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Management Consultancy

University: Kensington College Of Business

  • Unit No: 18
  • Level: High school
  • Pages: 18 / Words 4405
  • Paper Type: Assignment
  • Course Code: CE7401
  • Downloads: 554
Question :

Some of the questions in the assessment are as follows:

  • Discuss about the Management consultant.
  • Discuss about the Critical path method.
Answer :
Organization Selected : N/A

INTRODUCTION

Management consultant can be defined as a person who is responsible to provide advice to business entities to carry out operational activities in systematic manner. Main purpose of them is to make sure that improvements are made in the performance with the help of their suggestions (Baker, 2014). The main factors which are focused by them are facilitating organisational change, developing strategy, suggesting ways to operate business effectively, making alteration in operational execution etc. Major skills which are required by a management consultant are planning, critical thinking, vast knowledge about current business scenario, proper communication, etc. With the help of all these qualities an individual will be able to guide an organisation properly. This assignment is based upon construction management for which different topics such as recommendation for the existing site set up, production of CPM and Gantt chart, calculation of probability of success of project are covered in this project. Additionally, determination of most cost effective way, new Gantt chart to show planed and actual progress, calculation of planned and earned value, schedule and cost index along with revised budget are also covered in this project.

TASK 1

Recommendation to the existing site set up and new site plan

From the existing block plan it has been analysed that length of the property is 25 and width is 85. The boundary which is kept outside the building is 1.2 for all the sides. Space for Woodridge, Grafton and Lisson roads is 3.0 and for Grosvenor Road, space is 7.5. The building is planning to occupy most of the site to the boundary so that available space could be used maximumly (Besser, Ortmann and Klein, 2015). In order to manage the traffic and segregate construction operatives several modifications are required to be made in the site plan. As the site set up is required to be focused with accommodation, welfare facilities, security, storage of plant, material, equipment etc. therefore several recommendations are made to project manager. All of them are as follows:

  • The width should be reduced up to 80 from 85 as it will help to make space to keep the material which will be used for construction related activities.
  • The space for Grafton and Lisson Lane will be increased up to 5.5 from 3 as it will help the management to increase the space to keep material, plant and equipments which will be used to construct the building.
  • Length for the building should be decreased from 25 to 23 so that space for parking could be made in front of Woodridge lane.
  • A cabin security staff is required to be made at the entrance in front of Grosvenor Road so that details of all the individuals could be kept who are entering in the building.
  • 24 rooms should be made at ground floor which will be provided to the guests visiting the hotel (Campbell, Jardine and McGlynn, 2016).
  • Space for corridor is required to be focused because it will help the housekeeping staff along with the guests to walk around properly.

By paying attention towards all the above mentioned recommendations a safe and secured building could be constructed which is made by keeping all the essential elements in the mind. These are welfare facilities, accommodation, security, material and equipments. The updated set up plan is as follows:

TASK 2

A. Construction of critical path method and determination of critical path and overall duration of the project

Critical path method: It can be defined as a technique which is used for the purpose of scheduling set of different project activities. In order to determine critical path longest stretch of dependent activities is analysed along with the time which is required to complete them (Collis and Collins, 2015). CPM is mainly used in conjunction with the review and evaluation techniques of programs. A critical path diagram for the new petrol filling station project of Aktor is as follows:

From the above chart it has been determined that critical path for the project of new petrol pump is starting from activities 4 and ending with 39. The red line shows the critical path for the whole project (Doherty, Horne and Wootton, 2014). Want to get Assignment help? Talk Our Expert Now!

B. Production of Gantt chart for the early start programme that Aktor can use in the planning phase of the project

Gantt chart: It is a type of bar chart which is prepared by project managers for the purpose of scheduling and analysing different activities along with their duration. It is developed as a production control tool so that progression of the planned project could be analysed. With the help of it, managers can plan, coordinate and track specific tasks of the project (Fouweather, 2017). The Gantt chart which is produced for the early start programme that Aktor can use in the planning phase of the new project of construction a new petrol filling station is as follows:

From the above Gantt chart it has been determined that there are various activities which will be performed to construct a new petrol filling station. All of them will be completed within 22 weeks and total value of it is around 1.3 million pounds (Jones, 2017).

C. Calculation of probability of the project completion within timescale originally estimated in part 

Probability of project completion: It can be defined as the process of determining the chances of happing an event (Probability, 2020). The actual value of it varies between 0 to 1. In the results 0 shows the impossibility of event and 1 indicates the certainty of the same (Kabir and Sumi, 2014). In order to determine the possibility of successful completion of the project of new patrol filling station probability of the same is calculated. Calculation of it is as follows:

  • Formula: P (A) = n (E) - n (S)

= 2 / 6

= 0.33

From the above calculation it has been determined that there is 33% chances of that the project will be completed in the pre-decided time limit and meet the targets.

D. Determination of the most cost effective way in which project's overall duration can be accelerated by three weeks

From the table 3 of new petrol filling station's crashing data it has been determined that the highest crashing cost will be faced by activity T and on the other hand the lowest cost will be for activity G1. Minimum crashed duration for T and D1 are 1 and 1. Normal duration for both of them is same as the other one (Ko, 2014). Take Assignment samples Now!

If Activity T will be performed for two weeks then total cost of it will be 2400 and if G1 will be performed for two weeks then its cost will be around 900. Cost of all the activities for three weeks is as follows:

Activities

Crashing cost for one week

Crashing cost for three weeks

P

900

2700

T

1200

3600

D1

850

2550

G1

450

1350

G2

750

2250

H1

750

2250

From the above table it has been determined that crashing cost of G1 activity is the lowest and the highest one is related to T. By observing all of the costs for three weeks it has been analysed that most cost effective way in which project's duration can be accelerated by three weeks is activity G1 as its cost is very low and by working on it the predetermined goals will be accomplished successfully (Krishnaswamy, 2016).

TASK 3

A. Production of Gantt Chart

The Gantt Chart for the progress of the project of constructing a new petrol filling station is as follows:

From the above Gantt chart it has been determined that critical path for the project of new petrol filling station starts from activity 1 and ends with activity 9. The red highlights are showing the critical path for whole project (Liebech Schwartz and Söderberg, 2015).

B. Calculation of planned value of the project at the end of week 10

Planned value: It can be defined as the authorised budget which is allocated to different teams of the organisations for the purpose of accomplishing the targeted goals. It is very important for the project managers to make sure that they analyse it before starting the work. It is also considered as the baseline for a specific task. Main purpose of it is to facilitate the management to assess the delivery of project so that its benefits for the organisation could be determined. It is calculated for the purpose of monitoring the cost of project which is compared to specific value of baseline. Calculation of it is as follows:

  • Formula: Completed percentage of project * total budget (project cost)

= 57% * 655

= 373.35 million pounds

Working notes:

Calculation of completed percentage of the project at the end of week 10 is as follows:

In order to calculate it average percentage of completed activities is taken.

= (100 + 100 + 40 + 80 + 0 + 100 + 50 + 100 + 0 + 0) / 10

= 570 / 10

= 57 (Percentage of completed project)

Calculation for the total cost of project is as follows:

The budget which is allocated to each activity is take to determine the total cost.

= 90 + 35 + 75 + 60 + 80 + 40 + 55 + 80 + 40 + 100

= 655 million pounds

C. Computation of earned value of the work completed at the end of week 10

Earned value: It can be defined as an approach which is mainly used for the purpose of monitoring actual, completed work and project plan in order to analyse that planned activities are performed properly or not (Manville, Matthias and Campbell, 2017). It shows that the time which is spent by teams on a project will be sufficient to reach the goal or not. With the help of it, progress of a project could be determined in terms of cost and time. It purpose is to get an estimation of resources which will be used for completion of different tasks. Calculation of it is as follows:

  • Formula = Percentage of completed project * Money spent on project (Budget used)

= 57% * 390

= 222.3 million pounds

Working notes:

The calculation for total money spent on the project is as follows:

Total budget which is used by all the activities is used to calculate the total money spend.

= 110 + 20 + 40 + 90 + 0 + 40 + 30 + 60 + 0 + 0

= 390

D. Calculation of schedule index and cost index for each project team and for the whole project

Schedule index: It is a performance measure which is used for the comparison of completed project with the scheduled one. The main elements which are used in its calculation are earned and planned value (Nikolova, Möllering and Reihlen, 2015). It guides managers to measure efficiency of a project by evaluating each and every activity which is performed to complete the project. If it is less than one then it shows that project is not working according to schedule, if it is one then it demonstrates that tasks are performed appropriately and predetermined time. When schedule index is more than one then it is considered that project is completing faster then the planned period. Calculation of it is as follows:

  • Formula = Earned value / Planned value

Calculation of schedule index for teams:

In order to calculate SI for all the activities EV and PV will be required to be calculated.

Activities

Earned value

Planned value

Schedule index

Teams

A

110

90

1.22

Team 1

B

20

35

0.57

Team 2

C

16

30

0.53

Team 2

D

70

48

1.46

Team 1

E

0

0

0

Team 1

F

40

40

1

Team 2

G

15

27.5

0.55

Team 1

H

60

80

0.75

Team 2

I

0

0

0

Team 2

J

0

0

0

Team 1

As activities A, D, E, F, G and J were performed by teams therefore schedule index for team 1 will be as follows:

= 1.22 + 1.46 + 0 + 0.55 + 0 / 5

= 3.23 / 5

= 0.646 or 0.65

The average schedule index for team 1 will be around 0.65 which means the individuals in the team are completing 0.65 hours from 1 hour which means on 39 minutes (Shin and Dong, 2019).

Activities B, C, F, H and I are performed by team 2 so the schedule index for it will be calculated as follows:

= 0.57 + 0.53 + 1 + 0.75 + 0 / 5

= 2.85 / 5

= 0.57

Average schedule index of team 2 is 0.57 which shows that team members are completing only 34 minutes of 1 hour for completion of project.

Working notes:

Calculation of Earned value for all the activities is as follows:

Activities

Percentage of completed project

Money spent on project

Earned value

A

100%

110

110

B

100%

20

20

C

40%

40

16

D

80%

90

70

E

0%

0

0

F

100%

40

40

G

50%

30

15

H

100%

60

60

I

0%

0

0

J

0%

0

0

Calculation for Planned value for all the activities is as follows:

Activities

Percentage of completed project

Budget allocated

Planned value

A

100.00%

90

90

B

100.00%

35

35

C

40.00%

75

30

D

80.00%

60

48

E

0.00%

80

0

F

100.00%

40

40

G

50.00%

55

27.5

H

100.00%

80

80

I

0.00%

40

0

J

0.00%

100

0

Calculation of schedule index for the whole project:

= 222.3 / 373.35

= 0.595 or 0.60

The above schedule index shows that the project team is only completing 0.6 hours from every estimated hour which means just over 35 minutes.

Cost index: It is used by project managers to determine efficiency and effectiveness of a task in terms of financial resources. With the help of it, it could be determined that the activities which are performed systematically will be able to meet long term goals such as higher profitability (Susanto and Darmasetiawan, 2020). Calculation of it is as follows:

  • Formula = Earned value / Actual cost

Actual cost is the total money spent by the activities.

Calculation of cost index for teams is as follows:

Money spend by each activity is the actual cost of it.

Activities

Earned value

Money spent on project

Cost index

Teams

A

110

110

1

Team 1

B

20

20

1

Team 2

C

16

40

0.4

Team 2

D

70

90

0.78

Team 1

E

0

0

0

Team 1

F

40

40

1

Team 2

G

15

30

0.5

Team 1

H

60

60

1

Team 2

I

0

0

0

Team 2

J

0

0

0

Team 1

Average cost index for team 1:

= 1 + 0.78 + 0 + 0.5 + 0 / 5

= 2.28 / 5

= 0.0912 or 0.09

From the above calculation it has been determined that team 2 is generating 0.09 pounds on 1 pound.

Average cost index for team 2:

= 1 + 0.4 + 1 + 1 + 0 / 5

= 3.4 / 5

= 0.68

The calculation of average cost index of team 2 is showing that it is generating 0.68 pounds on the invested 1 pound.

Calculation of cost index for whole project is as follows:

= 222.3 / 390

= 0.57

It shows that the organisation is earning 0.57 pounds for each 1 pound which is invested in the project.

Performance of project in terms of cost and time: From the above calculations it has been determined that the project is performing average because only 0.57 pounds are generated in the investment of 1. On the other hand, teams are only completing over 35 minutes. It is very important for the top management to take strict actions against it so that performance could be enhanced. For this purpose, top level executives can formulate new policies which could be used by them to enhance engagement of staff in their jobs. Worried for management assignment help ? Get our experts Help Now!

E. Computation of revised budget for the project at the end of week 10

Revised budget: It can be defined as a budget which is formulated by business entities for the purpose of making sure that the activities will be completed in the predetermined monetary resources or not (Vaidya and Pearce, 2014). The budget which was produced previously is revised because some of the activities have used more than the funds that are allocated to them. On the other hand, some of the activities have not used finance because these were not started. At the end of week 10 the revised budget will be as follows:

Activities

Original budget

Actual spent money

Variance

A

90

110

-20

B

35

20

15

C

75

40

35

D

60

90

-30

E

80

0

80

F

40

40

0

G

55

30

25

H

80

60

20

I

40

0

40

J

100

0

100

Total

655

390

265

From the above table it can be analysed that management of the organisation decided that 655 million pounds will be required to complete all the activities in 10 weeks but the actual spending were 390. Therefore, the actual money spent will be considered as revised budget in which funds will be allocated on the basis of their spendings.

CONCLUSION

From the above project report it has been determined that management consultant is the person who facilitate an organisation to make appropriate changes in the business model to reach the targeted goals. Construction businesses are required to pay attention towards different factors such as security, availability of material, equipment etc. and for the purpose of making all these factors available they may have to modify the design of building which will be constructed. There are various techniques which are used for evaluation of the projects. These are PERT, CPM etc. With the help of both of them, best suitable option for carrying out future activities could be determined. PERT is mainly used to find the most cost effective way in which project could be accelerated in minimum time limit. CPM is used to figure out the critical path with the help of different project activities. While determining the possibility of successful completion of a task probability of whole project could be analysed. There are various key elements which are required to be calculated to analyse performance of project in terms of cost and time. These are planned and earned value, schedule and cost index etc. Revised budget is also generated by business entities if they are not able to perform activities according to the funds which were allocated to them previously.

Read Also :- Leadership and Management for Service Industries

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