Project Management Case Study
Global Construction (a construction company) employs 100 full-time employees in ten different countries. They spend an average of $1,000 per employee for training, which is higher than the industry average. However, the productivity of workers, especially in the sales, purchasing and information technology departments has not improved much in recent years. In the fast-paced, ever-changing construction market, training employees about new products, new technologies, and soft skills across globally dispersed company with different population is a challenge. Global Construction asks you to develop a new training program that provides training to employees on key topics, including supplier management, negotiating skills and project management.
Answer the following questions (you can make assumptions in answering the questions).
Provide a Risk Management Procedure for this project according to PRINCE2.
- Define 2 quality criteria for the main output of this project.
- Explain what planning horizon problem is and how PRINCE2 overcomes that?
Question 1 Case study:
a) Provide a Risk Management Procedure for this project according to PRINCE2.
The first step in any risk management procedure is to identify the risks. In this case, the risks could include employees not being properly trained on new products and technologies, leading to lower productivity and sales. Other risks could include employees not being able to adapt to new soft skills or not being able to work effectively in a globally dispersed company (Hinde, 2018). The risks associated with this project include the following: The possibility that employees will not be able to effectively learn new skills and knowledge due to the training program; The possibility that the training program will not be able to improve employee productivity as desired; and the possibility that the cost of the training program will be higher than expected.
Once the risks have been identified, the next step is to evaluate their risks. This includes determining the likelihood of the risk occurring and the potential impact of the risk. The risks associated with this project should be analyzed regarding their potential impact and likelihood of occurrence (Hinde, 2018). You should determine whether each risk is low, medium, or high.
Once the risks have been assessed, the next step is to develop a plan to address the risks. This plan should include what steps will be taken to mitigate or eliminate the risks. Several strategies can be used to mitigate the risks associated with this project, including the following: Developing a training program that is tailored to the needs of each department, Ensuring that the training program is interactive and engaging, and making sure that the training program is regularly updated to reflect changes in the construction market (Hinde, 2018). For each risk, you should determine what actions will be taken and who will be responsible for taking the actions.
The next step after assessing the risks is implementing risk mitigation strategies (Hinde, 2018). This involves implementing the risk mitigation strategies developed in Step 3 to reduce the risks associated with this project.
The final step in the risk management procedure is to monitor and review the risks. The risks associated with this project should be monitored and reviewed regularly to identify any new or emerging risks (Hinde, 2018). This step includes periodically assessing the risks to see if the actions taken to mitigate them are effective. It is also important to review the risks after any changes are made to the project to ensure that the new risks are identified and addressed.
b) Define two quality criteria for the main output of this project.
The training program should be designed to meet the requirements of employees in different departments and at different levels of experience.
The training program should be flexible and responsive to the ever-changing needs of the construction industry.
Question 2 Short answer question:
Explain what the planning horizon problem is and how PRINCE2 overcomes that.
The planning horizon problem is a challenge that organizations face when trying to create long-term plans. The problem is that the further into the future you try to plan, the more uncertain the future becomes. This can make it difficult to decide what to do today that will still be relevant in the future. PRINCE2 overcomes this problem by using a rolling wave approach to planning. This means that instead of trying to plan everything out in detail upfront, you create a high-level plan that covers the next few months. As you get closer to the end of that period, you create a more detailed plan for the next few months (Hinde, 2018). This process repeats itself, so you always have a plan relevant to the current situation. This approach allows you to be flexible and adapt to changes instead of being locked into a plan that may no longer be relevant. It also means that you don’t have to spend much time and effort creating detailed plans that may never be used.
Reference
- Hinde, D. (2018). PRINCE2 Study Guide: 2017 update. John Wiley & Sons.