Study on Project Management at Megatronic
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Added on 2020-05-11
Study on Project Management at Megatronic
Added on 2020-05-11
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Portfolio Entry 1 – Project vs. Program1. Explain, with reasons, whether you agree or not with the approach set out by MikeFritz, thedirector of program / project management at Megatronic.Mike uses an unconventional approach to differentiate between program and projectmanagement. While conventional view understands program as a collection of differentprojects that aim to achieve unified business or strategic goals, Mike’s view sees program asa strategy oriented work and project as an outcome oriented concept. Programs mostlyinclude new product development initiatives while projects are task oriented. Projects maynot get any business benefit for the organization but ensure that cost and resources areutilized with precaution as their priority for their assignment would be given to theprograms[ CITATION Pet061 \l 16393 ]. This view may facilitate achievement of projectoutcomes from the project management perspective but it would not guarantee the strategicsuccess of a project. Moreover, with the flexible approach taken for project management withlack of strategic motives, the project team may not remain very sincere to projectmanagement. Moreover, as projects are given less priority than programs, in certain caseswhere programs suddenly need resources that are also required by a project, the resourceswould be preferably given to programs thereby suffering the project. This can result intomany issues like conflicts of interest, demotivation in project teams, lack of resources, lack ofsupport and lack of direction. These issues would cause problems in the development ofprojects[ CITATION Mil102 \l 16393 ]. On the other side, if the priorities are always given to projects then the company would face arisk of over utilizing the resources on new product development that may not always deliverthe desired results. To be able to deliver the desired strategic benefit to the company with thenew product development, the limits and constraints have to b properly set and in case ofinability to identify the right limits for the program, the resources may get wasted on thedevelopment efforts. Giving priorities to programs would make the people prefer to work onprograms rather than on projects. This can create a divide between resources such that peopleworking on projects would not be respected enough as those working on programs.2. What advice (if any) would you give to the company regarding the way theydifferentiate1
between projects and programs?I do not agree with the approach taken by Mike despite that it eases of implementation andprogression because of the challenges discussed above. A differentiation between programand project may not have any negative consequences if both are given required importance.This is because projects can also add value to the company and not just the programs. Forinstance, if the efforts are taken to reduce the cost of operations then it would providestrategic cost benefits to the company. Thus, a better approach would be to not just giveimportance to programs but also to projects. Strategic goals can be attached to projects aswell as programs with the difference of new product development and other types ofdevelopment retained. This way, both projects and programs can be given importance basedon the strategic value they give to the business. The boundaries box may be standardized formanaging both projects and programs such that uniformity is maintained making it easier forthe teams and managers to take decisions. Portfolio Entry 2 – Program Initiation1. Explain, with reasons, what solution you would suggest to JamesJames is concerned mainly about the four major requirements specified by key stakeholdersincluding finance management who want to lower down the costs, plant manager who wantssystems to have easy maintenance, production manager who is concerned about the ease ofuse of the system and safety manager who is concerned with the safety of people.As James has four options to evaluate from four vendors including Fire extinguisher, EarlyBirds, Xtra Care and Zebra limited each having defined specifications, these models can becompared with respect to the four identified requirements of low cost, easy maintenance, easeof use and safety. Each product may be rated on each of these parameters such that theproduct with highest total score may be selected. Evaluations can be based on certainassumptions that include:Maximum of 60 days for implementation and first run20,000 meters of area to be securedA comparison of four products is presented below:ABC 1DEF - 1GHI - 1 JKL - 12
TechnologyChemical basedChemical BasedFoam basedWater basedFunctionalityMeets standardsMeets standardsMeets standardsSome standardsmay not be metInstallationNo CostNo Cost$4 perinstallationNo CostUnit Price$85$170$115$2430Spray Area100 sq mts250 sq mtrs200 sq mtrs5000 sq mtrsDelivery Leadtime55 days50 days30 days15 daysMaintenance$3 per set$550 plus 10%post one year$3 per unit peryearNo maintenanceEase of UseEasyTo some extentDifficultEasyVendorrelationshipNever donebusinessPriorityrelationshipNever donebusinessNever donebusinessRating (1-4) 1 for least satisfaction considering criteria’s of evaluation and 4 being mosteffective in criteriaTotal Cost for20,000 metersspray area infirst year=200*$88 =$17,600=80*$170 +$550 = $14,150=100*$122 =$12,200=4*$2430 =$9.720Cost1234Ease ofMaintenance3334Ease of Use4324Safety2234Total Ranking9101116As the ranking for the Zebra limited product is highest considering all stakeholder needs, itmay be chosen by James for installation. Ranks identified already can further be givenweightage based on the importance given to each criterion.2. What advice (if any) would you give to the company from a program perspectiveregardingThe way this issue has been managed?When considering the program perspective which suggests that one program may containseveral projects, the installation of the fire extinguishing system would be one project fromthe program. Thus, the decision made on the current installation would actually be affected3
by the other projects in the portfolio. This can put constraints in terms of money that can bespent and the resources that can be made available for the project. For instance, low costproduct would always be attractive to the management but at the same time, if resources arelimited in the company then ease of use and ease of maintenance would be more importantparameters that to be considered while selecting appropriate system. For instance, the weightgiven to each ranking parameter can be influenced by limitations and constraints ofresources[ CITATION MWW00 \l 16393 ].Portfolio Entry 3 – Program Stakeholder Engagement1. With reference to current program management stakeholder concepts, explain, withreasons, what you think the ‘ideal’ decision of the Executive Team should beStakeholders are involved at various stages of a program. As per the program stakeholderengagement concept, a key role stakeholder plays in program management is providingevaluation and feedback. Thus, for the stakeholders to be able to evaluate the program, it isessential that they are provided with reports on the progress of the program. This can alsohelp in managing risks in the programs such that the risk management is a part of monitoringan evaluation process. Monitoring still remains distinct from the process of controlling andevaluation. Monitoring is done by project manager or program manager with no direct impactof stakeholders by stakeholders have a say in controlling and evaluation. Stakeholders of thehospital projects include program management officer, divisional directors, applicationmanagers, program manager, project team, and end users of the system. When a decision hasto be made on whether to go ahead with the existing plan for the software development orinclude the new feature being discussed which is to bring some benefits to the organization,an ideal decision can be arrived at by understanding which of the options fulfill whatstakeholder needs such that the option more aligned with stakeholder needs may bechosen[ CITATION Mar045 \l 16393 ]. Table given below evaluates two options from theperspectives of different stakeholders considering their needs and preferences:Stakeholder Stakeholder Needs/ExpectationsOption to go aheadwith the plan - inlinewithexpectation/need?Option to add newfeature in the plan -in line withexpectation/need?Program ManagerProgram is executedwithin budget and asYesNO4
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