Successful Completion of the Brighhouse and Sowerby Towns - Case Study Example

Project Management Name: Unit: Course: Supervisor: Date of submission: Introduction This report analyses the successful completion of the Brighhouse and Sowerby town construction of community swimming and sports facilities. The Brighhouse and Sowerby towns have been having public swimming pools. The swimming pools were worn out and were beyond the operational life. There was thus the need to replace the projects and Calderdale Council in 2006 came up with the project to construct new facilities which were supposed to serve the towns. The funds for the projects were to be secured from the sale of properties that the Calderdale Council had co-owned. The council projected the cost of the project to be $10.6 million, it thus sold some of its facilities and raised the $6.5 million. However, on engaging the Turner and Townsend, a reputable management firm, the projections or the project were revised to $17.93 million (APM 2011, p.2). Objectives The objectives of the project were to construct new two modern swimming facilities in the two towns which were to meet the leisure needs of the community. The two facilities were to be completed within a strict timeline and projected opening time was the last quarter of the 2010. The council also had the mandate to raise the deficit of $7.34 million. The $17.93 million was sufficient for the construction of 25 metres swimming pool, a learner pool, multi purpose studio and suite for fitness in the two towns (APM 2011, p.5). Project stakeholder analysis The main stakeholders involved in the project included the Calderie Council, Turner and Townsend, the contractor (Willmott Dixon Construction) and the design team, see appendix 1 for the roles of the stakeholders. In the implementation of a project, the stakeholders play a very significant role both in the decision making and the actual implementation of the project (Hartley 2009). The stakeholders have a very critical role especially in the initial project phase where decision making and designing of the project are very important. According to Barker and Cole (2012, p. 17) the identification and involvement of all the stakeholders ensures full participation and is integral in ensuring that all the necessary needs for the project are included in the project. For instance, in this project, the needs of the community were very important, as the project was to benefit the community. Therefore, the community provided the important views for the project and was constantly updated on the progress. This is bearing in mind that the project was geared at benefiting the community. The council worked in hand with the contractors in provision of the guidance on the requirements that are needed for the for the sports facilities. For each site, the list of the required facilities were agreed upon and the business case that was required for the funding was also completed. After t approval of the of the business case, all the team concerned were also involved in the drawing of the strategic brief. The strategic brief is a an important component of any project, according to Craig (2012, p. 81)a strategic brief is critical in ensuring robustness of the project and helps in avoiding inconveniences that result due to changes in the process of the implementation of the project. The project team also had to incorporate the views of the community and provided progress updates as part of the participatory approach to the project. Appendix 1 is a summary in regards to stakeholders’ roles during the project planning and execution. Management of the project Turner and Townsend was appointed to manage and subsequently coordinate implementation of the project. A detailed public consultation was carried and with the rest of the project team, the funds that the council had allocated for the project was found to be insufficient and thus the project needed more funding for the project to be undertaken. The total budget for the project was $17.93 million. The extra $7.34 million was to be raised by the council, the Turner and Townsend and the team came up with a business case that helped the council to raise the funds. With the total money required for the funds available, Turner and Townsend started to work in partnership with the council, the design team, main contractor and other stakeholders drawn from the local community that had to work together to deliver the facilities in the two towns. The success of any project is normally depended on strategizing and careful management. The planning should be incorporated at the initial states of the project where the financial implications are projected (Cleland & Ireland 2010, p. 101). This is the concept stage in which the foundation of the project is laid and the timelines drawn (Longman & Mullins 2004, p. 60). As stated, in the planning process, people with the required expertise and views of all stakeholders are taken into consideration. For this project, the planning was carried through coordination of all stakeholders in which decisions, resource allocation and feasibility studies were undertaken. The stakeholders held series of workshops to work out the process of the project implementation from the need assessment to the implementation of the project. The team employed the used the jigsaw puzzle approach to work out the facility combination that was to be in line with the sports needs of the community. The team to ensure that it remained within the budget used a shopping list option sheet. This used the square metre costs from the contractor Willmott Dixon previous schemes, this was done alongside the block planning sketches used by the contractor in previous schemes (APM 2011, p.2). These undertakings ensured that the project remained within the time planning and the budgetary allocations. There were complexities of the sites that presented a challenge, Turner and Townsend was involved in strong management of the risks that were inherent. Willmott Dixon and the design team came up with a detailed tracking process that ensured the necessary information was provided and integrated in the planning. The stakeholders had monthly meeting in which the progress was shared, challenges discussed and means to mitigate the challenges and ensure the project was within the timelines and budgetary allocations. Bearing in mind the various stakeholders involved in a project, is a common occurrence, to have conflict of interest among the stakeholders. Therefore, it is very important for the management of the stakeholders in order to ensure that all the interests of the stakeholders are taken care of and consultations are engaged to solve arising disputes (Joham, 2009, p. 88). Analysis With the sound management by Turner and Townsend, the Brighouse opened on 10th October, 2010 while the Sowerby Bridge opened on 22nd Novembers 2010. The key to the success of the projects was due to teamwork from all the stakeholders to ensure that the arising challenges were overcome. In the first place, the funding was inadequate but from the management consultation, a business case was drawn that ensured that the deficit could be raised. Most of the projects fail due to changes that are made in the process of the project implementation (Longman & Mullins 2004, p.74). In this project, all stakeholders provided their views, the possible challenges were addressed and measures to overcome the challenges drawn. Continuous monitoring and evaluation of the project was carried and updates made on monthly basis, this ensured that the project remained within cause and possible mistakes could be identified and corrected within time (Schmidt, 2009, p. 41). The coordination played an important part in ensuring that disagreements did not result to project halts. This included monthly meeting with the team and the regular updates. During the design phase, there were fortnight design meetings which ensured that all the important aspects of the sight and facility requirements were incorporated. In addition, the success is attributable to the regular contact that was inherent with the stakeholders which included the community members, the local schools, the Brighouse and Sowerby Bridge clubs and the local press. Conclusion Despite of the initial challenges of the funds, the main project stakeholders came up with an impeccable plan that ensured the financial challenges were addressed. The Turn and Townsend that were tasked with the management of the project ensured that al management and project requirements were put into forefront and necessary measures taken that ensured the project ran smoothly without oppositions from either stakeholder. As a manager, I have learned that the success of the project relies on proper consultation and planning at the initial phase. This ensures that by the time the project takes off every aspect is catered for; hence, no deficits and project changes are encounter in the process. I have also known the need for actively involving all the key stakeholders and ensuring that they work as a team, this coupled with continuous monitoring and provision of updates ensures that checks and balances are in place for the project success. Therefore, in future I will ensure that that I do not ignore the role of other stakeholders in implementing a project, a project composes of many stakeholders who all interests have to be taken care of. References Association for Project Management (APM). 2011. Brighouse and Sowerby Bridge Pool and Fitness Centre. APM. Available at http://www.apm.org.uk/sites/default/files/Brighouse%20and%20Sowerby%20Bridge%20Pool%20and%20Fitness%20Centre%2C%20Turner%20%26%20Townsend_0.pdf 20/9/2014 Barker, S and Cole, R. 2012. Brilliant Project Management: What the best project managers know, do, and say, 3rd edn. Wiley Publishers. Cleland, D.I. and Ireland, L.R, 2010, Project Manager’s Portable Handbook, 3rd edn. New York: McGraw Hill. Craig, J. 2012. Project management lite: Just enough to get the job. New York: CreatesSpace Independent Publishing, pp. 79-124. Hartley, S. 2009, Project Management: Principles, Processes and Practice, Pearson Education, Australia Joham, C. 2009. Project Management Principles & Strategies, 2nd edn, Pearson Education Australia, NSW, pp. 79-92. Longman, A. and Mullins, J. 2004. Project Management: key tool for implementing strategy. Journal of Business Strategy, 25(5), pp. 54-60 Schmidt, T. 2009. Strategic project management made simple: practical tools for leaders and teams. New York: Wiley. Appendices Appendix 1: Stakeholder Analysis Stakeholder Role Calderdale Council Funding the project Provide the guidance on the project requirements based on the council facility requirements Provide the list of the facilities required for the council sports and the specification depending the councils set standards Implementation of the business case that was to raise the remaining amount of the money. Turner and Townsend Provide the feasibility of the project, the appointment of the contractor and the budget projections Participate in the design of the project Draw the strategic brief for the project Overall management of the project Willmott Dixon The main contractor Participate in the architecture and design of the project Work together with the other stakeholders in the construction process. Designers/Architects To design the plan for the facilities depending on the requirements. Community Main beneficiaries The project was to be undertaken in sites that are very sensitive to environment Provide views on their needs Read More