Project Management Report: Warehouse Restructure and Management

This report delves into the core concepts of project management, using a case study of a food manufacturing company's warehouse restructure as a practical example. It begins with an introduction to project management and its importance, followed by an analysis of the project's objectives, ...Read More

Project Management
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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................5
TASK 1.................................................................................................................................................5
1.1 Projects required from an appraisal of established business objectives....................................5
1.2 Project sub-division and high level estimates of time, resources and costs..............................5
1.3 Evaluation of project methodology suitable for the project......................................................6
1.4 Assessment of feasibility of proposed project...........................................................................7
TASK 2.................................................................................................................................................8
2.1 Structure for the management and administration of the project...............................................8
2.2 Roles and responsibilities of the project manager.....................................................................9
2.3 Project plan................................................................................................................................9
TASK 3...............................................................................................................................................13
3.1 Alternative project team structures..........................................................................................13
3.2 Interpersonal skills required for the effective project management.........................................13
3.3 Design of quality management processes for the project........................................................14
3.4 Design of procedures for managing project change proposals................................................14
TASK 4...............................................................................................................................................15
4.1 Identification of issues and risks that may impede a project...................................................15
4.2 Design systems for monitoring and appraising the status of a project....................................15
4.3 Design of control systems to detect and manage issues arising in the course of projects.......16
TASK 5...............................................................................................................................................18
5.1 Issues and risks that encountered in the final stages of a project............................................18
5.2 Assessment of necessary project tasks to be completed in the final stage of a project...........18
CONCLUSION..................................................................................................................................19
References..........................................................................................................................................21
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List of Figures
Figure 1 Warehouse project subdivision..............................................................................................6
Figure 2 Structure of PRINCE 2..........................................................................................................7
Figure 3 Structure and Administration of restructure project...............................................................9
Figure 4 Gantt chart for Warehouse management project..................................................................12
Figure 5 Network diagram for Warehouse management project........................................................12
Figure 6 Alternative project team structure.......................................................................................13
Figure 7 Project Control System for Warehouse Management project..............................................17
Figure 8 Use of post implementation report.......................................................................................19
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List of Tables
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Table 1 Project plan for Warehouse management project....................................................................9
Table 2 Issues and risks that encountered in the final stages of a project..........................................18
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INTRODUCTION
Project management is an area which is related to planning, directing, organizing and
controlling the specific task or work. It is also used in proper allocation of resources in order to
meet the expect result within stipulated time. Every project plan has different expected outcomes
and also consists of various assets. A project is having three constrains: time, scope and cost
(Turner, 2014). These are essential part of the project management process because they help in
executing the plan in an effective manner. The following study has defined different aspects of
project management. This report will specify various processes to determine feasibility of the
project. Along with this report also provides details about, management skills of a project manager
and their contribution in organization growth..
TASK 1
1.1 Projects required from an appraisal of established business objectives
A food manufacturing company wants to restructure its warehouse with the intention of
minimising different expenses. There are some specific objectives which are associated with
business aims and objectives and these are as follows.
 To increase percentage of sales every year by 10% continuously.
 To enhance profitability by reducing various expenses (Kerzner, 2013).
 To retain earning capacity of the business.
 To improve quality of food products.
 To improve inventory systems and make effective utilization of warehouse.
 Minimising the carrying and holding cost of inventory (Burke, 2013).
After analyzing the above stated objectives, it has been identified that, if the food
manufacturing company adopt effective methods for warehouse and inventory management than
these objectives can be achieved in an appropriate manner. These objectives can be achieved with
effective utilization of organization resources like warehouse management etc. In order to carry out
project activities in a proper manner, effective use of Warehouse and inventory management will be
required. (Highsmith, 2009).
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1.2 Project sub-division and high level estimates of time, resources and costs
The sub division of Warehouse management is the Work Breakdown Structure. It is a
method by which the task can be divided into manageable sections. The time scale for completing
warehouse management project is 162 days. The project budget for this plan is $3000. On the other
hand, the resources for the project are financial, software and hardware equipments, skilled human
resources and other supporting services.
Figure 1 Warehouse project subdivision
1.3 Evaluation of project methodology suitable for the project
For warehouse management project the most suitable project management methodology is
PRINCE 2. By using the principles of it, the best practices for proposed project can be developed
which are as follows.
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Justification based project: It provide right reason to the project manger of food manufacturing
company to start the project and complete it within given limitations. Documentation and
acceptance of the plan should be in the written form so that, the plan can be carried out in right
direction (Winter and et.al., 2006).
Learn from experience: Project manager has to learn from his experience and it will help him to
solve present issues and problems in the project work. This experience may be good or bad so by
learning from previous jobs, the project can be led in the right direction.
Define Role and Responsibilities: With the help of this principle, the project manager can assign
roles and responsibilities to employees according to their capabilities and skills (Koskela and
Howell, 2002).
Manage by stages: This method has followed the structured process for the project and has
segregated it into the different stages such as planning, directing, organizing, monitoring and
controlling. These levels can be used according to the type of plan, its subdivision and its outcome
(Söderlund, 2004).
Figure 2 Structure of PRINCE 2
(Source: PRINCE2 (Projects IN a Controlled Environment, 2014))
Manage by exception: With the help of this, the project manager can easily take decisions regarding
cost, resources, possible risk in the plan, future scope, outcome etc. Therefore, it will be easy for
food manufacturing company to manage project at every stage.
Focus on objective: This approach is mostly giving emphasize on important objectives which can
help in achieving expected results in a right mode (Santiago and Magallon, 2009).
Modification of project environment: This method also helps in bringing modifications in the plan
that supports project environment such as capabilities, size, outcome, complexity etc.
1.4 Assessment of feasibility of proposed project
Feasibility assessment is a process of documentation of idea from the beginning to the end in
the logical manner. For warehouse and inventory management project, the steps of feasibility
assessment of plans are as follows.
Technical: It is referred to available technical resources in the food manufacturing organization.
From the study, it has found that, technical team of the company are able to transform new ideas
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into the established new systems. Along with this, it also assess that the availability of the hardware
and software equipments have meet requirements of new two proposed projects (Mukund, 2015).
Economical: It helps the organization to measure the cost, viability and advantages of new projects
plans at the time of allocation of financial resources. From this assessment, it has been found that,
both new systems have provided economical benefits to firm and support expenses.
Legal: From the legal feasibility study, it has been determined that, new proposed systems have not
make the conflicts with existing or present legal systems and related aspects such as data protection
act, social media rules, copyright act etc (Mukund, 2015).
Operational: This is a study in which it has been analyzed that, the proposed systems either fulfil
the need of the current business or not in a proper manner. It has measured that; proposed solutions
will solve problems of food manufacturing company and provide different opportunities of growth.
Scheduling: It is an important aspect of every project plan because it defines success of the plan.
From the scheduling assessment, it has been found that the proposed systems will be completed
within give time frame because the technical skills of the employees are good (Mukund, 2015).
TASK 2
2.1 Structure for the management and administration of the project
Structure of the management and administration of the project has been prepared according
to skills and knowledge of employees. This process requires effective decision making capabilities
so that, the team structure can support the proposed project. Structure of the plan consists of three
level of management: top, middle and lower level (Kim and De La Garza, 2005). The structure for
the management and administration of the project is shown in the below figure.
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Figure 3 Structure and Administration of restructure project
2.2 Roles and responsibilities of the project manager
The roles and responsibilities of project manager vary with company to company as well as
it has different nature and characteristics of the project. He is a person who is responsible for
successful planning, organizing, directing and controlling the plan. The designation used for this
person is different different industry (Mubarak, 2015). In the case of food manufacturing company,
the roles and responsibilities of project manager will be different. His duties will revolve around
restructuring the warehouse and its subdivision. Some major roles and responsibilities of project
manager are as follows.
 Planning and determining the scope of the project
 Scheduling the activities according to priorities
 Resources arrangements and allocation
 Preparing the budget for project
 Documentation of the process (Colin and Vanhoucke, 2014)
 Risk assessment and developing solution to minimize it
 Monitoring and recording progress of project
2.3 Project plan
Table 1 Project plan for Warehouse management project
WBS Activity name Duration Start Finish Predec
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essors
1 Restructure of warehouse 162 days Wed 09-09-15 Thu 21-04-16
1.1 Warehouse Management 162 days Wed 09-09-15 Thu 21-04-16
1.1.1 Space layout 35 days Wed 09-09-15 Tue 27-10-15
1.1.1.1 Equipment maintenance 15 days Wed 09-09-15 Tue 29-09-15
1.1.1.2
Charging batteries of
equipments 10 days Wed 30-09-15 Tue 13-10-15 4
1.1.1.3
Selection of area for garbage
disposal 5 days Wed 14-10-15 Tue 20-10-15 5
1.1.1.4 Employee rest rooms 5 days Wed 21-10-15 Tue 27-10-15 6
1.1.2 Planning 45 days Wed 28-10-15 Tue 29-12-15
1.1.2.1
Allocation of space
according to the product
type with number
20 days Wed 28-10-15 Tue 24-11-15 7
1.1.2.2
Allocation of space for
damage goods 10 days Wed 28-10-15 Tue 10-11-15 7
1.1.2.3
Free space to operate the
warehouse in effective
manner
25 days Wed 11-11-15 Tue 15-12-15 10
1.1.2.4
Area of inspection, loading
and unloading the goods 10 days Wed 16-12-15 Tue 29-12-15 11
1.1.3 Special arrangements 30 days Wed 25-11-15 Tue 05-01-16
1.1.3.1 Shipments of goods 5 days Wed 30-12-15 Tue 05-01-16 12
1.1.3.2
Separate area for hazardous
products 5 days Wed 25-11-15 Tue 01-12-15 9
1.1.3.3 Power source area 2 days Wed 02-12-15 Thu 03-12-15 15
1.1.4
Space utilization and
handling 30 days Wed 06-01-16 Tue 16-02-16
1.1.4.1 Receipt area of goods 4 days Wed 06-01-16 Mon 11-01-16 14
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1.1.4.2 Storage area 6 days Tue 12-01-16 Tue 19-01-16 16,18
1.1.4.3 Picking area 5 days Wed 20-01-16 Tue 26-01-16 19
1.1.4.4 Dispatching of goods 15 days Wed 27-01-16 Tue 16-02-16 20
1.1.5 Operations 25 days Wed 17-02-16 Tue 22-03-16
1.1.5.1 Resource allocation 5 days Wed 17-02-16 Tue 23-02-16 21
1.1.5.2 Inventory management 10 days Wed 24-02-16 Tue 08-03-16 23
1.1.5.3 Health and safety 5 days Wed 09-03-16 Tue 15-03-16 24
1.1.5.4 Documentation of stock 5 days Wed 16-03-16 Tue 22-03-16 25
1.1.6 Project close 22 days Wed 23-03-16 Thu 21-04-16
1.1.6.1 Monitoring and controlling 10 days Wed 23-03-16 Tue 05-04-16 26
1.1.6.2 Corrective actions 5 days Wed 06-04-16 Tue 12-04-16 28
1.1.6.3 Post implementation report 5 days Wed 13-04-16 Tue 19-04-16 29
1.1.6.4 Closing of project 2 days Wed 20-04-16 Thu 21-04-16 30
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Figure 4 Gantt chart for Warehouse management project
Figure 5 Network diagram for Warehouse management project
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TASK 3
3.1 Alternative project team structures
Figure 6: Alternative project team structure
3.2 Interpersonal skills required for the effective project management
In the case of restructuring of warehouse, there are some interpersonal skills which must be
required in a project manager. The lists of these skills are as follows.
Team building: The proposed project is a long term project and to execute the plan in an effective
way, the project manager needs a big team. In this context, the manager must have an ability to
develop a sense of teamwork in the team so that, the members will work independently and by
supporting each other. By using own interpersonal behaviour, project manager can resolve conflicts
in the team (Pradip, 2015).
Decision making: During formulation of warehouse management project, there will be some
decisions which will be taken by project manager itself by using its self interpersonal skills. The
decision of manager depends on different restraints such as quality, scheduling, feasibility of the
project etc. Therefore, the decision making capabilities of the project manager may have negative or
positive impact on plan (Pradip, 2015).
Communication: The effective communication skill is essential for manager because it can increase
success rate of project plan. In the case of warehouse management project, project manager has to
conduct different sessions of meetings, taking feedback from the team members, updating the
progress of work etc (Pradip, 2015).
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Motivation: It is an important aspect for a successful project. To achieve set objectives, the project
manager needs to motivate team members. It is essential because every person belong to different
background and due to this, their expectations changes (Pradip, 2015).
3.3 Design of quality management processes for the project
In the case of warehouse management project, the quality management process plays an
important role. The design of quality management process for the project is as follows.
Status and plan documentation: For quality management process, the first step is status and plan
documentation. In this, the project manager will keep the records of progress of the project plan and
define every step in the detailed manner such as time frame, types of resources, scheduling,
responsible person name etc (Adak and Yumuşak, 2013).
Regular monitoring meetings: In the second step, project manager will monitor progress and
growth of the project by organizing meetings, taking feedback from the team members etc. Along
with this, properly keeping records process can also help in delivering quality project to the
organization.
Defining responsibilities and accountabilities: For ensuring the quality of project at every stage of
the project plan; the project manager will allocate roles and responsibilities to the skilled team
members. This process will also lead in managing quality of the proposed system after completing
project (Hazır, 2015).
Communication: By using proper communication methods with the team members, the project
manager will ensure the quality of the final outcome as well as carry out in every stage of plan.
With the help of developing reports for each activity of the task, the quality of proposed project will
be attained within stipulated time.
Traceability and audit trails: Project manager will adopt different traceability methods to verify the
history and current status of the project by maintaining records in document form. With the help of
audit trail, the assessment of the every stage of project plan will be carried out (Gyawali, Tao and
Müller, 2013).
3.4 Design of procedures for managing project change proposals
In order to manage change proposal of warehouse management project, the steps are as
follows.
Formal change requests: It is a step where the project manager receives formal change request
from team members or the company. Under this, different issues and problems have to be
determined by analyzing situations (Turner, 2014).
Review of critical path: After receiving the change request or proposals, the nest step is to take
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review of critical path of the project plan. This will help manager in analysing the impact of
proposed plan or change on the existing action plan. The effect may be come in term of allocation
of resources and deadlines of the project activities etc.
Authorisation processes: In this step, the authorisation process has been performed. The project
manager will make suitable changes in the plan and will prepare reports. These reports will include
different reasons of modification in the action plan and its impact on the entire project (Kerzner,
2013).
Close change request: Here, the project manager will inform the team members about new changes
in the plan. Along with this, he will ensure that, all the new modifications will documented in the
file with the name of change request proposal (Burke, 2013).
TASK 4
4.1 Identification of issues and risks that may impede a project
In the case of restructure the warehouse, there are different issues and risks which may arise.
The list of issues and risks are as follows.
Scope creep: This situation is raised when a change or modification is to be done in the entire
project or in some part when project is in running condition.
These alterations may be from the client side and this can happen several times till completion of
project. It may affect different project deliverables and other areas of plan (Winter and et.al., 2006).
Change in dependencies: The change in the existing action plan of project has directly affected
dependencies of the activities. For example, planning and organizing are depended on each other.
After completing the planning activity, organizing activity will be performed. If market research
task is put at the place of planning then impact of change on individuals can be measured in a
significant manner (Highsmith, 2009).
Delays: Lack of technology, taking time to raise the funds, unavailability of resources etc creates
delays in the entire project plan. The whole work will be delayed from its actual time frame.
Planning errors: Improper allocation of resources, unequal distribution of roles and responsibilities
to the team members, scheduling of the activities, not clear objectives, ineffective quality
management tools etc may be considered as planning errors. These types of problems will delay the
entire project of restructure the warehouse (Koskela and Howell, 2002).
4.2 Design systems for monitoring and appraising the status of a project
Project monitoring is a method which helps in providing creative suggestions such as
reschedule the project plan in case of any kind of delay, re-budgeting the plan in the situation of
increase expense or cost, relocation of different resources according to the priorities etc. For
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monitoring the progress of warehouse restructuring, the steps are as follows.
 Determine various activities and tasks involved in the planning and organizing stage of
warehouse management plan (Söderlund, 2004).
 Identified those jobs which require improvements. The identification can be done by
observation, feedback process, meetings, evaluation of the process etc.
 Develop the format of formal report so that, records of each activity can be maintained.
 Prepare the reports on the regular bases (Santiago and Magallon, 2009).
 Established the different level of reporting and the responsibilities of team members.
 Analyse the information and determine actual status of the project by comparing with the set
objectives.
 Determine critical and complex activities in implementation plan
 Develop the solution for taking corrective actions (Kim and De La Garza, 2005).
The method of project monitoring and appraising are first hand information, project
schedule chart and status report, financial reports of the project, graphic representation and informal
reports.
4.3 Design of control systems to detect and manage issues arising in the course of projects
Project control systems have developed after detail designing of the project which helps in
controlling different areas of the project plan. The different project control system for the proposed
plan is as follows.
Schedule control: To manage the project plan and its various activities, the schedule control system
can be used. It helps in keeping control over different milestones and deliverables of the work. For
controlling scheduling, the CPM and Gantt chart can be used (Darke, 2013).
Cost control: Management of the budget, control over the cost and expenses, the cost control
system can be used. This system is based on the transaction of money so that, the changes in the
forecast budgeted can be easily determined and the corrective actions can be taken (Darke, 2013).
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Figure 7 Project Control System for Warehouse Management project
(Source: Enthalpy’s Project Controls System (PCS), 2015)
Change control: In the situation of proposal of new changes in the proposed project plan it may
affect the entire project work. To manage this issue, change control system has controlled the
workflow. This system had integrated with the cost and scheduling so that, any changes will easily
reflect (Darke, 2013).
Document control: It is most important to keep all the records and documents related to the project
complete and up-date. With the help of this, the different issues such as designing or format of
documents, control process of new forecasts and expenses etc can be managed (Darke, 2013).
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TASK 5
5.1 Issues and risks that encountered in the final stages of a project
Issues and risks that are encountered in the final stage of restructure of warehouse are called
project close-out risk.
Table 2 Issues and risks that encountered in the final stages of a project
Risk Explanation
Communication failure The improper communication between team members and
project manager may create confusion regarding assigning
roles and responsibilities as well as reporting process
(Mubarak, 2015).
Meaningless plan The ineffective project plan may create risk at the final stage of
project. The improper scheduling of the activities and poor
allocation of resources may also raise issues at the final stage.
No accountability If the team members or project manager are not responsible for
their duties and roles then, it will be an issue which will be
encountered in the final stage of a project (Colin and
Vanhoucke, 2014).
Lack of employee empowerment If the team members are not having empowerment to take the
decisions regarding the project or all the decisions are taking
by the top management than it will lead to increase the
dissatisfaction in employee.
5.2 Assessment of necessary project tasks to be completed in the final stage of a project
The necessary project tasks which have to be completed in the final stage of restructuring
the warehouse project are as follows.
Evaluation of project and team performance: At the final of the proposed project, the evaluation of
performance of project and team, both are important. This help in analyzing efforts of the team
members in developing project and assessing benefits of the system for food manufacturing
company (Adak and Yumuşak, 2013).
Documentation of leaning points: It is an also important function which is needed to be carried out
in the last stage of project. Different types of learning strategies can be applied in different
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situations to take appropriate decisions from planning to the execution phase. Therefore, by listing
down learning it will help in the future as a experience (Hazır, 2015).
Access success factors: Assessment of the success factors of the proposed project may be proper
team work, good planning, effective use of resources, communication between the team members
etc. By measuring it, these can be used in the future for the new project.
Post implementation report: In this task, various types of formal reports have prepared which
include assessment and reviewing completed proposed project. The purpose of this task is to
evaluate how objectives of the project have been achieved and how the different project
management practices will help in keeping the plan within the track (Gyawali, Tao and Müller,
2013).
Figure 8 Use of post implementation report
(Source: Post-Implementation Review (PIR), 2015)
CONCLUSION
From the above study, it can be concluded that the PRICNE 2 project methodology has used
to evaluate restructure of the warehouse project. Along with this, the proposed project has found
feasible in technical, economic, legal and operational aspect. As per the requirements of project
plan, project manager can change the team structure and allocate the roles and responsibilities to
them according to their capabilities and knowledge. Further, roles and responsibilities of project
manager in different situations have been discussed. There are different issues and risks that have
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been encountered at the final stage of the project. But along with this, there are also some tasks
which have to be completed at final stage of proposed project.
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