Project Management in Amazon's Drone and Alexa Services

The assignment provides a detailed analysis of project management in Amazon's drone and Alexa services. It emphasizes the need for contingency funds to deal with unforeseen events and regular check-ups on operations. The success of these projects can be measured by evaluating customer responses and reviewing sales data. The assignment concludes that effective project management is crucial for achieving global excellence.

Project Development and
Implementation for
Strategic Managers

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK1.............................................................................................................................................3
Identifying the project.................................................................................................................3
TASK2.............................................................................................................................................4
Project feasibilities and methodologies.......................................................................................4
TASK3.............................................................................................................................................7
Project plan..................................................................................................................................7
TASK4.............................................................................................................................................9
Project control.............................................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCE.................................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Project management is concerned with the developing plans and utilising company’s
resources so that the particular task, events and duties will move in a forwards direction for the
completion of the project. This outlines the various steps which are required for managing a
project from its inception stage till the completion of the project (Binder, 2016). Organisation
undertaken in this report is Amazon which was founded in 1994 and deals in cloud computing
and e- commerce industry. This report will explain the identification of the project, its feasibility
and methodologies. Then the report will provide detail description of the project plan and various
control measure for monitoring the plan.
TASK1
Identifying the project.
Company overview
Amazon is the world's largest online cloud service provider and retailer. This company
was founded in 1994 and deals in cloud computing industries, consumer electronics, e-
commerce and digital distribution. It serves its customers with numerous products and services
like Amazon echo, fire, TV, prime videos, Alexa, music, etc. The company originally deals with
the book seller but later on it has expanded the business to sell variety of consumer goods and
digital media (Crawford, 2014). It is a international retail company and deals in e commerce
industry as one of the largest online shopping application. Amazon has become the UK’s fifth
biggest retailer by spending market share, accounting for £4 in every £100 spent on retail last
year. It is also flourishing faster than numerous of its challengers. Its market value is thought to
have increased by 22.5% in 2018 in comparison to total online spend rising 8.4%, suggesting it is
stealing share from competitors (Ecommerce in The United Kingdom, 2019).
Business objectives
 Ensuring customer satisfaction to the existing customers and attracting new ones.
 To enhance the delivery system of the company such that it takes lesser time for the
product to reach to the customers.
 Introducing continuous innovations and developing new acquisitions.
Two potential projects which has emerged from the existing objectives are :
 For enhancing the delivery system of the Amazon, it has brought in Drone.

 Promotion and selling of products with the help of Alexa is a innovative concept.
TASK2
Project feasibilities and methodologies.
Feasibility of the project determines the viability of an idea such as assuring that the
project is technically and legally feasible and economically justifiable. Before implementing any
project, the company is required to evaluate the feasibility which is a discipline and documented
process of thinking with an idea in logical senses (Fleming and Koppelman, 2016). This is very
important to take in account because it forecasts that whether the project will be successful in
accomplishing the business objectives or not. Furthermore, the project can be assessed on five
important aspects in Amazon and they are discussed below :
 Technical feasibility : This assessment is concerned with the technical resources that are
available to the Amazon. It includes innovative technological tools and equipments,
hardware, software and other requirements that are necessary so that organisational goals
and objectives can be accomplished. For instance, the Amazon will require advanced
technology to improve delivery system with the use of Drone. Apart from this, Alexa it
self is a technological innovative concept which itself will require higher and advanced
technology. So the project is technically feasible to implement as the company itself is
covered with lots of different types of technological projects.
 Economic feasibility : This assessment deals in identifying and analysing the financial or
profitability of the project. It will help the Amazon's project in determining the viability
cost and benefit which are connected with the project before analysing or allocation of
financial resources are done. Therefore, Amazon has a strong market value in terms of
financial and due to its strong goodwill, it will hardly face any problem of finance and so
the project is feasible in terms of economy.
 Legal feasibility : This assessment is concerned with the legal laws and legislations
which will be required to protect the company and the project. It includes data protection
acts, social media, employment acts, etc. It will help the Amazon in knowing that
whether the project is feasible or not right from the inception stage. Amazon is highly
linked and concerned with its operations to perform legally because it places equal

importance to the ethics therefore, the project is feasible as it will be licensed and patent
and copyrights will protect the project with any kind of infringement.
 Operational feasibility : This is concerned with analysing and examining the needs and
requirements of the organisation in order to initiate the proposed plans. As the drone
project is initiated to improve the delivery channel because customer wants more quicker
delivery of services, so the project is highly feasible in this context as well.
 Scheduling feasibility : This is concerned with the time frame and it is very crucial
assessment of feasibility (Kerzner and Kerzner, 2017). It is important because the project
will fail if it will not be completed on time. It assess the relevant time frame within which
the project is needed to be completed.
Project Methodologies
Project methodologies is defined as a practices, techniques, rules and procedures which
are taken into consideration by those who work in a discipline. The primary motive of theses
methodologies is to support and guide project managers such that they can accomplish the
project till the completion successfully. These methodologies are useful as they act as they helps
in developing a structure in Amazon. There are various types of project methodologies and they
are discussed below :
 Agile : This methodology is one of the most common and identifiable. It is best
appropriate for the projects which requires innovative, interactive and incremental in
nature. In this, demand and solutions to a problem revolves with the collaborative effort
of self organising and cross functional teams and their customers. This methodology is
further evolved with various values and principles (Agile Project Management, 2019).
 Scrum : This type of methodology proposes various principles and programs which will
be useful for the company in improvising the delivery process. The primary aim of this is
to improve the communication, collaborative working and speed of development. This is
the structure for the on going development and maintenance of complex products. It also
motivates and encourages the self managed teams so that they deliver and describe the
roles and responsibilities to develop a healthy tension by delivering the right thing in a
right way.
 Kanban : It is another popular methodology which emphasises on early releases with
collaborative and self managed teams. This follows strict procedure to maximise the

efficiency. It important practice is relatable to the visualisation of work flow, limiting
work in progress, measuring the lead time, making policies of the process explicit,
examining the opportunities, etc. It further stresses on the project which releases faster,
speedy, quick and efficient outcomes with better quality. Apart from this, it also helps the
teams in forecasting the future events visually that supports the organisation in re
prioritising the work, uncover process problems and protects project from storage space.
Therefore, Amazon will use Scrum methodology for the enhancing the delivery system
and satisfying existing customers. It will be used because it is simple and has the most
appropriate software (Larson and Gray, 2017). Apart from this, the scrum methodology is highly
appropriate for the Amazon's project as it has experienced, disciplined and motivated project
teams who have the capability of setting their own priorities and also understands the
requirements of the project clearly.
Project management structure
It is very important to devise the structure for the project. When the organisation and its
team follow the proper structure then it act as a support for the work which is being done. It is
also important as it helps in controlling and monitoring the project and teams. There are various
types of organisational structure like functional, matrix, projected. Therefore, Amazon will take
into account the Projected organisational structure. In this structure, the team members of the
project are organised in such a manner that entire authority of the project lies within the project
head or manager. They will be responsible for devising the budget, time frames and the project
team (Leach, 2014). The project manager exist at the top in the hierarchy and team members
works as a supporting heads in accordance of the goals set by the manager. This type of structure
provides the staff with a clear and established line of authority which results in quick decision
making and approval. Apart from this, communication also becomes easier with more
effectiveness and enhances the team members or staff to gain more experiences by working on
numerous types of projects. So, the project of improving delivery system through Drone and
promoting selling through Alexa will adopt the projected organisational structure.
Roles and responsibilities of project manager
The project manager of the Amazon will have different roles and responsibilities right
from the stage of inception till the completion of the project and they are discussed below :

 Planning : The project manager is responsible for devising a feasible plan for the project
by considering all the essential elements so that resources can be used effectively and
efficiently with minimum wastage and project of Drone and Alexa can accomplish the
success.
 Managing risk : Risk is an anticipated course of future actions and every organisation
faces various problems and issues which are inseparable part of business organisation.
Therefore, project manager has a crucial responsibility in analysing the future actions and
manages the risk which can have significant impact on the performance of the project of
Drone and Alexa.
 Communicating : Project manager of Drone and Alexa is responsible for effective and
efficient communication within the organisation and team. When there will be proper
channel of communication followed then the subordinates will have clear idea relating to
the task which is to performed and they will also be able to communicate the various
problems with the senior people so that there issues can be solved (Marchewka, 2014).
 Monitoring : Project manager of Drone and Alexa is required to regularly monitor the
plans relating to the comparison between projected plans and those which are actually
taking place. It will help the manager to analyse that the work is going as per the plans
and in case of any deviation it can be corrected as and when occurred.
 Time management : Every project is decided for a certain duration of time period
(Kerzner, 2018). It is very important to decide the time schedule for each of the activities
and stages of project so that it can be completed on time and for this purpose, project
manager is accountable for developing various strategies like delegation of work,
prioritising, making every day plans and objective, etc. so the project of improving
delivery channel and promoting sell through Alexa can be accomplished.
TASK3
Project plan.
Project plan is concerned with describing the objectives and scope, milestones, delegating
tasks and budgetary resources for each step. A good and efficient plan is easy to share and
involves participation from everyone and it is the most appropriate when this is revisited

continuously. The following is the project plan of Amazons projects and they are described
below:
 Project conception and initiation: This is the first and foremost step for devising
project plan. In this, the initial step and objectives of the project is described. For
instance, Amazon aims to improve its delivery system and for this purpose it has created
a project to devise effective methods and strategies through which deliver channel can be
improved (Schwalbe, 2015). And at the same time it also wants to promotes and sell its
product with the Alexa which aims to encourage sell through audio speakers. So, in this
step the Amazon will make feasibility test of the project and will also take into
consideration the relevant stakeholders who will help the project manager in devising
whether the selected projects are appropriate or not.
 Project definition and planning: This step is very essential for the project being
successful in the future course of actions. It starts with devising the SMART objectives of
the projects. In this, project manager of Amazon will the scope statement which includes
needs and benefits of the projects, objectives, deliverables, milestones, etc. Work break
down structure will be prepared that will be useful in visual representation of the scope.
Milestones will be helpful in identifying the higher level of business objectives with the
helps of Gantt chart that helps in visualisation of project timelines. Apart from this, in
this the planning regarding the communication and risk management is also done.
 Project execution : In this the deliverables are developed and completed. In this stage,
the plan is finally executed by accomplishing various tasks like development of team,
delegation of work and resources, setting up of monitoring systems, etc. Therefore,
Amazon will execute the plan after accomplishing the availability of effective manpower
and technological resources which are very crucial to meet the delivery channels and also
in promoting sells through Alexa (Too and Weaver, 2014).
 Project performance monitoring : In this, the project manager of Amazon will monitor
the performance and progression by assuring that everything happens as per the plans and
in case of any deviation, it takes effective correct actions.
 Project closure : This phase is concerned with the accomplishment of closing of project.
At this, Amazon has been successfully launched the Drone which helped in improving
delivery channel by ensuring that the product will be delivered to the customer within one

hour from the order placed. It has also accomplish the Alexa which has encouraged
people to do online shopping by speaking.
TASK4
Project control.
A project is not as easy to implement as it sound, it requires effective planning on
developing control measures because of the numerous risk associated with it. There are various
types of risk that are linked with a particular project that can directly or indirectly affects the
operations and hampers the performance and these risk are discussed below :
 Technical risk : Technology is very important in present business world and specially in
Amazon where the project itself is totally based on technical equipments like drone and
Alexa. Therefore, there are numerous quality factors which must be considered like
stability, availability, usability, scalability, security, etc. which can affect the working of
the project adversely.
 Economic risk : For implementing any project, a huge amount of investment is needed.
Therefore, lack of funds can be another important risk which can affect the operations
because technological equipments needs heavy amount of funds for preparation.
 Human resources : They are concerned with the labour and man power. For
implementing the project of drone and Alexa, the Amazon will require highly skilled and
educated manpower so that they can work with full efficiency. But lack of availability of
human resources can adversely affect the operations of the project and it can go in wrong
direction as well (Turner, 2016).
 Climatic conditions : As the project is concerned with drone and Alexa, it must consider
the climatic conditions as well. This is because in poor weather conditions the drone may
not be successfully operate and this will disrupt the project of improving delivery
channels.
Methods for managing risk
Risk are inevitable and every project is linked with different kinds of risk which can
affect the operations and Amazon's project is also associated with various risk and they can be
managed by the following ways :

 Identification of risk : Amazon, project manager must take help of various stakeholder
in identifying all the risks like cost, manpower, budget, technology, materials, etc. and
must prioritise the risk so that they can be managed effectively (Project Risk
Management Methods, 2019).
 Determining response of the risk : In this, Amazon will determine the impact of risk
that can have on the company and on the project as well. In this, proper evaluation and
assessment of each risk will be done in detail so that proper risk mitigation frameworks
can be planned in advance only.
Contingency plans
The project team of the Amazon will often create an alternate method for executing the
aims and objectives when a risk event has been identified which can scotch the accomplishment
of that goal. These plans are called contingency plans. In case of the project plans of Drone and
Alexa of Amazon, the company will keep contingency funds, which are the funds that are kept
aside by the project manager and are used in unforeseen events of the company (Walker, 2015).
The success of the project of Drone and Alexa can be accomplished by keeping regular
check on the operations and working of the project. Apart from this, by evaluating the response
of customer towards the new delivery channel that is drone can be done by taking their feedbacks
and responses and to know if they need any other modifications. And Alexa services can be
analysed by reviewing the sale of the company which is done by using Alexa for online
shopping.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it has been concluded that project management is very important
in every business organisation. The company needs to plan various activities even for a short
project. Each activity is further associated with the risk and problems which also needs to
analysed and interpreted in detail so that the company can deal with unanticipated events which
can affect the working of the project. There are various methods which the project manager must
take into consideration for minimising the risk and effectively accomplishing the aim of the
project.

REFERENCE
Books and Journals
Binder, J., 2016. Global project management: communication, collaboration and management
across borders. Routledge.
Crawford, J.K., 2014. Project management maturity model. Auerbach Publications.
Fleming, Q.W. and Koppelman, J.M., 2016, December. Earned value project management.
Project Management Institute.
Kerzner, H. and Kerzner, H.R., 2017. Project management: a systems approach to planning,
scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
Kerzner, H., 2018. Project management best practices: Achieving global excellence. John Wiley
& Sons.
Larson, E.W. and Gray, C.F., 2017. Project management: The managerial process. McGraw-Hill
Education.
Leach, L.P., 2014. Critical chain project management. Artech House.
Marchewka, J.T., 2014. Information technology project management. John Wiley & Sons.
Schwalbe, K., 2015. Information technology project management. Cengage Learning.
Too, E.G. and Weaver, P., 2014. The management of project management: A conceptual
framework for project governance. International Journal of Project Management.32(8).
pp.1382-1394.
Turner, R., 2016. Gower handbook of project management. Routledge.
Walker, A., 2015. Project management in construction. John Wiley & Sons.
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<https://smallbusiness.chron.com/project-risk-management-methods-43768.html>.
Agile Project Management. 2019. [Online]. Available Through :
<https://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/Agile-project-management>.
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<https://ecommercenews.eu/ecommerce-in-europe/ecommerce-the-united-kingdom/>.