Project Management Discussion 6&7

Week 6 DISCUSSION

Your project sponsor and customer are impressed with your project schedule, but due to some factors out of your or their control, you’ve been told to deliver your project early. Using the information from the readings, explain how you would go about assessing the possibility of delivering your project early. How will that affect scope, costs, and schedule? Should you "crash" the project or use another approach? What will determine your decision?

Be sure to respond to at least one of your classmates’ posts.

Like all projects, I have built in a safety net so to speak. In most cases something comes up, like a plumbing issue or sub flooring issue, or anything else. In this case the customer wants the project delivered early. It just so happens I have multiple days that can be combined into other days. Therefore I can cut my project down by 4 or 5 days. In this case I will shorten it from 14 days to 10 days. It will not cost the customer anything more. In all reality it will save them some money. By combining days we will work longer hours on those days. But, it will actually save them 2 full days of labor cost. This will not really change the scope of work other than the timeline. I will still deliver the project the way the customer wants and when they want it. My dedication to customer satisfaction has determined my decision. The more customers you make happy, the more people they tell. Word of mouth can both help you or hinder you.

SHAWN

Week 7 DISCUSSION

In Week 6, your project sponsor informed you that you have to deliver your project much sooner than anticipated. When you break the news to your team, they are not happy with the decision; they are concerned that the project will now fail. Using the information from the readings, what can you do as a leader to reassure your project team that this is the right thing to do? What will you do to motivate them? Remember that they are professionals and that threats or traditional carrots may not work.

Hello Class & Professor,

     With breaking the news to my team, it's expected for them to be unhappy that we need to speed up production. Planning my approach is just as important as delivering the information. Knowing the information wouldn't be received well, I would be sure to have a plan in place to not only succeed in achieving the deadline, but to also make sure my team was in good spirits and understood the mission and the "why" behind it. Making sure your team understands the reasons behind a change can help speed up the acceptance process.

     Also, I am a team player meaning I dont mind rolling up my sleeves and helping with the load. Part of my strategy would include Management by Wandering Around (MBWA). This is not to bully anyone or seem like I am observing or above anyone. This is to show the team that I am fully committed to the project and focused on the end goa. Interacting with them as "we" work and focused on building relationships with my employees helps build rapport and trust within the workplace. This will also help my team embrace change and shows inclusion on my part. People are less likely to be negative towards a situation when they see that it's truly a team effort. Managing upward relations and having great interpersonal skills is the key. There's a saying that people dont quit jobs, they quit management. I have found this to be so true.

     As I stated in the beginning, having a clear plan/ approach is extremely critical to the teams perception to the change and to the effectiveness/ quality of the project results. I would make sure they understand the budget, I would consider their ideas to help with productivity and provide additional resources if needed. And last but not least, recognition. Even the smallest, simpliest "thank you" goes a long way. I would recognize all accomplishments no matter how small. And who doesn't like a fun/ competitive incentive? I would be sure my team is compensated for their willingness to embrace change even though it was unexpected. All these factors discussed not only help the project run smoothly but helps build a strong team and work culture. 

KRYSTAL