A Project Management Handbook for New Business Venture

Starting up a business is a major project for anybody. In order to be successful extensive research will need to be done and many steps will be required. Our handbook identifies what steps must be completed by somebody who is trying to open up a business in the Portland Metro area. We have included resources and a schedule template including items such as: what research must be done, what necessary tasks must be completed, who you will need to talk to, etc. In short, we have created a handbook that the new business owner can utilize that describes time limitations from the development of the idea to the start of the business. The outcome of this project was the development of a quick-guide for individuals who plan to open their own business, ultimately not only for the Portland Metropolitan area, but anywhere in general. A project management Gant chart has been used to show the timeline of required tasks and the person using the guide could then modify the Microsoft Project file for their specific needs to create visibility of what they may be able to expect to start a business. For each required task we have examined and provided resources and ideas for contacting the necessary people and performing required research. Where possible we have provided information from interviews with individuals that have started a business or who are in the process of negotiating for funding. The information contained within the handbook contains resources from this and other classes within the Department of Engineering and Technology Management at Portland State University, in addition we have also provided literary search of resources currently available. Note: The presentation associated with this report is included here as a supplemental file