Techniques of Project Management

Description of back ground of project, the way in which it can drive business change, relation of project with other projects and business operations, enterprise environmental factors and effectiveness of project management

The Little Chatroom is a small restaurant which is executing its operations in Edinburgh, United Kingdom. It offers different types of meals to the customers such as brunch, lunch, dinner etc. Now it has planned to work on a project of establishing one more branch of it in the same city as it has acquired success in establishing good brand image in the market. Main aim of this project is to be easily accessible for the clients and attract prospects. It will be the change driving factor for the business because with the help of it higher revenues could be generated and market share could be enhanced. There are various other projects have been undertaken by The Little Chatroom. One of them is renovation which was undertaken by restaurant to attract more and more clients. It is related to the current project of the enterprise because because both of them are focused with attracting large number of customers so that profits could be maximised.

The new project which is going to be undertaken by The Little Chatroom is also related to business operations because successful completion of it will results in increased operations due to enhancement in number of customers. For manager of the enterprise it is very important to execute all the operational activities appropriately so that the employees that are working on the project can perform all the tasks in proper manner.

There are various environmental factors that are required to be focused by project manager of The Little Chatroom. All of them with brief description are as follows:

• Cultural and social: For all the business entities it is very important to meet expectations and requirements of clients by complying with cultural and social factors. As The Little Chatroom is planning to open a new outlet in Edinburgh so it is very important for the managers to identify such elements and try to comply with them. For this purpose, enterprise is required to analyse education level, income, status, buying behaviour, belief etc. of targeted customers so that they could be attracted towards restaurant.
• Physical environment: Includes noise, lighting, indoor air quality etc. While finding a new location for the new branch of The Little Chatroom it is very important for project manager to take all these factors in to consideration as it can help to attain the objectives such as attracting large number of customers. It is vital to select a location where there is no noise because people want to spend their time at such place where they can get peace. Managers also have to pay attention at lightning and air quality of restaurant so that customers can be satisfied with the services.
• International and political: While opening a new branch in the city project managers also have to focus on political forces as The Little Chatroom is required to take permission from government to open a new outlet in Edinburgh. If they are not able to do the same then it can leave negative impact upon the project and operations by resulting in governmental interference in business.
• Climate: One of the main factor is climate which should be focused by the manager because it can leave negative impact upon the new project. When a new building is manufactured and the climate is not good then it can create difficulties for the organisation to accomplish the goals successfully. Managers in The Little Chatroom are required to focus on climate so that such food items could be prepared that fits to the seasonal requirements of customers.

Project management is an effective tool for small businesses because it guides managers to formulate appropriate strategies for successful completion of project. With the help of it all the plans could be monitored, analysed, assessed and controlled so that the goals that are established could be achieved successfully. Small businesses such as The Little Chatroom implements the technique of project management as it is very beneficial for them. It helps to estimate cost of the whole task, schedule processes, evaluate success of plan and guides to take appropriate steps for the purpose of controlling unfavourable events which may take place in future.

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List of methods that are going to be used to gather requirements and reason behind their use

While working on a project different methods are used by managers to gather requirements. As The Little Chatroom is going to open a new outlet in Edinburgh so it is also vital for its managers to use methods to analyse needs of this project. All of them which will be used by them are discussed below:

Waterfall: It is a combination of five different elements which are requirements, design, implementation, verification and maintenance. It will be used by project manager of The Little Chatroom while working of the project because it is an easy to understand method which reduced rigidity in the tasks. Main reason behind its use is that it helps to process and complete phases one at a time so that possibility of errors could be reduced.

Prince2: This method is used for effective project management method which helps to accomplish all the goals successfully. Manager of The Little Chatroom will use it for the purpose of delivering the project on time under the predetermined budget. Another reason for using it is that it helps to enhance communication which clarifies roles and responsibilities of each employee.

Strategies which will be employs to ensure scope creep is managed

In order to make sure that a project will meet the scope creep will be managed or not then it is vital for the manager to use different strategies. Two plan of actions that are going to be used by The Little Chatroom are as follows:

Finalising project details: This strategy is used by project manager of The Little Chatroom in order to make sure that all the details that are used by them to complete the project are appropriate or not. With the help of it they can analyse that scope creep is managed or not because it helps them to double check all the information.

Setting clear expectations: It is the second strategy which is used by project manager of The Little Chatroom for the purpose of setting clear goals so that employees can work for the attainment of it. With the help of it scope creep can be managed because staff members can work productively to reach the goal with the help of it.

Work breakdown structure to depict high level summary of project

Work breakdown structure: It is a structure which is used by business entities to segregate all the tasks in a structured format. The WBS which is generated by project manager of The Little Chatroom is as follows:

Stakeholders and their influence on project

In order to analyse influence of stakeholders of the organisation it is vital for managers to use project management tool. From the above work break down structure it has been assessed that stakeholders of The Little Chatroom will be customers, employees etc.

Customer will influence the project by buying the food items that are sold to them. If restaurant is not able to offer them such items that they are willing to have then it can result negatively and affect success of project. Employees can influence the project because they are responsible for execution of all the operations. If they are not able to perform productively then it will affect project adversely.

Explanation of communication mechanisms that are employed to manage and engage stakeholders

Project story to manage and engage stakeholders: The Little Chatroom is a small restaurant which is established in Edinburgh. Now it is willing to open a new outlet in the same city for the purpose of increasing number of customers and profit. For this purpose, detailed information to the stakeholders such as customers and employees will be provided with the help of advertising and formal meetings. Organisation has planned to use new theme in the new outlet to make it attractive. The clients who will visit it on first day will get 50% off on each meal and a coupon which could be redeemed by them in future. The employees who are working with restaurant will receive bonus on the successful establishment of restaurant.

Techniques that are used to identify the risks

Thee are various methods or techniques to measure business risk when organization expand their operational functions. Some of it discussed below:

• Maximise probable risk: It is one of the risk measurement methods which helps the organization to analyse their future risk through maximise probable loss. In this case, manager of Little Chatroom analyse maximum value where company could loss in any specific situation. So they build their strategy according to it and it further helps in decision making process. Here, manager evaluate the risk by using value at risk process where they measure assets risk in some situations.
• Frequency of loss: In this method, organization measure the frequency that how many times business fail the loss situation in particular time period. If organization already face the loss in the past, they they use historical data for the further analysis. But in case of Little Chatroom which initial use this method to measure loss. They have to follow proper procedure to analyse frequency of loss.

Above mention techniques adopt by the Little Chatroom to measure their risk and analyse the loss which they can bear in the initial stage of business.

Initial risk register for the project

When any organization expands their business, they have to face lots of problems. This includes various risks which have the potential to become a barrier for the project undertaken by the organization. In this context, Little Chatroom has identified critical risk points through the preparation of risk register mentioned below:

Application of Delphi Technique to analyse identified risks

For the purpose of mitigating substantial risks for a given project, a manager may implement various project management tools that not only help in the identification of risks but also in critically evaluating them. In the context of given case scenario, the chief identified risks relate to Finance, Safety and Reputation. Through the implementation of Delphi Technique, the project manager is able to forecast the future events in an effective manner. This is due to the fact that Delphi accurately estimates the likelihood and future outcomes which are then reviewed by a group of experts who share their views and opinions in the form of a summary report.

Two main root causes of project failure typical to similar project

In the context of given case scenario, Little Chatroom has decided to open another restaurant chain in the Edinburgh region. For any restaurant chain project, it is essential to keep in mind certain variables without which chances of failure of a given project magnify. Keeping this mind, the two main root causes of project failure typical to similar project are discussed as under:

• Lack of Financial Resources: If the budgeted costs are in deficit of the actual capital expenditure incurred by the organisation, it may result in creation of bottlenecks which may further block the restaurant's working capital in a significant manner. Thus, creating a gap between availability of financial resources and their application in various areas of the given project.
• Poorly defined Project Scope: If the project scope is not defined in an accurate manner, it may result in overall failure of the project. This is due to the fact that under (over)mining the scope may result in the under(over)achievement of overall goals which may cause problems in its successful completion.

Way in which project management processes, tools and techniques discussed during the unit can reduce the risk of failure

Through the implementation of risk management and development of risk mitigation plans in the form of risk register, various procedures, tools and techniques help in the prompt identification as well as reduction of failure. Any project management process is a detailed set of activities which require completion of certain steps so as to progress further. Thus, implementation of such methodologies ensures that any kind of risk substantially minimized.

Conclusion

From the above project report it has been concluded project management is a process which is used by business entities to manage and control different projects in order to enhance profitability of the organisation. It is an effective tool which is beneficial for small business entities as it guides managers to formulate appropriate decisions, analyse market situations etc. While working on a project it is vital for the handler to follow different phases of PLC, set budget and formulate a plan so that quality, cost, scope and time could be controlled and managed. It is also vital to identify risks which can affect success of a business or result in failure of project.

References

• Batselier, J. and Vanhoucke, M., 2015. Evaluation of deterministic state-of-the-art forecasting approaches for project duration based on earned value management.International Journal of Project Management. 33(7). pp.1588-1596.
• Chiocchio, F., Kelloway, E. K. and Hobbs, B. eds., 2015.The psychology and management of project teams. Oxford University Press.
• De Marco, A., 2014.Project management for facility Constructions. Springer.
• Fernandes, G., Ward, S. and Araújo, M., 2015. Improving and embedding project management practice in organisations—A qualitative study.International Journal of Project Management. 33(5). pp.1052-1067.
• Gustavsson, T. K. and Hallin, A., 2014. Rethinking dichotomization: A critical perspective on the use of “hard” and “soft” in project management research.International Journal of Project Management. 32(4). pp.568-577.
• Gutiérrez, E. and Magnusson, M., 2014. Dealing with legitimacy: A key challenge for Project Portfolio Management decision makers.International Journal of Project Management. 32(1). pp.30-39.
• Korhonen, T., Laine, T. and Martinsuo, M., 2014. Management control of project portfolio uncertainty: A managerial role perspective.Project Management Journal. 45(1). pp.21-37.
• Martens, M. L. and Carvalho, M. M., 2016. The challenge of introducing sustainability into project management function: multiple-case studies.Journal of Cleaner Production. 117.pp.29-40.

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