading "Implementing a SaaS Solution". The vendor brochure provides information for some of these areas, but you need to include what MTC must doas well. Remember you are writing this section to help MTC plan for a successful implementation. It is not sufficient to just indicate “Vendor provides”or “employees need to be trained." In addition to incorporating course content, external research on implementation areas will strengthen your understanding and explanation. The goal for this section is to help MTC know what needs to happen in each area to help support a successful implementation of EZ-ATS.Vendor agreement (MTC must enter into a contractual agreement with the vendor before full implementation. This identifies responsibilities as well as costs.) Incorporate answers to the following questions in your paragraph – do not include the questions themselves.What does the vendor require from MTC to be able to start using the system?How much will it cost to get access to and configure the system for MTC's use?How much will it cost per month to support 60 system users?What option is offered for MTC to just try out the system to see how it works?Hardware and telecommunications(Although this is a SaaS solution, MTC must ensure that its IT infrastructure can support the use of the system and that its employees can correctly access the system.) Include the following:List the types of hardware MTC employees can use to access the system.Identify what kind of telecommunications will be used for the solution, including local connectivity inside MTC and Internet access from outside MTC.Configuration(Even SaaS solutions require a degree of configuration for each client. What needs to be done to implement the MTC job requisitions, workflow, reports, terminology and/or logo/graphics?) Include the answers to the questions below, but not the questions themselves.What options does the vendor offer for configuring the off-the-shelf system to MTC's needs?How will the configuration be done and by whom?4.TestingOnce MTC has signed up and configured the system, how will it test the system to see if it is working properly for its needs? Describe how MTC will conduct User Acceptance Testing. (This would be a good area for you to research.)Choose one of the user requirements (listed in Section III of your BA&SR Report) and explain how that requirement will be specifically tested to ensure it is working properly and the requirement is met.Employee preparation and support– Identify what MTC should do in each area below to prepare the employees (including the hiring managers in the various departments) for the introduction and use of the new applicant tracking system. Identify who (by their title or role) should do what in each area. (Incorporate information from Course readings on Leadership and Change Management.)Leadership (2-3 sentences)Change Management (2-3 sentences)Training (2-3 sentences)User Support (2-3 sentences)Data Migration–Consider what existing data (applications in process with the manual process) would need to be entered into the system to get started and how this might be accomplished.Maintenance– How will updates and enhancements to the EZ-ATS system be made? What will the vendor be responsible for and what should MTC address? Again, provide the information, but not the questions themselves.(Note:A free trial period does not suffice as software testing)Summary and Conclusion: Close your Business Analysis and System Recommendation Report with a summary of the key points including the benefits MTC can expect to gain from this solution and the alignment with strategic objectives. (One well-written paragraph).Don’t just repeat information presented earlier but put it in context of a conclusion to provide a strong finish to this report. Just as your introduction informed your reader about why you’re writing and what’s to come, the conclusion should provide a clear and concise final paragraph to reinforce/emphasize key points and a compelling argument for the chosen solution – and it should urge the reader to take action.

Assignment 1 For this week's assignment you will want to start in Google Scholar (or any electronic Library you may have access to) and locate one Journal Articles (less than 7 years old) that address some facet of forecasting. To Search, start by entering search terms such as "Demand Forecasting" or "Forecasting Methods" into the search bar and a long list of sub-topic titles will appear. Choose a journal article that (a) interests you, and (b) has a PDF version you can download to your PC or MAC. Read the journal article through from start to finish while making notes on the research, the findings, and the conclusions. Then using the Word template provided below, report on the journal article you chose: Title of the journal article, author, publishing journal, year of publication, A summation that introduces the Journal article subject matter Type of research conducted and research question (if there is one) Background information as to why this journal article was written (look in the Literature Search/Survey section) Findings and Conclusions if a research-based article A short summary of what you learned that added to your understanding of demand driven forecasting WEEK 2 ASSIGNMENT: Near the end of our text, in Ch. 14, there will be content on how we can learn from risk management leaders. These are well thought of profitable companies. Please look at one of these companies and provide a description of it that includes information about their business. Additional information can be found online about based on current events. We are not yet looking at risk management but only trying to gain some general information about them. The paper should be a minimum of 500 words, but not more than 1000 words.