ACB 1st Advance Manual Project #2: The Prom

Advance Manual : 226-K   Story Telling
Project # 2    : Let's Get Personal
Title          : The Prom
Delivered at   : Toast of Comsofil
Evaluated by   : ACG/CL Ramon Austria
Target Norm    : Advance Communicator Bronze

     *     *     *     *     *     *

“High School Life, my fun high school days, I remember it kay ganda”.    Good evening fellow toastmasters and guests.

Do you believe that High School Years or Secondary Years is the best days of your life?   Yes!  I do, and let me tell you why.   

I remember it vividly.  It was March 5, 1985, I had this predicament.  Com’on fellow toastmasters, I’m not that old!  Twenty three years ago, I had this huge problem:  I don’t have a JS Prom partner. 

“Is that a problem”?  You may ask.    

Let’s journey to my childhood.   

I came from an exclusive all-boys catholic school – Notre Dame of Kidapawan.   Just across the street, in-front of our campus, resides the exclusive all-girl catholic school.    Now if you think gender segregation is exclusive only in Saudi Arabia, think again.  I already experience that way back in the 80s.  We were not allowed to venture to the girl’s campus, and likewise the girls are prohibited to loiter in our campus.   And the only time were we can meet our counter parts, is during the Junior Senior Promenade night.

This once in year occasion is the most highly anticipated event on both campuses.   And I don’t know who develop the culture of:  infamy waits for those who come without a JS Prom partner.   Surely, he or she is the one to be blame for my predicament.

Can you see? I really have a big problem.

 

A day before the JS Prom Night, I had set my eyes on one lady – the reigning Ms Notre Dame… and with matching flowers, I politely asked her to be my partner in the prom.  But she rejected me on the simple grounds that I was not “cute” enough to merit as her consort.  

She said, "You are not tall, you're skinny and you belong to the bottom 10 of the graduating class."  

Hah! Not only that she turned me down, she even insulted me.  What a shame.   That was hard and I took it seriously. I went home in tears.   

Upon reaching home I saw my mom and I confronted her with flaming red eyes full of tears:  “Nay, bakit si tatay ang napili mo, hindi ka na naawa sa akin, kamukha nya ako”.  Loose translation:  “Mom why did you marry a gorilla, look at this monkey”?   My mom was shock of course.  But she just smiled, gave me a bowl of soup and asked me to take a nap in my room.

That night, I didn’t get out of my sanctuary.  I was afraid of my father for insulting him and putting a bad light on our family name.  And when he knocks on my door, I was trembling in fear.

My good father gave me a hug and smiled.  He looks at me in the eye and simply said:    "My son, the measure of a real man is defined not by his riches nor his achievements and certainly not his looks".  "A real man is that person who has a large heart to understand what is right and what is wrong, and stand for it".

Hah big words, but that did not answer my problem.  I don’t have a JS Prom partner.

On the big night, I already set my heart that I will carry the infamy for the rest of my life. 

I left the house with heavy heart and gee… my father was on the gate with a jerky smile and said “Enjoy and have fun”.  Huh!  Have fun without a partner, what is he thinking?  I still blame him for this misery, though.

I arrived at the ballroom and was amazed to see everyone was at their best.  The boys became men, and the girls has transformed into beautiful butterflies.   The most beautiful of them all – the Aphrodite, the apple of all eyes – was the Ms Notre Dame.

I was standing on the door watching her from a distance.  I was so bewitched by her beauty I didn’t realize she was walking towards me. 

She looks at me and with an angry face; she grabbed by my shoulder and said “you are my partner!”

What ever happened that time, I was sure it was a night of magic and possibilities.  Ms Notre Dame was my first dance, my first kiss, and yes, my first love.  I was her first dance, first kiss, and first love too.    Isn’t beautiful?

Twenty years has passed, I am still in the limbo how it happened?  But I have some clues.  My father was a soldier and the girl’s father was a soldier too.

Twenty years has passed, I had traveled far and wide.  Yet, I still carry the adage that my father thought me.  It’s not riches or good looks but it’s the heart that matters.

Twenty years has passed, my mom is now old and my father has moved to a higher plane.  Now, I understand why mother chooses my father!

Twenty years has passed, I never thought the magic will linger.  One of these days, my Aphrodite will grace this very room, the Toast of Comsofil.

Back to you evening master!

ACB 1st Advance Manual Project #1: The Jinni & the Fisherman

Advance Manual : 226-K   Story Telling
Project # 1    : The Folk Tale
Title          : The Jinni and the Fisherman
Delivered at   : Toast of Comsofil
Evaluated by   : CC/CL Roi Ontiveros
Target Norm    : Advance Communicator Bronze

     *     *     *     *     *     *

“Once upon a time, a beautiful princess lives in a palace”. 
 

Sounds familiar, isn’t?  I bet, it reminds you of those story-telling sessions with your mom, grandmothers or perhaps with your teacher.   Regardless of who told you the story, one thing is certain.  It evokes a great sense of adventure, excitement and fun onto you.
 

Good evening fellow Toastmasters and guests.  Tonight, allow me bring you back to the fantasy world, and all I want you to do is sit back, relax, open your imagination, and enjoy.   Are you ready kids?

Long, long time ago, there was an old fisherman who lives in a small town along the shores of the great Arabian Seas.   The fisherman was known for his wisdom and wit, and everything would have been perfect, except for his one strange behavior.  He cast his net only four times a day – no more, no less.  Often, he returns from the sea with a handful of fish, few mussels, and sea weeds. And then, he spends the rest of the day in his small hut waiting for sundown. 

Nobody really can explain why the fisherman cast his net only four times in a day.  Some say he is in a hurry to go home so he can harness his thinking skills and wisdom, other jeers saying “he is just lazy”.  

What ever the reason was, only the fisherman knows.

Then one gloomy day, the seas were rough.  The fisherman, don’t want to go fishing but he has no food, so he set sail.   In the dark seas, the wind was howling and waves were tossing the boat.  The fisherman tossed his net.  He pulled it up – it was heavy - and found a dead donkey.   Angry, he started to curse the wind.  The second time, he throws his net into the dark waters and netted a pitcher full of dirt.  He was furious, and started to curse the seas.  The third time, he throws his net into the dark waters.   He waited for few minutes and when he pulled it up; he found shards of pottery and glass.   

He started to cry: "The gods must have punished me"!  “This is it, my last throw”, he murmured.  

Slow and steady, he kissed his nets with a good luck kiss and then throws it wide into the dark waters.  He waited for several minutes and then when he pulled it up, he found an exotic bottle that had a seal of Solomon on it.   The fisherman was happy! He could sell the bottle and make some money.  But he became curious of the seal and he thought something precious might be inside.  He broke the seal with his knife and to his surprise and plume of smoke come out of the bottle and condenses into a huge green man.

In a thunderous voice, the green man shouted “I am the Jinni of the bottle! Who dares to set me free?”

The fisherman was very frightened and tried to hide with the net.   But the Jinni saw him, pick him up, and held him into the air.   

“So you are the one who set me free”, the Jinni exclaimed.   

“When I was imprisoned in the bottle, I promised”.  “In my first century, I will reward anyone who set me free with riches beyond imagination”.   “In my second century in the bottle, I bowed to reward anyone who set me free with good health, riches and the entire world to rule”.   “On my 3rd century, I promised to grant anyone who set me free with 3 wishes of his choices”.   “After 4 centuries and nobody has set me free, I bowed to kill anyone who set me free”!  “Waaahhhhaahahahaah”.

The fisherman was so frightened and he even peed in his pants.   Yet after few minutes, he was able to gather his strength and answered calmly.  

“Oh great one!   You are indeed mighty and powerful.  It is my honor to die in your hands.   Please put down so I can prepare myself and make myself worthy”.  

The Jinni was amused with the answer of the fisherman. So he put him back to his boat.
While cleaning up himself, the fisherman asked the Jinni.  

“Oh mighty one, before I die indulge me to witness your power and magnificence”.  “Calm down the storm because I cannot clean up myself with a rocking boat.”   

“Hahaha… oh human!  You of little faith!   Witness my glory and power”!    In one snap, the storm cleared up.

“Oh might one, you are so powerful and mighty.  Forgive me for my ignorance, but how would it be possible for you to fit in this small bottle?  You are so huge”

“You dare to question my power!”    A great lightning and thunder filled the air. 

“Forgive me oh might one, I am just human and I could not comprehend your power”!

“You fool!  I’ll show you how I could fit in the bottle”.    

The Jinni shrunk himself and transformed into a smoke-like entity and entered into the bottle.   The fisherman immediately jumped on the bottle and sealed it, trapping the Jinni back into the bottle.   It was already late when the Jinni realized that he was tricked by the fisherman.

Ahmed held the bottle and look at the Jinni inside.  “After setting you free, you wanted to kill me. Is that what you reward me for setting you free”?   the fisherman shouted.

The fisherman extended his arms and get ready to throw the bottle back into the sea, when he heard the Jinni cried and pleaded.  Curious, the fisherman stopped and look inside the bottle.   He found the remorseful Jinni explained that he was not bad and he was just angry for his ordeal.  To convince the fisherman, the Jinni started to tell the story as an example of the why he should be spared.

The fisherman put down the bottle and started listening to the story of the “Sultan and the Medicine Man”.

Back to you evening master!

ACB 2nd Advance Manual Project #2: Visa and Checkpoint Authority

Advance Manual : 226-H Technical Presentation
Project # 2    : The Proposal
Title          : Visa and Checkpoint Authority
Delivered at   : PICPA Riyadh Toastmasters Club
Evaluated by   : CC/CL Gerardo Villaraiz
Target Norm    : Advance Communicator Bronze

     *     *     *     *     *     *


Prologue:  (the Toastmaster of the Day must read this before the speakers starts the speech)



Background of the Target Audience:


Every 3rd Tuesday of the month, all technical proposal are discussed for validation, approval or rejection.   A technical proposal can only be discussed if the technical briefing, which should be conducted a week earlier, has been approved by the department heads. Audiences of the technical proposals are composed mainly of engineers, planners, and line managers.  Department head and decision makers may attend the meeting but are not required. 




Please note that all attendees of the briefing has the minimum technical knowledge and prior background of the subject/ project to be presented.   Only the department involve in the project are allowed to attend the briefing


Disclaimer:
All names, entity and information discussed in this speech are fictitious.  Any semblance to a real entity is coincidental or was intended to give the speech a pinch of realism.


Possible Questions (you may provide this to the audience):
1.    How did you arrived the estimate budget of SR500 Million
2.    In your proposal, you recommended to establish three platform: Mainframe, Unix & Windows.  Is it possible to just focus on one platform, say for example pure Mainframe or pure Windows?
3.    You did not mention how many machines should we purchase for Mainframe, Unix & Windows?   Can you give us a figure?
4.    Can you elaborate more on the Integrated Workstations?  Is this different from our current desktop PC?
5.    When the VCA IT System became fully functional, what will happen to the IT System of Ministry of Interior and IT System of Ministry of Labor?
•    Follow Up question:  What will happen to the programmers and engineers on those two systems?
6.     Under the existing MOI services, you mentioned about Biometrics & ePortal.  How is this related to Visa & Permits?
7.    What the impact of VCA IT Systems to local citizens?
8.    In our existing labor laws, all sponsors pays a bond to the Ministry of Labor for all issued Visa.  The bond had stayed in the government for over 20 years now.  Will the sponsors be able to collect the bond plus the interest?
9.    What do you mean, “deployment overseas”
10.    Who prepared this technical proposal?  Is my department consulted about this?

     *     *     *     *     *     *

 (Speakers delivers the speech)

Managers, fellow consultants, gentlemen... good evening.

Last week, we presented to you a technical briefing on the result of the study that was commissioned to check the feasibility of centralizing the Work Permit, Visa and Checkpoint controls in the Kingdom.  I understand, you all saw the correspondence issued by the Chamber of Commerce endorsing the creation of a entity that would handle all the centralized tasks.

We concluded last week, that there is a need for the creation of an entity called the Visa & Checkpoint Authority (VCA).  This new government entity will would be responsible and would handle all matters involving: Visa, Work Permit, Border & Checkpoints controls


To implement the creation of the VCA, we divided the task into three major project slices:
•    Streamlining of existing work functions among civilian Bureaus and military Agencies
•    Building Infrastructure & Site Location
•    Information Technology  Infrastructure and Support

Tonight, I will discuss in details the 3rd slice – the Information Technology Infrastructure & Support.

The primary of objective of the 3rd Slice is the creation of VCA IT Systems.   This new system aims to consolidate the existing but distinct IT systems from the Ministry of Interior – MOI Information System; and from the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs – MOL Verification System.

Once the integration is complete, all information regarding Passports, Iqama, Visa, Work Permits, and Checkpoint Controls will be accessed through the VCA Systems.

Required IT Infrastructure

For the first 5 years of VCA implementation, we will need an estimated SR500 Million to build the integrated IT system.  The components of these systems would be as follows:

Hardware & Operating Systems:
•    Mainframe Systems            - zOS by IBM
•    Unix Systems            - Sun Solaris
•    Server Based systems        - Windows 2003/2008
•    Integrated Workstations        - WinXP w/ IBM5230 & Citrix emulators

Middle Tier  System:
•    WebSphere Suite    - integrated middle ware application

Database:
•    Oracle
•    MS SQL
•    Mainframe DB

Application Profile:
•    Integrated Applications  by Computer Science Corporation
•    Custom Application by ZFP Corporation

Link Connectivity:
•    Intranet via Wide Area Network
•    IP-VPN / Satellite / GPRS

Integration

The above IT infrastructure would serve as a bridge to the existing IT Systems of the two ministries involved in the creation of VCA.

Existing IT Infrastructure

Let us identify our existing Information Technology Infrastructure that have  direct involvement with VISA, Passports, Iqama, Border & Checkpoints.

Ministry of Interior

NIC is currently the sole entity that provides link and information on matters regarding:
•    Iqama
•    Passport
•    Bio-metrics

Hardware & Operating Systems Profile:
•    Mainframes             - zOS using IBM version       
•    Unix Systems            - Sun Solaris
•    Server Based systems        - Windows 2003/2008
•    Client Server systems        - Citrix Systems
•    Dumb Terminal            - IBM5230 emulator

Middle Tier  Profile:
•    WebSphere     MQ    - middle tier messaging system between stations & servers
•    WebSphere AS    - middle tier application server between stations & servers

Database Profile:
•    Mainframe DB
•    MS SQL

Application Profile:
•    Custom Made Applications:  Mainframe & Unix Systems
•    Computer Science Corporation Applications : Windows Systems

Link Connectivity:
•    Intranet via Wide Area Network
•    IP-VPN

Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs

Control all information regarding manpower planning, general monitoring of employment situation, labor permits, work visas, and visa sponsorship

Hardware & Operating Systems Profile:
•    Linux Systems                - Sun Solaris
•    Server Based systems            - Windows 2003/2008
•    Client Server systems            - Thin Client
•    Workstations                - Windows XP

Middle Tier  Profile:
•    None

Application Profile:
•    Custom Made Applications
•    SAP Systems

Database Profile:
•    Oracle

Link Connectivity:
•    Thin Client via Local Network

The VCA IT Systems is the consolidated applications and infrastructures of the two systems.

Implementation Time Table: 

1st Year:      
    Jan – Jun    -    installation of Servers
    Jun – Dec    -    installation of Software and applications
    Jun – Dec    -    installation of Network Links

2nd Year:   
Jan – Mar     -    integration with the Ministry of Interior Systems
    Apr – Jun     -    integration with the Ministry of Labor Systems
    Jul – Dec     -    testing, live simulated test, and modification

3rd Year:         Jan – Mar     -    Live production run:  businessmen / tourist  + dependents
    Apr – May     -    Live production run:  medical / engineers + dependents
    Jun – Dec     -    Live production run:  domestic workers / labor workers

Consolidation and Centralization

The second phase of the implementation of VCA is the centralization of all information into one system.  The proposed time table for the migration of system into VCA is as follows
Implementation Time Table: 

4th Year:      Jan – Mar    -    iqama         :  MOI  VCA
    May – Jun    -    passports     :  MOI  VCA
    Jul – Dec    -    visa permits     :  MOL  VCA

5TH year:         -    all iqama/passports/visa will be centralized at VCA

ACB 2nd Advance Manual Project #1: Challenges of Fingerprint Enrollment

Advance Manual : 226-H Technical Presentation
Project # 1    : The Technical Briefing
Title          : Challenges of Fingerprint Enrollment
Delivered at   : PICPA Riyadh Toastmasters Club
Evaluated by   : ATM-G/CL Rufino "Ron" Jacobe
Target Norm    : Advance Communicator Bronze

     *     *     *     *     *     *

Prologue:  (the Toastmaster of the Day must read this before the speakers starts the speech)

Background of the Target Audience:

A  technical briefing is conducted every week to decision makers, department heads, and line managers  working at National Information Center of the Ministry of Interior.   For some critical projects, royal dignitaries may attend the briefing.

Please note that all attendees of the briefing has the minimum technical knowledge and prior background of the subject/ project to be presented.   Only the department involve in the project are allowed to attend the briefing

   *     *     *     *     *     *

(Speakers delivers the speech)

Your Highness Prince Bandar it an honor to be at your presence, Directors, General Managers, fellow Consultants, good evening.

We are gathered here tonight to shed light on the status and challenges that we are facing in the implementation of the Fingerprint Enrollment project.   I believe that all department involved are well represented here in this meeting. I also understand that each the department received regular updates from the line managers. However, those reports do not include updates on the status of entire project.   

Hence, the objective of this briefing is to assess with you, if the Fingerprint Enrollment schedule is achievable or not.  I will discuss three major concerns that we believe are critical to the project: 

Major Concern 1:  Computer Support

You would agree with me that the heart and main component of the project is a reliable computer system.  This system is comprised of:
•    hardware that runs 24 hours x 7 days per week 

•    stable computer software
•    dedicated team of engineers and software programmers
Failure or delays on any of these three components will have a major impact on the timetable.

To cite an example: 

Issue No 1: Software bug on authentication and cross reference

Last Nov 2008, we discovered a software bug during a live test.  Finger print data cannot be validated versus Iqama data.  Investigation shows that somebody modified the reporting system which affects the validation mechanism.

What is the impact of the issue?  Major!

The production run was delayed by two weeks to restore the software to its original state.

Preventive Measures:

The software development team will no longer have access to any of the 200 live servers.  Any modification on the software must be cleared with the Change Committee.

Issue No 2: Server Farm Failure

Last December 2008, 24 Servers went down because of a configuration error.  The hardware failure made the remaining 176 Servers inutile because access to the database has been disabled.

What is the impact of the issue? Severe!

There was a delay of 3 months!  Actual gathering of fingerprint data started only by April instead of January, and without the assistance of the Consulting team, the delay may have lasted for six months.

Preventive Measures:

To preclude similar occurrence in the future, the Change Committee has issued a procedure governing any changes on the computer configurations and settings.   The Audit & Security Committee will oversee the implementation of the new procedure.

Issue No 3: Insufficient Manpower

When the project started, we estimated that we will need 10 engineers and programmers.   This estimation is no longer valid because of the incurred delays on the project.   Now, there is a need for additional 4 head counts.  

The request of additional manpower has been submitted to the HR Department.

Major Concern 2:  Telecommunication support

Another major concern that is haunting the project is the perception that the Telecommunication support is unreliable.

For simplicity, we divided the issues into two components:

1.    Link between Central Office to Zone Center
2.    Link between Zone Center to Collection Nodes

Issue No 1:  Some Zone Centers experience delay

Operators in the Zone Centers complain that there is a delay which lengthens gathering procedure from the normal 5 minutes per person to 15 minutes per person.

This issue has been validated.  The affected sites are:
•    Buraidah
•    Tabuk

The report submitted by the Saudi Telecoms Company (STC) showed that the primary communication link on these Zones had been damaged if not destroyed because of the indiscriminate digging during the water expansion of 2007-2008.   STC is looking on this matter and based on the latest report, only one area is not repaired – Najran.

Preventive Measures:

Last February, the Project Management Committee approved two supplementary for the project.  These supplementary will cover the installation of a secondary link via cable line and commissioning of a tertiary link via satellite.   Once completed, all Zone Centers will have three full-redundant connections.  This should preclude any communication link issues in the future.

Issue No 2:  Network Congestions from the Collection Nodes

For the entire month of April, we made a thorough analysis on the performance of the 500 Collection Sites spread across the country.   Initial result shows an extended full utilization of the network link on particular periods of the day.  
  

The slide shows the network bandwidth utilization on a given time frame of a day.

What is the impact of the findings? Minor.

Users will experience delay on validation which may extend the fingerprinting duration by at least 3 minutes.   Instead of the regular 5 minutes average, each transaction may now last to up to 8 minutes.

Action Item:

A recommendation has been submitted to the Project Management Committee to revise the flow of the registration.   Iqama data will no longer be online; instead, it will be stored on the Collection Sites.   Once approved, the new bandwidth assignment will be 20% downlink / 80% uplink from the previous 50% downlink / 50% uplink

What is the impact of the action item?   Validation would be instantaneous and there will be no perceived delay on the data storing.

Overall fingerprinting procedure may be reduced to 4 minutes or less

Major Concern 3:  Operation Issues

Issue No 1:  Limited number of stations

As per our original projection, we will only need 500 Collection Sites, with each Sites having a least 5 workstations, for an average of 18 pax per day.  This calculation was taken from a straight forward averaging from the total 9 million targets.  It did not consider the demographic distribution of the population.

Impact to the project:  Major

Some cities have been assigned with more Collection Sites than necessary, while cities are short of Collection Sites.   If this trend will continue, only the cities of Abha, Arar, Madinah, Najran, Tabuk and Taif will achieve 100% completion; while Buraidah is 85%, Dammam 90%, Jeddah, 80% and Riyadh 70%.

Action Item:

The most recent paper released by Planning Department shows a need of additional 200 Collection sites that will be assigned to densely populated areas of Riyadh, Dammam, Jeddah, and Buraidah.  The recommendation has been submitted to the Planning Committee for approval.

Issue No 2:  Information Dissemination

We also believe the major reason for the low enrollment rate is the lack of information dissemination of the project.  There are basic questions such as:
•    Who should enroll?
•    What is the requirement for enrollment?
•    Where and when can I enroll?
•    Do I need to enroll my dependents?
•    Can I travel outside the country if I did not enroll?

Action Item:

Planning Department has assigned this task to the Project Committee, and we expect result within the week.

Allow me to summarize the issues at hand and the recommend solutions:

The Fingerprint Enrollment project has three major concerns that requires immediate attention.  These concerns are:  Computer Support, Telecommunication Support and Deployment Issues/Streamlining.

Based on our careful study and lengthy analysis of the situation, we may not be able to complete the project on the target date of October 2009.  The best estimate, given all our issues are address, is on December 2009.



Honorable members of the committee, the decision is yours.