Set-up Retail Shops in Potential Areas Such as South Asia and Africa - Research Paper Example

Program Management Student’s Name Subject Professor University/Institution Location Date Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 1.0 Program office processes 3 1.1 Project Charter 3 2.0 Project Management Plan 8 2.1 Scope 9 2.2 Time management 9 2.3 Cost of the distribution channels 10 2.4 Quality management 11 2.5 Human resource management 11 2.6 Communication 12 2.7 Risk 13 3.0 Project Control plan 14 3.1 Business case 14 3.2 Organization 14 3.3 Plans 15 3.4 Control 15 3.5 Management of risk 16 3.6 Quality in Project environment 16 3.7 Configuration management 16 3.8 Change control 17 4.0 Program closure plan 17 References 19 1.0 Program office processes The selected program from the portfolio involves distribution channels. This will be designed through the development of program charter, plan and control. Under the project management plan, the information required including the things such as the associated project risks, the amount of money involved with the project. The cost as well as expected project revenue generation will be detailed. In addition, the most important will be to catch an idea of what the whole project entails through a comprehensive timeline which makes it easier to understand things. The project involves four distinct aspects which has definite time to completion and a definite cost. The initial cost is however high, but the project also stand out as a descent investment that will start profit generation immediately after its completion. Various responsibilities will be identified which include and not limited to project managers, web developers, marketing and purchasing specialists, consultants. Other departments involved apart from marketing and sales include the IT and research departments. 1.1 Project Charter Project Title: PRN06: Set-up retail shops in potential areas such as South Asia and Africa Project Estimated Duration: 13 months Budget Information: The project is allocated an estimate cost for the conduct of 450 million dollars by the company. This includes operating costs, hardware, outsourced software and for consulting. Project Manager: < Marketing & Sale Department > Project Objectives: Building new retail shops to serve the growing fast market and contribute to company revenues of 4.3 billion dollars every year. This will also serve for cost reduction approximated at 1.3 billion dollars every year. The retail setting will promote customer rapport benefits as customers will closely see the products they are buying and experiences the services as to their requirements and expectations. The friendly or helpful staff in the retail shops is meant to build the customers loyalty for the brands which will ensure that the customers return again. The customer base which is put off by online marketplace will be reached through retail outlets. Greater inventory options are expected as retail sales provide for this. Retail stores will provide wide-range goods through supply from wholesalers and manufacturers. Greater sales potential is also expected as variety of products can be sold in retail outlets as items which customers are unaware of or never needed will be provided. The objective the retail shops will serve is to consolidate varieties of merchandise in a central location to dramatically increase sales. The retail outlets will spare the charges on shipping costs, challenges of dealing with the lost packages, customer addresses, tracking codes and other complicated sales databases involved with online outlets. Precisely, each sale can be made with confidence and less conflicts. Finally, the benefit of consumers will be enhanced as it is possible to receive instant gratification, items inspections before purchase and no customers’ worries about items getting lost. The customers will also have immediate answers to their questions through the help of staff which is rather good than the phone calls and email messages (Soars 2009). Approach: The project uses market research for determining on the focus areas. Researching and analyzing similar goods and services stores and to learn from their operation styles. Launch retail store in specified areas and test their functionality. Include a retail store management system to track the buying patterns. Roles and Responsibilities: Name Role Position Contact information Sponsor Project manager Team member (TM) 1 TM 2 TM3 TM4 Project Title : PRN07: Build online store Project Estimated Duration: 6 months Budget Information: The estimated cost for the conduct of this project: 200 million dollars Project Manager: < Marketing & Sale Department > Project Objectives: Building an online store to permit customers ordering and purchase via Internet and take advantage of the e-payment while reducing cost and time. The project will contribute to 3.5 billion dollars revenue per year and with a cost reduction of 1.4 billion dollars/year. The developed web based application will provide continuous I.e. 24/7 online shopping to customers. This service will work through customers’ payment of items fee and then order their desired items over the internet. Items and support services will be received and feedback obtained through customers’ express mail. Customers can continue to enjoy items as long as they continue to pay for them. The concluded market research manifest that an online service should focus on customers satisfaction through delivery of requirements and expectations. Goods will be available in various platforms. The service is expected to cater for overseas market from the start to consequent expansion. Products will also be available through various languages to respond to specific needs of consumers. The service will cater to an international market, and so the products will be available in several languages. The customers will search for products by set age, reviews, platform, language and other specifications as the needs arise. Customers will require access to the ability in ordering, tracking, and feedback. The service uses various payment methods such as online payment as well as other offline methods (Aldiri, Hobbs & Qahwaji 2008). Approach: Market research will determine the focus areas. Research and analysis of similar services to learn from their styles. Research methods in developing the software for online applications. Develop an online application as well as test its functionality. Include other systems in the website for tracking referrals, displaying advertisements and tracking user patterns. Project Title : PRN08: Build fast delivery services Project Estimated Duration: 6 months Budget Information: The project is estimated at a cost of 150 million dollars Project Manager: < Marketing & Sale Department > Project Objectives: The completion of the project will contribute to revenue generation at a rate of 1.5 billion dollars/ year. It will lead to cost reduction by 0.4 billion dollars/ year. This will be achieved by developing speed supports flexibility. As Kuo, Wu & Deng (2009), speed accounts for an elapsed time when customers requests for products or services, then receive them. In most cases, people will prefer faster delivery and services. Customers are even willing to pay extra charges for the fast services. The speed delivery will reduce inventories and also reduce risk. This is very relevant as it trickles down to saving the cost by reducing the uncertainties. Faster speed promotes the products and services to be accepted easier, with flexibility that strengthens the whole processes. It will also improve dependability where customers’ services and delivery of good will be done on time and deliver goods and services to customers as promised. Approach: Use services and delivery research to determine the efficient ways to deliver products. Research and analysis of other similar services to learn from their styles of delivery. Research the methods to develop delivery systems responsive to targeted customers. Develop the delivery systems, test the functionality and improve them accordingly. Include quality system to track company’s delivery and network patterns. Project Title: PRN09: Organize more wholesalers in potential region Project estimated duration: 12 months Budget Information: The project has an estimated cost of 480 million dollars Project Manager: < Marketing & Sale Department > Project Objectives: Setup potential wholesalers in area where market is rapidly developing. This will contribute to revenue rates at 2.8 billion dollars/ year and cost reduction by 1.1billion dollars/ year. This will be approached through making the product to be convenient available to customers in need to buy. Generally, wholesale distribution will attain a desirable level of coverage according to the number of retail shops around it. The objective is to achieve an efficient order cycle time, as wholesalers can connect with manufacturer in receiving process, and to deliver the order. Dependability will improve where retail shops can get consistency and reliability of goods delivery. Probably, this is an important element for distribution service. Communication between retail shops and manufacturers will be enabled and wholesalers can promote efficient problem solving mechanisms at early stages which might be the case with the manufacturer. Wholesale stores will conveniently and sufficiently be flexible in accommodating special needs for different customers. Post sale services will also be offered and customers can attain full benefits for the product. Various services will include installation, help lines, user training, resolving technical faults, repairs and availability of spare parts (Lai, Leung & Xiao 2010). 2.0 Project Management Plan As Meredith & Mantel Jr (2011) points out, a project management plan is set to deliver distribution channels as products through application of tools, skills, knowledge, techniques and project activities that meet the project requirements. There are various phases that are set to complete the project including the initiating, planning, executing, and control and closing stages. The project team will manage the work of project through working on the competing demands for the scope, cost, time, risk and quality, deliver to stakeholder’s different needs and expectations and identify requirements. Many of these processes will be interactive throughout the project lifecycle. 2.1 Scope The project scope defines and determines what is to be accomplished by a project and set the budget; time and money created to achieve the objectives. The scope delivers best result when it is detailed and precise. The scope document specifies the tasks to be performed and results delivery, the specific dates when deliverables will be due and a list budget allocated for each (Meredith & Mantel Jr 2011). The project will combine the four phases of different projects to achieve the objective of comprehensive distribution channels. The online store, retail stores, wholesales and fast delivery services will support and create adventure in shopping. Online users as well as common buyers will be able to order, track deliver or at sale point experience and post sale services through express services. The time frames are different but will be integrated that the projects can run concurrently which means that delivery of all projects will be achieved after 13 months as this is the longest duration for all the projects. The total projects costs amounts to $1280 million but is further broken down according to the needs of the four projects; retail shops, online stores, fast delivery services and wholesales channels. 2.2 Time management The process of planning and exercising strict control over the amount of time spent over the distribution channels to increase effectiveness productivity and efficiency. Time management is aided by tools, skills and the techniques that are used to manage time when accomplishing the specific project, activity as well as goals within the budgeted time and within the date of completion. The scope of activities in this distribution activities must be included son as to help in planning, setting goals, allocating, delegation, analysis of the time spent on each activity, in monitoring, scheduling, organizing and prioritizing the activities according to the needs and importance. As (Jackson 2009) asserts time in this distribution channels must be managed well so as to accommodate all the channels and be completed at the same time, that is the longest, the establishment of retail shops, will take 13 months to complete and the others are taking less than that. This will minimize the running costs and idle time. Time planning so that the distribution channels are started concurrently and completed at the same time will be very efficient. Building online stores is only taking six months and so this should be prioritized after the longest is started. 2.3 Cost of the distribution channels This is the process of collecting, summarizing, analyzing and evaluating various alternatives of the course of action. It has a goal to advise the management on the most appropriate course of action based on the cost efficiency as well as the capability of the management to have such distribution channels as (Geles 2008) explains. Costs management will include detailed cost information that is needed to control the distribution operations considering the duration of time. The management will use the cost management to make decisions and therefore this must be relevant to the distribution channels. The total costs of the whole distribution channels are $ 1,280 million. The channel with the biggest share is the building whole sale stores which are taking a total of $ 480 million followed by establishing the retail shops at a cost of $ 450 million. It happens that these two channels take the longest time of 12 months and 13 months respectively. The other two channels, online stores and fast delivery service, are taking $ 200 million and $150 million respectively each taking six months to complete. These costs have taken care of tall the costs needed to make this distribution channels a success. 2.4 Quality management Quality is very important as far as this distribution channels are concerned. Accordingly, as (Prichard 2007) puts it, it is quality that will determine the taste that the customers will have in our products. Quality must be assured and be consistent. To do this in establishing this distribution channels, the organization must ensure that there is control of quality, quality assurance, quality planning and quality improvement at all times. These four ingredients must be adhered to if the organization is to provide quality to its customers. The means to achieve quality must be included in the product /service itself. The processes in this distribution channels must assure quality kin the services and or products in order to achieve the satisfaction of the target customer. The online stores must ensure that the services offered there are of the highest quality possible to be able to cope with the competition of other online distributors of the same services and or products. The retail shops must be operated by persons who have experience so as to provide quality products and or services. This is because quality must be provided by a person who is well aware of the service to quench any query that may arise thereafter. The fast delivery services and whole sales must follow suit in quality assurance and provision. 2.5 Human resource management This aspect involves the human person providing their services to the organization. The organization of the workforce in selecting, attracting, training, rewarding and assessing while overseeing leadership and organizations culture while at the same time ensuring compliance to labor and employment laws. The human resource department will act as the liaison between the work force and top management and also with unions if any. Persons in charge of this department must select the right employees according to the requirements of the distribution channels. This will ensure understanding and quality provision in the distribution channels. Selecting and placing employees who have the relevant experience to the online stores will position it in the market, the retail shops in the same way will aid development of the shops in sales term. The workforce in the distribution channels also consume large part of the costs allocated for the distribution channels. Its however difficult to find the required employees and where found require good remuneration usually above the market rate. The work force costs must be well set aside in form of salaries and wages since they cannot work if there is no compensation for their services (Feng 2012). 2.6 Communication This will involve planning, implementing, revising and monitoring of all communication directives in the distribution channels. Disseminating communication directives to all persons directly concerned with the establishment of the distribution channels. This will also involve designing new strategies depending on the location and accessibility. The internal and external communication directives are crucial in retail shops. The flow of information including the online communication will determine the flow of work in the distribution channels. There should be specific person(s) responsible for communication directives have been delivered and followed to the letter. As (Bodsworth 2011) explains misinterpretation of information can cost the organization dearly and so it is important to code and encode the information appropriately. There should be a clear line of communication in each of the distribution channels. Communication management also involves feedback which is equally important to the employees. They need to the intentions of the management as well as the work requirements. The management must have a contingency approach to communicate with its workforce and on a personal level. It also needs to know information flow in and out of the distribution channels, who needs it, when is it needed, format of the information and the person responsible for transmitting it. By this the distribution channels will be very effective and efficient. 2.7 Risk Meredith & Mantel Jr (2011) further argues that, risk management delivers huge benefits and it is possible for project to gain also of money when various uncertainties are dealt with a proactive manner. The impacts of threats minimize and it is possible to seize various opportunities that arise. The purpose of risk management plans to deliver the project and its deliverables on time, the right budget and quality as sponsor demands. Risk management has therefore to be part of the project, be prepared early enough and incorporated, risks be communicated throughout the project duration as well as considering both the threats and opportunities. Generally, when ownership issues are clarified, risk prioritization is done, risk analysis, a plan and response prepared to implement them; it will deliver to the highest. In addition, all the risks ought to be registered as well as tracking the risks associated with various tasks and integrating them. Various risks are identified due to the nature project. Data may become corrupted due to computer malfunction or human mistake. This will mean that the program has to be restarted to restore backup. Project may lag behind schedule if the team members are unable to work or by it’s poorly scheduled and estimates. The project will thus be late but in response, the team members may pick up the task of others who are slack. Project over budget may result from budget underestimation which is detrimental as the project may fail to continue. However, through cutting the costs and request for more funding, it s possible to respond to the risk. Scope creep may occur due to unidentified requirement in the course of the project. This may cause the project to take longer than scheduled. To respond to this, the project integration will determine what must and what must not be done in the course of the project. Another possible risk is delivery of low quality of the final product. This might be promoted by poor quality assurance and that will mean that the project is not ready. However, it is possible to improve the bad aspects of a product through continuous control by the team members and communication between the customers and developers. 3.0 Project Control plan 3.1 Business case The project will start having with a business case description and justification of why the project is undertaken. The estimated costs, risks and expected business savings and benefits are specified for every part of project (Murray 2009). These includes the revenue estimated every year as $4.3 billion for retail shops, $3,5 billion from online stores, $0.4 billion from fast delivery services and $2.8 billion from wholesales channels. The business case determines the decision-making process and will promote continuous alignment of project progress to business objectives as defined. 3.2 Organization According to Murray (2009) a project requires an established organizational structure with base skills to operate for a short period. There are four layers involved in the project which involves corporate management, project direction, day-to-day project management and team management. A structure shall be ensured for the project with defined and managed duties, roles and decision makers. The management structure will control, delegate and monitor delivery. The project will also identify the administrative support required, set agreements for various roles and responsibilities, establish the lines of communication which will be used between project team and project manager and ensure there is independent inspection for roles and performance. 3.3 Plans The benefits of planning identify the achievability of the targets. The resource which is designed for achieving the targets within a specified time frame is controlled through planning (Murray 2009). Activities will be integrated to ensure that quality is build in the project and ensure that the risks and problems associated in achieving the targets are within the constraints. Precisely, planning is ensured to help avoid ad hoc an disorderly decisions, help management team thinking, provide the accurate measurements for project progress and communication to various people of the thing to be dome, how, allocation of responsibilities, progress monitoring and control. 3.4 Control The purpose of control promotes decision making which is very central for project. This ensures that a project produces the required products with defined quality criteria (Murray 2009). The project will ensure control for the schedule and work according to the set resources and the cost plans as well as remain viable against the business case. Control will involve monitoring of progress, comparison of achievement with the plan, reviewing of plans and their future situations and detection of problems. Control will also promote initiation of corrective action and authorization of further work. 3.5 Management of risk Project must control and also contain risks if it has to be successful. The project control will ensure that actions are taken to keep the project exposure to acceptable level off risks and in the cost-effective way (Murray 2009). The control will be facilitated by accessing reliable and up-to-date information involving risks, decision making processes that are supported by risk analysis and evaluation frameworks. Processes are going to be put in place for monitoring risks and ensure the right balance of control in dealing with various risks. 3.6 Quality in Project environment Projects products as well as services must be fit for their purpose and satisfy the needs to which they were destined. Quality management and control process ensure that the expected quality by customer is ensured (Murray 2009). The project will thus be accompanied by activities to determine and implement the various element of quality in the project progress. This will be delivered through quality system, quality assurance, planning and control. The quality criteria that were specified at the beginning of the project will be ensured through examination of products to determine whether they are to the specified requirements. 3.7 Configuration management Configuration involves the products which are delivered by the project and which have to be managed. This will allow efficiency and effectiveness when assets are managed. The purpose of configuration in a project is to identify, protect and track the project’s products (Murray 2009). The management entitled to this project will specify the versions of products inexistence and use and this will involve the product status when live in use, ready for carrying out quality checking or if achieved. The individual s with prime responsibility will be involved to ensure full operation, specification and improvements. The relationship between products that is set together to operate as one will be ensured through continuous comparison and merging together the functionalities. 3.8 Change control Changes to the scope or specifications have a high potential in ruining a project unless the project team controls them. However, change has a high likelihood and control of change will be ensured for the project (Murray 2009). These will mean assessment of impacts of the potential changes, their cost, importance and the management judgment decision whether to include some changes or not. The approved changes will be reflected when necessary to correspond with likely changes in budget and schedule. 4.0 Program closure plan As Murray (2009) points out, the closing of the project in most cases follows a comprehensive approach by ensuring that the aims and objectives that are set in project initiation are met. The expected products have to be handled over to the customer with the acceptance criteria and arrangements for support and the operation of project products put in place. Recommendations for follow up are identified as well as capturing and documenting the lessons that result from the project. There are specified steps that will follow to the closing of the program/ project. The separate projects are all treated as one as they are destined to the delivery of distribution channels. First, the closing plan will ensure that it has checked all the products to have been delivered and an approval by the customer or the owner. It will then document all the later actions which will be taken by consequent maintenance and support groups. Thirdly, it will be to plan on how achievement will be assessed for the expected benefits. This will be concluded through reporting on project’s performance. Since there are four dimensions of projects which will function as whole, each project will be assessed alone and will follow its specific closing plan after which all the projects will be combined to ensure a comprehensive closing plan. References Aldiri, K., Hobbs, D., & Qahwaji, R 2008, The human face of e-business: engendering consumer initial trust through the use of images of sales personnel on e-commerce web sites. International Journal of E-Business Research (IJEBR), 4(4), 58-78. Bodsworth, C 2011, Leadership and management differences Institute of Leadership Management, p.0. Available at: http://www.i-l-m.com/about-ilm/9695.aspx. 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K., Leung, S. C., & Xiao, D 2010, Revenue-sharing versus wholesale price mechanisms under different channel power structures. European Journal of Operational Research, 203(2), 532-538. Prichard, E & Berwick, V 2007 General Principles of Quality Assurance and Quality Control in Quality Assurance in Analytical Chemistry John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Soars, B 2009, Driving sales through shoppers' sense of sound, sight, smell and touch. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 37(3), 286-298. Read More