Project Management: The Managerial Process - Assignment Example

Project Management Project Scope and Project Management Plan The purpose of the project is to improve the customer service through increased value. It is intended to support the mission and vision of Starbucks. The main aim of the project is to improve the overall productivity of the company and improve its competitive advantage. Specifically, the project involves the construction of new stores in various towns within the US, and to acquire new motorcycles with larger motors. In order to achieve this, the company will acquire the required funds and materials to build the stored. The management team will be involved in the project as project managers while the employees will act as the subordinates. The project plan includes the project organisation, project practices and measurements, project objectives, and project execution phases. In terms of project organisation, Starbuck’s project will consist of a project manager and four members of the management team including a member from each of the organization’s main departments – HR Department, Marketing Department, and Finance Department. Each of the members will have specified duties and responsibilities depending on their skills, abilities and qualifications; and all of them will report to the project manager. In terms of project practices and measurements, the project will be implemented through a series of activities: hiring independent contractors, purchasing materials, laying foundation of the stores, building the stores, furnishing and upgrading motorcycles to be used in marketing. These activities will be measured in terms of percentage to completion. Each of the phases of implementing the project will be headed by one of the project managers, and it will depend on the percentage to completion. Each phase will be undertaken after the completion of the preceding phase in order to ensure that there is no overlap of activities in the project management. 2. Staff Needed The project will be run by a specialized group of staff composed of members with special knowledge and skills to run the project. The staff will be categorised as support staff or infrastructure staff. The staff will be trained on regular basis during the project progress in order to enhance effective project execution and development of new insights on project execution (Packendorff, 1995). Each member of the project team will be allocated specific tasks needed to execute the project depending on their levels of skills, knowledge and experience. The staff will work in groups in order to achieve higher results. The importance of staff working in groups is that it enhances pooling of knowledge and experience. Groups also involve brainstorming of ideas to come up with the best solution to problems encountered in the project while at the same time exchanging ideas to enhance better understanding of key issues involved in the project. The staff will also be engaged in the decision making of the project management. This involves discussions and focus groups to come up with the best decisions and ideas. The staff will be drawn from the company’s management team and the workforce. The support staff will represent each department by performing duties relevant to their departments. For instance, support staff from the finance department will be concerned with financial matters involved in the project, e.g. making payments, bookkeeping and other related activities. The infrastructure staff will also be composed of external members who are outsourced to perform construction activities in order to provide key infrastructure needed to enhance the expansion project. In terms of remuneration, the staff will be compensated based on their level of performance in order to motivate them (Packendorff, 1995). For instance, managers will be given higher payments than the junior staff due to their skill level and managerial responsibilities. Staff members who report to work every day and perform a greater batch of work also receive higher payment than members who report to work on selected days and perform smaller jobs. This remuneration of staff is part of the project management’s intention to motivate staff in order to achieve higher performance. 3. Team Building strategies In order to achieve the objectives of the project, team-building will be an essential element of the project management. Building teams requires effective leadership, and if it is enhanced in the project it may lead to higher performance because it enables the project management to pool various knowledge and skills as well as experience among members of a team (Gray & Larson, 2008). Team members may enhance better results if the team leadership considers the following strategies of team building: Communicating effectively Team leaders should communicate regularly with team members in order to pass important information needed in the project to perform certain tasks (Packendorff, 1995). Effective communication also enables team members to build a strong relationship with each other and with the leaders; hence achieving collective results. Training and discussions Members of a team should be trained in order to enable them to learn the elements and importance of teamwork. This should be done in regular workshops, discussions and focus groups. Social interactions The team members should also be provided with social interaction workshops and holidays to allow them to interact and learn about each other; hence improving and strengthening their work relationships, and promoting greater achievements and performance (Packendorff, 1995). Interaction should also be encouraged during lunch and tea breaks within the company. Encouraging participation The team members should also be allowed to participate in various activities and decision making of the organisation in order to pool ideas and enhance better decisions for the project (Gray & Larson, 2008). Allowing team members to participate in key decisions of the project allows them to feel confident and motivated because their contributions have been considered. 4. Role of the project manager This project requires the contributions of the project manager who will perform various roles. The project manager has the most ability in the particular specialist area within the organisation. The role of the manager is to oversee various activities of the project. He/she guides the team members and enhances team building by leading teams. The project manager also control and coordinate activities of the project. This expansion project also requires specific characteristics of the project manager. One of the desired characteristics is the background and experience associated with the project. This ensures that the project manager understands the project needs and leads teams appropriately to meet such needs. The project manager should also have leadership experience and expertise as well as technical knowledge in the project area. Another characteristic desired of project managers is people-skills. The manager should be able to communicate, motivate and direct people effectively. 5. The Importance of Critical Path in Projects Critical path is a tool used in project scheduling to ensure that activities of the project are performed in an orderly manner and on time. It is a path in the project schedule which represents the longest time period that the project will take from the beginning to the end (Gray & Larson, 2008). The Critical Path analysis is used to determine the shortest duration of a project. The critical path analysis is important because it indicates the shortest duration that the project may take; hence enabling the project team to manage its time appropriately so that the project is completed on time. It also ensures that resources are allocated and utilized appropriately in each activity. All activities in the critical path should be given specific resources based on the duration of each activity and the skills required for each activity. 6. Elements of the Work Breakdown Structure Work Breakdown Structure identifies the specific tasks of a project that need to be completed in order to complete the project (Roberts, 2011). Therefore its main element is tasks. The tasks are indicated in a tree diagram. The phases of the project also need to be identified in order to develop an appropriate work breakdown structure. In the tree diagram of the WBS, the main title of the project should start at the top, and the major phases should be indicated in boxes below the project title. The project phases can then be numbered in their order of completion starting with the most urgent at the top (Packendorff, 1995). Succeeding phases should be connected in boxes from below with the preceding phases using solid lines. There are inputs into the work breakdown structure including the package number of the work, package title, and project description. 7. Project scheduling a. Work Breakdown Structure b. Gantt Chart Activity Duration Identifying needs Purchasing materials Hiring staff Construction Closure References list Gray, C. F., & Larson, E. W. (2008). Project management: The managerial process. Boston: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Packendorff, J. (1995). Inquiring into the temporary organization: New direction for project management research. Scandinavian Journal of Management, 11 (4), 319-333. Roberts, P. (2011). Effective project management. London, UK, Kogan Page. Read More