Watson Company Ltd Signage Production Expansion - Case Study Example

WATSON COMPANY LTD SIGNAGE PRODUCTION EXPANSION PLAN Introduction The theory of project management was provided in order to explain, the stages of project management which generally suggests that the transformation view on project operations that a project was conceptualized as a transformation of inputs to outputs. There are a number of principles, through which a project is managed such as decomposing the total transformation hierarchically into smaller transformation tasks, and minimizing the cost of implementation of the project. Theory of planning indicates that there is a managerial and an effector part on the project management procedure such as planning, which is the primary function of the managerial part and the effector is the primary function of translating the project plan into a working model. Theory of execution is concerned about dispatching tasks to work stations. Theory of control suggests that there is a process to be controlled that is either a unit for performance, a standard and a quality controlling unit. (Koskela and Howell 2002) Background information Watson Ltd was a same company that specialised in the design and supply of signage. Because of the success of its signage manufacturing business and increased demand of signage the board of directors had a vision of increasing the production of signage. Initially the company was operating from a single warehouse (25000 sq m) that accommodated it manufacturing plant and office and employed one general manager, two assistant managers, three administration staff, four design and sales staff, and six general operations staff. Objective of this report The objective of this project report was made to manage the opening of a new building (35,000 sq m) that would house the new manufacturing plant. The main objective of this project is concerned with the management of setting up the machinery in the new building hire workers, managing budget and deliver a working plant in time for the production of signage to start. So that the company will be able to deliver the expansion plan to allow the company to target and respond to large demands for Signage. Initiation phase The initial stage on project management involves the formation of an idea that has to be implemented, bring together all the stakeholders that shall be involved in the project, such as the board of directors of Watson Company, suppliers, contractors and finances. The feasibility study is to be conducted to evaluate and come up with an efficient mechanism to effectively manage the new plant to maximize production while maintaining costs at a manageable rate so as to meet the ever increasing demand of signage. The board directors had earlier recommended and approved expansion plan by buying a 35000 ft warehouse where they plant to set a new plant for signage production. At this point, the expansion project was initiated so as to deliver the approved expansion plan to meet the current and future demands of signage by appointing a project manager who will coordinate all the activities concerned with this project. Planning phase The project management team at this stage has to identify the procedure and work required to successively implement the expansion plan. The resources and personnel required for expansion of manufacturing plant were identified, along with the strategy for producing them. A project plan is created outlining the supplies contractors, machinery required, identified suitable experts to hire now that the directors had provided a warehouse the time frame for assembling and setting up the machinery and starting manufacturing was set as six months. The coordination of the expansion plan required the estimation of the cost of machinery and labour required to set up the plant was estimated. The cost estimates were used in the monitoring and controlling of cost expenditures during project execution. The risk associated with the setting up the machinery such as delay of delivery, lack of experts to set up the plant, and suppliers’ noncompliance were identified. In every project, there are risks associated with it in one way or another therefore to militate against these risks the project management has to set contingent plans in place like, setting a side miscellaneous cost and extra time to meet the deadline. All the project stakeholders were identified that is the board of directors, suppliers, engineers and other labourers. The project manager then sets a one on one communication plan to brief all stakeholders, so as to ensure that the delivered information was accurate and was acted upon ion time. At this stage, a quality control was set up through the use of budget costs and engaging experts in setting up the plant. Execution phase The actual plan of setting up the machinery at the 35000squere ft warehouse was carried out. At this stage, the project manager coordinated and maintained control by constantly communicating with all stakeholders during the implementation process of this expansion plan. The project manager collects the progress information which s/he records through regular team meeting, the information corrected is mainly used to maintain quality control, directs the overall direction of the project by measuring the performance of the project and compared the results with the project plan and took corrective action when needed. The project manager continuously monitored and made appropriate adjustments and variances recorded for future reference. Any variations from the original plan record and published the modifications to the original plan. Each project deliverable was reviewed for quality and measured against the acceptance quality criteria. All the stakeholders will be kept informed of project status according to the agreed upon frequency, format, and the plan was updated and published on a regular basis. These status reports had emphasized on the anticipated end point in terms of cost, schedule and quality of deliverables. Once all of the deliverables were met the approval of Watson board of directors was sort and their acceptance of final outcomes the project was ready for closure. Closure phase During the closeout stage, the project manager emphasised on the releasing of the fully installed manufacturing plant to the customer, handed over project documentation, terminated supplier contracts, released project resources and communicating the closure of the project to the Watson board of directors. The last step of project management was to conduct lessons learned; to examine what went well and wrong to analysis the experience gained while implementing the expansion plan, which was transferred back to the project organization to help future project teams. Project controlling and project control systems The aim of setting up control systems was to align development with the Watson Company’s broader objectives for expansion through timing and budgeting. Project quality control starts with planning and ends late in the project with post-implementation review. The project manager put in place quality control systems such as cost, risk, communication, time, procurement, and human resources. In addition, auditors should review the development process and procedures for how they are implemented (Lewis 2000) through independent function in project management that involves implementing verification and controlling function during the processing of a project to reinforce the defined performance goals. (Becker et al 2003) Skills and competencies of project managers Technical expertise The project manager should be a clear leader and director with authority, possess a capability to plan and elicit commitment, good problem identification skills and solving balance technical, economic and human factors, make sound decisions and communicate well be able to resolve conflicts. The project manager should be able to examine the planning process offer leadership, through being honesty and be of good integrity. The project manager should be able to understand the technicalities involved in the planning, executing, controlling, closure of project by have good communication skills and able coordinate activities between different levels in the organization. Be physically and mentally strong to deal with planning of work, control of finances, scheduling of work, management of contracts, knowing and understanding of behaviour of people as well as supervision. (Zielinski 2005) The project manger should have the ability to work in group, generate cooperation in the team to work in harmony, cooperate with each other with the sole purpose of promoting good communication within and with other groups working on the project. A good project manager should be able to conceptualize and organize the project as a whole, understand how different functions of a project are interdependent, how changes to a single part can have an adverse effect on other and having a strong goal orientation. The manager should have good interpersonal skills to enable him/her interact with team members effectively. Project manager should give individuals in her/his team an opportunity to participate in decision-making process and assigning them duties through constant delegating of duties. The project manager should be able to mobilize the mental and emotional energy of his subordinate, listen, persuade and understand what the others mean by their behaviour, be flexible, patient and persuasive. (Gillard 2005) Skills Project Managers must be able to motivate and sustain team work, solve problems those either occur outside the team or within the team, as well as help with removing obstacles by being honesty, direct, straightforward, and knowledgeable in all dealings with people and with the project. A good manager should be hard-working and have a pleasing personality be considerate and respectful, and give people and team members the time and consideration they deserve. Make people feel appreciated and the work that they do were important through a letter, personal word, or e-mail of appreciation. Never conceal problems or avoid addressing them and make commitments that cannot be delivered. A good project manager should clearly define what is expected of the team in writing, be able to get an informed consent from the individual team members and set performance appraisal at the start of the project. (Sampson 2007, p. 41) A good project manager needs to understand many facets of the business aspect of running a project touch on expertise in the areas of organization, communication, finance, and human resources and acquire a number of skills to cope with different situations, conflicts, uncertainty, and doubt. Being flexible, persistent and firm, analyse large volumes of data from multiple sources, able to differentiate between patience and action, able to handle large amounts of continuous often unrelenting stress. Additionally, have high tolerance for surprises, of uncertainty, and ambiguity. (VanIngen 2007) Skills required at different stages of a project Project managers should have effective leadership and organizational skills at the initial stages of the project especially at the planning stage and on the pre-feasibility stage on the project lifecycle. Human interaction skills are particularly required during the early stages of project design and planning where decisions that affect project team incorporation, inspiration, and communication are made. The project manager needs to be a good leader with powers to create objectives and plans, to handle contracting issues and to approve changes in work through the ability to make decisions, communicate with team members and encourage a commitment to the project requirements. (Fangel 2005) Administrative experience of project managers is an important characteristic during the detailed design and construction phase of the project. The manager’s planning and organizational experiences are important along with an understanding of quality control systems required to get the project done. Project manager’s ability to use specialized knowledge and analytical ability to use tools and techniques to carry out his project efficiently through specialized knowledge, project knowledge, understanding methods, processes and procedures, technology requirement, skills in the use of a computer, control problems associated with managing the lifecycle of a major project. Strong ties are indicated in project controlling, quality management, management of materials and safety. (Baca 2007) Project lifecycle diagrams Initiating Process Planning Process Executing Process Controlling Process Closure Process Reference list Baca, C.M. (2007). Project manager! Who? Me? Machine Design, 79(20), 64-66. Becker J, Kugeler M, Rosemann M (2003). Process management: a guide for the design of business processes. p.27 Gillard, S (2005) The competencies of effective project managers: A conceptual analysis. International Journal of Management, 22(1), 48-53. Githens G D, and Rosenau, M. D. (2005) Successful project management: A step-by-step approach with practical examples (4th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Fangel, M. (2005) Competencies in project management—National competence baseline for Scandinavia. Hilleroed, Denmark: Associations of Project Management in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. James P. Lewis (2000). The project manager's desk reference: a comprehensive guide to project planning, scheduling, evaluation, and systems. p.185 Koskela, Lauri and Howell, Gregory A. (2002b). The theory of project management -problem and opportunity. Working paper. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland &Lean Construction Institute. Sampson, B. (2007). Get with the project. Professional Engineering, 20(12), 41-42. Van Ingen, S. (2007). Leadership of project teams. Chemical Engineering, 114(1), 55-58 Zielinski, D. (2005). Soft skills, hard truths. Training, 42(7), 18-22. Read More