Project Initiation, Planning, and Execution for Levi's Jeans (MBA642)

This report provides a comprehensive project management plan designed to address the project failure of Levi's jeans. The plan is structured around the IPECC model (Initiation, Planning, Execution, Controlling and Monitoring, and Closure), incorporating insights from the PMBOK framework. It begin...Read More

Running head: PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION
PROJECT INITIATION, PLANNING AND EXECUTION: Levi’s Jeans
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1Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
Table of Contents
Introduction..........................................................................................................................2
Business Background...........................................................................................................2
Project Planning...................................................................................................................3
Success Benchmarks............................................................................................................5
Software to be used in the project........................................................................................6
Data requirements................................................................................................................7
Conclusion...........................................................................................................................7
References............................................................................................................................9

2Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
Introduction
Project plan is one of the critical part for every project and this factor is highly important
for every project. Project plan is generally an official paper which is prepared at the beginning of
the project for executing and controlling the project methods and operations. Each and every
project needs a perfect project plan following which all project operations are executed. Project
plans are generated by communicating and documenting with the project stakeholders and
scheduling the project operations accordingly (Kerzner 2017). Moreover, all the project risks are
also considered in a project plan. The other elements of a project plan are project aims and
objectives, project methodology and project scope. Therefore, project plan is very useful for the
project members as this allow them to perform their operations seamlessly.
This report will critically analyze a project failure of Levi’s. Levi’s jeans is selected as
the failure project for the report. The report will develop a project plan which will be useful for
Levi’s to convert the project flop into success. A strategic approach will be presented in the
report to help Levi’s jeans to succeed in their failed project. The factors responsible for the
project disaster will be identified and presented such that in the next approach Levi does not have
to face result. This strategic approach can allow them to manufacture better products for their
clients.
Business Background
Levi is widely known for its outstanding and traditional products. Levi started its journey
in the year 1853 when Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss prepared their initial jeans pant. In the
present days, Levi is the leading jeans brand globally (Levistrauss 2020). The business is
headquartered in Singapore, San Francisco and Brussels serving in over 110 nations. Levi

3Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
succeeds to create their brand image throughout the world. The major products of Levi are belts,
slacks, skirts, jeans, hats and slacks. However, Levi failed in their project because of deficit in
appropriate leadership and strategic moves. Levi tried to bring variations in their product which
also disallowed them to succeed in their project. The business should analyze the market
scenario prior to launch their invention in the market. They failed to know and meet the key
requirements of the customers. A project plan is created in the next section of the report to allow
the business to manufacture better products for the customers and transform their project disaster
into success.
Project Planning
As per the project management body of knowledge, there are five stages in a project plan.
These phases may or may not be operated in a chronological technique such as in case of the
project alterations, the project members can seamlessly redirected in their initial phase
(Meredith, Mantel and Shafer 2017).
i. Project Initiation: In this level, the project is authorized as well as visualized. The
project lead prepares an overall idea of the project. He or she also presents the idea with
the project members. In this specific project, Levi’s jeans is the project and is highly
effective for both the business and the customers. A new start in the project will help the
business to recover all the losses faced due to the previous products. A particular project
charter is initially developed for this project. An estimation of the project timeline and the
project budget will be prepared in this stage (Phillips 2013). The stakeholders associated
with the concerned project are the marketing personnel, managers, executives, customers
and others. Thus, project initiation is crucial part for Levi as this is the initial point of

4Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
their project and based on which the other parts or sections will be performed or executed
(Gareis et al. 2013).
ii. Planning: After presenting the project idea, the project members will be preparing a
project plan to execute their project operations. This level will consider the estimated
time scale at every section and project department. The deliverables of this section are the
project deliverables, project success factors, project scope, human resource plan,
procurement management plan, risk management plan and human resource management
(LeRouge, Tulu and Wood 2016). Two factors that are helpful for the project members to
complete their project in time are the strictly bounded time scale and the budget that are
estimated previously. At the same time, support from the top administration is also
significant for the project success. A particular team will be there who will be responsible
to develop new designs for their products. Variation in the product design can allow the
business to recover the loss and transform the project failure to success. In this stage,
back up of every project operations will be created such that in case of any project
obstruction the operations are not suspended (Mullaly 2016). Levi launched their
previous product without preparing an appropriate plan which led them in facing a
negative result. They thought that their product will be effective for the customers due to
their high brand image. A back up plan could help them to recover their loss.
iii. Project Execution: All the project methods need to be executed as planned in the
previous level of the project plan. The stakeholders of the project will be playing a
significant role in this stage. The roles and responsibilities of every stakeholders will be
decided in this stage. The project will allocate the project task to every project members
on the basis of their skills and expertise (Crawford 2014). The project members are

5Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
required to complete their project in time. Transforming a failed project into a successful
one and starting an innovative project both are completely different from each other.
Therefore, allocation of the project task to an appropriate individual is an effective part to
turn the failed project into success (Blaskovics 2016).
iv. Project Controlling and Monitoring: The project should be monitored and updated in
regular phases. The project lead should also guarantee that the project is directed in
correct path. The lead has to provide update to other stakeholders and receive their
feedback. Alterations are done on the basis of the received feedback. Each and every
project method should align the project into a fruitful outcome (Tom and Paul 2013). In
this phase, the project lead should also ensure that the reasons behind the previous project
failure is not repeated in this time.
v. Project Closure: The project will be declared as a complete one when it is able to meet
all the key requirements of the customers and allow the business to recover all the losses
that are faced in their previous product (Portny 2017). Positive feedback of the customers
will an indicating factor for the project members to close their project.
Success Benchmarks
The factors of failure will be critically analyzed and it will be ensured that those factors
will not be repeated in this time. There are several success factors of the concerned project.
Initially, it is important the project tasks are assigned to the project members on the basis of their
skills and expertise. The project members should provide positive response while performing
their tasks. This will help them to align their project towards the defined project goals. The
second factor, is the support from the business. Top administrations should always motivate and
support the project members throughout the project. This will allow the project members to

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operate efficiently and effectively. The next factor is the effective communication.
Communication is an important part of a project (Castells 2013). Therefore, an effective
communication should be there in place all throughout the project. Communication will be
considered as effective, when Levi will be able to know and analyze the key requirements of
their customers. Moreover, any project alterations will be effectively implemented on the basis
of the project data. The trending design will also be analyzed to bring innovativeness in their
project. Innovativeness will help the business to gain the competitive advantage in the market
(Shockley-Zalabak 2014). This will further drive the failed project to a successful one.
Software to be used in the project
MS Project software will be applicable for this particular project because MS Project will
allow the project leading handling and structuring the project deliverables. The factors
responsible for the previous project failure will be considered as challenges for this approach.
MS Project will be used for organizing and handling the deliverable of the new project (Salas-
Morera et al. 2013). The reasons behind selecting MS Project for this project are mentioned
below:
 Integrity: The selected software provides high integrity with other tools of Microsoft.
MS Project has the ability to integrate multiple tools of Microsoft using which a user can
perform multiple task at the same time. The supplementary tools that can be integrated
with the MS Project are MS Outlook, MS Word, MS Excel and MS Access.
 Numerous Communication Channels: As mentioned above, communication is an
important requirement for this project. Therefore, to facilitate communication all
throughout the project, MS Project will be appropriate one as it provides multiple
communication channel. An effective and efficient connection can be produced

7Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
throughout the concerned project. Using MS Project the project member can enhance
their skills and responsibilities which they can use in their future projects.
 Flexibility: MS Project was invented thirty years ago and therefore has huge experience.
The project lead can blindly depend on this software for handling the concerned project.
Due to the high flexibility the project lead can easily perform all the operations in more
developed way (Stoshikj, Kryvinska and Strauss 2014). Moreover, the specifications of
the software are updated in a regular manner. Therefore, high flexibility and a wide
spread features will be helpful in this project.
Data requirements
The information desired for the initiation phase of the concerned project are stakeholders,
budget, and timeline and project goals.
The planning phase desires project risks, project resources, project deliverables and
project schedule as important information.
Execution phase desires data like regular update of the project, feedbacks of the
stakeholders, sources used in the project and the leftover resources.
The controlling and monitoring phase requires the information regarding the approach of
every project members towards their roles in the project, issues faced by them while conducting
their responsibilities of the project.
The feedbacks of the customers and the overall report of the project will be required to
close the project.

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Conclusion
Thus, according to the prepared project plan, it is a complex process to turn the project
failure of Levi’s Jeans into a successful one. However, the presented approach can be used to
recover the loss faced previously and covert the disastrous project into a positive one. A high
joint effort of the project team and the project lead is highly important in this project. The
presented IPECC model is recommended to be followed in the project. The mentioned success
factors will be considered in the project which will be helpful for them to convert their
unsuccessful project into a successful one. The customer requirements and the customer support
is also an important part for this project. The recommended software is also an important part of
this project for managing the project effectively.

9Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
References
Blaskovics, B., 2016. The impact of project manager on project success—The case of ICT
sector. Society and Economy. In Central and Eastern Europe ǀ Journal of the Corvinus
University of Budapest, 38(2), pp.261-281.
Castells, M., 2013. Communication power. OUP Oxford.
Crawford, J.K., 2014. Project management maturity model. Auerbach Publications.
Gareis, R., Huemann, M., Martinuzzi, A., Weninger, C. and Sedlacko, M., 2013, April. Project
management and sustainable development principles. Project Management Institute.
Kerzner, H., 2017. Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and
controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
LeRouge, C.M., Tulu, B. and Wood, S., 2016. Project initiation for telemedicine services. In E-
health and telemedicine: Concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications (pp. 1-24). IGI
Global.
Levistrauss, 2020.Levis History - Levi Strauss & Co. [online] Levi Strauss & Co.
Meredith, J.R., Mantel Jr, S.J. and Shafer, S.M., 2017. Project management: a managerial
approach. John Wiley & Sons.
Mullaly, M., 2016. Exercising agency: Decision making and project initiation. Routledge.
Phillips, J., 2013. PMP, Project Management Professional (Certification Study Guides).
McGraw-Hill Osborne Media.
Portny, S.E., 2017. Project management for dummies. John Wiley & Sons.

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Salas-Morera, L., Arauzo-Azofra, A., García-Hernández, L., Palomo-Romero, J.M. and Hervás-
Martínez, C., 2013. PpcProject: An educational tool for software project
management. Computers & Education, 69, pp.181-188.
Shockley-Zalabak, P., 2014. Fundamentals of organizational communication. Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Pearson.
Stoshikj, M., Kryvinska, N. and Strauss, C., 2014. Efficient managing of complex programs with
project management services. Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, 15(1), pp.25-38.
Tom, A.F. and Paul, S., 2013. Project monitoring and control using primavera. International
Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology, 2(3), pp.762-771.