Project Initiation Document: Aston Chemicals Project Management Plan

This project initiation document (PID) analyzes a project for Aston Chemicals, focusing on the relocation of their office. It defines project characteristics, the role of the project manager, and the application of theoretical frameworks like PRINCE2 and CCPM. The document evaluates team composition, management, and formulates a project management plan, including cost, schedule, and risk management. It addresses project benefits, constraints, and assumptions, as well as success and failure factors, and concludes with key learning points. The report covers various aspects of project management, from defining project scope and objectives to managing risks, quality, and resources. It also includes a project organization chart, cost classifications, and a detailed discussion of project methodologies and frameworks to ensure project success.

PROJECT
INITIATION
DOCUMENT

Contents
INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................................4
TASK 1.......................................................................................................................................................4
Definition of project, its characteristics and role of project manager.....................................................4
TASK 2.......................................................................................................................................................5
Application of theoretical frameworks and methodologies within a project environment.....................5
TASK 3.......................................................................................................................................................7
Evaluation of composition and management of teams in project environment.....................................7
TASK 4.......................................................................................................................................................8
Formulating of a project management plan............................................................................................8
TASK 5.....................................................................................................................................................10
Measures to control and monitor project risks, quality, change and configuration..............................10
Evaluation of success and failure of project..........................................................................................11
CONCLUSION........................................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES........................................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
Project Initiation Document refers to a significant component of project management
as they provide base for business projects. For client and project team, it acts as a reference
point for whole project (De Valence, 2013). This brings clarity in mind in relation to different
directions of project which can create confusion. Prince2 concept is applied on project
initiation document. For doing research on this report, Aston Chemicals has been chosen
which is an independent distributor of basic and speciality chemicals incorporated in 1990. It
provides raw materials to European personal care industry.
This report covers definition, characteristics of project and role of project manager.
After that application of theoretical frameworks, methodologies, and evaluation of
composition of teams have been discussed. Also formulation of project management plan,
along with assessment of measures to control and monitor risk, quality, change and
configuration are mentioned. Lastly, success, failure and key learning points of project have
been covered.
TASK 1
Definition of project, its characteristics and role of project manager
Project is a series of tasks having certain objectives, specifications, fixed time
duration, limited funds or resources. Projects are completed on the basis of planning and in a
controlled way. For Aston Chemicals, project undertaken is moving the office.
Key characteristics of a project are as follows:
 It is owned by any company or individual.
 It is temporary in nature.
 Continuous evaluation of each stage of process.
 Definite set of objectives of organization that are needed to be achieved by
implementing a project.
 Project is assigned to a project team who is responsible for its planning, controlling
and management. These have a specific time duration or life cycle. It means that after completion and
delivery, a new project is started.
Role and responsibilities of project manager:
Job title of project manager is assigned to person who is responsible as well as
accountable to run project of Aston Chemicals. Following are some duties of a project
manager:
 Planning and defining of project scope. On the basis of project scope, strategies are
developed and executed.
 Monitoring various stages of project.

 Organising different activities to accomplish goals
 Quality control is essential because assurance of quality will contribute to success of
project.
Resource planning as they are limited and should be put in optimal use (Martinelli and
Milosevic, 2016).
 Documentation is a necessary part of procedure as this acts as a proof of completion.
 Estimation of time and cost needs to be done in a proper way so that it can lead to
smooth completion.
 Risk analysis and management of project should be done because risk can create
obstacles and uncertainties in project management process.
 Team leadership is a significant part of effective team management. Project manager
or leader should have required professional and soft skills like handling complex
situation, conflict resolution, risk assessment etc.
Planning team structure fulfils demand of a project as a project manager should define
protocols, infrastructure, policies, and execution strategy of it (Abdul-Malak and Abdulhai,
2017). Developing budgets and schedules assists in taking corrective action when needed in
situation of scarcity of financial resources.
Assumptions: During PID (Project Initiation Document), assumptions are needed to be
identified because sometimes in project management process, they are defined as inputs.
Analysis of assumptions is a component of risk management process and they should be
evaluated keeping in mind long term perspectives. Project assumptions may include skills,
performance and availability of project team members, delivery time and performance issues
of suppliers etc.
Constraints: Constraints may be defined as factors that limits options, time duration,
expenditure, scope, agenda, resources of project team. All these are interrelated with each
other in a way that when resources will not be available on time then delivery process will be
delayed resultantly increase in cost of overall project. Evaluation of constraints should be
done by making short term perspectives as foundation. Both assumptions and constraints
helps in controlling activities during project life cycle.
Project benefits: Advantages of efficient project management are enhancement in
customer satisfaction, gaining competitive advantage, ultimate flexibility, improvement in
quality, increase in productivity, effective delivery services etc.
TASK 2
Application of theoretical frameworks and methodologies within a project environment
Every project is based on some theoretical frameworks, standards and methodologies.
Methodology refers to collection of rules, approaches, practices, methods, processes,
procedures, techniques involved in project management. While theoretical framework is

defined as an overview about implementation of project management guidelines (Yi and
Htike, 2012). Point of difference between methodologies and frameworks is that former
follows strict practices while latter are flexible as they change according to situations. These
both are not only mandatory for project managers of Aston Chemicals but also useful for
whole team so that they can understand purpose of working a particular project.
Some of the methodologies and frameworks within project environment are:
PRINCE2 (Projects in Controlled Environment):
This is a method of project management in which there is clear distinction between
accountability and responsibility of board and project manager. Microsoft Project, P2ware
tools are used in this method.
Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM):
Firstly, project schedule is being prepared in which timing of projects, reduction in
these timings, setting up of priorities, resource allocation, measurement of progress etc. have
been focused. Tools used in this method are A-dato and ProChain.
Critical Path Method (CPM):
In CPM, different critical activities or areas are determined. These critical tasks
should be completed on time because if they are delayed then whole project of Aston
Chemicals will not be able to meet its deadline. Priorities are set in relation to activities on
the basis of criticality. Tools that are mostly used in this method are Lucid chart and Smart
sheet (Hillson, 2012).
Adaptive Project Framework (APF):
According to this framework, some elements and processes are borrowed from other
methods of project management to improve efficiency of projects of Aston Chemicals. For
this complete project is divided among smaller tasks and after that they are assigned to
different team groups. Paymo tool is used in this method.
Extreme Project Management (XPM):
This project management framework is developed to deal with highly complex
projects environments. Management of stakeholders with the help of leadership practices and
principles is done to involve creativity, speed and profitability.
PRiSM (Project integrating Sustainable Methods):
This methodology revolves around environmental factors and way in which they
affect project development process. Along with environmental factors, it also covers social
factors such as labour values, human rights, corruption etc.
Benefits Realization Management (BRM):
It is a theoretical framework which ensures to stakeholders about completion of
project after achieving desired benefits.
Crystal:

This methodology is based on idea that all projects cannot be completed by applying
only one methodology. Project team members should change them according to their needs.
Scrum:
This framework is useful in many areas such as designing software, product
development, handling marketing division etc. With the help of this a sense of togetherness
developed between small teams and project owner (Heagney, 2016).
Purpose: Every project is taken into consideration for a pre-set purpose or motive.
Without any purpose, project manager cannot influence performance and motivate project
team members. Purpose can be defined as expected end result of a project. For instance, in
Aston Chemicals, projects are assigned to carry out activities related to relocation of office
premises.
Objectives: Objectives of project considers about specific outcomes and way of
measurement of these outcomes. One should set a limit on objectives in such a way that they
can be achieved in given time. Objective of project in Aston Chemicals is shifting office to
more convenient location.
Deliverables: Outputs or outcomes of a project are delivered in physical reports and
documents. Thus, reports, goods and services are called deliverables. These also includes a
expected date.
Project sponsor: Sponsor of project is a person who provides funds and resources for
it so as one can understand that it will obviously generate interest in success of project.
Because project sponsor has direct impact of outcome of a project. All major decisions in
Aston Chemicals regarding changes, approvals are ultimately taken by project sponsor
(Rowe, 2015).
TASK 3
Evaluation of composition and management of teams in project environment
In starting of a project new project, Aston Chemicals should take into consideration
project teams who is responsible to carry out project tasks. Aston Chemicals proposed a new
project to evaluate composition and management of teams. Project title is 'Moving the office'
which is assigned to a particular team. Background of this project is that organization wants
to shift its office for future growth (Kerzner, 2018). Support staff and additional staff are
provided to project manager to assists in performing the tasks.
To complete this assigned project, a team is being formulated consists of five
members. This project team will undertake all activities and tasks related to project. Five
members and their roles in project management team is as follows:
Senior project manager: Authority of person at this post is to establish certain rules
and along with it formulating policies, practices for smooth continuation of project. Senior
project manager is responsible for keeping watch on direction in which project is going and
producing reports related to performance of all team members. Work of appointing architect
and mapping of infrastructure will be accomplished by senior project manager.

Accountant: Accountant has clear responsibility to carry out tasks related to
preparation of reports showing financial aspects and information of different areas of project
as well as of complete project. Role of accountant in project is to track funds as these are
limited in nature and should be used carefully. Accountant will need to estimate cost involved
in this project (Carroll, 2012).
Line manager: Person at this post is responsible to run main activities relating to
production and delivery of goods and services. Line manager has definite role of managing
other employees working in smaller teams and reporting to senior manager after evaluating
their performance.
Team leader: In order to achieve objectives of project, work of team leader is to
guide, direct and instruct project team. A team leader should be aware about capabilities and
strengths of every team member so that work can be allotted and they can perform it with
efficiency.
Operations associate: Role and responsibility of operations associate is to assists in
administration tasks to operations manager. Work of operations associate is to conduct
reviews of employee performance.
All team members of project team are directly or indirectly involved in successful
implementation of project and contributes in achievement of goals or objectives.
Project Organization Chart of Aston Chemicals:
TASK 4
Formulating of a project management plan
Project management plan is formulated by project manager through information taken
from project team and stakeholders. A project management plan can be said as a summary of
Project Initiation document which is presented in a formal way. It consists details about

execution, monitoring and controlling of activities in respect to a particular project. Main
purpose of developing this plan is to provide a baseline of achievements. Various components
of project management plan are:
Cost: This a very significant component of project management plan in which costs are
classified according to different areas in project of Aston Chemicals. In project ‘moving the
office’, various costs are involved from planning to shifting in new office. Cost controlling
can be done at this stage as resources are always limited in an organization. Cost
classification can be done as infrastructure costs, architect’s fees, costs of installation of
systems, maintenance cost, storage costs, transportation costs etc. For purpose of interior
designing, a separate department is made to derive benefits from this project management
plan.
Particulars Amount
Storage cost 10000
Maintenance cost 8500
Transportation cost 4000
Training and development cost 2000
Infrastructure cost 15000
Installation cost 6200
Total 45700
Schedule: Sometimes, external stakeholders are also involved in project management
plan. So, in this case, a schedule is determined to accomplish goals of Aston Chemicals. As
every project has starting and end date, so schedule is prepared according to these deadlines
that how much work is completed in how much time (Project management components,
2018).
Project scope: Project scope depends of success and failure of a particular project. It
will be wider if project becomes successful but cannot be implemented in future if it fails. As
in an organization, expansion is a significant part. Thus, scope of this project is wider in
respect to expansion of organization in future. Exclusion from scope contains these activities
which are not covered by this project.
Human resources plan: In every project, human resources are necessary part as they
are project team members. This is very time consuming for project manager to hire them and
providing training. So, part of human resources should involve following items such as
resource requirements, acquisition of project team, training and development, performance
assessment etc.
Communication: Without communication, project management plan cannot be
executed properly. As, project manager have to communicate all the information related to
project to senior management for approval.

Risk: Component of risk plays an important role in accumulation of appropriation of project.
Every project has specific time duration in which it should be completed. So, every task is
performed accordingly. All activities are classified on the basis of time required to
accomplish them (De Valence, 2013).
Procurement plan: A project management plan includes various people like
suppliers, contractors, consultants. They focus on which products and services are needed,
way in which they will be procured as well as monitoring their quality. Procurement process
of involves steps that are started from developing scope statement, performing the
procurement, and lastly progress payments.
Budget: Budget is like a foundation for any project plan. Budget is mainly prepared
for ascertaining and estimating costs incur on completion of project of Aston Chemicals for
relocating office. When budget will be well defined then project manager can efficiently
manage various other activities.
Quality: There are some of set standards of quality in every organization regarding
project management plan to which every project should comply with. Different aspects of
quality management are measurement of quality, determination of quality standards, quality
assurance, and quality control.
TASK 5
Measures to control and monitor project risks, quality, change and configuration
Project risk, quality and change are necessary to be observed and controlled to ensure that
project plan is suitable for execution in order to achievement of organisational goals and
objectives (Martinelli and Milosevic, 2016). The following are some measures that can
control and observe project risk, change, quality and configuration:
Risk assessment: This helps in identifying and analysing risk associated with
the project. It can change the project outcomes in a positive and negative manner. With
the help of this Aston Chemicals can analyse and find qualitative and quantitative
impact of risk on project. It helps company to take preventive steps which can help in
controlling the intensity of risk.
Managerial audit: It is a systematic method which examine decision and
actions of management. This also helps in measuring the adherence of tools and
techniques adopted by the company. in case of Aston Chemicals, company has decided
to move their office to another premises. For performing this job effectively, it is very
necessary to analyse the quality and productiveness of tools and techniques used by
company. It will assist Aston Chemicals to measure quality.
Variance analyses: This helps company to identify and track changes in
budgeted and actual outcome. It determines cause and intensity of change in behaviour.
Aston Chemicals can identify the reason due to which the change has occurred. By
determining the cause company can make required changes to make them efficient, to
reduce it in future.

Trend analyses: It helps in predicting future outcomes on basis of past
results. Project configuration is related to the process, tools, methods and activities that is
used and managed in project life cycle. It identifies and protect a project. It can help Aston
Chemicals to monitor and control configuration of project (Yi and Htike, 2012).
Schedule (Gantt Chart):
TASK 6
Evaluation of success and failure of project
By preparing project management plan and analysis of issues and factors, it can
identify that the project is successful and will help organisation in accomplishing goals and
objectives. There are various facts and evidences that can validate the success of project plan.
These are explained as follows:
 Company has monitored and controlled all measures like risk, quality and change to
ensure the viability of project. Efficient tools and techniques are used for
measurement of project like managerial audit, variance analyses, trend analyses, risk
assessment etc. (Hillson, 2012).
 There is another evidence that can justify the success of project is that the project
management plan includes effective and efficient use of techniques and practices.it
includes various components of project like risk, quality, cost, resources etc. are
considered by the organisation. Which gives guarantee for the effective and efficient
implementation of project.

It can be concluded form above justifications that Aston Chemical can expand their
operations and transfer their office building effectively.
There are some key outcomes derived from this project which are described as below:
 For expansion of business operations activities and premises it is very necessary for a
company to draw or prepare an appropriate project management plan. Because it
assists in conducting all activities as per the requirement of nature of situation and
time.
 By developing project management plan, another learning is every action or activity
related to the project plan should be analyse as per the required measures to check and
control the reliability and viability of activities needed to perform in project.
Thus, for successful implementation and success of project management plan it is very
important to analyse all the factors and component of project management. It helps in
ensuring the adherence of all the activities involved in the plan.
CONCLUSION
From the above discussion, it has been concluded that Project Initiation Document is
necessary for every organization in order to successful implementation of project. As this
a critical part of project management. Role of project manager is most important in a
way that he/she has responsibility to handle whole team. All the aspects like cost,
quality, resources, time are accumulated and managed in way so that project
management plan can be formulated. Success and failure of project depends upon
composition of team, project environment, as well as application of proper methods and
frameworks. From point of view of subject of project that is moving the office, most
important aspect is to ascertain profitability. Because relocation of office will prove a
major change and employees are also resistant to change. So, this will be major task for
an organization to efficaciously implement this project. But, this will bring growth
prospects for company.