Planning and Execution for Levi Jeans

Running head: PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
Project Initiation, Planning and Execution for Levi Jeans Type 1
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

1PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
Table of Contents
1. Construction of a PM Plan for Managing Levi Jeans to Success................................................2
2. Criteria for Success....................................................................................................................11
3. Software used for Project Completion.......................................................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................13

2PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
1. Construction of a PM Plan for Managing Levi Jeans to Success
As per the problems listed in the case study regarding the market failure of the category
of jeans by Levi’s, a project would need to be managed for the company as per the five stages of
IPECC listed in accordance to PMBOK. The discussions of the five stages are as follows:
1. Initiation – During the initiation phase, the designers and project manager at Levi’s
did not focus on a particular section of jeans, which could become their brand indemnity for
people to recognize the brand. The company had also failed to project themselves among the top
75 global brands in terms of value according to the survey of Interbrand 2000 Brand Valuation
(Brandfailures.blogspot.com 2020). Other major factors of failure included the rise of their
competitors such as Benetton and Gap. Hence, during the initiation phase, the designers and
branding experts should form a particular aim for slim and narrow their brand focus on a
particular type of jeans known as ‘Silvertab’.
In context to the above discussion over the initiation phase, it can further be discussed
that the branding experts should collaborate with the project manager for detailing the budgetary
estimations based on the planning over the new set of jeans (Pmi.org 2020). Further the
marketing department should consider new plans based on using social media and considering
the use of online retail stores for branding their products. Hence, in order to complete the various
aspects in relation to the project, there should be a proper identification of stakeholders
responsible for performing the project works. The important stakeholders that would be
associated with the project are – project manager, marketing experts, branding experts, designers
and business decision makers.

3PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
The vision for the project initiated for Levi’s is based on determining the expectations of
client and then set a new strategy for narrowing down their focus over a particular variant of
jeans. The company should also focus over the strategies based on advertising their products to
customers in an innovative way that would attract the customers towards the brand and thus
Levi’s would be able to gain a better position in the global marketplace.
2. Planning – Based on the discussions in the previous phase, the branding experts
should devise a new strategy based on preparing the designs for the new jeans that would
become the brand identity for Levi’s (Brandfailures.blogspot.com 2020). However, some of the
failures that could be faced during the planning of activities for the project are that the brand
experts might fail to perform a detailed research and gain feedbacks from clients regarding their
demands and expectations. Another factor that could lead to failure is during the approval for the
project plan. The plan might not be felt suitable by the business decision makers, thus leading to
delays in starting over the project. Marketing and branding strategies over the project, if not
devised in a proper way could lead to serious results in failure of the project plan.

4PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
The Work Breakdown Structure
(Figure 1: The WBS for the Project)
(Source: Created by author)
In the case of Levi’s based on the planning over the designing of the new jeans and
promotion of the brand based on new strategies of marketing, some of the most important
processes are: Communication Management and Risk Register for the project. These are
discussed in the below sections.
Designing and
Marketing a new
product for Levi's
Initiation
Discussing the
factors of failure
Discussing the new
plans of
manufacturing
Discussing the plans
of marketing
Planning
Disucssing the
project plan
Discussing the
marketing plan and
budget
Approval of both
the plans
Execution
Procuring of new
materials
Checking of
materials
Manufacturing of
the material
Testing of the
material
Controlling
Gaining feedback
from customers
Making necessary
changes if
necessary
Closure
Detailing a
documentation plan
Detailing the final
budget
Making paymentsto
stakeholders
Project closure with
feedback

5PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
The communication management plan in relation to Levi’s is discussed as follows:
Description of Communication Frequency Method Audience Owner
Meeting over new project idea Once Meeting Project Manager Branding experts
Consideration for stakeholders Once Meeting and Emails Business decision
makers
Project Manager
Meeting over discussion on project plan Weekly Meeting Project Manager,
Financial Manager
Branding experts
Discussion on budget Once Emails Project Manager,
Branding experts
Financial Manager
Revising over the project plans Weekly Meeting and Emails Project Manager Branding experts
Status updates Daily Emails Project Manager Branding experts, designers
The risk register for the project are also discussed below:
Risk Description Likelihood Impact Owner Mitigation Action to be taken
Acceptance of the project plan Low High Project Manager The project plan should comprise of detailed ideas
in relation to the progressive aspects over the
project. This plan should also be brief regarding
the type of customers who would be affected due
to the project and the final outcomes on delivering
this project.
Manufacturing price of the product
might get increased
Medium Medium Branding Experts,
Project Manager
The project manager and branding experts should
collaborate together to devise a product that would
comprise of all necessary aspects while also be
made within the planned budget.
Low support from cloth suppliers Low Medium Project Manager Cloth suppliers should be contacted on a prior

6PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
basis and procurement strategies for the materials
should be planned earlier. The quality of cloth
should also be checked during the procurement
process.
Less strategized marketing plans High High Marketing experts The marketing experts should devise a new plan of
marketing over the new products that would be
manufactured. Thus, the understanding over the
consumer expectations should be devised prior to
launch of the product in the global market. A
successful marketing campaign should be set that
would be helpful for bringing knowledge to
customers regarding their latest product.

7PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
3. Execution – The scope of project execution would be based on understanding the
rising demands of customers and the type of products that are in high expectation. Thus, after the
particular type of products would be decided, the marketing experts should prepare a detailed
marketing plan that would help them in connecting with their customers.
The crucial deliverables that would be outlined for the project of Levi’s are:
a. Detailing the project plan by listing the stakeholders, identifying the risks, preparing
communication and marketing strategies for the product being designed.
b. Detailing the budget for the project by including the various activities.
c. Designing the layout of the new product by mentioning all specifications.
d. Procuring all cloth materials within proper time.
e. Manufacturing of the product within the proper time and releasing them in the market.
The above discussed deliverables needs to be included during the preparation of the
project as it would lead the involved teams to manufacture the product within proper time and
quality. A detailed budget that would be provided in deliverables would help the branding
experts to manufacture the product within a limited and proper quality.
The necessary inclusions that need to be included within the project during the execution
phase are:
a. Detailed budgetary plan listing all related activities and costs allocated for each phase
and stakeholders.

8PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
b. List of suppliers of cloth materials. This would help in directly establishing a
communication with them and procuring the high quality materials.
c. Detailed design layout for the new products, which would help marketing experts to
advertise them before customers and gain their attention.
From the above sections of the risk management plan, it can be discussed that each of the
risks that were highlighted earlier could be adjusted during the execution phase. Hence, it can
also be discussed that the risk owners of the project would identify and understand the areas of
risk and thus take appropriate plans, which have been listed out in the mitigation action that
should be taken accordingly.
(Figure 2: Revenue data for different Levi’s brands)
(Source: Levistrauss.com 2020)

9PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
According to the history of products that were previously being launched by Levi’s, it
can be understood that the company has a huge potential for delivering high-quality products but
were highly underdeveloped. Women’s clothing and tops were the high opportunities for Levi’s.
The brand had strengthened their connection with the younger demographic, which was made
possible with their advertisement strategies during the Levi’s campaign known as “Circles”.
Some of the specific areas in which Levi’s could put their focus and bring in innovation and
assure high quality of their products are: Dockers, Levi’s Google Commuter Jacket, Men’s
Joggers and Women’s Collection.
4. Controlling – During the control phase, the branding experts within Levi’s should
control the project execution phase. Hence, the project managers and involved teams should
control the different risks that would approach towards the project. During the phase of
controlling over the already implemented project plan, the advertising campaign should also be
properly devised based on promotion of their newly designed jeans. The marketing department
should prepare for a feedback control system for customers (Cagliano, Grimaldi and Rafele
2015). The feedback control system would be able to analyze the demands of customers and
based on the calculations, branding experts would be able to develop new strategies that might
bring changes within the project plan for their future products. This cycle should include the
steps such as – listen, analyze and act. After the collection of information drawn from customer
feedbacks and development of new products for Levi’s, the brand experts would be able to
increase the customer turnover rate towards the company.
5. Closing – This is the final concluding phase in the IPECC. This phase lists out the fact
that important deliverables that were included within the project plan have been devised properly
in the present output of the project. Thus, in the final phase, when the project would be delivered

10PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
to the audience, the results would need to be acknowledged. In case of the design of the new
product of jeans for Levi’s, when the product would be released in the market, the customers
purchasing the product should be asked for feedbacks (Fahri et al. 2015). A written evaluation
over the entire project should be presented in which the efforts made over development would
need to be acknowledged. Based on the successful outcomes from the project, the decision would
be made whether the project would be considered as successful.
The success factors that need to be considered throughout the project are:
a. Acceptance of the product within the customers
b. Best marketing methods such as social media for attracting and promotion of products
c. High turnover rate of customers based on purchasing the new product manufactured by
Levi’s.
During this stage, each of the risks that were discussed based on acceptance of the
product, high price range for customer purchase and unsuccessful marketing plans to promote to
customers have been mitigated during the final output.
In order to determine the performance criteria of the new product manufactured by
Levi’s, the objectives set for checking the future performance of the revived plan are:
 Analyzing the feedback of customers and determining the ratings
 Taking necessary actions with branding experts and marketing team for enriching the
culture of the company
 Regular planning over new product of jeans that would suit the changing preferences of
customers

11PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
2. Criteria for Success
The justification for the criteria of success that would be considered as important for the
project devised for Levi’s are:
1. Project Time Management – The project devised for Levi’s should be completed
within an estimated time frame. The project should be conforming to the prepared schedule,
complete all the milestones within the pre-planned date and there should not be any major delays
in critical path.
2. Communication Management – The project plan lists out the important areas of the
communication management, which is the communication management plan. This plan lists out
the important stakeholders and the ways in which they would communicate with others
(Muszynska et al. 2015). Thus, ethical considerations should also be present during
communication in order to maintain cyber security and privacy within their designed plans.
3. Community Engagement – There is a huge need to maintain engagement with the
community, which includes all stakeholders and key customers who would be affected due to the
project (van Rensburg, Meyer and Nel 2016). Thus, engaging with the community would further
lead them to bring out positive outcomes drawn from the community.
3. Software used for Project Completion
The different software that has been discussed is: Celoxis, MS Project, Project Libre,
TeamGantt and Smartsheet. The recommended software that should be used for the project is
MS Project. The primary reason for using MS Project for devising the project plan for Levi’s
project are:

12PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
a. The planning and scheduling activities would be detailed and comprise of all activities
along with their resources, costs, predecessors, start and finish date.
b. A timeline view would also be presented through which project managers would be
able to display to the team regarding the activities, which need to be completed as per proper
sequence (Kaiafa and Chassiakos 2015).
c. Reporting would also be detailed, which would mean tracking over the progress over
the project at various stages.

13PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
References
Brandfailures.blogspot.com. (2020). Tired Brands: Levi’s. [online] Available at:
https://brandfailures.blogspot.com/2007/04/tired-brands-levis.html [Accessed 10 Feb. 2020].
Cagliano, A.C., Grimaldi, S. and Rafele, C., 2015. Choosing project risk management
techniques. A theoretical framework. Journal of risk research, 18(2), pp.232-248.
Cagliano, A.C., Grimaldi, S. and Rafele, C., 2015. Choosing project risk management
techniques. A theoretical framework. Journal of risk research, 18(2), pp.232-248.
Fahri, J., Biesenthal, C., Pollack, J. and Sankaran, S., 2015. Understanding megaproject success
beyond the project close-out stage. Construction Economics and Building, 15(3), pp.48-58.
Kaiafa, S. and Chassiakos, A.P., 2015. A genetic algorithm for optimal resource-driven project
scheduling. Procedia Engineering, 123, pp.260-267.
Levistrauss.com. (2020). [online] Available at:
http://www.levistrauss.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Levi-Strauss-Annual-Report-2017.pdf
[Accessed 16 Feb. 2020].
Muszynska, K., Dermol, K., Trunk, V., Ðakovic, A. and Smrkolj, G., 2015, May.
Communication management in project teams-practices and patterns. In Joint International
Conference (pp. 1359-1566).
Pmi.org. (2020). Seven causes of project failure. [online] Available at:
https://www.pmi.org/learning/library/seven-causes-project-failure-initiate-recovery-7195
[Accessed 10 Feb. 2020].

14PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION FOR LEVI JEANS TYPE 1
van Rensburg, N.J., Meyer, J. and Nel, H., 2016, December. Social innovation, research and
community engagement: Managing interdisciplinary projects for societal change. In 2016 IEEE
International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management (IEEM) (pp.
1785-1789). IEEE.