Developing Skills in Managing Strategic Projects: A Case Study

This report delves into the understanding and skills acquired through a strategic project management case study, focusing on Toyota's principles. It explores the selection process of the research area and case, emphasizing the importance of lean project management and strategic alignment. The project enhanced the individual's understanding of strategic projects, highlighting the significance of planning, leadership, teamwork, and budget management. The report also outlines strategies for developing project management knowledge, addressing prior misconceptions, and underscoring the value of strategic management in achieving organizational goals. Ultimately, the participation in the project was deemed helpful in improving knowledge about strategic management, and the importance of teamwork was also learnt.

Managing Strategic
Projects

Contents
INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY.......................................................................................................................................3
How the case study project has shaped your understanding of the specific topic and your skills at
managing strategic projects?..............................................................................................................3
Why or how did you select the research area?...................................................................................3
Why and how did you select the case?..............................................................................................4
Previous understanding of project management. Has it changed as result of doing the project?.......4
How has the project increased your understanding of strategic projects?..........................................4
Were there any particular aspects of the project of the course that will help you in your future
career?...............................................................................................................................................5
What is your strategy for developing your project management knowledge?....................................6
Discuss any false beliefs or confusion you had about the subject before engaging in the task. If you
had doubts that the project was going to be worthwhile, explain those feelings. End with a
statement on whether the participation in the project was helpful and why.......................................6
CONCLUSION....................................................................................................................................7
REFRENCES.......................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Strategic management is defined as the procedure of aligning the objectives of
projects with effective management. This assist in providing guidance about how proper
management of projects could towards its successful completion. This also helps in
understanding what strategies managers must make while planning a project and how they
could execute in order to gain better outcomes (von Danwitz, 2018). The following report
discuss about how the case study about Toyota have shaped the understanding of an
individual and what skills they have developed while completing this project. The report also
discusses about why the person has selected this research area and case study. Furthermore, it
has also been explained in this report how the knowledge about strategic management has
improved in a person after completion of this project. Lastly, the report contains what
strategies an individual will implement in their project management.
MAIN BODY
How the case study project has shaped your understanding of the specific topic and your
skills at managing strategic projects?
From the case study I have gained knowledge about strategic management which is
defined as a procedure which links both management of project with strategical objectives. I
have learned that in these types of projects meeting an organisational goal in certain time
period within the provided budget are key consideration. I have also gained information about
various skills required during this project which includes leadership, teamwork, interpersonal
relationships and multi skills training (Galli, 2019). I have also learned about lean
manufacturing training system which is described as the procedure of reducing waste in the
production system while enhancing profitability. I also understand that the Toyota’s
principles are classified into four categories which are People, Process, Problem solving and
Philosophy.
Why or how did you select the research area?
I selected this research area because I wanted to improve my knowledge about
strategic management of projects. I choose this are by researching about it in depth. I wanted
to gain information about how strategic management assist companies in providing them
clear direction and objective for their employees. I wanted to know how strategic
management aid organisations in identifying opportunities and examining their strengths
along with weaknesses. This management style also helps firms in preparing for future by

making them adaptable to new changes and evolve them. I also wanted to enhancing my
understandings about strategic management assist companies in becoming more action
oriented and purpose driven. It helps them in prioritising activities in the project accordingly
so that companies could complete their projects successfully and effectively.
Why and how did you select the case?
I selected this case study about Toyota because the framework of the company helps
in providing right direction about how to apply lean project management in strategic manner.
The execution of the principles of organisation represents implementation if various
strategies like Just-in-time-delivery, leadership development and many more (Dhruba, 2018).
I and my team research thoroughly and examined which case study will be suitable for
studying about the chosen topic. We examined the concept of project success and discover
theories about strategic management. We also selected this case study because the theories of
Toyota way are mainly focused on problem solving approaches for lean project management.
Previous understanding of project management. Has it changed as result of doing the project?
Before doing this project I only knew about the definition of project management
which is described as the procedure of leading all the aims of certain projects within the
provided constrain. After completing this project, I gained the knowledge about strategic
project management which plays very crucial role in every organisation. I have gained
knowledge about how this management helps organisations in creating sustainable
competitive advantage for them. I also understood the importance of leadership skill which
assist in providing right guidance to team for completing project. I also learned about team
work which is also very vital for strategic management of any project because without this
completion of project within provided time period is impossible (Fernandes and O’Sullivan,
2021). By executing strategic management, the procedure of decision making for managers
become easy due to clear strategies. It also helps in setting priorities which represents what is
important in the project which is to be done first. Before completing this project, I was not
aware about the fact that budget also plays very crucial role in project management. But after
completing this case study in gained knowledge about how important is budget and why its
proper allocation is vital.
How has the project increased your understanding of strategic projects?
I have understood that a project with goal but without any proper planning have more
possibility to face failures. It is very important to have a well-planned strategy to be

implemented by companies so that they could accomplish their organisational goals
successfully. It is very vital for organisations to execute strategic approaches in order to move
in the right direction. According to my opinion, it is also very crucial for organisations to
make effective strategies so that they could deal with uncertainties that comes while
completing a project. After creating effective strategies or plans, companies could utilities
their business in delivering their ideas to other people (Sætre and Brun, 2020). Strategic
management will also provide a good start for their projects which they use to gain trust od
employees, customers are various stakeholders. It also helps companies in making clear
picture of achievable objectives among employees who could further assist in accomplishing
them and lead to more successful business ventures.
Were there any particular aspects of the project of the course that will help you in your future
career?
There was one aspect which was about Toyota way principles that explains how
project management could be done strategically. It helps in understanding that companies
must focus on their long-term goals rather than paying their attention on short term
objectives. This will help me in future career as I would focus more on making effective
strategies for accomplishing long term objective (Nikolova, Rodionov and Afanasyeva,
2017). From these principles of which the selected company implemented I have understood
how it is very important to deliver excellent customer services, enhancing stakeholders’
profit, focusing on stuff wellbeing an improving work culture environment. I also learned
about leadership and management skills which will help me in my future company
inventorying as well as providing guidance to my team mates. I also gain knowledge about
problem solving techniques which could assist me in handling uncertainties in my personal as
well as professional life. I also learned that project planning and controlling is also very
important in strategic management of project. This information will help me in planning my
priorities of certain projects so that I could achieve organizational objectives effectively and
efficiently. This pyramidal model of Toyota way principles has helped me in understanding
about project management effectively. From this project I also learned about leadership and
teamwork skills. Leadership skills will help me in providing proper guidance that could
improve my image in future career (Rindova and Srinivas, 2017). I have also improved my
teamwork skills while engaging myself in this project which will help me in participating in
more projects at my future workplace. These information and skills will help me in making
myself a better person and would assist me in understanding people around me.

What is your strategy for developing your project management knowledge?
My strategies for developing project management includes defining organisational
aims in the very beginning and keep them adaptable. This simply meanes that I will try to
explain my aims related to project with team in order to make them aware and provide
guidance accordingly. Another strategy includes understanding the scope of desired project
which defined its size that could impact budget, labour requirements and total efficiency of
task. The understanding about project will help me in planning required resources and also
would be able to meet team needs (Al Shamsi, 2019). One more strategy that could assist in
developing knowledge about project management involves motivating teammates. This
strategy will aid me in encouraging my team members to complete the task with all their
effort in certain time period. I will also implement one more strategy which is managing
project risks which would help me in minimizing all the risks involved in project. Another
strategy which I will execute in my further projects is appointing talented individuals. As an
effective workforce is very essential for any project because they help in accomplishing
organisational objects effectively and efficiently.
Discuss any false beliefs or confusion you had about the subject before engaging in the task.
If you had doubts that the project was going to be worthwhile, explain those feelings. End
with a statement on whether the participation in the project was helpful and why.
Before working on this case, I thought that project management is about just scheduling
which simply means that It is just about meeting deadlines. The second confusion which I
have in my mind before completing this project is about execution of strategies. I have a
misconception about how managers would implement strategic and effective planning in an
in a project. I always thought that most of the companies prioritise quickness over quality
which reduces their efficiency (Haial, Berrado and Benabbou, 2020). One of the major means
misconceptions that I have in my mind was that anyone can successfully organise or manage
any project. But while completing this project I gain the knowledge about how effective
strategies help companies in achieving their goals. I gained information about that
implementing strategic management is not just about scheduling but it is about proper
management. The main purpose of strategic management is not only about meeting deadlines
but making effective approaches which could assist in fulfilling project requirements in a
proper way. I also improve my understanding about how it is very important to have
discipline and proper workforce in a project. I understood that it is very difficult to manage a

project single handed and it requires proper guidance from any effective leader. It is also very
important to have talented people in a project so that they could help in achieving
organizational objectives more easily. I felt very better after completing this project as I have
improved my knowledge about strategic management (Zachko, Golovatyi and Kobylkin,
2019). I also gained understanding about various aspects which are important in a project
management. The participation in the project was helpful for me because I learned the
importance of teamwork. I also gained and improved my knowledge about project
management which could help me in my future career.
CONCLUSION
From the above discussion it has been concluded that strategic management off
projects is very important as it helps companies in prioritising activities of project. It has also
been concluded that it is very important for companies to plan their strategies So that they
could achieve their organizational objectives effectively. It has also been evaluated that a
person must improve their understanding and information about strategic management so that
they could perform better in their projects. It has also been analysing that organization must
implement effective strategies in order to handle or overcome challenges and uncertainties.
For successful completion of a project, it is very vital for companies to execute effective
leadership style and promote teamwork. In the end it could be said that strategic management
of project help companies in linking their effective strategies with their project.

REFRENCES
Books and Journal
Al Shamsi, S.K., 2019. Managing construction projects in the United Arab Emirates to gain
competitive advantage.
Dhruba, P., 2018. Managing credit risk and improving access to finance in green energy
projects.
Fernandes, G. and O’Sullivan, D., 2021. Managing a Major University–Industry
Collaboration R&D Program. In Managing Collaborative R&D Projects (pp. 163-
182). Springer, Cham.
Galli, B.J., 2019. Communicating and managing communication in a project environment—
A practitioner's view. IEEE Engineering Management Review, 47(2), pp.23-25.
Haial, A., Berrado, A. and Benabbou, L., 2020, October. Managing Stakeholder Participation
in Transport Decision Making: Perspective of Public Pharmaceuticals Supply Chain
in Morocco. In 2020 5th International Conference on Logistics Operations
Management (GOL) (pp. 1-7). IEEE.
Nikolova, L.V., Rodionov, D.G. and Afanasyeva, N.V., 2017. Impact of globalization on
innovation project risks estimation.
Rindova, V. and Srinivas, S., 2017. Managing meaning—culture. In The Oxford handbook of
management.
Sætre, A.S. and Brun, E.C., 2020. Managing Exploration–Exploitation. In Managing Medical
Technological Innovations: Exploring Multiple Perspectives (pp. 355-396).
von Danwitz, S., 2018. Managing inter-firm projects: A systematic review and directions for
future research. International Journal of Project Management, 36(3), pp.525-541.
Zachko, O., Golovatyi, R. and Kobylkin, D., 2019, September. Models of safety management
in development projects. In 2019 IEEE 14th International Conference on Computer
Sciences and Information Technologies (CSIT) (Vol. 3, pp. 81-84). IEEE.