PPMP20012 Term 1, 2018 Online Test - Answered Questions

PPMP20012 Term 1, 2018 Online Test
Student Name:
Student ID:
Notes:
 Please ensure you also fill in your name and student ID above.
 Upon completion, and within the time 2-hour limit (+15 minutes for reading), you are to submit
this question sheet with answers to 5 of the 10 questions using the assessment submission
link located in the “Review/Exam” Week section in Moodle of this unit.
 You need to answer only 5 questions in this document.
 Each questions that you answer is worth 7% (total max 35% for 5 questions).
 Add more lines to your answer as you need.
 Make sure you save the document continuously while you are working on it.
 Your test answers will undergo similarity checks using Turnitin.
 Your file format must be a Word format *.doc or *.docx file.
 Please make sure you provide references in APA Style.
 You must make sure you upload your assignment even if that means you upload it
early. You must not use a failure of technology as an excuse for missing the deadline.
Only answer 5 of the 10 questions below:
1. The Prime Minister of Australia knocks on your door and ask you to quickly explain to him in no
more than five sentences “Why should my ministers use systems thinking in managing the
government?” What do you tell him by incorporating the key benefits of systems thinking that
will be gained by those ministers and the country?
Answer to Question 1:
System Thinking would allow the ministers of the government to make informed choices and help
them in telling compelling stories. In addition to this, it the holistic approach that helps in the analysis
of the constitutes of the system inter relates information about how the system is working over a
course of time (Ostuzzi, Dejonghe & Detand, 2017). Additionally, there are various other key benefits
to the system that the government can obtain from the utilization of the system thinking concept. The
ministers can follow the principles of system thinking and gain significant improvements in the
Government-imposed measurement Bureaucracy that is mandatory to some extent. It also provides
the ministers with efficient monitoring and reporting techniques. It not only helps the people to be
valued who work, but also helps in eradication of wasteful bureaucracy and also in cutting costs and
enormous scale. Hence, system thinking is advisable for the government of Australia and the
Australian prime minister as it provides the government with a range of choices available for the
solution of a particular type of problem and also help the ministers associated with the government to
broaden their thinking and help in articulating the problems in new and innovative type of procedures.
It would also make them aware of the fact that there is never a perfect solution, the choices available
1 of 6

are to be measured and the choice is to made accordingly. It would change the way the government
thinks forever and create efficient problem solving strategies. For example, the Japanese dictum is to
be referred, “the fish rots in the head”.
2. You have to train project managers in systems thinking. What are the specific ideas, concepts
and methodologies related to systems thinking that you would refer to in training the project
managers?
Answer to Question 2:
The system Thinking concepts have become very essential for the project managers to gain
an efficient knowledge in. It provides them with various innovative concepts as the traditional
concepts of divide and conquer, linear, top-down or bottom up are becoming very similar and
inefficient in the projects of the recent times (Ostuzzi, Dejonghe & Detand, 2017). It can help the
managers in obtaining an efficient success and help them in incorporating the innovative concepts in
the traditional idea for the project development and problem solving within a project. The following
tools and methodologies should be main targeted area in which the project managers of the
organizations are to trained in:
Project modelling, optimisation and control
Project evaluation techniques, review techniques and critical path analysis.
Soft systems thinking
Exploring perspectives and requirements.
The four categories in which generally the projects are divide are: Dynamic, Complex, Simple,
Complicated.
Systems thinking across the life cycle
Concept – Rich picture
Implementation – System architecture diagrams
Evaluation – Planning and modelling of the scenario, Preforming the Analysis of the policy
documents and, Action learning
The five-phase systems thinking and methodology process
Dynamic Modelling
Causal Loop Diagram
Scenario Planning and Modelling
Problem Structuring
Implementation
Systems thinking tools
Structural thinking tools
Brainstorming – Fishbone Diagram
Computer-based tools
Dynamic Thinking tools – Casual loop diagram, System architecture diagram
3. Please explain the following diagram?
2 of 6

Answer to Question 3:
The diagrams provided above can be used for the explanations of the questions that arise about
the similarity in the roles of the project managers and the system engineers are similar or not. Since,
both the individuals have similar type of skills and job profiles the question becomes very genuine
about their similarities and hence, the requirement of comparison arises (Martinelli & Milosevic,
2016). However, the comparison can only yield a static result but projects are very dynamic in nature
and different projects have different logics and different outcomes and hence, the above diagram
provides the relativity of the projects and the roles of the system engineers and the project managers.
In the first scenario, a project scene is described where are roles of the project manager and the
system engineers are very different and they do not intercept each other’s roles. Hence no
communication in between them is required. IN the second scenario, the situation of a project is given
where the role of the project manager and the system engineer is almost similar and the system
engineer has to work with the consent of the project manager and vice versa. Hence, the
communication in between the project manager and the system engineer needs to be very efficient.
In the third scenario the project manager and the system engineer intersects each other and hence, it
is to be inferred that the project manager is actually the system engineer in this project. And all the
roles and responsibilities for the project are related to the same person. For Example, in a website
development project the system engineer itself is the project manager and all the team member
responds to the system engineer.
4. Why are systems thinking and systems engineering relevant to project, program and portfolio
management?
Answer to Question 4:
System thinking concept is basically the process of using a framework for the incorporation of
the interrelated things. Individual elements of a system are considered in the context of the entire
domain of interaction. "System" here could mean any collection of things that interact. It is holistic
thinking (Frank & Kordova, 2015). It utilizes the stern actions that are to be taken for the development
of the projects and also the development of the system designs which are efficient and effective in
course of development of the organization. It also provides scope for the execution of the effective
project, program and portfolio management. The relevance of the system thinking and system
engineering with project, program and portfolio management are,
Similar Functions:
The functions like management of integration, risk management, process management, Quality
Management and requirement management which are the system engineering functions are used for
the proper execution of the project, program and portfolio management.
Application of Programmatic:
3 of 6