DECA Project Management Events Instructions

: June 9, 2024
: DECA

DECA Project Management Events

DECA-Project-Management-Events-product-image

BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PROJECT PMBS
CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROJECT PMCD
COMMUNITY AWARENESS PROJECT PMCA
COMMUNITY GIVING PROJECT PMCG
Sponsored by Lead4Change
FINANCIAL LITERACY PROJECT PMFL
SALES PROJECT PMSP
The Project Management Events require participants to use project management skills to initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control, and close a project.
Participants in the Project Management Events will:

identify a problem
develop a project management plan related to the problem
implement the project using project management skills
develop a written report and presentation on the project

The project may begin at any time after the close of the previous year’s chartered association conference and run to the beginning of the next chartered association conference.
The guidelines for each of the Project Management Events are consolidated to facilitate coordination of participant activities in each of the categories. This means the guidelines will be exactly the same for each category. However, each category will be treated separately as a competitive event. Projects can only be submitted in one event category.

CAREER CLUSTERS + DEFINITIONS

The following definitions are used to determine the category of project.
Business Solutions uses the project management process to work with a local business or organization to identify a specific problem with the current business operations and implement a solution. Examples include talent acquisition, employee on-boarding, policies and procedures, technology integration, customer service improvement, safety operations, marketing and promotion activities, and productivity and output enhancement.

Career Development uses the project management process to promote/educate the knowledge and skills needed for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, management and entrepreneurship. Examples include career fairs, summer boot camps, professional dress seminars, résumé development workshops, career exploration initiatives, mock interviews, and career workplace re-entry and mentor programs.

Community Awareness uses the project management process to raise awareness for a community issue or cause. Examples include day of service, distracted driving, driving under the influence, bullying, disease awareness, mental health awareness, drug awareness, ethics, environmental and green issues, and vaping.

Community Giving uses the project management process to raise funds or collect donations to be given to a cause/charity. Examples include food bank donations, homeless shelter donations, 5K’s, sports tournaments, auctions, banquets, item collections, holiday drives, adopt a families, etc.

Financial Literacy uses the project management process to promote the importance of financial literacy, including spending and saving, credit and debt, employment and income, investing, risk and insurance and financial decision making. Examples include organizing and implementing seminars for students (elementary, middle, high and post-secondary), tax preparation assistance, retirement planning, and student loan workshops.

Sales Project uses the project management process to raise funds for the local DECA chapter. Examples include sports tournaments, t-shirt sales, 5K’s, school merchandise sales, catalog sales, sponsorship development initiatives, fashion shows, pageants, restaurant nights, value cards, and yearbook sales.

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS DEVELOPED

Participants will demonstrate knowledge and skills needed to address the components of the project as described in the content outline and evaluation forms. Participants will also develop many 21st Century Skills, in the following categories, desired by today’s employers:

Communication and Collaboration
Creativity and Innovation
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Flexibility and Adaptability
Information Literacy
Initiative and Self-direction
Leadership and Responsibility
Media Literacy
Productivity and Accountability
Social and Cross-cultural Skills

Many Common Core Standards for Mathematics and English Language Arts & Literacy are supported by participation in DECA’s competitive events. Crosswalks that show which 21st Century Skills are developed and which common core standards are supported by participating in each competitive event are available at deca.org.

EVENT OVERVIEW

The project consists of two major parts: the written document and the oral presentation. The written document will account for 60 points, and the oral presentation will account for the remaining 40 of the total 100
One to three participants may participate in the oral All participants must present the project to the judges.
The body of the written entry must be limited to 20 numbered pages, including the appendix (if an appendix is attached), but excluding the title page and the table of
The Written Event Statement of Assurances and Academic Integrity must be signed and submitted with the Do not include it in the page numbering.
The oral presentation may be a maximum 15 minutes in length, including time for the judge’s
The judge will evaluate the presentation, focusing on how the participants explain the use of project management skills, the effectiveness of public speaking and presentation skills and how well the participants respond to questions that the judge may ask during the presentation.

PROJECT ORIGINALITY

In many Project Management Events, chapters have settled on a strategy that uses the same well-developed projects year after year. Succeeding teams often take the previous year’s successful project and seek to improve it. If that strategy works in achieving a chapter’s goals and the experience teaches the principles of DECA, then the strategy serves the chapter, the community and DECA well. Teams submitting entries for Project Management Events, however, should be challenged to do more than update the previous year’s written project. Project committees should avoid even reviewing the previous year’s entry. Judges (whose assignment is to evaluate a project according to established guidelines) will be impressed by the originality of a chapter’s project. Plagiarism of projects judged previously will automatically disqualify a chapter from competition and eligibility for awards.

WRITTEN ENTRY GUIDELINES

The written entry must follow these specifications. Refer also to the Penalty Point Checklist and the Written Entry Evaluation Form.
WRITTEN EVENT STATEMENT OF ASSURANCES AND ACADEMIC INTEGRITY. This must be signed and submitted with the entry. Do not include it in the page numbering.

TITLE PAGE. The first page of the written entry is the title page. It must include in any order, but is not limited to, the following:
NAME OF THE EVENT (one of the following):

BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PROJECT
CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
COMMUNITY AWARENESS PROJECT
COMMUNITY GIVING PROJECT
FINANCIAL LITERACY PROJECT
SALES PROJECT

Name of high school
School address
City, State/Province, ZIP/Postal Code
Names of participants
Date
Title page will not be numbered.

TABLE OF CONTENTS. The table of contents should follow the title page. The table of contents may be single- spaced and may be one or more pages long. The table of contents page(s) will not be numbered.

BODY OF THE WRITTEN ENTRY. The body of the written entry begins with Section I, Executive Summary, and continues in the sequence outlined here. The first page of the body is numbered “1” and all following pages are numbered in sequence. Page numbers continue through the bibliography (required) and the appendix (optional).
This outline must be followed. Points for each section are included on the Written Entry Evaluation Form. Each section must be titled, including the bibliography and the appendix.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

One- to three-page description of the project

INITIATING

Statement of the problem
Project scope — brief description of the project (purpose, rationale and expected benefits)

PLANNING AND ORGANIZING

Project goals
Human resource management plan — team member roles, skills and strengths and responsibilities
Schedule
Milestone — describe the 2-4 major milestones (activities) needed to accomplish
Timeline to reach each milestone
Quality management plan — key metrics
Risk management plan —potential issues, potential impact of the issue and response strategy
Proposed project budget — include both monetary and in-kind donations when applicable

EXECUTION
Description and documentation of the project plan implementation

MONITORING AND CONTROLLING

Monitoring — describe how you monitored your schedule, budget and project quality
Controlling — list issues encountered and how you dealt with them

CLOSING THE PROJECT

Evaluation of key metrics
Lessons learned — describe what worked well and what didn’t work well for each of the project management processes: initiating, planning and organizing, execution, monitoring and controlling
Recommendations for future projects

BIBLIOGRAPHY
A bibliography is required. Include a list of the sources of information used in the written document.

APPENDIX

An appendix is optional. If additional material is appended, all pages must be numbered as noted previously. Include in an appendix any exhibits appropriate to the written entry, but not important enough to include in the body. These might include sample questionnaires used, letters sent and received, general background data, minutes of meetings, etc.

PENALTY POINT CHECKLIST

In addition to the Written Entry Guidelines, participants must observe all of the standards on the Penalty Point Checklist on page 58. These standards are designed to make competition as fair as possible.

PRESENTATION GUIDELINES

Prior to the presentation, a judge will evaluate the written portion of the The major emphasis of the written entry is on the content. Drawings, illustrations and graphic presentations (where allowed) will be judged for clarity, not artistic value.
The participants have assumed the roles of project
The participants will present the plan to the judge in a 15-minute presentation worth 40 (See Presentation Judging.)
The presentation begins immediately after the introduction of the participants to the judge by the adult Each participant must take part in the presentation.
Each participant may bring a copy of the written entry or note cards pertaining to the written entry to use as reference during the
Only visual aids that can be easily hand carried to the presentation by the actual participant(s) will be The participants themselves must set up the visuals. Wheeled carts, moving straps or similar items may not be used to bring visuals into the area. Set up time is included in the total presentation time. Participants must furnish their own materials and equipment. No electrical power or internet connection will be supplied. Alternate power sources such as small generators are not allowed. Sound may be used, as long as the volume is kept at a conversational level.
Materials appropriate to the situation may be handed to or left with judges in all competitive Items of monetary value may be handed to but may not be left with judges. Items such as flyers, brochures, pamphlets and business cards may be handed to or left with the judge. No food or drinks allowed.
If any of these rules are violated, the adult assistant must be notified by the

PRESENTATION JUDGING

Participants will make a 15-minute presentation to you. At the beginning of the presentation (after introductions), the participants will describe the project. Allow the participants to complete this portion without interruption, unless you are asked to respond. Each participant must take part in the presentation. If time remains, you may ask questions that seem appropriate, based on your notes or on the written entry (if provided). At the conclusion of the presentation, thank the participants. Then complete the Presentation Evaluation Form, making sure to record a score for all categories. The maximum score for the presentation is 40 points.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT EVENTS

BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PROJECT PMBS
CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROJECT PMCD
COMMUNITY AWARENESS PROJECT PMCA
COMMUNITY GIVING PROJECT PMCG
FINANCIAL LITERACY PROJECT PMFL
ALES PROJECT PMSP

WRITTEN ENTRY EVALUATION FORM

Please refer to the Written Entry Guidelines for a more detailed explanation of these items.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
1. One- to three-page description of the project| 0-1-2-3| 4-5-6| 7-8| 9-10|

DECA Project Management Events 3

PLANNING AND ORGANIZING| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
3. Project goals, human resource management plan, schedule, quality management plan, risk management plan, proposed project budget| 0-1-2-3-4| 5-6-7-8| 9-10-11-12| 13-14-15-16|
EXECUTION| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
4. Description and documentation of the project plan implementation| 0-1-2-3-4| 5-6-7-8| 9-10-11| 12-13-14|

MONITORING AND CONTROLLING| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
5. Monitoring schedule, budget and project quality; issues and how you dealt with them| 0-1| 2| 3| 4|

CLOSING THE PROJECT| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
6. Evaluation of key metrics, lessons learned, recommendations for future projects| 0-1-2| 3-4| 5-6| 7-8|

APPEARANCE AND WORD USAGE| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
7. Professional layout, neatness, proper grammar, spelling and word usage| 0| 1| 2| 3|

PRESENTATION EVALUATION FORM

TO WHAT EXTENT DID THE PARTICIPANTS:| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
1. Explain the project?| 0-1| 2-3| 4| 5|

2. Provide rationale for the project?| 0-1| 2-3| 4| 5| ****

3. Apply project management tools to complete the project?| 0-1-2-3| 4-5-6| 7-8| 9-10| ****

4. Evaluate project results?| 0-1-2-3| 4-5-6| 7-8| 9-10| ****

GENERAL| LITTLE/ NO VALUE| BELOW EXPECTATIONS| MEETS EXPECTATIONS| EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS| JUDGED SCORE
---|---|---|---|---|---
5. Professional standards (organization, clarity and effectiveness of the presentation); effective use of visuals, appearance, poise, confidence, participation of all| 0-1-2-3| 4-5-6| 7-8| 9-10|

PRESENTATION TOTAL POINTS (40)

WRITTEN ENTRY (60)|
---|---
PRESENTATION (40)|
SUBTOTAL (100)|
LESS PENALTY POINTS|

TOTAL SCORE

Documents / Resources

| DECA Project Management Events [pdf] Instructions
Project Management Events, Management Events, Project Events, Project Management, Management
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