Managing a Successful Business Project: A Case Study of Harrods

This project examines the opportunities and impact of digital technology in Harrods, a luxury departmental store in London. It explores the challenges and benefits of implementing digital technologies such as cloud technology, social media, storage and distribution, and artificial intelligence. The project utilizes both qualitative and quantitative research methods to analyze the impact of digital transformation on Harrods' operations and business activities. The research findings provide valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities faced by the organization, and the project concludes with recommendations for dealing with the identified challenges.

Managing a Successful Business Project

Table of Contents
Task 1...........................................................................................................................4
LO1 Establish project aims, objectives and timeframes based on the chosen theme.4
P1-Devise project aims and objectives for a chosen scenario addressing the chosen
tile as specified above..................................................................................................4
Project Definition...........................................................................................................4
Problem Statement.......................................................................................................4
Project Strategy............................................................................................................5
Project Objective...........................................................................................................5
P2 – Produce a project management plan that covers aspects of cost, scope, time,
quality, communication, risk and resources for the chosen project.............................5
Cost and Activities of the Project..................................................................................5
Deliverables..................................................................................................................6
Project Scope Statement..............................................................................................6
Included Scope.........................................................................................................6
Excluded Scope........................................................................................................6
Success Criteria............................................................................................................7
Project Assumptions.....................................................................................................7
Risk Assessment..........................................................................................................7
P3 Produce a work breakdown structure and a Gantt chart to provide timeframes
and stages for completion with reference to the chosen project..................................8
Implementation Plan.....................................................................................................8
Schedule (Gantt chart).................................................................................................9
Gantt chart..................................................................................................................10
Figure 1: Gantt Chart..................................................................................................11
Project Processes.......................................................................................................11

Task 2.........................................................................................................................13
LO2 Conduct small- scale research, information gathering and data collection,
generating knowledge to support the project as specified above:.............................13
P4-Carry out small-scale research by applying qualitative and quantitative research
methods appropriate for meeting project aims and objectives for the chosen
scenario......................................................................................................................13
Reference List.............................................................................................................25
Appendix 1- Risk Assessment................................................................................26

Task 1
LO1 Establish project aims, objectives and timeframes based on the chosen
theme
P1-Devise project aims and objectives for a chosen scenario addressing the
chosen tile as specified above.
Project Definition
The Project will examine the opportunities and impact of Digital technology in
Harrods. The company is a luxury departmental store that is located in
Knightsbridge, London. Charles Henry Harrod founded the company on 1834
(Lucas, 2015). The company has successfully introduced luxury and quality products
with more than three hundred departments showing more than twelve thousand
employees working in the organisation. It offers a wide range of service and
products. the products includes clothing, jewellery, sports gear, electronics, food and
drink, stationeries, furniture and many more. The main area reflecting the project is
to understand the impact of digital technologies implemented in the business
process. Therefore to explore the opportunities or challenges faced by the company
in implementation of technological advancements that are cloud technology, social
media, storage and distribution and artificial intelligence.
Problem Statement
The major areas that have shown the problematic areas in the project are to identify
specific social media contents while implementing the effective communication
through digital technology (Uzunoğlu and Kip, 2014). Recognizing the fact that every
individual has its own perception to the changing trends, hence it becomes difficult to
select the content as per the different preferences to the products. The second
aspect reflects the budget in implementing the digital technologies within the
organisation as the Artificial intelligence and machineries show high investments and
maintenance charges to ensure the smooth working in the production process. Cloud
technology and internet connectivity has helped the organisation to store files and

share the information effectively in the place but has also increased the risk to be
hacked by unknown intruders. Such risk requires frequent updates and up-gradation
of security bridges hence the company has to purchase the software more of an
often to secure the confidential data. Such measures lead to compromise the budget
of the company.
Project Strategy
The strategy is to analyse the impact of implementing digital technology at Harrods
by using the method of primary data collection technique. The business researcher
will develop a business project in order to investigate the business environment and
market (Botha et al., 2014). The project would provide a competitive advantage and
provide a better idea about the impact of the strategy on the organisation and its key
stakeholders.
Project Objective
The objective of this project have been listed below-
 To analyse the impact of implementation of digital technology at Harrods
 To analyse the extent to which the digital technology has benefitted Harrods
 To evaluate the challenges and opportunities experienced by the organisation
due to digital transformation
 To provide relevant recommendation for dealing with the identified challenges
P2 – Produce a project management plan that covers aspects of cost, scope,
time, quality, communication, risk and resources for the chosen project
Cost and Activities of the Project
Activities Time Cost/hour (£) Total Cost (£)
Collecting the
Data
30 20 600
Assessing the
data
25 20 500
Setting the 25 10 250

budget of the
entire project
Referring to
different digital
solutions
35 10 350
Creating the final
report
10 15 150
TOTAL 1850
Table 1: Cost and Time objective of the Project
(Source: created by the learner)
Deliverables
The deliverables refers to the intangible or tangible services to be produced by
Harrods in terms to improve the implementation process of digital technology so that
to result the project effectively delivering the intended product and services efficiently
to the potential customers. Harrods management system will adopt innovative
changes in protecting the data and implementing the artificial intelligence effectively
in the place, the company will improvise the business process and operations to
communicate efficiently with the customers and improve its digital solutions in the
industry.
Project Scope Statement
Included Scope
 To understand the impact of different digital technology on the operations and
business activities of Harrods
 To identify the challenges faced by the organisation
 To take the opinion of stakeholders to develop strategies to deal with the
identified challenges
 To utilise the opportunities in order to improve the current operations of the
business organisation

Excluded Scope
 Devising effective plan after analysing the impact of digital transformation at
Harrods
 Informing and training the employees about how they can deal with the
ongoing issues related to digital technology implementation
Success Criteria
Digital technology can provide any business organisation a competitive advantage
over its competitors and enhance its operational procedure. This project would be
considered successful if the business organisation and its management is able to
identify the opportunities and deal with the various challenges (Fitzgerald et al.,
2014).
Project Assumptions
 Harrods has successfully implemented the various digital technologies in its
business operation to communicate, share and produce the products and
services.
 The organisation has ensured the employee capability and ability to
understand and work with the technological advancements implemented.
 The company has identified and utilized the various resources present
internally and externally to proceed with the strategies determined.
Risk Assessment
The assessment refers to the systematic approaches or process to evaluate the
potential risks that involves the undertaken projected activity in the place. The risk
that can arise in implementing the new digital technology in the business operation
refers to the knowledge gap, technical issues and security bridges. The knowledge
gap reflects the lack of understanding of new technological advancements by the
concerned employees working in Harrods. Such lack of information can lead an
ineffective utilization of the digital advancements hence spoiling the benefits that can
be obtained in the workplace.
The technical failures or technical issues increase the problematic area in
implementation of new artificial intelligence in the workplace. Ineffective utilization

and implementation can lead a back foot to the productivity hence to ignore such
factor, employee training is necessary inform the technical knowledge and train the
employees to utilize the technologies effectively in the place.
P3 Produce a work breakdown structure and a Gantt chart to provide
timeframes and stages for completion with reference to the chosen project.
Implementation Plan
The plan of Harrods is to inform the management about plan to achieve its future
objectives effectively. Various steps would be taken in order to deal with the
challenges and understand the overall impact on the business.
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
Task Activity Name
Analysing the impact of adopting new digital technology in Harrods
1.0 Project Initiation
1.1 Preparatory research
1.2 Selection of suitable sample population
1.3 Questionnaire preparation for quantitative data collection
1.4 Interview questions for qualitative data collection
2.0 Implementation stage
2.1 Conducting the Quantitative research
2.2 Conducting the Qualitative research
2.3 Data gathering
2.4 Organising the data collected from the research
2.5 Analysing the data and achieving the suitable conclusions
3.0 Concluding Stage
3.1 Final report preparation
3.2 Presentation of final project report to the concerned stakeholders
3.3 Concluding the project
4.0 Final Submission

Schedule (Gantt chart)
Task Activity Name
Start date
Durati
on
(days) End Date
Analyse the impact of adopting new digital technology in Harrods
1.0 Project Initiation
6/1/2018 12 6/13/2018
1.1 Preparatory research 6/1/2018 3 6/4/2018
1.2 Selection of suitable sample population 6/4/2018 2 6/6/2018
1.3 Questionnaire preparation for
quantitative data collection 6/6/2018 4 6/10/2018
1.4 Interview questions for qualitative data
collection 6/10/2018 3 6/13/2018
2.0 Implementation stage 6/13/2018 15 6/28/2018
2.1 Conducting the Quantitative research 6/13/2018 3 6/16/2018
2.2 Conducting the Qualitative research 6/16/2018 3 6/19/2018
2.3 Data gathering 6/19/2018 3 6/22/2018
2.4 Organising the data collected from the
research 6/22/2018 3 6/25/2018
2.5 Analysing the data and achieving the
suitable conclusions 6/25/2018 3 6/28/2018
3.0 Concluding Stage 6/28/2018 15 7/13/2018
3.1 Final report preparation 6/28/2018 5 7/3/2018
3.2 Presentation of final project report to 7/3/2018 5 7/8/2018

the concerned stakeholders
3.3 Concluding the project 7/8/2018 5 7/13/2018
4.0 Final Submission 7/13/2018 3 7/16/2018
Gantt chart

Project Initiation
Preparatory research
Selection of suitable sample population
Questionnaire preparation for quantitative data collection
Interview questions for qualitative data collection
Implementation stage
Conducting the Quantitative research
Conducting the Qualitative research
Data gathering
Organising the data collected from the research
Analysing the data and achieving the suitable conclusions
Concluding Stage
Final report preparation
Presentation of final project report to the concerned
stakeholders
Concluding the project
Final Submission
6/1/2018 6/21/2018 7/11/2018
Figure 1: Gantt Chart
(Source: Created by the learner)
Project Processes
The project plan is directed and controlled to achieve the project conceptions and
initiations of the digital technology in developing the business operations. Therefore
planning accordingly the project plan, while executing the strategies and enhancing

the business performances to achieve the business objectives (Krajewski et al.,
2015).
Communication Plan
The plan reflects the policies that Harrods has adapted in approaching the
stakeholders with necessary information to the related stakeholders. Therefore the
plan defines to provide right information delivery and select appropriate
communication channels. The plan introduces new business process to bring
required changes in the company system (Jones et al., 2016).

Task 2
LO2 Conduct small- scale research, information gathering and data collection,
generating knowledge to support the project as specified above:
P4-Carry out small-scale research by applying qualitative and quantitative
research methods appropriate for meeting project aims and objectives for the
chosen scenario.
In order to carry out this research, the researcher selected the method of primary
data collection and focused on collecting both qualitative and quantitative. In case of
quantitative data collection, the researcher has used the method of survey where the
perspective of the employees regarding the impact of the implementation of digital
technology in the organisation. On the other hand, qualitative data collection, the
researcher used the method of interview where the managers of Harrods were
interviewed.
Quantitative Data Collection
The method is utilized to optimize the objective measurements from the data
collected from the hundred respondents, that is, employees of Harrods. A survey
among 100 employees from the various departments has been conducted (Gray and
Payne, 2014).
Q1. How long have you been employed in Harrods?
Options Respondent
percentage
Respondents Total Respondents
Less than a year 25% 25 100
1 to 3 years 35% 35 100
3 to 5 years 25% 25 100
More than 5 years 15% 15 100

Table 1: Service span in Harrods
Q2. Which digital technology has contributed most to improve the company
activities?
Digital
Technologies
Respondents
Percentage
Respondents Total respondents
Artificial Intelligence
and Big Data
Analysis
30% 30 100
The Internet of
Things
20% 20 100
Social Media and
Mobile Technology
35% 35 100
Cloud Technology 15% 15 100
Table 2: digital technology in improving business activity
Q3. What are the benefits of implementing mobile technology and social media
platforms?
Options Respondents
Percentage
Respondents Total respondents
To achieve valuable
Customer insights
22% 22 100
Increasing the
customer exposure
18% 18 100
Information sharing 60% 60 100
Table 3: Beneficial aspects of Mobile technology and social media
Q4. How do you think the cloud technology contributes in improving the
administrative aspects in Harrods?
Options Respondents Respondents Total respondents

Percentage
Collaboration
efficiency
25% 25 100
Flexibility in IT work
practices
30% 30 100
Scalability 15% 15 100
Security to Data 30% 30 100
Table 4: contribution of cloud technology in improving the administrative
aspects
Q5. Do you agree that the internet of Things has influenced the connectivity
between different systems in Harrods business structure?
Options Respondents
Percentage
Respondents Total respondents
Strongly Agree 22% 22 100
Agree 25% 25 100
Neutral 18% 18 100
Disagree 15% 15 100
Strongly Disagree 20% 20 100
Table 5: Internet of Things influences the connectivity towards the integral
systems
Q6. How far do you agree that the implementation of big data analytics and
artificial intelligence has helped Harrods to produce its goods and services in
a more effective manner?
Options Respondents
Percentage
Respondents Total respondents
Strongly Agree 20% 20 100
Agree 35% 35 100
Neutral 15% 15 100
Disagree 20% 20 100
Strongly Disagree 10% 10 100
Table 6: Implementation of big data analytics and artificial intelligence has
helped Harrods to produce its goods and services

Qualitative Data Collection
In order to obtain more details about the impact of implementation of digital
technology in the organisation the researcher has interviewed two managers of
Harrods (Palinkas et al., 2015).
Q1. How do you think that social media and mobile technology has allowed the
business to connect its stakeholders or customers in the marketplace?
As per the first manager of Harrods, the person has positively embraced the impact
of new technological advancements in the workplace. The manager ensures that
social media platforms have helped the organisation major investments on
advertisements and product promotions in the marketplace. The second manager
has also said the beneficial areas of connectivity through both social and mobile
technologies. The technological advancements have helped the organisation to
connect the potential customers globally.
Q2. What do you think about the modern technological implementation has
influenced the business operation?
The first manager has highlighted both the positive, negative aspect of adapting
technological advancement within the business operations has efficiently improved
the production process in utilizing the artificial intelligence, and cloud storage
technologies hence reflected the negative aspect of recruiting highly efficient
employees in the place while taking on the charges to train them. The second
manager has also provided the same opinion on technological advancements stating
to the risks of security bridges in the cloud computing hence the company has to
check the upgrading of secured software frequently in the place. Moreover, as per
the positive aspect the manager has also admired the high storage facility that has
improved the hardware investments in the place and giving the company a
competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Task 3
LO3 Present the project and communicate appropriate recommendations
based on meaningful conclusions drawn from the evidence findings and /or
analysis
P5 – Analyse research and data using appropriate tools and techniques for the
chosen project
Q1. How long have you been employed in Harrods?
Less than a Year 1 to 3 years 3 to 5 Years More than 5 Years
25%
35%
25%
15%
Response
Response
Figure 1: Employee tenure
Findings and analysis
According to this figure, maximum respondents reported that they are working in the
organization since, 1 to 3 years. About 25% of the total respondents reported that
they have a working experience of less than a year in the organization while only 155
reported that have more than years of work experience in Harrods.
Q2. Which digital technology has contributed most to improve the company
activities?

25%
35%
25%
15%
Response
Big Data Analytics and AI Internet of Things
Mobile Technology and Social Media Technology Cloud Technology
Figure 2: View of respondents on impact of digital technology
Findings and analysis
The findings and analysis show that social media technology and artificial
intelligence have had major impact in the performance and productivity of the
organization. Harrods have also implemented cloud technology and internet of things
in there company activities, which have contributed marginally. The respondents
reported that social media technology have enabled them to interact and
communicate more efficiently with customers, thereby fostering customer
relationship and bonding. Cloud technology allows storing, managing and retrieving
customer data easily, important for understanding their needs and requirements.
Q3. What are the benefits of implementing mobile technology and social media
platforms?

22%
18%
60%
Response
To achieve valuable customer insights Increasing Customer Exposure
Information Sharing
Figure 3: View of respondents on impact of mobile and social technology
Findings and analysis
Largest percentage of respondents reported that social media and mobile technology
have contributed immensely in sharing information with customers. Another valuable
contribution of mobile technology has been to gain customer insights and increase
customer exposure. The respondents reported that the company have been able to
attract more customers since the implementation of mobile technology and use of
social media platforms.
Q4. How do you think the cloud technology contributes in improving the
administrative aspects in Harrods?

Collaboration efficiency
Flexibility in IT work
Scalability
Security of Data
25%
30%
15%
30%
Response
Response
Figure 4: Impact of cloud technology in improving administrative aspects
Findings and analysis
According to the respondents, the major impact of cloud technology have been in
improving the efficiency of IT work and securing database of the company. Few
respondents reported that cloud technology has contributed in the improvement of
scalability of business. Cloud technology enables the organizations to store their
data in a remote database instead of hard drives and local storage devices. To
retrieve data, one only needs access to web suitable programs to run it.
Q5. Do you agree that the internet of Things has influenced the connectivity
between different systems in Harrods business structure?

39%
27%1%
16%
18%
Response
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral
Disagree Strongly Disagree
Figure 5: View of respondents on impact of Internet of Things on Harrods
business structure
Findings and analysis
About 40% and 29% respondents agreed to the fact that internet of things has
influenced connectivity between different systems in Harrods business structure.
Few respondents disagreed with this and only 1% percentage reported a neutral
reply. However, maximum respondents showed that internet of things have resulted
in positive outcomes for the company.
Q6. How far do you agree that the implementation of big data analytics and
artificial intelligence has helped Harrods to produce its goods and services in
a more effective manner?

33%
35%
2%
20%
10%
Response
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral
Disagree Strongly Disagree
Figure 5: View of respondents on impact of artificial intelligence on Harrods
efficiency
Findings and analysis
About 33% and 35% respondents strongly agreed and agreed with the fact that
impact of implementing artificial intelligence and data analytics have had positive
influence on the company’s activities. Only 2% respondents provided a neutral view
while 20% and 10% employees disagreed. This shows that majority of employees
have a positive outlook towards the implementation of digital technology.
P6 – Communicate appropriate recommendations as a result of research and
data analysis to draw valid and meaningful conclusions for the chosen project
The above findings and analysis show that the company Harrods have successfully
implemented the digital technology in their practises and activities. Most of the
respondents shared that impact of digital technology has improved the abilities of
organization to attract and satisfy customers more efficiently. According to findings,
only 15% respondents feel that cloud technology has helped in improving the
company’s activities; however, cloud technology is an advanced technology and can
have major positive impact. Harrods can use cloud system for reducing the
expenditure on buying hardware and software for maintain and recording database.
It avoids the need of servers, electricity for power and cooling and IT experts for
handling organizational database.

Few respondents think that mobile technology has improved customer exposure,
nevertheless, mobile technology and social media have the potential to boost
relationship with customers and build trust and strong bond with them. It also allows
getting customer feedback quickly and identifying recent customer trends and
preferences. About 30% of respondents feel that internet of things have not
influenced much in improving the connectivity between different structures of
Harrods business structure. However, internet of things is a wide technology and can
take businesses to greater heights in near future, due to its immense applications.
Internet of things allows connecting cars, smart wearable’s, cities, industries and so
on. This improved connectivity can enable Harrods to manufacture superior quality
products and services. It can be used for controlling quality and sustainability in
businesses. Harrods can use this technology to monitor and track their products,
exchange information with suppliers and vendors; this will immensely improve the
company’s supply chain efficiency. Hence, with the help of this analysis, the
management team at Harrods can analyse the change and identify the risks in an
effective manner.

Task 4
LO4 Reflect on the value gained from conducting the project and its
usefulness to support sustainable organisational performance for the chosen
project.
P7 Reflect on the value of undertaking the research to meet stated objectives
and own learning and performance.
After completing this project, I have able to understand the impact of digital
technology in the activities and functions of organizations. Digital technology has
touched the lives of billions of people and radically transformed a common person
lives. However, its influence on business practises has been even more drastic and
incredible. Business have become more self reliant and efficient due to technology
and the amount of time and capital required to complete activities and actions have
reduced to considerable extent. The project provided an opportunity to understand
recent developments in digital technology and their implications within businesses.
Internet of things and cloud computing are few recent developments that have found
immense using in business organizations. Internet of things is a technology that
allows devices to connect with each other and therefore share information with much
ease and efficiency. All electronic devices can be connected with each other such as
washing machines, cars, electronic gadgets, and Smart wearables and cities.
Businesses can improve their productivity and performance by successfully
implementing Internet of Things in their operational activities.
The study helped me to analyze the implementation of cloud computing in
organizations. Cloud computing is cloud based technology that eliminated the need
of storing necessary data and information in local hard drives, instead they can be
stored in remote database, which can be accessed using web and software. This
makes it too easy to carry out recovery of data, backup, because data can be stored
on multiple redundant sites on the cloud network. I thoroughly enjoyed working on
this project and the entire experience was enriching and exciting.

Reference List
Botha, A., Kourie, D. and Snyman, R., 2014. Coping with continuous change in the
business environment: Knowledge management and knowledge management
technology. Elsevier.
Fitzgerald, M., Kruschwitz, N., Bonnet, D. and Welch, M., 2014. Embracing digital
technology: A new strategic imperative. MIT sloan management review, 55(2), p.1.
Gray, L. and Payne, K., 2014. Quantitative data collection. An introduction to health
services research London, Sage Google Scholar.
Jones, K., Hollands, G.J., Shemilt, I., Doyle, J. and Armstrong, R., 2016. Planning
and implementing a targeted and strategic dissemination plan for a Cochrane review:
a case study. Journal of Public Health, 38(3), pp.630-632.
Krajewski, L.J., Ritzman, L.P. and Malhotra, M.K., 2015. Operations management:
processes and supply chains. New York, EEUU: Prentice hall.
Lucas, C., 2015. Capturing the Magic of the Customer Experience at Harrods: An
Exploration into Theatrical Performance in Modern Luxury Retail. Journal of
Promotional Communications, 3(3).
Palinkas, L.A., Horwitz, S.M., Green, C.A., Wisdom, J.P., Duan, N. and Hoagwood,
K., 2015. Purposeful sampling for qualitative data collection and analysis in mixed
method implementation research. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and
Mental Health Services Research, 42(5), pp.533-544.
Uzunoğlu, E. and Kip, S.M., 2014. Brand communication through digital influencers: Leveraging
blogger engagement. International Journal of Information Management, 34(5), pp.592-602.

Appendix 1- Risk Assessment
Live Risks
Sl.no. Date
Identifie
d
Owner Risk Type of
Probabili
ty
Impac
t Level
Impact on the
Project
Actions to
reduce risks
Triggers
and
Actions in
case of
risk
1. 17th
June,
2017
Budget
Manager
Budget cost Medium Mediu
m
In case, the
budget cost is
not known and
planned
beforehand. It
will create
issues to
implement and
accomplish
tasks and
activities.
Working
collaborativel
y with
finance
department
will enable to
increase
efficiency
and improve
the planning
process.
Trigger
Issues
need to be
identified
on time.
Actions
The
managers
and owners
of the
company
need to be
aware of
the
financial
situation.
2. 1st July,
2017
HR and
project
manager
s
Communicati
on issue
High High Lack of
communicatio
n can lead to
mismanageme
nt of all
activities and
create havoc
in internal and
external
processes.
Proper
implementati
on of
technology
and training
to employees
need to
provided to
avoid such
situations
Triggers
Lack of
proper
manageme
nt to
identify
risks.
Actions
The
managers
need to
take steps
to foster
friendly
atmospher
e within
organizatio
n.
Expired Risks
Sl.no. Date
Identified
Owner Risk Type of
Probability
Impact
Level
Impact on
the Project
Actions to
reduce risks
Triggers and
Actions in case
of risk
1. 2nd June Inter-
department
process
Risk of
wastage
of
financial
resources
Medium Medium The
projects
would miss
their
deadlines,
thus
increasing
the budget.
Allowing
different
departments
to work
together and
share
information
about
Triggers
Analyze the link
and
communication
between
different
departments.
Actions

Sl.no. Date
Identified
Owner Risk Type of
Probability
Impact
Level
Impact on
the Project
Actions to
reduce risks
Triggers and
Actions in case
of risk
activities. Using suitable
technology to
eliminate such
risks