Lean Project Management: A Case Study of the FIFA World Cup

This report explores the application of lean project management principles to the FIFA World Cup, emphasizing waste reduction and efficient event management. It identifies key stakeholders, including footballers and audiences, and discusses their specific needs and expectations. The report highlights critical quality parameters, such as ensuring proper telecasts, adequate security, and suitable infrastructure for players. Various project management methodologies, including PMBOK, PRINCE2, Agile Practice, and Lean Six Sigma, are evaluated for their suitability in managing the complex FIFA World Cup event, ultimately advocating for a lean approach. The DMAIC methodology is also explored as a tool for continuous improvement. The report concludes by stressing the importance of aligning project outcomes with stakeholder expectations and the brand value of the event.

Running head: LEAN PROJECT MANAGEMNT
LEAN PROJECT MANAGEMNT
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Discussion........................................................................................................................................3
Choosing the right project management methodology for FIFA World Cup:.............................7
DMAIC Methodology:..............................................................................................................10
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................12

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Introduction
The Football World Cup 2018 is organized by FIFA in Russia. The total participants are
18 teams. From 18 different countries. The participants of the team have come from the different
parts of the world and the supports of the team are the citizens of different countries (Preuss &
Schnitzer, 2015). Apart from that the scheduling of the matches is a complex task. In order to
manage all the events in the project carefully and maintain the standard of the service provide by
FIFA to the footballers, proper management plan is needed to be followed. The main discussion
in this paper will focus the managing of the different events in the project. Apart from that the
identification of the different stakeholders in this project and their needs are evaluated in this
discussion (Garcia, Chamber & Borbély, 2017). The discussion regarding the different aspects of
this project and the managing of the project will help to identify the possible issues and the
problems those can be occurred during the compilation of the project. The nature of the project is
complex as there are many events and modules of the works involved in the project. The method
for managing this kind of project can be done through the lean project management (Bean,
2016). The main objective of the lean project management is to deliver the right outcome of the
project along with the minimization of the waste during the course of development (Parker,
Parsons & Isharyanto,2015). In this paper the discussion has done regarding the different
components of the lean project management those are applicable for the managing the FIFA
world cup and the selection of the project management methodology along with the justification
for the implementation of this large scale and complex project. It can be said that the
synchronization between the different events in this course are needed to be developed in a right

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way so that project regarding FIFA World Cup event can be successful.
Discussion
The main objective of the lean project management is to reduce the wastage during the
course of development and deliver sustainable and proper outcome. In this context few
components are needed to be discussed those are helpful to reflect the characteristics of the lean
project management. The factors will be discussed in the context of FIFA World Cup.
Voice of customer: The voice of customer is concerned about the target consumers and their
needs. The target consumers can be classified as the internal and external customers. In this case,
the customers can be regarded as the footballers and the supports and audiences coming from the
different countries. In this case, the external consumers can be regarded as the footballers as they
are the main stakeholder in this project (Conforto et al.,2014). On the other hand the audiences
can be regarded as the external stakeholders as FIFA is not taking the full responsibility of their
staying during the match. However, the facilities for watching the match will be provided by
FIFA.
The demand of the footballers and the audiences are needed to be fulfilled by FIFA. In order to
do this the choosing of the gallery is needed to be appropriate so that the audiences can enjoy the
match in a proper way (Kovach et al.,2017). Apart from that special care is needed to be taken by
the FIFA so that the footballers can enjoy proper accommodations and the can play matches in
proper environment (Conforto & Amaral, 2016). Apart from that many of the audiences will
watch the live telecast of the match from every corner of the world. In that case FIFA needs to
telecast the real time live matches through the satellite so that the audiences who are not present

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in the stadium can watch the live match in a good quality picture.
In order to meet all the requirements of the both internal and external audiences in this event
FIFA has to take up certain steps. The assurance of the security in the stadium during the
matches is needed to be done. Apart from that the FIFA should take care of the proper
broadcasting of the matches so that the audiences can watch the matches through live telecast.
Critical to customer requirements: This is defined by the expectations of the customer
about the service or the products. In this case, the audiences and the footballers will expect that
they will get all the requirements which are needed to be expected from FIFA. The requirements
of the audiences and the footballers are different from FIFA. The requirements of the audiences
includes the proper telecast of the match. The audiences who are present at the gallery during the
match will need proper accommodation for watching the match along with the adequate security.
On the other hand the footballers need proper infrastructures so that they can play the game in a
proper environment.
Critical to quality parameters: This metric is measured externally by the consumers. It
is an attribute which measures the track of the achievement. There are certain factors regarding
the arrangement of the FIFA world cup which indicates the critical quality parameters. The
audiences are expected from the FIFA that the right information will be provided to them
regarding the match. On the other hand the participating team and their players would expect that
there would be sufficient infrastructure for playing the game and for their practices. The media
and other audiences would expect from FIFA that the live telecast of the World Cup would be
done in a proper way so that the other audiences who are not present in the venue can watch the

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match. It is expected from the FIFA that the galleries would have enough space to occupy the
number of audiences. The players would provide dressing rooms and the condition of the field is
proper for playing the match.
Management of the lean project: The lean project management is effective for the
compilation of the complex projects (Preuss et al., 2014). The main objective of the lean project
management is to deliver the proper outcome of the project along with mitigation of the wastage
of resources during the development project or the events. The concept of lean framework
includes value stream mapping and the identification of the source of wastage. Another objective
of the lean project management is to improvise the business process when it is needed by the
customer.
The managing and handling of the FIFA World Cup is a complex project. For the better
management of the events related to the FIFA World Cup certain steps can be taken:
 The final events should be delivered in a proper way.
 The delivery of the events and the running time of the vents are needed to be
followed a right timeline.
 The specification of the budget is needed to be estimated at the beginning of the
project. The events regarding the conduction of the final and semifinal matches
are needed to be done with proper care, as these matches are considered as the
most important matches.
 The mitigation of the wastage of resources are needed to be done. The wastage
can be wastage of resources and wastage of time. Apart from that the proper
security of the stadium and the match environment are needed to be taken care of.

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Providing the stable environment for the footballers for playing the game and providing
the environment and facilities for the audiences for watching the live matches are needed to be
done by FIFA (Othman & Khalil,2018). Moreover, the proper live telecast of the matches are
needed to be arranged in a proper way so that the audiences who are not present in the field can
watch matches from any part of the world.
The application of the lean project management is suitable for managing the complex
project like FIFA World Cup. There are certain attributes those are needed to be followed
regarding the arrangements of the FIFA World Cup:
FIFA needs to identify the requirements and values those are needed to be served to the
audiences and footballers during the organization of the events. Moreover the expectation from
FIFA regarding this event is high (Richardson, 2014). The standard of delivery of the outcome is
needed to high in this case.
The outcome of the event needs to be identified with the brand value of the event.
The flow of value throughout the event is needed to be maintained in a proper way. On
the other hand, the mitigation of the wastage of the resource is needed to be done throughout the
project. There should be the scope of improvisation where the modification and improvisation of
the project can be done on the basis of the requirements of the audiences and, footballers and
other stakeholders associated with this event.
The opinion and the requirements of the stakeholders associated with the FIFA World
Cup is needed to be known before the delivery of the outcome and the happening of the events.

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Choosing the right project management methodology for FIFA World Cup:
In order to organize the complex event like FIFA World Cup there are various
methodology which can be applied. However, the selection of the right project management
methodology depends on the type and the complexity of the project. In order to select the right
project management methodology for the implementation of the FIFA World Cup the discussion
about the various methodology and their characteristics can be done. In this context some of the
popular project management methodologies like PMBOK, PRINCE2, Agile Practice and Lean
Six sigma can be mentioned.
The PMBOK is also known as the Project Management Body of Knowledge. It can be
defined as the methodology, however it is the detailed guideline for maintaining and managing
the project in a proper way. According to the PMBOK there are different stages in the project
management life cycle. Generally there are five stages in the project management life cycle. At
the initialization stage, the gathering of the requirements are done (Tenera & Luís Carneiro,
2014). The requirement gathering stage is important as the proper documentation of the
requirements helps to mitigate the chances of scope creep. In this stage the meetings with the
clients and the stakeholders involved with the project is required to be done by the project
management team is needed to be done (DiCenso, 2017). This stage is followed by the planning
of the project. In the planning phase making of the blueprint for the execution of the project is
done. The execution plan is concerned about the proper execution of the planned events in the
planning phase. This stage is followed by the monitoring and control of the project. The
monitoring and control phase is concerned about the evaluation of the performance of the project
(Snyder & Dionisio, 2017). The project closes with the closing of the project phase. The

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following of these stages in a proper way will help the project manager to develop the project in
proper and deliver the right outcome.
PRINCE2 is a methodology that permits execution of the project in controlled
environment. There are seven principals mentioned in this methodology. The methodology is
based on the seven themes. These are progress, business case, quality, change, risk, plan and
organization. There are seven processes involved in this methodology. The project starts with
initialization phase. There should be a team leader and the project manager in the project
management team. The initialization phase is concerned about the gathering of the requirements
(Sohi et al.,2016). The designing phase is concerned about the decision making regarding the
progress of the project. On the other hand control stage is concerned about the controlling the
environment and evaluation of the performance of the project. The main objective of this stage is
to make the link between the project manager and the team regarding the update of the progress
of the project. Stage boundaries are needed to be managed in this methodology. The ending of
the project is finalized with the closing stage of the project. This project management
methodology is helpful for managing the construction project.
Agile project management methodology is another project management methodology
useful for managing the software development project (Holweg & Maylor,2018). The main
feature of this kind of methodology is that it allows to give the update about the iteration of
different stages of the project. The main advantage of this methodology is that it is flexible and
can meet all the requirements of the clients in the changing environment of the project (Rolstadås
et al.,2014). The delivery of the product has some added value and this methodology is flexible
enough to adopt any changes in the process. The development and the modification based on the
requirements is approves in this methodology.

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Lean six sigma project management follows the attributes of managing the lean projects.
The accuracy of the quality of information and the data is maintained in this methodology. The
standard quality of data permits the following of the right information throughout the process.
Apart from that the main objective of lean six sigma is that it allows the team and the
stakeholders to work together in a project so that the delivery of the outcome can be happened
meeting all the requirements and maintain all the qualities (Conforto et al.,2016). The objective
of this project management methodology is to reduce wastage during the development of the
project or the events (Anholon & Sano, 2016). There are eight kind of wastage mentioned in the
project management methodology. This framework has two tools for the development of the
project-lean and six sigma. This can be a useful methodology where the accuracy of the data is
important and proper managing of the events are needed.
The selection of the right project management methodology is helpful for arranging the
FIFA World Cup 2018. The project is complex which has many stakeholders involved in the
project and the requirements of the different stakeholders are different (Silvius & Schipper,
2014). In this case proper management and the planning is needed to be done in order to deliver
the right outcome (Rampazzo et al.,2017). Apart from that there are external factors present in
the complex project which are needed to be address during the arrangement (Browning &
Ramasesh, 2015). Some of these external factors are the security and availability of the right
information to the audiences regarding the schedules of the events. In this case, the accuracy and
the correctness of the data and information is needed. The project is complex, so the
requirements can be changed in the middle of the process. In this case, the flexibility of the
selected project management methodool.gy is needed. The live broadcasting of the matches
along with providing the proper arrangement of galleries and the filed are needed to be done by

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the organization. Apart from that managing the setting arrangements and the large number of
audiences are the responsibility of the FIFA (Brioso,2015). The budget of the project is high, so
the mitigation of the resources such as money and the time is also needed to be done. In this case
the selection of the lean Six Sigma as the project management methodology for managing the
complex event like FIFA World Cup is applicable. The reason for choosing Lean Six Sigma is
that it follows the attributes of Lean Six Sigma, hence the mitigation of the wastage of resources
can be achieved following the process. On the other hand this methodology allows the flow of
the right information and data throughout the process. This will help the organization to provide
the correct information to the audiences. Apart from that this methodology is flexible enough to
adopt the changing situation or environment during the development of the project. Considering
all these things it can be said that lean six sigma is appropriate for managing the complex project
like FIFA World Cup.
DMAIC Methodology:
Six Sigma approves the application of DMAIC methodology. DMAIC methodology is
based on the five attributes or factors.
Define: This attribute defines the scope of the project. The clarification in the scope of
the project helps to identify the main objective of the project (Sunder ,2016). In this case, the
scope of the project is to organize the FIFA World Cup in a proper way.
Measure: This attribute indicates if the objective and planning of the project is
measurable. The budget and cost are estimated for the FIFA World Cup (Stark, 2015). Based on
that factor it can be said that the scope of the project is measurable.

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Analysis: The analysis of challenges and opportunities regarding this project is measured
through this attribute.
Improve: This attribute searches if there is any scope of improvement in the development
of the ongoing project. In this case, the improvement can be done based on the opportunities in
the project and the changing requirements of the project.
Control: The control of the project indicates the controlling of the events and the modules
of the work in the project. In this case4, the FIFA has the control over the happening of the
events in a proper way maintaining the proper schedule.
Conclusion
The paper discusses about the arrangement of the FIFA World Cup 2018. There are
certain number of events along with the stakeholders involved in the project. This enhances the
complexity of the whole project. In order to manage the complex project, certain methodologies
have been discussed along with their characteristics. The managing of the FIFA World Cup
needs proper gathering of the requirements along with the mitigation of the wastage. However,
changes in the requirement may happen due to the dynamic nature of the project. Apart from that
there are certain external security factors needed ot be concerned during the development of the
project. Considering all these factors it can be said that choosing lean six sigma as the project
management methodology for arranging the FIFA World Cup along with the application of the
DMAIC technology would be helpful for the delivery of the right outcome of the project meeting
all the requirements.