Managing a Successful Business Project: Triumph Motorcycles in Finland

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ICON College of Technology and Management
Faculty of Business and Management Studies
BTEC HND in Business
Managing a Successful Business Project
Tutor: Dr Reza Aboutalebi
Submitted by:
Full Name: …………
ID No: …………
Session: September 2018
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Table of Contents
Introduction...................................................................................................................... 3
Background of the Company............................................................................................3
Overview of the host country............................................................................................4
LO1 (P1, P2, P3, M1, D1): Establish project timeframes, aims and objectives................5
Project aims and objectives and project management plan (P1, P2, M1, D1).................5
Produce a work breakdown structure and a Gantt chart to provide timeframes (P3).....10
LO2: Small-scale research and data collection (P4, M2, D1).........................................12
Small-scale research by applying qualitative and quantitative research methods (P4,
M2)................................................................................................................................. 12
LO3: Presentation of project and recommendations (P5, P6, M3, D2)..........................15
Analysis of research data using appropriate tools and techniques (P5, M3)..................15
Communication of recommendations (P6, M3)..............................................................23
LO4 (P7, M4, D2): Reflection on value gained from the project.....................................25
Reflect on the value of undertaking the research (P7, M4, D2).....................................25
Conclusion..................................................................................................................... 26
References.....................................................................................................................27
Appendix........................................................................................................................ 28
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Introduction
Expansion in various countries is required for the multinational companies to improve
their sales, profitability and brand awareness. However, the revenue of these
companies affects social, economic and environmental condition of host country by
changing in people lifestyle, job and cultural values. In this project, project management
plan is generated to recognise project objectives, resources schedule, communication,
costs and risks. Work breakdown structure discusses research timeframe for completing
project stages. Quantitative and quantitative data has been collected by conducting
small-scale research for identifying effects of UK’s multinational company namely
Triumph Motors on host country, Finland. Recommendations for enhancing
organisational services have been included in this report and it also highlights success
of this project management based on own learning and performance.
Background of the Company
Triumph motorcycles limited is largest motorcycle manufacturer in the UK
headquartered in Hinckley, UK. The company has founded in 1983. Products of the
company are motorcycles, clothing and accessories. Revenue of the organisation has
been ₤498.5 million and net income has been ₤24.7 million in 2017. Total number of
employees has been 2,000 in 2017 around the world (triumphmotorcycles.co.uk, 2019).
The company is present in multiple countries of five continents that mean the company
has high brand awareness. Overall profit of Triumph has been increased from £184.9
million in 2017 to £184.9 million in 2018.
Figure 1: Monthly registration of cars of triumph
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(Source: triumphmotorcycles.co.uk, 2019)
Overview of the host country
Finland is Northern European nation surroundings islands in the Baltic Sea and
bordering Russia, Norway and Sweden. Currency of the company is Euro. Total GDP
Nominal has been $275.321 billion and per capita has been $46,559 in 2018. The
company has ranked 42 in GDP nominal in 2018 and 2.4% GDP growth rate has been
observed in 2018 (bofbulletin.fi, 2018). Estimated export value has been $67.73 billion
in 2017 and import value has been $65.26 billion in 2017 and main import and export
partner is Germany.
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LO1 (P1, P2, P3, M1, D1): Establish project timeframes, aims and objectives
Project aims and objectives and project management plan (P1, P2, M1, D1)
Introduction
The section focuses on the aims and objectives of the project along with a management
plan to effectively break down the various parts involved in the project and complete
them within stipulated timeframes for maximum efficiency.
Definition
The definition of project includes the various tasks associated with the conducting of the
research in order to arrive at well-founded conclusions and relevant outcomes
(Todorović et al., 2015).
Project management can be defined as the ‘initiation, planning, execution, control and
closure of a project’ and must include the achievement of objectives as determined prior
to beginning the project.
Title
The title of the project is the impact of Triumph Motorcycle on the business environment
of Finland.
Scope and aim of the project
A. Project deliverables: This refers to the study the significance of Triumph’s
expansion into Finland and the various economic, social and environmental impacts that
the expansion process would entail.
B. Product Scope: The scope of the product would fundamentally be an analytical
report including the measures of primary and secondary research to quantify and gauge
the effects of Triumph’s expansion into the country of Finland.
C. Project boundaries: The project would largely focus on the effects of Triumph’s
expansion into Finland within the contexts of social, political and economic factors and
nothing beyond that.
D. Justification: The project in question is justified as it is integral to study the business
environment within Finland prior to expansion, and the project would identify the various
market forces and external and internal factors that could affect the expansion
procedure in the context of Triumph motorcycles.
E. Project constraints: The key constraints within the project were the limited
availability of time and financial resources, along with a relatively small sample size for
the surveys.
Cost management
Cost management techniques primarily rely on three distinct measures such as a cash
flow statement, cost breakdown structure and budgetary control. Budgeting control
refers to expense plans specific to the tasks, cash flow statements refer to the income
and expenditure statement that depicts the operating finances (Lock, 2017). The cost
breakdown structure shows the specific cost of each process within the project.
Activity Required cost per
hour (£)
No. of Hours
(£)
The exhaustive
amount (Total
Amount) (£)
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Selection and collection of
project resources
10 9 90
Resource allocation 8 12 96
Data collection through
quantitative and qualitative
method
11 16 176
Data analysis 6 14 84
Costs for devices like
laptops and printing and
the remuneration for team
members and leaders
10 24 240
Project development and
improvement processes
5 12 60
Total Amount: £746
Table 1: Project costs
(Source: Created by learner)
Project objectives
1. To evaluate the economic effects of Triumph Motorcycles on Finland in 2022
2. To determine the social effects of Triumph Motorcycles on Finland in 2022
3. To analyze the environmental effects of Triumph Motorcycles on Finland in 2022
Time management
Activity Time (Days)
Collection of the resources 10
Categorization and allocation of resources 13
Quantitative and qualitative data collection 26
Measurement of proper technologies for data analysis 8
Analysis of data 16
Processes to improve project outcomes 9
Table 2: Time schedule
(Source: Created by learner)
Quality
Role Quality Responsibility
Team supervisor Responsible for creating schedule, data collection plan,
determining resources and costs and supervising team
performance
Team leader Identifies complete and ethical data collection and analysis
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processes
Team members Conduct survey and interview to collect data regarding the
impact of Triumph motorcycles on Finland
Table 3: Team responsibility for quality management
(Source: Created by learner)
Communication plan
What Sender Receiver When Method
Creation of project
plan and resource
allocation
Project
superviso
r
Team leaders and
the team members
In project
staring time
Meeting,
feedback
forms and
emails
Selection of
participants and
collection of data
Team
leader
Team members At the time
of project
initiation
Calls, Emails,
communicatio
n
Techniques for
interpretation of data
Team
leader
Team members After data
collection
meetings,
face-to-face
communicatio
n and phone
calls
Table 4: Communication processes
(Source: Created by learner)
Risk Assessment
Risk
Overview
Type of
Influence
Implication Chances of
occurrence
Mitigation strategy
Financial
issues
High Improper resource
allocation and data
collection
Medium Expert consultation and
use of proper
budgetary tools
Limitation in
time
High Ensures
incomplete data
collection and
reduce information
reliability
High Time schedule needs
to be planned efficiently
and short-term goals
can be set for team
(Cagliano et al., 2015).
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Improper
data
collection
Medium Inappropriate
outcome from data
analysis
High Regular supervise on
data collection and
training for team
Lack of
resources
High Challenges in data
collecting and
storing
Medium Recognising number
and quantity of
resources
Table 5: Risk assessment plan
(Source: Created by learner)
Resources
Origin of resources
Human Resources: Outside organisation
Material and information Resources: Inside and outside of organisation
Financial resources: Inside and outside of organisation
Human Resources
Human resources of the project are team leader, team members and project supervisor
who are responsible for gathering and interpreting information regarding the expansion
of Triumph motorcycle into the country of Finland.
Material and information Resources
Material resources are paper, pen, stationary materials, and software and disk memory
used for collecting, analysing and printing data. Information resources are books,
journals, and news articles and databases to collect and store information.
Financial resources
Most of the financial resources were pooled in from venture fund houses as well as the
personal finances of the project supervisor.
Success Criteria
The criteria for success within this project would primarily be a timely completion of the
various sections mentioned in the breakdown along with a successful analysis of the
data collected through the primary research measures in quantifying the overall impacts
of Triumph’s expansion into the country of Finland.
Project Assumptions
Project assumption the expansion of Triumph motorcycles into Finland would have
definite impacts on the social, cultural and environmental factors within the country.
Control techniques
The control measures of flow charts, control charts and quality control charts were
typically used within the project to ensure that the deadlines are met and the sections
are completed within their determined budgets.
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Produce a work breakdown structure and a Gantt chart to provide timeframes
(P3)
Milestone schedule
Figure 2: Work breakdown structure
(Source: Created by the learner)
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Schedule
Activities Week 1 Week
2
Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week
7
Fixation of the
topic for
research
Collection of
resources
Segmenting the
steps involved in
the project and
allocating
resources
Data collection
Analysing the
collected data
Comprehending
the data
analysis tools
Formulating the
outcome,
conclusion and
recommendatio
ns
Table 6: Gantt chart
(Source: Created by the learner)
Analysis of the project management process
 A thorough analysis of the projects must be undertaken in order to ensure
efficiency and speed within the completion of the project.
 Regular supervision and overseeing must be ensured in order to complete the
allocated tasks within the stipulated timeframes.
 Communication channels must be effective in order to create a system of
transparency and a sense of general direction (Marier-Bienvenue et al., 2017).
 Project costs could also be minimized by focusing on time management
strategies and budgetary control measures.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be inferred that an efficient project management plan must have
the various factors of risks, communication strategies, expenses involved and so on
clearly stated in a concise manner in order to enhance the overall efficiency within the
project.
LO2: Small-scale research and data collection (P4, M2, D1)
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Small-scale research by applying qualitative and quantitative research methods
(P4, M2)
Introduction
This section recognises proper qualitative and quantitative data collection technique for
the project. Advantages and disadvantages of interviewing and questionnaire are
evaluated here.
Methods of collecting qualitative data
There are various methods to collect qualitative data are ethnographic approach,
interviewing and interactive methods.
Interviewing method
Interview refers to a qualitative data collection method in which data are collected based
on conversation and meeting with people to explore the opinion and in-depth knowledge
of different phenomenon based on open-ended questions.
Interactive approach
Interactive approach refers to a method of qualitative method that engages the
participants in data collection and analysis by utilising number of research materials
(Houghton et al., 2015).
In this project, interviewing method has been utilised for gathering qualitative data from
the participants. Two managers of Triumph motorcycles have been taken to conduct
online interview regarding effects on Triumph in the business environment of Finland.
Purposive sampling has been taken to select the participants and for this purpose, the
position and skill of the managers have been analysed and provide e-mail to them to
make them aware of the research.
Qualitative data collection
Q1. Can the company improve its import quality and provide jobs for increasing
the economic condition of Finland?
As opined by the finance manager, the company can increase its import quality by
setting up more number of production units in Finland. In this manner, it would be able
to rise up to the level of customer demands in the global arena and set up a good
business base in the country.
According to operating manager, import quality can be enhanced by making
collaborations with companies of other countries. This collaboration would set the
benchmark for transaction of items on a regular basis. The company can also increase
employment rate of Finland by providing more number of jobs.
Q2. Can the company reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions by using
electric vehicle system for its motorcycles in Finland?
As depicted by finance manager, the company can reduce the amount of greenhouse
gases for its motorcycles by introduction of electric vehicle system rather than four
stroke or two stroke engines. Therefore, it can be effective for reducing environmental
pollution of Finland.
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As intervened by operation manager, if the electric supply to the electric vehicle system
is made proper, then the electric vehicle system for the motorcycles of Triumph
motorcycles can reduce the ppm (parts per million) pollution counter in Finland.
Methods of collecting quantitative data
Various methods for obtaining quantitative data are structure observation, questionnaire
survey and experiment.
Questionnaire survey
In this method, quantitative data is gathered from large number of participants and
close-ended questionnaire is filled on the basis of their responses (Palinkas et al.,
2015).
Structure observation
Structured observation mentions a data collection method research in which
behavioural data is gathered from the environment based on predefined rules and the
procedures. It does not directly include the participants and systematic observation is
concerned in this technique.
Questionnaire survey has been taken in this research in order to obtain quantitative
data from the participants. For this purpose, data has been collected from 25 business
analysts of different companies of Finland to recognise their opinion related to the
impact of multinational companies on economic, social and environmental condition of
Finland. Online questionnaire has been given to respondents to gather their opinion and
encourage them to participate in survey. Random non-probability sampling has been
utilised to choose respondents as in this process respondents have been selected
randomly that has reduced the biased possibilities.
Questionnaire for survey
(Refer to appendix-1)
Advantages and disadvantages of interviewing and questionnaire
Advantages of interviewing process are explained below that can help to collect data
regarding impact of Triumph on business environment of Finland.
 Participants are free to express their views due to open-ended questionnaire
(Bengtsson, 2016)
 Detailed information can be obtained
 High response rate
Advantages of questionnaire survey are
 As data is gathered directly from the participants, it enhances reliability and
accuracy of data.
 Proper research outcome can be obtained due to statistical data
 Low costs
Disadvantages
Disadvantages of survey are
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