Project Management Case Study: MUSC Football Competition Analysis

This case study analyzes the project management aspects of organizing a football competition for the Manchester United Soccer Club (MUSC). It delves into the project's background, scope, high-level requirements, deliverables, milestones, and stakeholders, providing a comprehensive overview of the project's structure. The study includes a detailed Gantt chart and Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) to illustrate the project's timeline and task breakdown. Furthermore, it addresses key project management concepts, such as differentiating projects from daily operations, the importance of project implementation in strategic planning, and the interplay of technical and sociocultural dimensions. The case study also explores the advantages and disadvantages of various project management approaches, the link between projects and strategic plans, and the elements of a scope statement. Finally, it provides insights into project objectives, priorities, and work package information, offering a practical understanding of project management principles. The project involves the tournament director, Nicolette Larson, and her husband, who utilizes WBS and Gantt chart for the management of the project. The project includes details on registration, field planning, sponsorships, media coverage, and award distribution.

Running head: Manchester United Soccer Club Case Study
Manchester United Soccer Club Case Study
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
Table of Contents
Section 1:........................................................................................................................2
Section 2:........................................................................................................................7
Project Background and Description.........................................................................7
Project Scope..............................................................................................................7
High-Level Requirements..........................................................................................7
Deliverables and Milestones......................................................................................7
Stakeholders...............................................................................................................9
High-Level Timeline/Schedule................................................................................10
References....................................................................................................................12

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
Section 1:
1. What are five characteristics, which help, differentiate projects from other functions
carried out in the daily operations of the organization?
Answer: The following list explains the five characteristics, which would be used for the
differentiation of the daily activities from the functions of a project:
 A fully defined time line of the project
 A well-defined process objective
 Involvement of peoples from different sectors of work
 The following of a life cycle of the project
 Following of a specific time, performance and cost for the project
2. Why is the implementation of projects important to strategic planning and the
project manager?
Answer: The strategic planning of the implementation of the primary process of the project
can be described as follows:
1. A new product
2. Implementation of a new information system.
3. A new plant for the production of the new products.
The project manager is the main person responsible for the completion and the
management of the project:
1. Timely completion of the project
2. Keeping the project within the budget
3. Keeping the project with the following of the specification

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
3. The technical and sociocultural dimensions of project management are two sides to
the same coin. Explain.
Answer: The technical and the sociocultural specific dimension of the project management
can be considered as two sides of a coin. This is because for the completion of the project the
complete skill set is required.
4. What are the relative advantages and disadvantages of the functional, matrix, and
dedicated team approaches to managing projects?
Answer:
Advantages Disadvantages
Functional Approach  There are no radical
alteration in the basic
organizational structure
 Use of staff in
accordance to maximum
flexibility
 Maintenance of normal
career path
 Lack of focus on the
project
 Slow in completion
 Lack of ownership of the
project
 Improper cross-
functional integration
with the project.
Matrix Approach  Flexible use of the
resources within the
project
 Focus on the project
 Proper balance with the
technical requirements
 Conflict in the
dysfunctional use of the
process
 Slow is completion of
the process
 Superiors are able to

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
induce stress
Dedicated Team Approach  Is not able to disrupt the
basic organizational
structure.
 Project focus is kept
concentrated on the main
topic
 Strong use of cross
functional integration
 Projects are completed
within the timeline
 The decision of what to
do when the project ends
is a dilemma.
 The technical expertise
of the project is limited
to the team members
 Expensive in nature.
5. How are projects linked to the strategic plan?
Answer: As most of the projects are more important than the others, the best possible way
for the maximization of the project and the resources. The use of priority scheme can be used
for the maximization of the resources for the project. This can also be used for the balancing
of the risk and the contribution to the strategic plan.
6. What are the six elements of a typical scope statement?
Answer: The following list are the six elements for the completion of the scope statement:
1. Objective of the project
2. Proper deliverable
3. Completion of milestones
4. Proper technical requirements needs to be met

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
5. Limitation and exclusion
6. Review of the customers
The completion of a project should comprise of all the above six elements for he
success of the project.
7. What questions does a project objective answer? What would be an example of a
good project objective?
Answer: A project objective generally shares the basic information of what, when and how
for the completion of a project. For the completion of the foot over bridge over the Thames
River by the end of 2018 within a budget of $2 million.
8. What does it mean if the priorities of a project include Time–constrain, Scope-
accept, and Cost–enhance?
Answer: The project needs to be completion within a specific data with the following of the
scope. The scope should be scaled down from the set out details to match the working budget
and the timeframe. There should also be the chance for the reduction of the cost at any point
of time during the project. For the completion of a project the three main requirements are4
scope, cost and time. These three factors would be responsible for the determination of the
quality of the project.
 Time–constrain: the project must be delivered on time.
 Scope- accept: reduction in the scope and the performance of the project is acceptable
 Cost–enhance: optimization of the cost needs to be done and reduction of the cost
needs to be followed.
9. List three kinds of information that are included in a work package.
Answer: The three kinds of information that are shared in the work package are:

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
1. What the work is to be done
2. How long would the project take to complete
3. How much of the resources are to be required
10. When would it be appropriate to create a responsibility matrix rather than a full-
blown WBS?
Answer: Use of the responsibility matric is used in small projects for the proper organization
and the assignment of the small process in the project along with the large process combined
of many sub process.

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
Section 2:
Project Background and Description
Based on the case study the project is to organize a football competition for the
Manchester United Soccer Club (MUSC). The revenue is to be collected and the newly
appointed tournament director, Nicolette Larson, would organize the complete completion.
Nicolette Larson discusses about the meeting along with her husband who would help her
with the work. The use of the WBS and the Gantt chart would help Nicolette Larson to
manage the competition and the work related to the project.
Project Scope
For the completion of the project the major scope to be followed are:
 To generate a revenue not more than $450.
 To complete the project within a deadline of 20 days.
 To manage the risk of the project when it is raised.
High-Level Requirements
The project would require the use of some of the basic products for the completion of
a football match. There are use of any high level products for the project. The details are to be
collected in written format. The details are the stored and managed in a proper database.
Deliverables and Milestones
The projects deliverables can be discussed as follows:
Task Name Duration Start Finish
Manchester United Soccer Club Case Study 19.75 days Mon 2/12/18 Fri 3/9/18
Registration of all the Teams: 4 days Mon 2/12/18 Thu 2/15/18

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
Screening process based on age limit 12 hrs Mon 2/12/18 Tue 2/13/18
Entry fees collection 12 hrs Tue 2/13/18 Wed 2/14/18
Sharing of rules and regulations 1 day Thu 2/15/18 Thu 2/15/18
Match time determination 6 hrs Thu 2/15/18 Thu 2/15/18
Walk out of the process 2 hrs Thu 2/15/18 Thu 2/15/18
Planning fields for play offs: 2.5 days Fri 2/16/18 Tue 2/20/18
Choosing ground for the games 1.25 days Fri 2/16/18 Mon 2/19/18
Penalty spot on the ground 5 hrs Fri 2/16/18 Fri 2/16/18
Centre spot on the ground 5 hrs Fri 2/16/18 Mon 2/19/18
Making alignment on the field 5 hrs Mon 2/19/18 Mon 2/19/18
Net hanging for goal posts 5 hrs Mon 2/19/18 Tue 2/20/18
Sponsorships: 5.5 days Tue 2/20/18 Tue 2/27/18
T-shirt Jersey 2 days Tue 2/20/18 Thu 2/22/18
Football 2 days Thu 2/22/18 Mon 2/26/18
Closing ceremony arrangement 1.5 days Mon 2/26/18 Tue 2/27/18
Media coverage 12 hrs Mon 2/26/18 Tue 2/27/18
Official Match People: 7.5 days Wed 2/28/18 Fri 3/9/18
Referee (qualified) 3 days Wed 2/28/18 Fri 3/2/18
Main Ground 12 hrs Wed 2/28/18 Thu 3/1/18
Sideline 12 hrs Thu 3/1/18 Fri 3/2/18
Ball pickers Boys 12 hrs Mon 3/5/18 Tue 3/6/18
Scorer 12 hrs Tue 3/6/18 Wed 3/7/18
Time checkers 12 hrs Thu 3/8/18 Fri 3/9/18
Award Distribution: 0.25 days Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
Medals for every member of the winning team 2 hrs Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18
1st prize trophy 2 hrs Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18
Certificate for best performers 0.25 days Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18
Best goal keeper award 2 hrs Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18
Top scorer award 2 hrs Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18
Trophy for the player of the tournament 2 hrs Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18
Best ball picker of the tournament 2 hrs Fri 3/9/18 Fri 3/9/18
Stakeholders
The major stakeholders of the project are:
Accountable Responsible Consulted Informed
Project manager YES YES
Treasury YES YES
Secretary YES YES
Player coach YES YES

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MANCHESTER UNITED SOCCER CLUB CASE STUDY
High-Level Timeline/Schedule
Figure 1: Gantt chart for the project
(Source: Created By Author)
Manchester United
Soccer Club.mpp
Registration of all the
Teams:
Screening process
based on age limit
Entry fees collection
Sharing of rules and
regulations
Match time
determination
Walk out of the
process
Planning fields for play
offs:
Choosing ground for the
games
Penalty spot on the
ground
Centre spot on the
ground
Making alignment on
the field
Net hanging for goal
posts
Sponsorships:
T-shirt Jersey
Football
Closing ceremony
arrangement
Media coverage
Official Match People:
Referee (qualified)
Main Ground
Sideline
Ball pickers Boys
Scorer
Time checkers
Award Distribution:
Medals for every
member of the
winning team
1st prize trophy
Certificate for best
performers
Best goal keeper
award
Top scorer award
Trophy for the player
of the tournament
Best ball picker of
the tournament
Figure 2: Work Breakdown structure for the project