Lean Project Management for FIFA World Cup 2018

This article discusses the implementation of lean project management for FIFA World Cup 2018, including Voice of the Customer, Critical to Customer Requirements, Critical to Quality parameters, ways to implement lean project management, and methodologies to support lean project implementation. It also covers methodologies such as PMBOK, PRINCE2, Agile methods, and more.

FIFA World Cup 2018
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Table of Contents
Background to the Project..........................................................................................................3
Voice of the Customer (VOC)...............................................................................................3
Critical to Customer Requirements (CCR)............................................................................4
Critical to Quality parameters (CTQ)....................................................................................5
Ways to implement lean project management...........................................................................6
Methodologies to support Lean Project Implementation...........................................................8
References................................................................................................................................12
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Background to the Project
The FIFA World Cup is an international competition contested between the national teams of
the members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), which is the
international governing body for the football. This event takes place every four years. In
2018, FIFA World Cup tournament has been contested in Russia.
This task is about organizing the FIFA 2018 World Cup Football tournament, by applying
lean management techniques. Being the project manager in charge of delivering such a
significant world sport event, I would have applied lean project management for the event in
an effective manner with the utilization of data-based methods in order to manage the
projects, by focusing on continuous improvement of the process. The lean management
emphasizes on quality, data analysis, enhanced customer value and eliminating waste through
efficient utilization of time of employees as well as financial resources (Moujib, 2007). The
project will put light on various lean management practices such as PMBOK, PRINCE2,
Organisational Project Management Agile Practices and Lean Six Sigma (DMAIC
Methodology) that could support lean project implementation in the FIFA World Cup
tournament.
Voice of the Customer (VOC)
The Voice of the Customer (VOC) is a process which is utilized to gather the feedback or
requirements of customers whether internally or externally, in order to provide best possible
quality of products or services. The process is related to being proactive and constantly
innovating and to be aware of the continuously changing requirements of the customers. The
term “Voice of the Customer” refers to describing the assured as well as assumed
requirements of customers (iSixSigma, 2018). The voice of customer can be gathered in
various ways such as through direct discussion or interviews, focus groups, surveys, field
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reports, observations, complaint logs and many more(International Six Sigma Institute,
2018).
In the context of FIFA World Cup tournament, the internal customers are the management
and employees of the organization while the external customers are the viewers, shareholders
and people externally associated with the event such as broadcasting mediums. The Voice of
Customer would have been captured through various interviews and discussions conducted
on television and information gathered by the journalists and provided to print media.
Furthermore, more information and opinion about the existing requirements would have been
gathered via direct discussion with the internal customers i.e. management and employees by
holding meetings or conferences. The data gathered by these ways would have been utilized
to identify the quality attributes required for effectively organizing the event.
Critical to Customer Requirements (CCR)
The Critical to Customer Requirements (CCR) is the expectation of the customer regarding a
specific aspect of the product or service such as about the quality, speed or any other. It is
such an expectation of the customer, considering which; customer might refuse to purchase
product or utilize service or plan to purchase from a competitor, if the expectations are not
fulfilled (SurveyMethods, 2018). As customers are considered to be as the final authority that
determines the ultimate value of the product or services by their decisions to use the products
or services, it is entirely based on the complicated system of critical requirements of the
customers. The customer value can be described in four areas i.e. Cost, Quality, Features and
Availability (CQFA).
In order to gain prosperity in business, the business process must perform well in at least one
of these four areas. By performing in an excellent way in at least anyone of these quadrants, it
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Image Source:http://www.sixleansigma.com/index.php/2017/07/26/determine-critical-customer-requirements/
can prosper, however, it should be kept in mind that level of bar of each quadrant keeps on
changing rapidly, so critical requirements of the customers should always be determined on
continuous basis (Lean Six Sigma.com, 2017).
In the FIFA World Cup tournament, the critical requirements of the customers considering
stadium viewers would have been the accessibility of easily available cost-effective entry
tickets, facility of refreshments, proper management and viewers outside the stadium would
have preferred availability of screens so that they could watch the tournament on them. The
critical requirements of internal customers would have been effective management and
supportive employees to lead the event towards successful performance of the tournament.
Critical to Quality parameters (CTQ)
Critical to Quality parameters (CTQ) are considered to be as the critical quality parameters
that are associated with the requirements of customers. However, it is not similar to the CTC
because it is significant to the quality of process or service in order to ensure providing things
important for the customers. The Quality Function Deployment (QFD) or CTQ tree
establishes relationship between the CTC and CTQ. CTQ helps in understanding the drivers
of quality as per the perception of the customers so that the products or services can be
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delivered. CTQ Trees are considered as tools that assist in developing and delivering quality
products and services. It is utilized to transform broad customer requirements in the manner
that it can be measured (iSixSigma, 2018).
Image Source: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/ctq-trees.htm
In the context of FIFA World Cup event, the critical requirements regarding organizing the
event would have been identified along with the specific quality drivers that would be
required to meet the needs and demands of the customers identified for the effective
management of the event. After the identification of the necessary performance requirements
required to satisfy each quality driver, for actually providing quality service or proper
management of the event, I would develop a list of performance measurable requirements
that must have been met to deliver high quality of management of the overall event
(MindTools, 2018).
Ways to implement lean project management
The value in project management can be specified by the identification of objectives,
deliverables and requirements. The value is considered as the end result of a project in the
form of actual purchase by customers. In order to avoid development of wastes since
beginning of the project, it is the duty of a project manager to establish close relationship
with the clients and to maintain effective communication with them.
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Value Stream is considered as one of the important areas for the project management and
majority of the things taking place in a project might be out of control particularly within a
strong matrix organization or in organizing such a huge event as FIFA World Cup
tournament. The existing project management value stream should be analysed in order to get
rid of waste in processes, and facilitate the residual value added flow. This will help to lead
processes of project management towards future state of value stream. As the information
flow through project management processes, the activities performed during the process add
value to the information. It transforms initiating inputs data into deliverables which include
scope statement, project management plan, risk register and many more.
The implementation of Lean thinking requires five core principles to be taken into
consideration;
 To understand the value-One of the important lean principles is to specify the
value and Womack and Jones (1996)has stated that the value of a product or
service can be understood as the capability offered to a customer as and when
required at the right price as depending upon the customers need. The challenge is
to emphasize on what the customers prefer to pay for the services that would have
been provided during the event (Abojaradeh, 2015).
 To map the value stream-The value stream refers to the sequence of the activities
that are involved in delivering the product or service with an agreed upon value
and, mapping the value stream refers to utilize the visualization techniques which
include Kanban, flowcharts, spaghetti diagrams for the purpose of representing the
flow(Chandra, 2014). After this the map is analysed for the purpose of waste as
well as value creation. On the basis of this, the future state map is developed;
whose main aim is to represents how the process could and should be operated.
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After this an improvement plan is generated which facilitates the transformation
from existing state to the future state (Hessing, 2014).
 To ensure value stream flow-the main aim of analysing the value stream is to
preserve and optimize the flow which is rate and evenness with which, items and
information proceed through value stream. To analyse value streams, work can be
categorized into three types i.e. value added work, value enabling work and non-
value added work (Narlock & Garber, 2012).
 To employ a pull approach- earlier push approach was being used by the
traditional manufacturers in which the targets of production according to the
schedule determined internally. This approach was not considered as customer
responsive as it not focused on the needs and demands of the customers. On the
other hand, pull approach focused on the needs and demands of the customers and
accordingly the production process is undertaken. The pull approach also requires
highly effective coordination of the information throughout the value stream to
make aware of the requirements and, inefficiencies do not arise due to mismatched
expectations (Niemi, 2015).
 To pursue continuous improvement- lean management is considered to be an on-
going incremental process that drives the need for constant improvement. With the
help of kaizen, the value stream can be consistently optimized and the defective
processes can be replaced in order to improve the quality (Smartsheet Inc., 2018).
Methodologies to support Lean Project Implementation
PMBOK: PMBOK is a project management guide that is developed by PMI. It defines the
practices and principles related to the quality management related to the project management.
It guides a project manager in context of quality issues that can affect the projects. It can be
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applied to the projects of different types. It offers knowledge to the project manager and the
project team in context of what is required to manage the project. PMBOK is a process-
oriented approach defined in the guide in terms of the activities and the inputs. In PMBOK,
there are five groups of process and nine areas of knowledge that is recognized in the guide.
The five process groups include (initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring and controlling
and closing. Nine knowledge areas include scope management, cost management,
communications management, project integration, human resource management, procurement
management, risk management, quality management and time management (Project
Management Institute, 2017). Each area of knowledge includes project management
processes. PMBOK focuses highly on customers and identifying the needs and the
requirements of the customers. In the area of managing the quality of the project, the
recommendations in PMBOK are easy to follow as well as clear. It helps in ensuring the
management of the project so that the quality of the project can be maintained in an effective
manner. It focuses on following the standards and the policy. It is described in PMBOK that
it is important to communicate with all the stakeholders of the project related to the progress
of the project. Along with this, it has also defined the process for acquiring and identifying
the resources required for the project. The description related to the method of reviewing the
resource requirements is emphasized highly (Rebaiaia & Vieira, 2014).
The process that is discussed in PMBOK can be used for FIFA World Cup 2018 in order to
manage the event in an effective manner. It can help in ensuring the quality of the event in an
efficient manner. PMBOK includes five processes which can support in effective
management of the event. The initiation process involves the development of the scope
document of the event, which can help in defining the project scope and defining the areas
under the scope of the project. The planning process can help in planning of the different
areas of the project such as the resources required, team required to perform the different
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activities of the project, risk management plan for the event and such others. In the execution
phase of the project, the activities related to the execution and the methods for execution of
the plan can be decided effectively. In the monitoring and controlling phase of the project, the
errors or the mistakes that is affecting the quality of the project can be identified. The
methods to eliminate errors can be identified and applied to enhance the project quality. The
closing phase of the project involves the activities related to closing of the event.
PRINCE2: PRINCE2 is a process- based method that is used for the project management.
The responsibilities and the roles of the people involved in a project can be assigned in an
effective manner. The processes that are involved in PRINCE2 help in explaining the
information that is required to be collected. The training is important for implementing
PRINCE2 so that the knowledge can be developed for managing the project. Following the
guidelines for application of PRINCE2 can benefit the project (Adler, 2018). In FIFA World
Cup 2018 event, the team members can be provided with the effective training so that they
can perform the activities of the project in a successful manner.
Agile methods: the agile methods follow four important values that include the interactions
upon the tools and the processes, customer collaboration upon the negotiation of the contract,
responding to change through following a plan (White, 2008). It includes the principles that
are satisfaction of the customers through the delivery of the project, managing the changing
requirements, the project is the main measure of the progress, sustainable development, face
to face communication, cooperation among the project manager and the clients, involvement
of the motivated individuals, focus upon the technical excellence, simplicity, adaptation to
the change and self-organization teams (AltexSoft , 2018). There are different methods such
as eXtreme Programming, Crystal Methods, Dynamic Systems Development Method,
Feature-Driven Development, Adaptive Software Development and Lean Development. The
specific techniques used in these methods are different. There are many different
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characteristics that are common in these methods. These methods have different common
characteristics that include short iterative lifecycles, constant learning, frequent and quick
feedback from the customers. In FIFA World Cup 2018 event, the agile methodologies can be
implemented in order to deliver quality results to the clients and to satisfy the customers in an
effective manner. The agile methodologies can help in improving the project on the
continuous basis through which the effective results can be delivered. The use of the right
method in the project can help in enhancing the experience of the customers and successful
completion of the event.
Lean six sigma: The process of lean six sigma supports in solving the problem of the project.
There are five phases in lean six sigma that includes define (it focuses in defining the
problem), measure (outline the current process), analyse (determine the reason of the
problem), improve (apply and verify the solution) and control (maintain the solution). It is
also called as DMAIC (Wedgwood, 2007). Six sigma and lean complement each other. Lean
speed up six sigma in order to deliver better results in comparison to the results that are
achieved through six sigma approach and lean approach separately. Lean six sigma method is
the combination of two methods that helps the improvement in team of the project and
provide with the tool that supports in increasing the effectiveness and the speed of the process
of the project (Go Lean Six Sigma, 2012). It can help in reducing the cost of the project; can
help in improving the collaboration and can help in increasing the revenue. Lean Six sigma
helps in providing with the guidelines and delivers the effective quality project with the
sustainable results (Alexander, 2018).
In FIFA World Cup 2018 event, the lean six sigma method can be implemented. This method
can help in the effective delivery of the project of high quality. The implementation of this
method can help the project manager to speed up the activities of the events and reduce the
cost of the project. The problems that are taking the form of hurdles in the project can be
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identified in an effective manner. In order to resolve the problem, the current process needs to
be analysed in order to identify the major problems in the project. After this, the
implementation of the solution through its verification can be help in improving the process
and resolving the problem. In this process, it is important to maintain the implemented
solution for obtaining the effective results. This can help in accomplishing the event in an
efficient manner.
All these methods and the processes can help in dealing with the problems and finding out the
solutions for the problems. These methodologies can help in delivering the high quality
event. The implementation of these processes can help in the effective management of the
FIFA World Cup 2018 event in an effective manner. The elimination of the problems and the
issues in the event is important in order to satisfy the customers and clients in an effective
manner.
References
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