Detailed Project Plan: ABC Company Retail Store Expansion Initiative

This project plan outlines the expansion of ABC Company's retail store, detailing various activities for effective implementation. It includes the formation of a dedicated project team, emphasizing efficient resource utilization, and focusing on key activities such as site selection and final implementation. The plan incorporates review procedures by top authorities to minimize omissions and ensure quality through rigorous testing of materials and equipment. The project scope encompasses the opening of a new branch, addressing increasing product demand, and aiming to enhance revenues and profitability. The plan utilizes a work breakdown structure, with a 6-month timeline and a budget of £1000000. It covers technical features, including site location, financial resource management, and site plan development. Quality and management aspects are addressed through standards like ISO 9000 and PRINCE2 methodology. The organizational structure includes a team of 25 members with a clear communication channel and a project manager overseeing operations. The project schedule, resource allocation, and risk assessment are also detailed, ensuring a comprehensive approach to the retail store expansion.

PROJECT PLAN

TABLE OF CONTENT
Summary .........................................................................................................................................3
Project Scope and Contract..............................................................................................................3
Technical plan .................................................................................................................................4
Quality and management ................................................................................................................5
Organization and personnel.............................................................................................................6
Project schedule ..............................................................................................................................7
Resources and facilities....................................................................................................................8
Risk assessment and risk management .........................................................................................10
References......................................................................................................................................11
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SUMMARY
Present project plan is based on expansion of retail store where large number of activities
for its effective implementation. Further, separate team has been developed which involves
project manager along with team members. Moreover, main stress is on effective utilization of
key resources associated with the project. Main focus is on key activities such as site selection,
determining appropriate site and final implementation (Eve, 2007). Further, review procedure
has been undertaken by top authorities with the main objective to reduce the chances of omission
and this can be beneficial for the entire project in every possible manner. Different quality tests
have been applied so as to ensure that materials along with equipment used in development of
site are above expected level and with the help of this business can easily deal with the key
challenges which are faced during the stage of project implementation.
PROJECT SCOPE AND CONTRACT
ABC company is planning for the expansion of their business by opening a new branch in
the similar city. At present demand of their products is continuously increasing due to which they
are not able to operate in an effective manner. By considering boards of directors had decided to
open a new branch with the existing name of store. With this project, company will be able to
provide products and services to the customers in an effective manner. This aspect will also
assist them in enhancing their revenues and profitability (Lindahl and Ryd, 2007).
Proposed project by ABC company will be managed through the work break down
structure. For this aspect entire team will be divided into manageable sections. In accordance
with this section work will be allocated in order to achieve the objectives of the project. This
entire project will be completed in 6 months at the cost of £1000000. Financial sources and time
is limited with the company because is required to be open as soon as possible. For the
formulation of project following assumptions have been considered by the management of the
company-
 Required resources for the completion of project are available in timely manner
 Project schedule dates are accurate
 Qualified staff is recruited by management of the company.
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Quality criteria of the project will be achieved by making comparison of desired
objective with the actual outcome. For this aspect, assessment will be made by board of directors
of the company.
TECHNICAL PLAN
This factor takes into consideration overall technical features of the project on which
entire project depends and supports in accomplishment of desired aims. The present project is
associated with retial store expansion where ABC company is taking initiatives so as to boost its
overall performance in the market. Further, it is necessarily required to analyse well in advance
overall requirement, specifications, system diagram, site plan, support functions and other
documents which are directly associated with the project (Little, 2011). Further, the major
requirement of the present project is linked with searching for the new location where site can be
developed and new store can be expanded. It is one of the basic requirement of the new project
and by searching for new location in proper manner it is possible to accomplish the ultimate
objective. Apart from this another requirement is linked with management of financial resources
as it is well known fact that expansion of store requires high investment and it is also linked with
the growth of project. Further, it also undertakes specifications where main features of the new
project are searching for new location, analysing its accessibility, knowing its suitability from
customers point of view and implementation of the actual plan. Expansion is only possible where
appropriate location has been determined on the basis of which entire set up can be done in
effective manner.
Apart from this the site plan of the new project involves overall layout, first floor plan,
mixed floor plan along with boundary etc. All these are necessarily considered in effective
development of site plan and proper consideration of each and every element associated with
plan can enhance overall efficiency of the project. Further, different tools are required in
effective implementation of this plan where major one is advanced machineries with the help of
which site development will take place (Petropoulou, 2007). Moreover, different standards have
been applied so that overall structure of the building along with layout may be of acceptable
standard. On the other hand, expansion will be on contract basis where outside parties will be
allowed to carry out the entire process of construction. Through this, it is possible to utilize all
the major resources of the business in efficient manner.
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QUALITY AND MANAGEMENT
It is regarded as one of the major area where authorities of the project have to consider.
Further, to enhance the quality level various standards have been considered such as ISO 9000
through which it is possible to develop a store as per actual requirements. By applying this
standard it is possible to carry out quality work and it is most commonly accepted in quality
along with engineering industry. Successful implementation of quality management system can
assist in enhancing the quality level which is one of the main aim of business enterprise
(Sommerville, 2011). The overall site which will be constructed covers large amount of area and
due to this specific reason it has to be ensured in advance whether proper quality tools are
considered so that issues in near future may not arise. Apart from this safety standards have also
been undertaken in order to provide safe environment to individuals who are associated with the
process of carrying out operations which are crucial for the project.
Apart from this, PRINCE2 as a methodology has been employed which is a project
management tool. It takes into consideration quality management, control and organization of
project which are crucial in accomplishment of the aim of the project. It is a type of certification
program especially for practitioners in the methodology who are qualified with the help of
training (What is PRINCE2., 2013). Through this ABC limited has segregated its entire project
into controllable stages and it has been owned by government of UK. It takes into consideration
each and every crucial stage which are starting up project, initiating it, directing, controlling,
managing product delivery, managing stage boundaries, closing a project etc. By focusing on all
these stages it is possible for business to successfully implement the proposal of expansion and
can provide favorable results to the business.
On the other hand, effective quality plan has also been built in order to develop the
overall site in appropriate manner. Further, through this all the range of activities can be
managed in proper manner on which success of entire project depends and in turn it is beneficial
in every possible manner. Proper quality criteria has been set where main focus is on
accomplishing them (Kloppenborg, 2011). Moreover, in order to prevent occurrence of faults
each and every activity will be analyzed by experts thoroughly so as to reduce the chances of
omission. In order to detect the major frauds associated with the process separate team has been
developed who will ensure whether each and every activity is carried out as per plan or not.
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ORGANIZATION AND PERSONNEL
For smooth functioning of the major business operations each and every activity of the
project will be carried out in appropriate manner. Further, team of 25 members have been built
where individual are assigned various responsibilities. Apart from this proper channel of
communication has been developed so that each and every staff member can easily communicate
with one another. In the present project one senior staff is playing role of project manager whose
main duty is to ensure that each and every activity is carried out in appropriate manner. Further,
main focus is on efficient utilization of major resources (Kousholt., 2007). Project manager has
developed effective plans as success and failure of project totally depends on this. Apart from
this project team members are present for executing tasks and producing deliverables as outlined
in the project. Further, meeting is carried out on weekly basis where growth of project is
discussed and it is analyzed whether each and every activity is carried out in proper manner or
not. In short one of the major skill required is project management through which each and every
activity can be focused easily and is fruitful for the entire project in every possible manner.
Moreover, for site development 3 engineers have been appointed, 5 electrical engineers who are
having experience of 5 years. Therefore, the new team being developed for implementing new
project is quite effective and they can focus on all the major activities of project.
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PROJECT SCHEDULE
Activity Early
Start
Early Finish Late Start Late
Finish
Slack
Research & Planning 0 10 0 10 0
Designing 10 30 10 30 0
Execution &
Construction
30 90 30 90 0
Structure designing 90 130 130 170 40
Infrastructure &
interior
90 170 90 170 0
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Measuring &
Corrective action
170 180 170 180 0
Final 180 190 180 190 0
Project 190
RESOURCES AND FACILITIES
In order to complete this project following resources will be required by the company- Human resources- Human resources are most vital asset of this project as they will assist
in conversion of available assets into the outcome of the project. For the completion of
proposed project team of 10 members will be formed. Initially project manager will be
appointed who will take care of entire activities (Sears, Sears and Clough, 2010). Further,
2 financial managers will be appointed in order to prepare budgets and to generate funds
for the completion of project. 5 marketing managers will be recruited for the sales
promotion of new store. Other two members will take care of set up of the new store. Financial sources- In order to complete activities of the project, it is essential for
management of ABC company to generate sufficient funds. For this aspect they can make
proportionate use of debt and equity in order to prevent excessive financial burden. With
the proportional increase in capital structure, company will be able to pay financial cost
of funds even in the situation of fluctuations of profits. Through these funds, payment of
set up, promotional activities and fees of team members will be made (Andersen, Dysvik
and Vaagaasar, 2009).
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 Physical resources- For the proposed project, building will be constructed by the ABC
company. Construction work for interior and exterior will be outsourced by the project
manager to the construction company. Further, machinery and furniture will be purchased
by the organization for the set up of store.
Proposed cash flow statement is enumerated below:
Particulars Description Amount required
For the construction
of building
This amount will be payable in 50% in starting
and remaining will be payable prior to one
month completion of project.
450000
Advertisement and
promotion
This amount will be required after 4 months as
building will be developed as per the
contractual agreement.
200000
Fees and salary for
human resources
This amount will be required on monthly basis
and project fees will be paid in two
installments.
100000
Purchase of assets This amount will be required after 4 months as
building will be developed as per the
contractual agreement.
200000
Other expenses Required at the time of initiation of project for
the payment of other expenses by project
manager.
50000
Total amount 1000000
Above shown is the cash flow analysis which considers key activities such as
construction of building where amount of 50% will be payable and remaining will be paid after
one year time period of completion. Further, amount of 200000 has been allocated for
advertising and promotion and it is required after 4 months after development of building.
100000 has been allocated as fees and salary for staff members. 200000 on purchase of assets,
50000 are other expenses which involves payment of other expenses required by project manager
etc. Therefore, cash flow statement highlights all the range of activities which are crucial for the
new project and effective management of financial resources is must so that project can be
completed in the budget assigned and as per plan.
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RISK ASSESSMENT AND RISK MANAGEMENT
At the time of implementing project various risks have to determined well in advance and
taking corrective actions for managing such risk is must for business. ABC ltd is planning to
expand its retail store and various risks are associated with the proposal which are linked with
cost where sometime it may be possible that cost of carrying out different operations may
increase and this can have adverse impact on the entire project. Further, time is also another risk
whether the time required in completion of project can be increased which is also one of the
major challenge for new project (Bryde, 2003). Quality can be regarded as one of the key issue
which can be faced at the time of implementing the new project. It is possible that the overall site
developed may not be acceptable quality and due to this basic reason quality as an major issue
can be unfavorable for business. It is the duty of first and foremost duty of project team members
to take corrective actions so that overall project can be carried out in most effective manner.
Technical risk can also be major one where it is possible that lack of technical resources
can prevent from accomplishing the overall aims and objectives of the project. Technical factor
involves requirement, specification etc and in case if they are not considered appropriately then
efficiency of the entire project can be adversely affected due to this (Velagapudi, 2011). On the
other hand for effective management of risk various plans have been developed and through this
it is easy to reduce the impact of overall risk. Different strategies have been designed by team
members of project and they have taken corrective actions for management of key risks. Proper
monitoring techniques have been employed through which each and every activity can be
analyzed thoroughly.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Andersen, S. E., Dysvik, A. and Vaagaasar, L. A., 2009. Organizational rationality and project
management. International Journal of Managing Projects in Business. 2(4) pp.479 – 498.
Bryde, J. D., 2003. Modelling project management performance. International Journal of
Quality & Reliability Management. 20(2). pp.229 – 254.
Eve, A., 2007. Development of project management systems. Industrial and Commercial
Training. 39(2). pp.85 – 90.
Kloppenborg, T., 2011. Contemporary Project Management. 2nd ed. Cengage Learning.
Kousholt., B. 2007. Project Management. Nyt Teknisk Forlag.
Lindahl, G. and Ryd, N., 2007. Clients' goals and the construction project management process.
Facilities. 25(3/4). pp.147 – 156.
Little, B., 2011. The principles of successful project management: It takes careful planning,
skilful leadership … and a little bit of luck. Human Resource Management International
Digest. 19(7). pp.36 – 39.
Petropoulou, E., 2007. Indigenous resource management and environmental degradation:
southern Greece. Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal. 18(2).
pp.152-166.
Sears, K. S., Sears, A. G. and Clough, H. R., 2010. Construction Project Management: A
Practical Guide to Field Construction Management. 5 ed. John Wiley & Sons.
Sommerville, J., 2011. Ethical views of micro-enterprises delivering project and asset
management services in west-central Scotland. Built Environment Project and Asset
Management. 1(1). pp.91 – 103.
Online
Velagapudi, M., 2011. Risks In Project Management. [Online] Available at:
<http://blog.bootstraptoday.com/2011/09/26/5-deadly-risks-in-project-management/>
[Accessed on 25th Nov 2015.
What is PRINCE2? 2013. [pdf]. Available through: < http://www.prince2.com/what-is-prince2>
[Accessed on 25th Nov 2015].
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