Chapter 3

3/Planning the Project

3/Planning the Project

Chapter 3

Planning the Project

This chapter begins by discussing the nine key elements of the project plan. The following two sections address the planning process in greater detail with considerable emphasis placed on the project launch meeting and the hierarchical planning process by which parts of the plan are sequentially broken down into finer levels of detail. This provides a natural transition to the creation of the Work Breakdown Structure. Finally, the chapter is concluded with a discussion of multidisciplinary teams including the topics of integration management, concurrent engineering and the design structure matrix.

Cases and Readings

Some cases appropriate to the subject of this chapter are:

Harvard: 9-692-058 Taco Bell Corp. This 31-page best-selling case describes a project to implement a new strategic plan involving major changes in layout, staffing, quality, product design, and information systems. The coordination and integration of all these project activities is what makes the plan successful, and hard for competitors to imitate. Two teaching notes are available for this case: 5-692-091 (20 pages) and 5-196-073 (12 pages).

Harvard: 9-694-059 Hardcard Project: Plus Development Corp. (A1); 9-694-060 Hardcard Project: Plus Development Corp. (A2) This 10-page (12-pages for A2) case allows the students to evaluate, using Microsoft Project software, the time line, resource allocations, and other aspects of a major project concerned with developing a hard disk drive. The perspective is from that of the VP of engineering. The (A2) case updates the project and the students have to determine whether a specific market introduction date will be feasible for the project. (Note: this case duplicates some of the information in the Plus Development Corp. case suggested for Chapter 2.)

Harvard: 9-193-013 American Airlines: The InterAAct Project (A) and 9-193-014 (B) This 17-page (and 11-page) set of cases describes the design and implementation of an extensive knowledge information system project. The implementation is in trouble in the (A) case and must be reassessed. The (B) case describes the outcome of the successful implementation. A 17 page teaching note (5-194-095) is available.

Harvard: 9-390-010 Grosvenor Park This case describes a very successful project involving the development of a condominium.

A reading appropriate to the subject of this chapter is:

Hallgren, M & Wilson, T. L., The nature and management of crises in construction projects: Projects-as-practice observations (International Journal of Project Management, 830-838, 2008). Crises are inherent in projects because of the uniqueness of projects. This reading reviews the nature of crises and the associated disruptions that threaten the progress of the projects as well as the organizations themselves. The paper reviews the nature of crises and their remedies that have interfered with project progress of an international construction company. Fifteen crises were studied and the report includes a characterization of the nature of these crises and how they were managed.

Answers to Review Questions

1.What are some of the benefits of setting up a project plan for routine, frequent projects?

One key benefit of setting up a project plan for routine, frequent projects is that the project plan can be used as a template for similar projects in the future. Having such a template can greatly simplify future projects just filling in the blanks, while at the same time can ensure that important steps or activities are not overlooked.

Furthermore, the project plan can be continuously improved and enhanced as the organization gains additional experience with these projects.

2.Discuss the reasons for inviting the functional managers to a project launch meeting rather than their subordinates who may be actually doing the work?

The reason for inviting the functional managers to the project launch meeting is that it is important to get their buy-in and support for the project and understanding the load on their subordinates. The functional managers can have a significant impact on the degree to which the project succeeds or fails based on their willingness to assign key subordinates to the project. Clearly, if they are convinced up-front of the importance of the project and perhaps even have input into the projects scope, their cooperation is more likely in later stages of the project.

Another important reason for including functional managers in the project launch meeting is to get their commitment to help develop the initial plan.

3.Discuss the pros and cons of identifying and including the project team at the project launch meeting.

Some of major advantages to identifying and including project team members in the project launch meeting would be:

oGetting their support early on.

oLetting them hear first hand from senior management the importance of the project to the organization, and

o[Perhaps] getting their input on more technical issues as the projects scope is initially defined.

Major disadvantages include:

oNot being able to identify all project team members at this early stage.

oGetting too bogged down in technical details to the detriment of bigger picture issues, and

o[Perhaps] less involvement from the functional managers if they feel their department is adequately represented by project team members from their respective departments.

4.Why do so many self-directed teams perform poorly? What can be done to improve their performance?

One reason why self-directed teams may perform poorly is because they may not have a good understanding of how their efforts are meant to support overall organizational objectives. In the absence of this understanding, the team will likely create its own objectives which will probably lead to suboptimization if the teams objectives are only loosely related to broader organizational objectives.

The solution to this problem is to ensure that the team has a solid understanding of how its objectives and its work are meant to support broader organizational objectives.

5.Why is participatory management beneficial to project planning? How does the process of participatory management actually work in planning?

Participatory management (i.e., including project team members in the planning process) is beneficial in that it helps ensure that:

oImportant issues are not overlooked, and

oTeam members are committed to the project.

Furthermore:

oTeam members can be asked to identify the tasks required to complete the project along with their estimates of time and other resource requirements.

6.What is the difference between the Resource column on the action plan (that would include personnel needed by the project) and the Assigned to column?

The Resources column is more general and simply lists the type of human, material, and machine resources needed.

The Assigned to column is more specific and identifies the particular person who has responsibility for completing the activity.7.Under what circumstances is it sensible to do without a project launch meeting?

While holding a project launch meeting is always a sensible step, it may not be essential or required in cases where the project is:

oQuite routine and frequent. In these cases the scope is likely well understood and the functional managers have well defined responsibilities, and

oTo be completed entirely within one functional department. In this case, the functional manager involved can ensure the appropriate resources are assigned to the project as well as clearly define and articulate the project's scope.

8.What limitations associated with traditional project management techniques like Gantt charts and precedence diagrams does the Design Matrix Structure overcome?

A limitation of traditional project management planning tools is they focus primarily on task precedence relationships.

In some projects (particularly new product development projects) another important aspect is what information does a task need from preceding tasks. The Design Structure Matrix addresses the issue of information flows within a project. When the matrix is complete, all the tasks that provide information needed to complete a given task can be determined by looking across thats particular tasks row.

Suggested Answers to Discussion Questions

9.For each of the nine components of a project master plan, discuss the problems that might be raised if the element was incomplete.

The elements required in a project plan fall into the following nine categories:

oOverview: An incomplete overview of the project could lead to overlooking key milestones. Typically, milestones correspond to important events of a project and it is particularly appropriate to assess the projects performance at these times. If important milestones are not identified, opportunities to identify problems early on may be missed.

oObjectives:Inadequately defining the projects objectives could lead to suboptimzation and missing important specifications.

oGeneralNot thoroughly discussing the General approach could

approach:increase the number of ad-hoc decisions that have to be made as the project is completed and could also result in inconsistencies as different team members employ different approaches to address similar issues.

oContractualThe consequences of incompletely defining contractual

aspects:aspects include scope creep and major disputes between the client and the project team.

oSchedules: An incomplete schedule typically results in overlooked activities which subsequently translates into late project completions and/or cost overruns.

oResource Similarly, an incomplete resource requirements section

requirements:can result in failure to have required resources available when needed or omitted cost elements such as overhead.

oPersonnel:An incomplete personnel section could result in overlooking important skill requirements or the need to provide the necessary training.

oEvaluation Not adequately specifying evaluation methods could

methods: lead to not capturing important project performance data which could impact the timely discovery of problems.

oPotential Finally, not adequately considering potential problems

problems:means that proactive contingency plans for problems that could have been anticipated are not available, forcing the project team into a more reactive mode.

10.Give several examples of a type of project that would benefit from a template project action plan being developed.

Projects that are completed routinely would benefit from a template project action plan. In addition to routine system maintenance projects, examples of such projects include:

oConstructing a house.

oTaking a drug through clinical trials, and

oInstalling the same computer system in all of an organizations manufacturing plants.

11.Why is the hierarchical planning process useful for project planning? How might it influence the plan if the hierarchical planning process was not used?

The hierarchical planning process is useful for project planning for a number of reasons:

oBy starting very broadly and gradually adding more detail it is a logical and systematic process, and

oIt fits well with typical organizational hierarchies in the sense that senior and middle-level managers can focus on the top level items and then delegate the specification of these details to the people that will be responsible for completing these tasks.

A key problem with not using hierarchical planning is that important tasks may be overlooked which may ultimately delay the project and/or result in cost overruns.

12.What causes so much conflict on multidisciplinary teams? As a PM what would you try to do to prevent or reduce such conflict?

Probably the leading source of conflict on multidisciplinary teams occurs is the fact that team members tend to view problems only from their own functional perspective.

One way to avoid this problem is to recruit project team members that have an orientation to problem solving rather than a particular solution approach.

13.Of what help is a map of interdependencies to a PM who is managing a transdisciplinary team?

A map of interdependencies shows the interrelationships between various members of the project team across various functional areas.

Since the relationships between functional areas are likely to change as the project progresses, explicitly mapping out these relationships for each phase of the project can help ensure that the various areas are working together at the appropriate times.

14.Develop an action plan with at least two levels for a project you are personally familiar with (e.g., moving away to college, registering for class, cleaning out a garage). (Hint: the plan will be more useful; as a learning exercise if you have a subordinate or two real or imaginary). Be sure to include precedences, task durations, resource requirements, and milestones. Enter the plan in MSP.

The following example describes a project involving the development of a history term paper. It involves three students (Alex, Gary and Neil) and their instructor, Professor Daniels.

History Term Paper

WBSTask NamePredecessorEstimated

DurationResource Name

1Select Topic1 WeekAlex, Gary, Neil

2Get Topic Approved11 WeekProfessor Daniels

3Outline Paper23 DaysAlex

4Conduct Research3 Weeks

4.1 Library Research33 WeeksGary and Neil

4.2 Research Web32 WeeksAlex

5Write-Up Report4 WeeksAlex, Gary, Neil

5.1 First Draft4.1, 4.22 WeeksGary

5.2 Proof First Draft5.11 WeekAlex, Gary, Neil

5.3 Edit First Draft5.21 WeekNeil

15.Discuss the drawbacks of implementing a project plan without a RACI matrixA key drawback of not using a LRC (Linear Responsibility Chart) is that required communications or tasks may fall through the cracks as no one took responsibility for completing them assuming they were someone elses responsibility.

16.What are the potential ramifications of not utilizing integration management techniques or parallel tasking while planning and implementing a project?

Important relationships across functional areas will likely be overlooked if integration management is not utilized. Not identifying these relationships will:

oReduce opportunities for concurrent engineering, as well as

oLead to disconnects between these functional areas.

In both cases the project schedule and budget are likely to suffer.

17.List the advantages of using an empowered team for planning. What conditions must be met for these advantages to accrue?

Advantages of empowered teams include:

oHigh quality solutions.

oAvoiding micromanagement.

oMore accountability.

oA greater likelihood of obtaining a synergistic solution, and

oThe availability of a tool for timely team evaluation and feedback.

The most important condition is that senior management must clearly spell out (a) the projects goals and (b) be clear about the range of the teams authority and responsibility.

18.Pursuing a degree or certificate is a major project. Construct a brief project plan for this project that includes all 9 elements described in the chapter.

Following, as an example, is a project plan for a student aiming to earn his/her MBA:

Overview: The purpose of this project is to earn an MBA. The major milestones include completing the first year of core course work, obtaining a summer internship, completing the second year of course work, and obtaining a full time position at a leading consulting organization.

Objectives: My goal is to increase my salary by 70 percent by obtaining full time employment with a leading consulting organization upon completing a two-year MBA. Long-term, my goal is to make partner of a consulting organization within seven years of graduation.

General:I will apply to the top public MBA programs in the Ohio, Indiana,

approach:and Michigan areas. I will visit each that I am accepted to assess the schools culture. I will also research them to evaluate their success in placing graduates in top consulting organizations.

Contractual I may be required to make a financial commitment to one school

aspects:while still being on the waiting list of more desirable school.

Schedule: December 2005: take GMAT Exam

January 2006: research schools

February 2006: fill out admissions applications

May 2006: Visit schools

June 2006: Make decision

July 2006: House hunting trip

August 2006: Move

August 2006 May 2007: complete core

June August 2007: Summer internship

August 2007 May 2008: Complete second year and interview for full time consulting position

ResourceI will use $50,000 from my savings and take out an estimated

requirements:$25,000 in student loans.

Personnel: My brothers will help me move.

Evaluation Key performance metrics include my GPA and starting salary upon

methods:graduation.

Potential

It has been six years since I have been in school and therefore my

problems:adjustment period may be longer than I expect. I may also encounter interpersonal conflicts with teammates. Finally, the cost of housing or tuition may be higher than I expect and/or my summer internship may pay less than I expect which would create the need to borrow more money.

19.Assume that your class instructor appointed you project manager to lead a dozen of your classmates in writing up the end-of-chapter pedagogy materials (i.e., Review Questions, Discussion Question, Problems, Incidents for Discussion, and Cases) as an Instructors Guide for this book. You plan to form subteams to work on each of these elements, each headed by a subteam leader. Of course, all the subteam materials will need to be integrated into the final Instructors Guide at the end. Construct a WBS and linear responsibility chart for this project.

The WBS for this project might be as follows:

20.You and your family and friends are planning to host a graduation party at the end of the school year. Construct an action plan for this party.

TaskDurationPredecessorAssigned To

1. Invitations

1.1 Make up list1 hour--Alec, Bob, Tia

1.2 Buy invitations5 days1.1Tia

1.3 Mail invitations1 day1.2Bob, Tia

1.4 Update RSVPs2 weeks1.3Bob

2. Food

2.1 Buy cake3 days--Tia

2.3 Buy drinks2 hours1.4Bob

2.4 Buy appetizers2 hours1.4Alec

2.5 Plates, forks, cups1 hour1.4Alec

3. Decorate

3.1 Purchase banner1 hour--Alec, Bob

3.2 Buy balloons2 days--Tia

3.3 Napkins1 hour1.4Bob

3.4 Decorate house1 day3.1, 3.2Alec, Bob, Tia

21.Construct an action plan for the project in Question 19.

TaskDurationPredecessorAssigned To

1. OrganizationYou

1.1 Establish subteams2 hours--You

1.2 Select subteam leaders2 hours1.1Subteam members

1.3 Assign chapters.2 hours1.2Subteam leaders

2. Conduct project

2.1 Prepare drafts4 weeks 1.3Chapter leaders

2.2 Review drafts2 weeks2.1Subteam members

2.3 Revise drafts2 weeks2.2Chapter leaders

2.4 Review final drafts1 day2.3Subteam leaders

3 Finalize project

3.1 Combine chapter materials2 days2.4Subteam leaders

3.2 Make final revisions1 day3.1Subteam members

4 Submit materials1 hour3.1You

4.1 Meet with class instructor2 hours3.2Project members

22.Consider one or more projects (from this course or elsewhere) that you understand reasonably well. Identify situations where information learned from a later task of the project becomes important to an earlier task.

As an example, one can consider the construction of a new house. Initially the homeowners work with an architect to develop the plans for the house and, as part of the plans, the dimensions for the kitchen are specified. Later in the process the homeowners go out and actually select the cabinets and appliances for the kitchen. At this stage, it may be discovered that the original dimensions are not optimal given the cabinets and appliances the homeowners actually select.

23.Contrast the Project Plan, the Action Plan, and the Work Breakdown Structure.

oProject planThe primary function of a project plan is to serve as a map of the route from start to finish. It should contain sufficient information that, at any time, the project manager knows what remains to be done. It is a comprehensive summary of the project.

oAction plan An action plan not only identifies the various task and their immediate predecessor tasks but also the estimated time duration, the estimated resources needed, and an identification of the individual(s) responsible for carrying out the task.

oWork BreakdownThe Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a set of all tasks in a

Structureproject, usually arranged by task levels. It is sometimes presented as a tree, much like an organization chart.

Problems

24.Prepare an action plan using MSP with the steps that must be completed before Vern Toomey can contact outsourcing vendors. If Vern starts on August 1, 2005, how long will it take to get ready to contact outsourcing vendors?

Based on the information in the Gantt chart it would be Tuesday, August 23, '05 before Vern would be able to contact vendors for the outsourcing proposals,

25.Develop a mind map for a nonprofit organizations annual casino night charity event.

26.In addition to your regular responsibilities, your supervisor has just assigned you to be in charge of your organizations annual golf tournament. It is expected that 100 to 150 employees will enter the tournament. In addition to organizing the event, you are also responsible for promoting it. Your budget for the event is $25,000. Develop a mind map for the golf tournament project.

Incidents for Discussion

Incidents for Discussion Included in the ChapterPlymouth Zoos Re-engineering ProjectQuestion: what should Avery Mitchell do next?

Avery Mitchell should make no decision until he gets more information.

What information should he ask the consultants for before accepting their proposal?

He should ask for references, examples of other work redesign jobs the consultants have done, and he should ask about the relationship they had with the former CEO of the zoo.

What project management tools would you suggest Avery ask the consultants to use to outline the project more specifically and address his concerns?

He should also ask for:

oA specific action plan with deliverables, objectives, schedules, resource needs, etc.

oA linear responsibility chart so that Zoo officers can identify what the consultants are responsible for and what the Zoo is accountable to do to meet the targets.

These pieces of information would help Avery determine if and how the work re-design project would impact ongoing work or other projects going on. Also, this information would enable him to see how the consultants propose to carry out the project. He can then determine the impact of the project on the Zoos everyday operations. This would also enable him to see where and how the cost savings were determined and whether they would be sufficient to meet the Zoos profit projections.Time is Fleeting

Question: if you were the President, how would you handle this problem?

The president could ask the IT and HR department heads each to outline a project plan for the approach they favored.

It might be better, however, if he asked them to work together to prepare action plans for each of their recommended solutions to the current problem with the time clocks. The two department heads could then be asked to plan cost benefit studies of both plans. They should carefully delineate the objective of each project. Acting together, they could choose the best alternative, based on the cost/benefit studies. Then they could jointly outline the implementation project plan for the solution that they choose.Suggested Case Analyses and Solutions

St Dismas Assisted Living Facility -- 1Teaching Purpose: The St. Dismas Assisted Living Facility cases comprise a set of cases beginning in this chapter and are all associated with the same project the planning, building, and marketing of an assisted living facility for people whose state of health makes it difficult for them to live independently, but who are not yet ill enough to require nursing home care. In this initial installment of the case, students address issues related to the project deliverables, project constraints and assumptions, the development of an action plan, and the selection of a project manager.

Question #1: Define the project deliverables.

Deliverables of the project are:

Construction of a 100 unit facility

Provide a positive return on investment and contribute to overall business

Project outcomes that will be measured to determine project effectiveness are:

Increase utilization of existing hospital outpatient services

Develop more services focused on wellness and preventative medicine

Increase census of inpatient units

Question #2: Define project constraints and assumptions.

Project assumptions are:

For-profit subsidiary of St. Dismas

Free standing apartment construction design

Facility will be constructed to provide easy access to St. Dismas services such as kitchen area, outpatient therapy areas, etc.

100 units, some designed for heavy-assisted, and most light-assisted.

Project constraints are:

Construction cannot begin until after November 1999

Open facility in July 2000

Question #3: Develop a level 1 action plan.

Outline the broad steps in the project, for example;

NumberStepWho Does

1Start ALF project

2Building designCOO

3ConstructionConstruction Manager

4Define food service needsCOO

5Define housekeeping needsCOO

6Define staffing needsCOO

7Develop policies and proceduresCOO

8Create budget for facilityCFO

9Create financial systems (payroll, accounting, etc)CFO

10Identify telecommunications & information systems needsDirector Information Services

11Develop marketing plan (including ground breaking event)Vice President of Business Development

12Develop communications planVP Business Development

13Define clinical services neededRehab Medical Director

14Develop management structureFred Splient

15Identify all regulatory requirementsFred Splient

16Complete Project

Question #4: Is Dr. Splient a good choice for project manager? Support your position.

Students can support both yes and no answers.

However, Fred Splient is not an appropriate project manager. Fred should function as the project champion. He can provide the necessary oversight and leadership without actually managing the project. He is the Chief Executive Officer of a major medical center; his role in the organization is not one of a project manager but an organizational leader. Fred is also far too busy to handle the day-to-day needs of managing a large project such as the planning and construction to open an assisted living facility. It has also not been identified that he has the necessary skills to manage a project.

Key points for discussion:

Why does Fred want to be project manager?

He wants control of the project, he wants to be sure the project gets done, he will have members of his Board of Trustees sitting on the project team, this is a highly visible project, to his customers, board and community members. This project is a major change from the regular business of St. Dismas.

What sort of systems can Fred set up so that he sees that the project gets managed without having to do it himself?

Fred needs to set up effective communications systems for the project. He could have the project manager report directly to him. Fred could still chair the project steering team.

John Wiley & Sons

Teaching Purpose: This case requires students to use their creativity and develop a WBS for a website development project.

Question #1: Develop a mind map for this project.

Question #2: Convert your mind map into a WBS.

Question #3: Discuss how your mind map might be used to facilitate other project planning activities such as resource allocation, schedule development, and risk analysis.

The mind map can be utilized to develop what additional resources (human) can be allocated, and for what portion of the project. It would also facilitate the development of a schedule for each component of the website and determine where risks might be encountered within the project, where the pitfalls might be encountered as you develop the website.

End of chapter pedagogy materials

Review Questions

1.1

Discussion Questions

1.2

Problems

1.3

Incidents for

Discussion

1.4

Cases

1.5

Chapter 1

1.1.1

Chapter 1

1.2.1

Chapter 1.3.1

Chapter 1

1.4.1

Chapter 1

1.5.1

Chapter 2

1.1.2

Chapter 2

1.2.2

Chapter 2

1.3.2

Chapter 2

1.4.2

Chapter 2

1.5.2

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